Pipeline Cloud is EveryAction/NGP VAN’s data replication solution that gives you direct access to your raw data, making it possible to run ad hoc SQL queries, connect with business intelligence software, or develop custom integrations.
With access to your EveryAction/NGP VAN raw data, you can:
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gain fundraising insights or improve outreach using deep analysis;
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provide redundancy using data warehousing;
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implement custom integrations with third-party systems;
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and more!
Pipeline Cloud is designed to make data access transfers as quick and easy as possible, with minimal setup costs and no burden on customers to host or maintain the data itself. Unlike with some other solutions, you won't be expected to manage a complicated ETL process, support your own databases or data warehouses (though you may wish to, alongside Pipeline Cloud), or be responsible for the security and stability of the data. And all data in Pipeline Cloud is updated continuously, in near-real-time.
How it works
With Pipeline Cloud, your organization will be provided with access to a cloud-based Azure SQL Database, hosted on the Microsoft Azure Cloud and managed by EveryAction/NGP VAN. Access to the database is simple and as easy as accepting your invitation, selecting your query tool, and setting up your authorization credentials.
EveryAction/NGP VAN pushes data from your EveryAction/NGP VAN account into a private Azure SQL Database database provisioned just for your data and your access. Our Pipeline solution monitors and pulls changed data and tables into your database using middleware software developed for this task. Note that Pipeline Cloud is a one-way solution – to write data into EveryAction/NGP VAN from a third-party system, you may use our bulk upload tool or the APIs described at https://docs.everyaction.com/ and https://docs.ngpvan.com/.
Pipeline gives you access to the data you have collected as you run your organizations and campaigns so you can use it however you need to. This includes all the core objects available to you based on the package you have purchased. Note that the following system-generated data is not included in the Pipeline:
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Administrator-facing tables – Pipeline Cloud does not include proprietary tables with no relevance to supporters or their behaviors. This includes things such as user security or user permissions.
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Audit trail tables – Pipeline Cloud does not provide historical information on how a specific field value or record has changed over time.
How to: Connect to Pipeline Cloud
Connecting to Pipeline Cloud is a simple and secure process.
Before you begin, you’ should download and setup Microsoft Authenticator mobile app to support multi-factor authentication, which is required in order to ensure your data stays secure. You can get additional help with this from the Microsoft help center.
Once you’ve purchased Pipeline Cloud, you will receive an invitation to join EveryAction/NGP VAN's application hosting platform. That invitation will guide you through the next steps for setting up a login and password for your account.
After logging in, you will see a landing page where you can download additional database access tools such as SQL Server Management Studio (PC) and Azure Data Studio (for Mac and PC). You can then use one of these tools (or the command line if you prefer) to enter your server address and your credentials. You will then be prompted to use Microsoft Authenticator to authorize the connection to your database.
User Guide: Getting the most from Pipeline Cloud
We want you to succeed with Pipeline Cloud so we’ve put together some helpful resources in our User Guide to jumpstart your learning. The User Guide includes:
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SQL Syntax Tips for Pipeline Cloud queries (including how to make joins, select the top N records, concatenation, and so on)
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answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
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Best Practices for working with your database
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Troubleshooting tips
Developer Documentation: Data Dictionary and ERD for Pipeline Cloud
To help you get the most from your Pipeline Cloud integration, we provide a complete listing of all available tables and fields in a downloadable Data Dictionary. There are also several Entity Relationship Diagrams (ERDs) available that provide a visual description of how our tables relate to each other. These resources are designed to help you quickly start writing and customizing your SQL queries to meet your needs.
View our Developer Documentation
Alternate search terms: Pipeline, Cloud, Azure SQL, Overview, Data Dictionary, ERD, SQL, Syntax