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Connect to Google Cloud Datastore

Learn how to connect Google Cloud Datastore to Retool.

You can use the Google Cloud Datastore integration to create a resource and make it available in Retool. Once complete, your users can write queries that interact with Google Cloud Datastore data.

Requirements​

The Google Cloud Datastore integration requirements depend on whether you have a cloud-hosted or self-hosted Retool organization. You may also need to make Google Cloud Datastore configuration changes before creating the resource.

Sufficient user permissions to create resources

All users for Retool organizations on Free or Team plans have global Edit permissions and can add, edit, and remove resources. If your organization manages user permissions for resources, you must be a member of a group with Edit all permissions.

Allow your deployment to access the data source

Your self-hosted deployment must have access to the data source. Ensure that any potential firewall rules for either the data source or your deployment instance are updated to allow them to communicate.

Google Cloud Datastore settings and authentication

You must have sufficient access and familiarity with your Google Cloud Datastore data source so you can provide:

  • Required connection settings (e.g., URL and server variables).
  • Authentication credentials (e.g., API keys).

In some cases, you may need to make changes to your Google Cloud Datastore configuration, such as generating authentication credentials or allowing access through a firewall. Refer to the configuration and authentication sections to learn more.

Google service account

Authenticate with a service account tied to a Google Cloud project. This method allows users to give Retool access to certain APIs or data with the service account's email address.

Retool recommends using service account authentication when you need to share credentials across users but limit Retool's access to a subset of data. This authentication flow restricts Retool's access to APIs or data shared with the service account email address only.

Refer to Google's service account documentation to learn more.

Configure the resource​

Sign in to your Retool organization and navigate to the Resources tab. Click Create new > Resource, then select Google Cloud Datastore.

Configuration​

Specify the name, location, and description to use for your Google Cloud Datastore resource. Retool displays the resource name and type in query editors to help users identify them.

Provide the following configuration settings to create the resource. Depending on how your data source is configured, you may also need to provide optional settings for Retool to connect.

Name

The name to use for the resource.

Description

A description of the resource. If enabled, Assist uses the Description to gain additional context about the resource. This setting has a max length of 600k characters.

Connector version

The connector refers to the method with which Retool connects to Google Cloud Datastore and performs requests. Retool may release new connector versions to support new features and functionality in Google Cloud Datastore. It's recommended you use the most recent connector version unless you have a specific use case that requires an earlier version.

Where possible, new connection versions are backwards-compatible. Available connector versions and notable changes are listed below.

2.0.0

  • Minor improvements.

1.0.0

Using a previous connection version is not recommended. You should only select this version if instructed by Retool.

  • First connector version.

Authentication​

The Google Cloud Datastore integration supports the following authentication methods. Depending on which authentication method you use, you may need to make changes to your Google Cloud Datastore configuration.

Google service account

Authenticate with a service account tied to a Google Cloud project. This method allows users to give Retool access to certain APIs or data with the service account's email address.

Retool recommends using service account authentication when you need to share credentials across users but limit Retool's access to a subset of data. This authentication flow restricts Retool's access to APIs or data shared with the service account email address only.

Refer to Google's service account documentation to learn more.

Refer to the Google developer documentation for details on creating a service account key.

Test the connection​

Click Test Connection to verify that Retool can successfully connect to the data source. If the test fails, check the resource settings and try again.

Testing a connection only checks whether Retool can successfully connect to the resource. It cannot check whether the provided credentials have sufficient privileges or can perform every supported action.

Save the resource​

Click Create resource to complete the setup. You can then click either Create app to immediately start building a Retool app or Back to resources to return to the list of resources.

Next steps​

Your Google Cloud Datastore resource is now ready to use. Check out related queries and code documentation to learn how to interact with Google Cloud Datastore data.