dotConnect for FreshBooks

Connect FreshBooks Data With .NET Application Easily

dotConnect for FreshBooks is an ADO.NET provider for working with FreshBooks data through the standard ADO.NET or Entity Framework interfaces. It allows you to easily integrate FreshBooks data into your .NET applications, and integrate FreshBooks services with widely used data-oriented technologies.

dotConnect for FreshBooks has the same standard ADO.NET classes as other standard ADO.NET providers: FreshBooksConnection, FreshBooksCommand, FreshBooksDataAdapter, FreshBooksDataReader, FreshBooksParameter, etc. This allows you quickly get started with it and eliminates the need to study any FreshBooks data access specificities.

dotConnect for FreshBooks makes it simple to create .NET applications in C#, VB, or other languages, working with FreshBooks data. It's powerful design-time editors together with seamless Visual Studio integration allow you to work with FreshBooks data with less efforts and less code writing. See how easy it is with dotConnect for FreshBooks.

Features

• Access live FreshBooks store data
• Perform aggregations & JOINs for data analysis
• Encrypted connections protect your data
• Improves performance by processing queries locally
• Simplifies data access with Entity Framework integration
• Design EF models visually in your IDE
• Streamlines development with design-time features
• Simplifies data access and manipulation in Visual Studio

Compatibility

The following table show which version of this package to use with which version of frameworks.

More information here

Usage

To establish a connection to server you have to provide the required connection parameters to dotConnect for FreshBooks. This information is used by FreshBooksConnection component to connect to FreshBooks. The parameters are represented as a connection string. You can compose the connection string manually or have dotConnect for FreshBooks construct it for you.

The following connection string parameters are required:

API Version - FreshBooks API version to use. The list of other required parameters depends on the selected version: New FreshBooks API (Alpha) or FreshBooks Classic API (Classic).

Host - FreshBooks service URL, derived from the account URL, for example: https://sample.freshbooks.com/api/2.1/xml-in . This parameter is used when connecting via Classic API.

Authentication Token - An automatically generated key that is used for connecting to FreshBooks. This parameter is used when connecting via Classic API.

Access Token - The OAuth access token for FreshBooks. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

Client Id - The client id, obtained from the app settings in your developer FreshBooks account. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

Client Secret - The client secret, obtained from the app settings in your developer FreshBooks account. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

Company Name - The name of the company to data of which to connect. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

OAuth Storage - The path to a file, where to store FreshBooks Access and Refresh Token between sessions in order to avoid the need to re-authorize the application. You may either provide Access Token and Refresh Token via the connection string, or create a text file with two lines in it that are your two tokens (without quotes, semicolons, names of parameters etc, just two values) and specify the path to this file in the OAuth Storage parameter. Access Token should be on the first line, Refresh Token - on the second line. dotConnect for FreshBooks automatically creates/updates the file by the specified file when Access Token expires and is regenerated. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

Refresh Token - An automatically generated key that is used for refreshing the authentication token when it expires. Note that a new refresh token is generated and assigned automatically every time when the authentication token is refreshed. This parameter is used for connecting via Alpha API.

This snippet directly configures a FreshBooks connection using a connection string.

freshbooksConnection.ConnectionString = "API Version=Alpha;Access Token=3d3355b2beea67f9241400fbe28f0b116e3efd2f8a85dda3c35620acdc95cd60;Refresh Token=75836f50da63fc5bf81bb24598511ae131ea422e73d9f321b4c4a44e2dd1c67f;Company Name=Devart";

Read full documentation for connection here.

Creating Connection in Server Explorer

To create a Server Explorer connection, you just need to:

1. Click Connect to Database on the Server Explorer toolbar 2. If the FreshBooks Data Source is not selected by default, click the Change button. 3. Select FreshBooks Data Source (dotConnect for FreshBooks) and click OK. 4. Specify the FreshBooks API Path, your user id and authentication token.

Power of SQL

dotConnect for FreshBooks allows you to perform SQL queries against your FreshBooks data. Use SQL statements to work with FreshBooks accounts, contacts, leads, contracts, products, campaigns opportunities, and other objects.

Our provider offers full CRUD (Create, Read, Update, and Delete) support and allows you to get FreshBooks data with SELECT statements and manage data with INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE statements.

No need to study and use complex FreshBooks API, just use familiar SQL statements. You may use complex JOINs, WHERE conditions, etc. - all the SQL benefits, not available with FreshBooks API.

Entity Framework Support

dotConnect for FreshBooks allows you to access FreshBooks data via Entity Framework - Microsoft's recommended data access technology. It supports Entity Framework and Entity Framework Core, and enables you to use the following Entity Framework features with FreshBooks data:

• LINQ to Entities (no need for FreshBooks API)
• Entity relations with lazy/eager loading
• No need to post each edited/created object separately - a single SaveChanges() call to persist all the changed objects

dotConnect for FreshBooks provides enhanced Entity Framework support for FreshBooks data with a bundled visual designer for ORM models with Visual Studio integration - Entity Developer. Standard Visual Studio Entity Data Model designer is also supported.

FreshBooks Data Binding

• Build your data access layer without writing code manually
• Configure dotConnect for FreshBooks components in powerful design-time editors
• Bind data grids and other controls to FreshBooks data just by configuring the smart tags
• Work with FreshBooks data just like with a database

License

See pricing options for ordering.

Trial Limitations

The dotConnect for FreshBooks Evaluation License lets you try dotConnect for FreshBooks Trial Edition for a period of 30 days. You may not use applications developed using Trial versions of the Software for any commercial purposes.

Support Area

Documentation Request form Feedback page Product history