Salesforce ODBC connection string parameters

Last modified: July 25, 2025

The following table describes the key connection string parameters for connecting to Salesforce via the ODBC driver.

Authentication

Parameter	Description
`Authentication`	Specifies the authentication method used to connect to Salesforce. If not specified, defaults to password-based authentication.
`OAuth`	Enables OAuth 2.0 authentication for connecting to Salesforce.

Server configuration

Parameter	Description
`Server`	Specifies the Salesforce server URL. Supported domains include `salesforce.com`, `force.com`, and `database.com`. The default value is `login.salesforce.com`..
`User ID`	Specifies the Salesforce username, required for password-based authentication.
`Password`	Specifies the Salesforce password, required for password-based authentication.
`Security Token`	Specifies the security token, required for password-based authentication.
`Refresh Token`	Specifies the OAuth 2.0 refresh token, required for OAuth 2.0 authentication.

Proxy settings

Parameter	Description
`ProxyServer`	Hostname or IP address of the proxy server.
`ProxyPort`	Port number for the proxy server.
`ProxyUser`	Username required for proxy authentication.
`ProxyPassword`	Password required for proxy authentication.

Advanced settings

Parameter	Description
`AllowNullStringsInMetadata`	Allows metadata retrieval even when some parameters contain NULL values, ensuring compatibility with third-party tools that pass NULL. The default value is `True`.
`EmptyStringsAsNullInMetadata`	Converts empty strings to NULL when retrieving data. The default value is `True`.
`Cache Metadata`	Configures metadata caching. Available options: `False` – Caching is disabled. `Hour` – Cached metadata is reset every hour. `Day` – Cached metadata is reset daily (every 24 hours). `Month` – Cached metadata is reset monthly. `True` – Metadata caching is permanent until the driver is unloaded.
`Connection Timeout`	Sets the timeout (in seconds) for establishing a connection. The default value is `60` (seconds).
`Include Deleted`	Specifies whether to include deleted records in query results. The default value is `False`.
`ODBC Behavior`	Defines ODBC behavior for compatibility with third-party tools. Available options: `Default` – Default ODBC behavior. `Ver 2.x` – Explicitly sets ODBC 2.x behavior. `Ver 3.x` – Explicitly sets ODBC 3.x behavior.
`RegionalNumberSettings`	Enables local regional settings for converting numbers to strings. The default value is `False`.
`RegionalDateTimeSettings`	Enables local regional settings for converting dates and times to strings. The default value is `False`.
`ReturnForeignKeys`	Specifies whether to include foreign keys in metadata queries, which may impact performance. The default value is `False`.
`String Types`	Defines the type of string data returned: `Default` – The driver defines the string types. `Ansi` – Returns string data as `SQL_CHAR`, `SQL_VARCHAR`, and `SQL_LONGVARCHAR`. `Unicode` – Returns string data as `SQL_WCHAR`, `SQL_WVARCHAR`, and `SQL_WLONGVARCHAR`.
`Query Timeout`	Sets the timeout (in seconds) for query execution. The default value is `60` (seconds).
`UTC Dates`	Specifies whether datetime values should be returned as UTC or converted to local time. The default value is `False`.

Sample connection string

The following sample Salesforce ODBC connection string uses password-based authentication.

DRIVER={Devart ODBC Driver for Salesforce};Server=login.salesforce.com;User ID=your_salesforce_username;Password=your_salesforce_password;Security Token=your_salesforce_security_token

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