Salesforce ODBC connection string parameters

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