> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.xpander.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Tableau

> Learn how to integrate AI agents with Tableau using xpander.ai. Create intelligent dashboards that deliver contextual insights, automate data-driven decisions, and enable natural language interactions for a seamless analytics experience.

## About Tableau

Tableau is a visual analytics platform that empowers individuals and organizations to explore and understand data through interactive visualizations.

Key features include:

* **Interactive Data Visualization**: Drag-and-drop interface to create dashboards, charts, graphs, and maps without coding.

* **Wide Data Connectivity**: Connects to multiple data sources such as Relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, Oracle), cloud services (Google BigQuery, AWS Redshift, Snowflake), spreadsheets (Excel, CSV, Google Sheets), and web connectors (APIs).

* **Geospatial & Mapping Capabilities**: Built-in geocoding and mapping for creating geographic visualizations.

* **Natural Language & AI Features**: Natural language queries for instant insights and AI-driven explanations of outliers and patterns.

* **Dashboard Interactivity**: Filters, actions, and parameters for interactive dashboards.

## Authentication Options

Below are possible authentication options you can choose:

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="API Access">
    ### Generate a Tableau API Token

    1. Log in to your [Tableau Cloud or Tableau Server account](https://www.tableau.com/tableau-login-hub).

    2. In the sidebar of your account dashboard, click the gear icon. Under the **General** tab, find the **Personal Access Tokens** section.

    3. Check the box for **Enable personal access tokens**, then click **Save**.

           <img src="https://mintcdn.com/xpanderai-099931d1/sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf/images/connectors/tableau/img_1.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf&q=85&s=e0b9ddcf74909af45e13e207ae80dee8" alt="Img 1" width="3298" height="1538" data-path="images/connectors/tableau/img_1.png" />

    4. Click your profile icon at the top right of the dashboard, then select **My Account Settings**.

    5. In the **Settings** tab, locate the **Personal Access Tokens** section. Enter a name for your token and click **Create token**.

           <img src="https://mintcdn.com/xpanderai-099931d1/sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf/images/connectors/tableau/img_2.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf&q=85&s=6057405e6527e2be8442bf812f810b67" alt="Img 2" width="3350" height="1576" data-path="images/connectors/tableau/img_2.png" />

    6. Copy your personal access token and save it securely before closing the dialog box.

    7. Obtain an authentication token by executing the following request:

    ```
    curl -X POST "https://{YOUR_SERVER_NAME}/api/3.26/auth/signin" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{
        "credentials": {
        "personalAccessTokenName": "YOUR_PAT_NAME",
        "personalAccessTokenSecret": "YOUR_PAT_SECRET",
        "site": {
            "contentUrl": "YOUR_SITE_NAME"
        }
        }
    }'
    ```

    Replace **personalAccessTokenName** and **personalAccessTokenSecret** with the token name and secret you obtained above.

    You can find your server name and site name in your Tableau URL. For example, if your URL is: [https://dub01.online.tableau.com/#/site/xpandersandbox2-577b145t/](https://dub01.online.tableau.com/#/site/xpandersandbox2-577b145t/), then:

    * Server name: dub01.online.tableau.com
    * Site name: xpandersandbox2-577b145t

    8. Save the authentication token you obtained somewhere safe.

    ### Integrate Tableau into xpander.ai

    1. In your xpander.ai dashboard, go to the **Connectors** section in the sidebar.
    2. Select **Tableau** from the available integrations.
    3. Click **Enable**.
    4. Enter a **connector name**, e.g., "xpander-tableau".
    5. Choose **Integration User** as the authentication mode.
    6. Select **API Key** as the authentication method.
    7. Paste your Tableau authentication token into the provided field.
    8. Set the **Auth Type** to **Custom**.
    9. Write **X-Tableau-Auth** as the custom header name.
    10. Under **Interface specific settings**, enter the base URL: `https://{server}/api/{api-version}`. Replace `{server}` with the server name of your Tableau account and `{api-version}` with the API version, such as 3.26.
    11. Save the configuration.

            <img src="https://mintcdn.com/xpanderai-099931d1/sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf/images/connectors/tableau/img_3.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf&q=85&s=66fbb4bf81fd3efdfc6b7f5798b6ecd9" alt="Img 3" width="3412" height="1713" data-path="images/connectors/tableau/img_3.png" />
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Integration of Tableau into AI Agent

Once you've configured your Tableau account with the authentication option(s) described above, you can integrate it into your AI agent with xpander.ai:

1. In your xpander.ai dashboard, go to the **Agent Configuration** tab and select **Tools**, then click **Add Tools**.
2. Select **Connectors**.
3. Choose **Tableau** with the same **connector name** you configured in the previous section (e.g., xpander-tableau).
4. Select the available Tableau operations that suit your use case.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/xpanderai-099931d1/sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf/images/connectors/tableau/img_4.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf&q=85&s=3c89f1c5937690321740fca7b3a31acc" alt="Img 4" width="3410" height="1715" data-path="images/connectors/tableau/img_4.png" />

## Expose Tableau as MCP Server

Alternatively, you can also expose your Tableau account as an MCP server. To do so:

1. Go to the **Connectors** section in the sidebar of your xpander.ai dashboard.
2. Select **Tableau** with the same **connector name** you configured in the previous section (e.g., xpander-tableau).
3. Click **MCP Configuration**.
4. Enter the MCP configuration into the appropriate settings of the client app you want to use (e.g., Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Desktop, etc.).

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/xpanderai-099931d1/sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf/images/connectors/tableau/img_5.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=sRFk58mKeQVVrCwf&q=85&s=e667648b9695defbe717521cc9766309" alt="Img 5" width="3447" height="1712" data-path="images/connectors/tableau/img_5.png" />

## AI Agent Tableau Prompt Library

Below are possible prompts or use cases you can try after integrating Tableau into your xpander AI agent:

```
Can you get me the usage statistics for this {content_type} with ID {content_item_id} so I can analyze how frequently it's being accessed?
```

```
Can you show me all the sites available in our Tableau environment and their configuration details?
```

```
Can you retrieve the current data for metric {metric_id} in site {site_id} to analyze recent performance trends?
```

```
Can you remove the default user permission for user {user_id} from data sources in project {project_id} within site {site_id}?
```

## Related Resources

* [Understanding Model Context Protocol (MCP)](/guides/deploy/mcp)
* [Tableau API Documentation](https://help.tableau.com/current/api/rest_api/en-us/REST/rest_api.htm)