What?
So this is going to be an article with a bunch of pictures showing step-by-step of how I setup a recurring data source in Zoho Analytics via FTP.

Why?
The use-case here is that I have a client who wants to import data via FTP (SFTP - to be precise) and have this available to their Zoho apps. My aim(s) are:

  1. Setup recurring FTP connection.
  2. Make data readily available to ZohoCRM.

How?
Well, let's setup the FTP connection first in Zoho Analytics:
  1. Login to Zoho Analytics
  2. Click on "Data Sources" in the left sidebar then click on "Add Data Sources" in the top right:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Select Data Sources and click on Add Data Source
  3. Type FTP in the filter field in the top right and there should be a single FTP option displayed to you:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Type FTP in the filter and select the FTP option
  4. Step 1 of 2: Give the datasource the table name it will have in Zoho Analytics, a description and then enter in the FTP details as per your configuration, then click on "Next":
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Select Data Sources and click on Add Data Source
  5. Step 2 of 2: specify whether first row are headers/column/field names. If necessary, specify the format of the data per column (in this example, I highlight the Date column, it then prompted me what format this is in, eg. dd/MM/yyyy):
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Specify Data Format for Import
  6. You will then be shown a summary of your import:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Imported Data Summary
  7. You can then setup a schedule for the import to automatically download the data file regularly:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Setting up a Schedule to regularly download the file
  8. After all that you will be shown your data table:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Select Data Sources and click on Add Data Source


Additional Note(s):
Here are some notes & settings you may need on your quest to setup Zoho Analytics FTP Data Sources:
  • Zoho Analytics IP Addresses to whitelist (if necessary): 
    // EU Data Centers
31.186.226.0 - 31.186.226.255
185.20.209.0 - 185.20.209.255
87.252.213.0 - 87.252.213.255
84.207.209.0 - 84.207.209.255
185.20.211.0 - 185.20.211.255
31.186.243.0 - 31.186.243.255
89.36.170.0 - 89.36.170.255
217.163.72.0 - 217.163.72.255
213.244.146.0 - 213.244.146.255
185.230.214.0 - 185.230.215.255

// US Data Centers
136.143.178.0 - 136.143.179.255
136.143.176.0 - 136.143.177.255
136.143.190.0 - 136.143.190.255
  • The file on the FTP server to download can be of type: CSV, TSV, Text, Excel, MS Access DB, HTML, JSON, XML and others:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: File Types
  • Supports server types of FTP, FTPS - File Transfer over Explicit TLS/SSL, FTPS - File Transfer Over Implicit TLS/SSL, and SFTP - SSH File Transfer Protocol on a Port number of your choosing:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Server Types
  • Set for new imports to append, replace, or check if exists then insert/replace:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Append, Replace, Insert New
  • Schedule to repeat: Every X Hours, Every Day, Weekly, Monthly:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Repeat
  • Schedule with Timezone specified (click on the "(Change)" link next to timezone:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Change TimeZone

Error(s)
  • Unable to import file from the FTP server:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Error Importing File
  • Unable to connect to the FTP server:
    Zoho Analytics: Setup DataSource via FTP Connection: Error Connecting to Server