Step-by-Step Guide on Integrating FlutterFlow with Looker
Integrating FlutterFlow, a low-code application development platform, with Looker, a powerful data analytics tool, can enable building robust applications that harness the power of data analytics. This guide will walk you through the process step-by-step.
Prerequisites
- FlutterFlow account
- Looker account
- Basic understanding of Flutter and Looker
- API keys for both FlutterFlow and Looker
Step 1: Set Up Looker API Access
- Log in to Your Looker Instance
- Navigate to your Looker instance through the web browser and log in with your credentials.
- Generate API Credentials
- Click on your profile picture on the top-right corner and go to Admin.
- In the Admin panel, find the Users section, and select the user you want to generate API credentials for.
- Go to the API3 Keys tab and click on New API3 Key.
- Copy the Client ID and Client Secret. Store these safely as you'll need this information later.
Step 2: Install FlutterFlow and Set Up Project
- Log In to FlutterFlow
- Navigate to FlutterFlow and log in with your credentials.
- Create a New Project
- Click on Create New Project and select a template or start from scratch.
- Name your project and configure initial settings as needed.
- Configure API Calls
- Navigate to the API Calls section in your FlutterFlow project dashboard.
- Click on Add API and fill in the details:
- Name: Name your API call appropriately.
- Request Type: Set this to Custom API.
- Method: Choose GET for retrieving data, POST for sending data, or as suitable for your use case.
- URL: Enter the endpoint URL where your Looker API will respond.
Step 3: Authenticate API Calls with Looker
- Add Authorization Headers
- Within your API configuration, go to the Headers section.
- Click on Add Header and add the following two headers:
- Authorization: Bearer [Your_Looker_API\_Token]
- Content-Type: application/json
- Handle Authentication
- Looker APIs require authentication tokens for every request.
- Use the Client ID and Client Secret obtained earlier to make a request to the Looker OAuth Endpoint to retrieve an access token.
- Save this token and configure FlutterFlow to use it in the authorization headers.
Step 4: Design Your FlutterFlow UI
- Add Widgets
- Use the FlutterFlow drag-and-drop interface to add widgets like Text fields, Buttons, and Containers to design your application user interface.
- Bind Data to Widgets
- Bind the data fetched from Looker API to your widgets.
- For example, if fetching user data, bind the user name to a Text widget and user statistics to Charts or similar data visualization widgets.
Step 5: Execute API Calls and Handle Responses
- Bind API Calls to Actions
- Add an action to your widget which will trigger the Looker API call.
- For instance, you can configure a button to fetch data when clicked.
- Process API Response
- Go to the Output tab of your API call configuration and define the structure of the response you expect.
- Map the response data to your widgets for dynamic data display.
Step 6: Test the Integration
- Use the FlutterFlow Preview
- Click on the Preview button to test your application within FlutterFlow.
- Check if the data from Looker is being correctly fetched and displayed as expected.
- Debugging
- If there are issues, use the debugging tools within FlutterFlow to inspect the API calls, check for status codes, and validate the response data.
- Ensure that Looker API permissions and roles are properly set up and that the right scopes are authorized.
Step 7 (Optional): Deploy and Iterate
- Deploy Your Application
- Once satisfied with the integration, you can deploy your application using FlutterFlow.
- Follow the deployment guide in FlutterFlow to publish your application on various platforms like Android, iOS, and Web.
- Iterate and Improve
- Gather user feedback and iterate on your application by refining the UI, improving API calls, or adding new features.
- Continuously integrate new Looker data insights to keep your application data rich and user-friendly.
By following these steps, you can efficiently integrate FlutterFlow with Looker, enabling your application to leverage powerful data analytics right within its interface.