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Datablast Docs

Google Cloud BigQuery

BigQuery

Section titled “BigQuery”

Datablast connects to Google BigQuery via a Service Account. Follow the steps below to generate a JSON key and create the connection.

1. Google Cloud Prerequisites

Section titled “1. Google Cloud Prerequisites”

Create a Project & Dataset

Section titled “Create a Project & Dataset”
  1. Sign in to the Google Cloud Console.
  2. Create or select the project you will use with Datablast.
  3. In BigQuery, create a Dataset that will hold your tables.
  4. Enable the BigQuery API (and Google Drive API if you plan to import Google Sheets).

Create a Service Account

Section titled “Create a Service Account”
  1. Navigate to IAM & Admin → Service Accounts → + CREATE SERVICE ACCOUNT.
  2. Enter a service account name (e.g., datablast-bigquery); the ID is generated automatically.
  3. Click Create & Continue.
  4. Under Grant this service account access, add the roles:
    • BigQuery Data Viewer
    • BigQuery User
  5. Click Done to finish.

Service account list

Generate a JSON Key

Section titled “Generate a JSON Key”
  1. Locate the service account in the list and open the Keys tab.
  2. Click Add key → Create new key.
  3. Choose JSON and click Create. The file downloads to your computer (you can download it only once).

Service account key

2. Add the JSON Key to Datablast

Section titled “2. Add the JSON Key to Datablast”
  1. Open the downloaded .json file in a text editor and copy its entire contents.
  2. In Datablast, go to Settings → Connections → Add Connection → BigQuery.
  3. Paste the JSON into the Service Account Key field.
  4. Copy the project_id from the JSON file into Project ID.

💡 If you lose the key, you must create a new one from Google Cloud.

3. Create the Connection

Section titled “3. Create the Connection”
FieldDescription
Connection NameFriendly name shown in the UI
Project IDYour Google Cloud project ID
Dataset IDThe BigQuery dataset to query
Service Account KeyRaw JSON copied in step 2
Description (optional)Notes for your team

Create connection form

After saving, Datablast redirects you to the table selection screen.

4. Select Tables

Section titled “4. Select Tables”

All tables in the dataset are listed. Select the ones you need—Datablast creates a Data Model for each table.

Select tables

5. Define Relationships

Section titled “5. Define Relationships”

If primary/foreign keys exist in BigQuery, Datablast suggests relationships automatically. Otherwise click Add Relationship and configure them manually.

Define relationships

Section titled “Useful Links”

Keep your JSON key secret and rotate it periodically according to your security policies.