Hi everyone,
I'm currently doing my professional internship and working on a reporting project that integrates with Databricks through Unity Catalog functions.
The reporting application is external to Databricks and uses Data Sources, Parameters, Result Sets, Grids, Charts, and Report Definitions to build dashboards. Existing reports consume data through functions referenced by a URI pattern similar to:
fn://catalog.schema.function_name@DATABRICKS.UNITYCATALOG
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My mentor provided an existing report as a starting point and asked me to use it as a template for the new development. The report is already functional and contains the complete structure, including Data Sources, Parameters, Result Sets, Grids, Charts, and Report Definitions. My task is to understand how those pieces work together and then adapt or replace them to support a different dataset.
The challenge is that the new dataset does not currently have equivalent Unity Catalog functions available.
As guidance, my mentor suggested creating temporary functions first, using a pattern such as:
SQL
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CREATE OR REPLACE TEMPORARY FUNCTION `catalog.schema.function_name`
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RETURNS TABLE (...)
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RETURN ...
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The idea is to prototype the expected interface, validate the returned schema locally with the reporting application, and later create the permanent Unity Catalog functions if the design works correctly.
My mentor has already given me a clear direction, but as an intern I am still connecting the dots and trying to understand the complete flow from temporary functions, to production Unity Catalog functions, to the final report displayed in the application.
Has anyone worked on a similar integration between an external dashboard/reporting application and Databricks?
Any guidance, recommendations, or examples would be greatly appreciated.
I'm still pretty new to this area, so honestly I'm feeling a bit lost and trying to understand the correct path before I spend time going in the wrong direction 😅.
Thanks in advance! 👍
