Data Connection Manager Guide

[MeganBowers]

Table of Contents

• Why DCM?
• Alteryx One
• Core Concepts
• Journeys by Persona
• Gallery Admins
• Workflow Builders (Developers)
• Connectors
• Advanced Topics
• Integrating Secrets and APIs
• Migrating Legacy Data Connections
• Troubleshooting
• Schema/validation issues
• Server/auth issues
• Need Help?

Welcome to the Alteryx Data Connection Manager (DCM) guide. If you’ve ever found yourself re-entering the same credentials again and again, struggling to keep track of your data sources, or wondering how to safely share connections with your team, this guide is for you.

DCM provides a secure, centralized hub for managing all your data connections in one place, so you can spend more time analyzing data and less time on administration.

To understand the foundational concepts of Data Connection Manager, take this interactive lesson:

Why DCM?

Below is how most organizations currently connect to data: Individual connections per data source, per user, per workflow.

Now, let's see how most organizations want to connect to data: A secure, governed, centralized hub where access can be provisioned:

By configuring connections once and syncing them with Server or the Alteryx One Platform, admins eliminate credential sprawl, reduce errors, and enforce governance. Users can then consume shared connections without direct credential access, simplifying onboarding and maintenance while strengthening security. Logging and handling rules further give admins the oversight needed to keep environments consistent and reliable.

DCM streamlines how you work with data in Alteryx. By storing your credentials securely, linking them to your data sources, and enabling safe sharing across your team, it ensures that access to data is both seamless and governed. With DCM, you set things up once and reuse them everywhere.

Example DCM end-user setup

Alteryx One

Alteryx One expands the capabilities of Desktop Designer into the cloud, including the ability to build, orchestrate, and run your workflows in the cloud. For customers who choose a hybrid approach, they can continue to use the Desktop Designer client they know and love and automate those workflows at scale in the cloud. In order to take advantage of this functionality, DCM is required to ensure that credentials are securely stored and accessible.

Core Concepts

At its heart, DCM is built on three building blocks: credentials, data sources, and connections.

• Credentials: The secure keys that unlock your data.
• Data Sources: The systems and platforms where your data lives.
• Connections: The bridges that link credentials to data sources so you can query them in workflows.

It is essential to determine your organization or individual team’s strategy around creating these connections – some organizations or teams prefer a self-service models, while others are connecting to more sensitive data that may require more centralized control. The section below includes details and resources to help you determine the DCM strategy that fits you best.

Working with credentials also requires a strategy—review this knowledge article on Implementing Credential Execution Strategies with DCM to understand connection sharing models and more.

A list of supported data sources can be found in the help docs here.

For an in-depth walkthrough on connections, check out the article Sharing and Syncing DCM Connections.

Permissions and ownership are also central concepts. They determine who can use, share, or edit a connection

Journeys by Persona

Sharing responsibly is key to scaling DCM. Implementing Data Connection Manager into your Governance Model provides comprehensive governance strategies for Admins, Developers, and Viewers.

Aspect	Autonomous             Governance	Democratic      Governance	Centralized      Governance
DCM Assets Created By	Users with unrestricted access	Trusted Developers and/or Admins	Admins only
Credential Sharing	Enabled for collaboration and execution (Server only)	Enabled for collaboration and execution	Execution-only via Connection Handling Rules
Oversight	Not centralized; users manage their own connections	Admins monitor usage and configure connection handling as needed	Full admin control over creation, sharing, and usage
Suitable for	Development environments, small functional deployments	Regional or semi-autonomous teams, controlled deployments with user flexibility	Highly regulated industries (healthcare, finance, government)

Gallery Admins

Admins are responsible for setting up and maintaining the DCM environment. Learn how to configure and synchronize it here: Setting Up the DCM Environment and Syncing with Server.

Workflow Builders (Developers)

Developers can build workflows with shared connections and upload confidently using DCM: Developing Designer Workflows with Shared Connections and Uploading Them to Server.

This guide on Setting Up DCM Connection Handling Rules provides a solid foundation for managing rules and ensuring workflows connect consistently to data.

Connectors

To set up DCM for a connector for the first time as an end user, follow this video walkthrough:

DCM supports a wide array of connectors and authentication methods, including OAuth and basic authentication. Below is an example of using basic authentication for an InDB tool connection:

Advanced Topics

Integrating Secrets and APIs

Review How to store and use API credentials securely utilizing DCM to understand API credential management.

Additionally, the External Vault feature allows you to connect DCM with your Vault of choice. Thus, you can use External Vaults in DCM to fetch credentials from your Vault and securely use them in your workflow.

Migrating Legacy Data Connections

To simplify the shift from Data Connections to DCM Connections, starting with the Server 2024.2 release, it is possible to migrate all Data Connections and respective workflows to be replaced by DCM Connections.

First, it is necessary to migrate each data connection and then trigger the migration of workflows. To understand how to use the DCM Migration Tool in Alteryx Server, watch this walkthrough:

Read this corresponding Community blog post, How to migrate Server Data Connections to DCM, for more information.

Troubleshooting

When something breaks, start by enabling logs: How to enable DCM logs. Then look for the specific error. Below are some go-to resources for common troubleshooting flows.

Schema/validation issues

• Schema is not valid error with DCM
• Alteryx Designer: Error: "Invalid JSON" when validating Snowflake connection in DCM

Server/auth issues

• DCM credential not working on server
• TLF-3141: Can't Synchronize DCM to Server
• Unable to enable DCM in Designer access denied
• Error "Incorrect decryption parameters" when synchronizing DCM connections with Alteryx Server
• ":"NoneType" object has no attribute "get" when running workflow in Gallery with SharePoint DCM conn...
• DCM toggle is not enabled

If the issue appears connector-specific (e.g., SharePoint, Snowflake), fix the DCM issue first, then follow the connector’s own tips.

Need Help?

Post your DCM question in the Designer Desktop discussion forum to get a response from our active community of Alteryx users. You can also search the Knowledge Base for error resolutions.

If your question seems to be an opportunity for Alteryx to make improvements, please submit your idea to Alteryx Ideas.  Some of our best features are based on feedback from users.

A final option for DCM issue resolution is to submit a case in MyAlteryx to engage the Alteryx Customer Support team.  Check out this how-to guide on case creation to get started.