Tableau published data source

Question

Need help with tableau .tdsx usage.

Current Process: - We publish and refresh data sources (packaged .tdsx) to the tableau server. Our customers download the data sources and build ad hoc reports for their business needs.

Problem: - If the customer already build some views last month, is there a way to download the latest ‘.tdsx’ file and use it in the existing workbook were they created the views.
Today, the customer is re-creating the views using each month updated ‘.tdsx’ files.

Can you suggest a better way to achieve this? I can provide more details if it is needed.

Note: - Publishing a packaged workbook (.twbx) with views in it is not feasible as the reporting requirement varies most of the months.

Answer 1

• You make sure that your customer connects directly to the published data source from Tableau Desktop -- i.e. connect to the data source on the Tableau Server. That way they automatically see the data changes when they next refresh when you publish an updated copy of the data source.

• While working with published data sources, there are some pros/cons. The biggest con is that if you are changing the data source itself dramatically - e.g. revising calculated fields, aliases, etc, - you may need to first download a copy, edit that, and then republish if you want others to see your changes.