> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.summand.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Fivetran

> Connect to anything Fivetran supports — Databricks, Redshift, Oracle, SaaS APIs — without giving Summand your source credentials.

Fivetran is Summand's universal connector. Instead of building native drivers for every database and SaaS API, Summand reads the Parquet output of a Fivetran-managed sync. Available on **Enterprise** plans.

## When to use Fivetran

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Sources Summand doesn't support natively" icon="circle-check">
    Databricks, Redshift, BigQuery, Oracle, MongoDB, plus 300+ SaaS sources (Salesforce, HubSpot, Stripe, etc).
  </Card>

  <Card title="You want to keep credentials away from Summand" icon="lock">
    Source credentials only live in Fivetran. Summand sees only the Parquet output.
  </Card>

  <Card title="You already use Fivetran" icon="bolt">
    Reuse your existing Fivetran account and credit pool. No duplicate sync.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Your source is rate-limited" icon="gauge">
    Fivetran handles incremental sync, retries, and rate-limit backoff for you.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## How it works

```
You: pick a source in Summand           ──┐
Summand: provisions Fivetran group +     │
         destination + connection         │
Fivetran Connect Card popup opens       ──┘
You authenticate with your data source ──┐
                                          │
Fivetran syncs to Summand's S3 bucket    │
as Parquet                               │
                                          │
You click Refresh in Summand             │
Summand reads Parquet → curated Parquet  │
→ Glue catalog → semantic layer          ──┘
```

You never interact with Fivetran's UI. Summand provisions the Fivetran account, group, and destination on your behalf — you only authenticate with the source itself, in a popup.

## Setup

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pick a source">
    From **Connectors → Add connector → Fivetran**, choose your source type (Databricks, Salesforce, etc.).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Authenticate in the Fivetran popup">
    A Fivetran-hosted Connect Card opens in a popup. Authenticate with your source — OAuth, API key, or username/password depending on the source. Credentials go directly to Fivetran; Summand never sees them.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Wait for the first sync">
    Fivetran's first sync may take from a few minutes to several hours depending on source size and rate limits. You'll see *Pending first sync* on the connector card until the first batch lands in S3.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pick tables and configure datasets">
    Once the first sync completes, Summand discovers the schemas and tables. From there, configuration is identical to a native database connector — pick tables, set targets, click *Analyze*.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Refresh

After the initial sync, **Refresh** in Summand re-reads Fivetran's most recent Parquet output. It does *not* trigger a new Fivetran sync — Fivetran syncs run on whatever schedule is configured in your Fivetran account (every 1, 5, 15, 60 minutes etc.).

To force a fresh sync from the source, trigger it from your Fivetran dashboard or wait for the next scheduled sync, then click *Refresh* in Summand.

<Note>
  Webhook-driven auto-refresh — where Summand re-runs analysis as soon as Fivetran finishes a sync — is on the roadmap. Until then, refresh is manual.
</Note>

## Billing

Fivetran charges based on **monthly active rows (MAR)** — the count of distinct rows synced per month. Summand's bill is independent of this; we charge the standard Enterprise rate regardless of how much data Fivetran moves.

If you already have a Fivetran account, you can connect Summand to it instead of having Summand provision a new one. Contact sales to set this up.

## Limitations

* **Latency:** Refresh shows the most recent Fivetran sync, not real-time data.
* **Storage:** Parquet output stays in Summand's bucket; we manage retention.
* **Schema changes:** Handled automatically — adding/removing columns in the source propagates on the next sync, then on the next Summand refresh.
* **Custom transformations:** Fivetran's transformations layer is supported, but Summand reads the post-transformation output. Plan accordingly.