canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/help.tableau.com/tableau

# Help Tableau Tableau REST API

Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for Tableau REST API, keeping it validated and agent-ready. This slice of the Tableau REST API focuses on analytics extension settings and Ask Data lenses on Tableau Server and Tableau Cloud. It lets administrators configure server- and site-level analytics extension policies, register external analytics extension connections, and manage which connection a workbook uses. It also exposes Ask Data lens management, including listing and creating lenses for guided natural-language analytics. This is the right surface for ops teams automating BI governance rather than dashboard authoring.

## For AI agents

Configure Tableau analytics extension settings and manage Ask Data lenses on Tableau Server and Tableau Cloud through a JSON REST API.

## Scope

Does not author dashboards, manage data sources, or run extracts - use for analytics extension governance and Ask Data lens management on Tableau Server and Tableau Cloud only.

## Capabilities

- Read and update server-level analytics extension settings via /api/-/settings/server/extensions/analytics
- Read and update site-level analytics extension settings
- List, create, update, and delete analytics extension connections per site
- Set or remove the analytics extension connection that a specific workbook uses
- List Ask Data lenses available on a Tableau site
- Create new Ask Data lenses for guided natural-language exploration

## Use cases

### Governing Analytics Extensions Across Sites

Tableau admins responsible for many sites can use the analytics extension settings endpoints to enforce consistent policy - turning extensions on, off, or restricting to a vetted list of connections. Pulling current settings via GET and pushing PUTs from a config repo turns Tableau analytics extension governance into a code-reviewed change. This is essential when extensions call out to external compute that may run customer data through a third party.

Example prompt: GET /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics for each site, then PUT the policy that matches the desired baseline.

### Self-Service Workbook Extension Binding

When a workbook author requests a different analytics extension, an admin can rebind the workbook through PUT /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/workbooks/{workbook_luid}/selected_connection without opening the Tableau UI. The same endpoint set lets a service desk script confirm which connection a workbook is using and remove it on offboarding. This shortens the request loop for analytics extension changes.

Example prompt: PUT /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/workbooks/{workbook_luid}/selected_connection with the new connection LUID.

### Provisioning Ask Data Lenses

Teams rolling out Ask Data to business users can create lenses programmatically through POST /api/-/askdata/lenses, scoping each lens to a curated dataset and synonym set. Listing lenses via GET supports a self-service portal that shows users which lenses are available to them. This avoids hand-clicking lens creation when a department onboards dozens of analysts.

Example prompt: POST /api/-/askdata/lenses with the dataset, synonyms, and permissions for each new business team.

### AI Agent Auditing Tableau Extension Usage

An AI agent acting as a governance assistant can call Tableau through Jentic to enumerate analytics extension connections, list which workbooks bind to each connection, and flag any drift from policy. The Tableau auth token sits in your Jentic One instance and the agent works from declared schemas, so audits are repeatable and the agent does not need read access to the Tableau admin UI. This pattern fits well alongside other governance agents over BI tooling.

Example prompt: Search Jentic for 'list tableau analytics extension connections', load GET /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/connections, and execute, then iterate workbook bindings.

## Key endpoints

| Method | Path | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GET | /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics | Get site-level analytics extension settings |
| PUT | /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics | Update site-level analytics extension settings |
| GET | /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/connections | List analytics extension connections |
| POST | /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/connections | Create an analytics extension connection |
| PUT | /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/workbooks/{workbook_luid}/selected_connection | Set the selected connection for a workbook |
| GET | /api/-/askdata/lenses | List Ask Data lenses |
| POST | /api/-/askdata/lenses | Create an Ask Data lens |

## Key resources

- **Analytics Extensions Settings** — Server-, site-, and workbook-level analytics extension configuration
- **Ask Data Lenses** — List and create Ask Data lenses on a Tableau site

## Why Jentic

- **Setup:** Wiring the Tableau REST API by hand means signing in to exchange credentials for an X-Tableau-Auth token, carrying that token on every call, and pointing requests at your own Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud host. Through Jentic you install once, import the Tableau REST API from the API Directory, store the credentials once, and your agent calls it.
- **Permission scoping:** These analytics-extension and Ask Data settings apply at the site level and the target travels in the request body, so limit the agent to the operations it needs, such as listing analytics extension connections or reading Ask Data lenses. You choose the operations it may call, so writing extension settings or creating a connection is only included if you add it.
- **Credential handling:** Your Tableau credentials and the X-Tableau-Auth session token are stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. They never enter the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
- **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'list Tableau analytics extension connections' or 'read Ask Data lenses', and Jentic returns the matching Tableau operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without reading the Tableau REST API reference.

## Related APIs

- **Tableau Platform API** — Broader Tableau platform endpoints for workbook and site management
- **Google Sheets API** — Spreadsheet-based reporting and lightweight BI
- **Airtable API** — Operational database that can feed Tableau as a data source

## FAQ

### Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for Tableau REST API?

Tableau publishes documentation but no fully validated OpenAPI specification for these endpoints. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call the Tableau REST API via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started with Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer.

### What authentication does the Tableau REST API use?

These endpoints use Tableau's session token via the X-Tableau-Auth header. Tokens are obtained from Tableau's sign-in flow on the parent server. Jentic stores the credentials used to obtain a token in its vault and supplies the X-Tableau-Auth header at execution time.

### Can I list analytics extension connections on a Tableau site?

Yes. GET /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/connections returns the connections configured for the site, including their LUIDs and connection metadata. Use the LUID with the /workbooks subpath to bind a specific workbook to a chosen connection.

### What are the rate limits for the Tableau REST API?

Tableau Cloud applies per-site rate limits that vary by edition; Tableau Server is bounded by host capacity. Cache settings reads where possible and avoid tight loops over the analytics extensions connections list.

### How do I create an Ask Data lens through Jentic?

Search Jentic for 'create a tableau ask data lens', load the POST /api/-/askdata/lenses schema, and execute with the dataset reference and lens metadata. Jentic supplies the X-Tableau-Auth header from the vault.

### Can I rebind a workbook to a different analytics extension?

Yes. PUT /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/workbooks/{workbook_luid}/selected_connection sets the selected connection for a specific workbook. DELETE on the same path removes the binding entirely.

### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Tableau REST API?

Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself, you decide which Tableau operations the agent may call, so you can grant it read-only actions like listing analytics extension connections (GET /api/-/settings/site/extensions/analytics/connections) or reading Ask Data lenses (GET /api/-/askdata/lenses) and withhold the rest. Write operations such as updating site-level analytics extension settings, creating a connection, or rebinding a workbook are only available to the agent if you add them. These settings apply at the site level and the target travels in the request body, so scoping the allowed operations is how you control the blast radius.