Data extraction in Tableau creates a subset of data from the data source. This is useful in increasing the performance by applying filters. It also helps in applying some features of Tableau to data which may not be available in the data source like finding the distinct values in the data. However, the data extract feature is most frequently used for creating an extract to be stored in the local drive for offline access by Tableau.

Creating an Extract

Extraction of data is done by following the menu – Data → Extract Data. It creates many options such as applying limits to how many rows to be extracted and whether to aggregate data for dimensions. The following screen shows the Extract Data option.

Applying Extract Filters

To extract a subset of data from the data source, you can create filters which will return only the relevant rows. Let’s consider the Sample Superstore data set and create an extract. In the filter option, choose Select from list and tick mark the checkbox value for which you need to pull the data from the source.

Adding New Data to Extract

To add more data for an already created extract, you can choose the option Data → Extract → Append Data from File. In this case, browse the file containing the data and click OK to finish. Of course, the number and datatype of columns in the file should be in sync with the existing data.

Extract History

You can verify the history of data extracts to be sure about how many times the extract has happened and at what times.

For this, you can use the menu – Data → Extract History.