Frequently Asked Questions

OdataLink is a cloud service that sits between your accounting system and your reporting tools.

You connect your Xero organisation, MYOB company file or QuickBooks company. Each of these is what we call a data file. You then create a model to choose exactly what is exposed: which data files, which endpoints (types of data such as Invoices, Customers and Suppliers), which users, and which IP addresses.

OdataLink gives you an OData feed URL, which you paste into Power BI, Excel or any other tool that supports OData. When you refresh a report, the request goes through OdataLink straight to your accounting system and brings back the latest data. There is no separate reporting database to build, maintain or keep in sync.

Most people are pulling live data within minutes. There are three steps:

1. Sign up to OdataLink and connect your Xero organisation, MYOB company file or QuickBooks company.
2. Create a model to choose what data to expose.
3. Copy your OData feed URL into Power BI or Excel.

See the Getting Started Guide for a walkthrough.

No. OdataLink is entirely cloud based, so there is no software, driver or gateway to install.

The technology needed is already built into most tools, such as Excel, Power BI and Fabric, through Power Query.

Yes. We have ready-made sample OData feeds you can copy and paste straight into Power BI or Excel, no Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks account required.

We don’t publish the sample OData feed URLs directly on the site, since anyone (or any bot) could hit them constantly and put unnecessary load on our servers. Instead, we’ll send them straight to you.

If you would like a sample data feed, please click here, or email us at contact@odatalink.com.

No. The trial does not require a credit card. The full functionality of OdataLink is available during the trial, so you can properly evaluate the product.

No. You can use our ready-made templates to connect your data and see your reports straight away, with no technical skill needed.

If you prefer to build your own reports, our tutorials show you how. Building from scratch does take some Power BI or Excel skill.

We’re also always available to give advice, or you can engage one of our partners to build reports for you. Book a call or jump onto live chat to talk it through.

Data files are the generic term we use for a company’s accounting data.

Xero calls them organisations. In Xero you switch between them using the dropdown in the top-left corner of the menu bar.

MYOB AccountRight and MYOB Business call them company files. In MYOB AccountRight you select one when you first start the software.

QuickBooks calls them companies.

Models exist to let you secure your data. Each model controls:

• The data files that can be accessed
• The endpoints that can be queried
• The IP addresses permitted through the firewall
• The users who can access the data

This is how you decide exactly what is exposed, to whom, and from where.

Endpoints represent specific types of data you download from your data file, such as Invoices, Customers or Suppliers. We use the term endpoint rather than table because the data is hierarchical.

For example, InvoicesExpanded in Xero also includes Contacts, Invoice Lines, Payments, Prepayments and Overpayments.

For the full explanation see What are Endpoints?

Yes, both. OdataLink gives you the full transaction-level detail from your accounting system, including journals, so you can drill all the way down to the individual transactions behind any number.

Because you have the detail, you can also roll it up into summaries, such as Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet, using our ready-made templates or reports of your own.

Yes, for MYOB. OdataLink can now write data into MYOB, and this will be fully live in a few weeks.

For Xero and QuickBooks, OdataLink is currently read-only, so it cannot create, alter or delete anything in your accounting system. For many of our customers that is a security feature rather than a limitation, and we are working on adding write capability for them as well. Get in touch if that is something you would like to use.

Yes. Access is controlled at the model level, before anything is exposed. You choose which endpoints are included, which users can connect, and which IP addresses are permitted.

This means you can give a consultant access to your sales ledger without ever exposing payroll.

Yes. You can invite users to your account and control exactly what each of them can reach through the model settings.

No. Currently, we do not charge for users, and every paid plan includes unlimited users.

Yes. Because OdataLink delivers clean, structured data through a standard OData feed, it works with AI tools that read structured data. Common approaches include:

• Pulling data into Excel via Power Query, then using an AI add-in to analyse it
• Loading it into Microsoft Dataverse so Copilot Studio agents and Power Apps can work with it
• Asking Copilot for Power BI questions of the same live feed

Need more guidance? Contact us for a short Teams call, or jump onto live chat.

No. You choose what AI has access to. Access is controlled by the model, so an AI tool can only work with the endpoints you include. If payroll is not in the model, it is not available to anything downstream.

Not yet. An MCP server is on our roadmap. In the meantime, AI tools can work with your data through Power Query, Excel, Dataverse and Power BI.

Yes, within the same accounting system. Add as many Xero data files as you need to a single model and OdataLink creates a consolidated feed automatically. The same applies to MYOB and QuickBooks. There is no mapping exercise and no manual merge.

Each model covers one accounting system, so if your group has entities in both Xero and MYOB, you will need a separate model and feed for each.

You can report on each entity individually, or on the consolidated group view, from the same feed.

No. Our templates work for both single-company and consolidated reporting. Point a template at a consolidation feed instead of an individual company’s feed, and it picks up all of your companies straight away.

You create a consolidation feed by adding the Xero organisations, MYOB company files or QuickBooks companies you want included to a model. OdataLink brings the data from each one together for you, so there is nothing for you to merge. Each model covers one accounting system, so a model can hold several Xero organisations or several MYOB company files, but not a mix of the two.

You can add or remove companies from a consolidation feed at any time without needing to edit any models or reports built on it.

You can also use one model for both single-company and consolidated reporting. Which one you get depends on whether you point it at a single company’s feed or a consolidation feed.

Yes, but you need to transform the data yourself. You can combine data from Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks by using Power Query to transform it so that the names from the different platforms match.

We are looking at creating a standardised model, which will present data from each platform in a common structure, so it can be combined into one set of reports.

What is possible depends on which endpoints you need, because each platform structures its data differently. Contact us to book a short Teams call and we can go through this with you, or jump onto live chat.

Eliminations, foreign exchange handling and custom account mapping are handled through our advanced templates and consulting services rather than automatically out of the box.

Book a short Teams call to talk through your group structure and we will explain the options, or jump onto live chat.

We have templates covering everything from high-level financial statements, such as Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet, Trial Balance and Cash Flow, through to Aged Receivables, Aged Payables, reconciliations and budget analysis, right down to transaction-level detail. They are available for both Power BI and Excel, across Xero and MYOB, with QuickBooks templates coming soon.

See the full list on the Templates page.

Yes. All our templates are free to download and use. There is no extra charge and no separate template licence.

See the full list on the Templates page.

Yes. They are built on standard Power BI and Excel with no proprietary format and no lock-in. You can adjust them yourself, hand them to any Power BI consultant you already work with, or engage our team or one of our partners.

Want to talk about any customisations you need? Contact us to book a short Teams call, or jump onto live chat.

No. OdataLink does not replicate your ledger into a separate reporting database. Your data stays in Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks, and reports read from the source.

Smart Archiving is optional. If you choose to use it, OdataLink stores pages of your data in encrypted form to improve performance, and you can switch it off entirely.

Only if you choose to use Smart Archiving. Smart Archiving is optional. When it is on, OdataLink stores pages of your data in encrypted form to improve performance. When it is off, OdataLink does not retain your accounting data.

Either way, OdataLink stores configuration settings and internal database identifiers (GUIDs) so it can provide access to your data. These are stored without any context beyond making OdataLink aware that the data exists.

No. All data is encrypted while it passes through OdataLink, and any archived data is also encrypted when it is stored. Only the OdataLink software can decrypt it.

OdataLink employees also have no access to your OData feeds unless you invite them to your account.

Yes. You can clear archived data from OdataLink’s system at any time. In addition, any data downloaded through OdataLink that goes unused for four months is automatically deleted from the archives.

OdataLink servers are located in Australia and the UK. We run on Microsoft Azure, and you can choose whether your data is stored and processed in Australia or the UK, whichever suits your business.

Australian servers are the default. The UK servers help UK and European customers meet GDPR data residency requirements.

Yes. OdataLink is built and run by Accounting Addons, an Australian company, and our support team is based in Australia.

We support UK and European GDPR data residency requirements by giving customers the choice to host their data on our UK servers instead of our default Australian servers. You choose the region when you set up your account.

Privacy and data residency requirements differ from country to country. If you have specific compliance requirements, get in touch to book a short Teams call and we can talk through your situation, or jump onto live chat.

Security is controlled through your model, which lets you decide who can access what, and from where:

• Which companies. Choose which Xero organisations, MYOB company files or QuickBooks companies can be accessed.
• Which data. Choose which endpoints can be queried, so sensitive data such as payroll never has to be exposed.
• Which users. Choose which users can access the data.
• Which IP addresses. Each model includes a built-in firewall where you specify which IP addresses are permitted to access the feed.
• Username and password. Set up authentication on a feed so only someone with the correct username and password can pull data from it.

Yes. You can revoke access at any time. Disable a specific OData feed and it stops working entirely, or disable a user so they can no longer pull data in, without affecting anyone else’s access.

Real Time. There is no resync, because there is no sync. Most tools in this space work by periodically copying your data into a database, so you are always waiting on the next sync to see current numbers.

OdataLink is real time. When you refresh a report, that call goes straight to your accounting system and pulls the latest data. There is no delay, no waiting, and nothing to resync.

This is where Smart Archiving comes in. It has two parts, working together:

• Smart Archiving stores pages of data you mark as unlikely to change in encrypted blob storage, so they don’t need to be fetched from the source every time.
• Polling checks for changes on a schedule you control, and only pulls fresh data from the source when something has actually changed.

Together, this gives you the near-performance of a replicated data warehouse, without paying for one, and without giving up live data. You get both: fast, and current.

Smart Archiving is an optional feature that stores pages of your data in encrypted form and only pulls what has changed since the last request.

The result is performance similar to a replicated database, without the replication delay, the cost, or a second unencrypted copy of your ledger.

With Smart Archiving enabled, repeat queries and drill-downs read from your encrypted archive rather than calling the accounting API every time, which substantially reduces API usage.

Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks each impose their own platform limits. If you are running a large number of data files or very frequent refreshes, book a free call for a quick session to discuss the right configuration, or jump onto live chat.

Yes. Filters and sorts are pushed back to the source, so you pull only the records you need rather than downloading everything and filtering afterwards.

As often as you need. Because the connection is live rather than scheduled, there is no overnight sync to wait for. Refresh on demand and you get current data.

You can, and AI makes a first version faster to write. But a live connector that holds up in production runs into problems that are easy to underestimate:

• Accounting platforms limit how many API calls you can make per minute and per day. Pull too much, too often, and your integration simply stops working until the limit resets.
• Some platforms charge for the data you pull. Always pulling live with no caching strategy can cost more than you expect, and it scales with usage in ways that are hard to predict upfront.
• Some endpoints do not support the filtering you would expect. Get this wrong and you end up pulling far more data than you need, burning through your limits even faster.
• Every platform changes its API over time. Someone has to keep the integration working through every version change, new scope rollout, and edge case, indefinitely.

AI can help write the retry logic and the caching layer, but it does not make the ongoing maintenance disappear. A live connector becomes a permanent piece of infrastructure someone on your team now owns. OdataLink is that infrastructure, already built and maintained, so your team does not have to be the one maintaining it.

Pricing is based on the number of data files you connect. Each plan includes a set number, with larger plans costing less per data file, and you can add more as you grow.

You do not need to work out which plan fits. When you subscribe we automatically select the cheapest plan for your number of data files. All prices are in Australian Dollars, include GST if applicable, and are billed monthly.

See the Pricing page for the full breakdown.

Yes, as an approximate guide. The Pricing page has a currency selector that shows approximate prices in New Zealand dollars, US dollars, British pounds, euros, Canadian dollars, Singapore dollars and South African rand.

All charges are billed in Australian Dollars (AUD). The amount you pay in your own currency depends on the exchange rate your bank or card provider uses when you are charged, so it may differ from the conversion shown.

Yes. You can add data files to any plan as you grow, and we will move you to the cheapest plan for your new total.

No. Plans are billed monthly with no lock-in contract. You can change plans or cancel at any time.

Yes. But to provide it without adversely impacting paying customers, it has restricted features and is throttled.

The Free Edition is also unsupported. It exists so people can learn and experiment. It is not intended for building real-world reports, dashboards or business solutions, and we do not recommend it for serious use.

For the complete terms see the EULA.

Your accounting data has always lived in Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks, so cancelling OdataLink does not affect it. Any archived data will be automatically deleted.

All of them. OdataLink works with every Xero plan, whichever tier you are on, including optional modules such as Projects, Payroll and Assets.

Yes. OdataLink also works with Xero Practice Manager.

MYOB has used several product names over the years, and people often search for the specific one they use. For OdataLink’s purposes they behave the same way.

OdataLink connects to the cloud-based MYOB products, including:

• MYOB Business (Lite, Pro and Payroll Only plans)
• MYOB Business AccountRight Plus
• MYOB Business AccountRight Premier
• MYOB AccountRight Live (the earlier name for the cloud AccountRight range)
• MYOB Essentials (now branded MYOB Business, still used by existing customers)

OdataLink does not work with desktop-only versions of MYOB, such as MYOB Premier v19 or MYOB Accounting, or with MYOB Acumatica or MYOB Exo.

Not sure which one you have? Jump onto live chat or book a short Teams call to discuss.

OdataLink connects to QuickBooks Online, including the Simple Start, Essentials and Plus plans.

Using QuickBooks Desktop, or not sure which version you have? Contact us on live chat to discuss.

Yes. OdataLink works with all modern versions of Excel, including Excel 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024 and Microsoft 365. Older versions of Excel may work but are not supported.

Yes. Power BI is part of Microsoft Fabric, and OdataLink feeds work anywhere Power Query is available across the Fabric platform. That includes Power BI, Dataflows Gen2, and Lakehouse or Warehouse ingestion via Data Factory pipelines.

You can also load your data into Microsoft Dataverse so Copilot Studio agents and Power Apps can work with it.

Yes. It works with both Power BI Desktop and the Power BI Service. Training guides are available to help.

Yes. OdataLink works with Power Query in both Excel and Power BI. Training guides are available to help.

Yes. You use Power Query to load the data into the Power Pivot data model. In Excel, connect to your OData feed URL with Power Query and choose to load the data to the Data Model.

Microsoft supports OData through many of its products, including Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, Excel, Power Apps, Dataverse, Azure Data Factory and SQL Server Integration Services.

AI agents can also use OData directly. This includes Claude and Claude Code.

OData is an industry-wide standard, so it is also supported by many other products, including Tableau, Solver, Crystal Reports and many more.

When you first load your data into Power BI or Excel, a few fields can look like they are missing. All fields are usable in Power BI and Excel, but some specialised fields must be transformed first. See this article for details.

Power Query uses Privacy Levels to decide whether data from different sources can be combined, so you may be asked to set one when you connect to your OData feed URL. Many new users find the dropdown confusing. This article explains what Privacy Levels do and how to configure them.