Before diving into your data, you have to connect to it. Tableau allows you to connect to numerous data sources. You can connect to files on your local machine, to databases on servers, or other database sources. Tableau allows users to connect to numerous data sources – for a full list, visit Tableau's website to view a comprehensive and up-to-date list. The types of data sources you can connect with are listed in the Connect pane of the start page. Files that you have recently connected to will appear on this page as well.
Depending on which version of Tableau Desktop you are using, you will have access to different built-in connectors. Search for your required connection type to connect to your data. If you are connecting to a commonly used connector then it is almost certain to be available. If the file or database that you need to connect...