Backfill-GA4-to-BigQuery

Backfill-GA4-to-BigQuery" repository offers a solution for users to backfill their GA4 data into BigQuery. This is useful for those who need historical data from the start of their GA4 property, as GA4 data is typically only available in BigQuery after linking the two services. my solution provides a Game-Changer backfill of data to BigQuery. It uses OAuth 2.0 credentials for desktop applications, making authentication easier and well-suited for IDEs like Google Colab.

Features
Prerequisites
Setup and Installation
Troubleshooting
Customization
Contributing
Contact

Features

OAuth 2.0 Authentication: Simplifies authentication with OAuth 2.0 credentials, ideal for desktop apps and environments like Google Colab.
Service Account Integration: Securely connects to Google Cloud services using service accounts for enhanced security.
Data Extraction from GA4: Fetches comprehensive GA4 data from a specified start date, ideal for historical data backfilling.
Customizable Configuration: Offers a config.json file for user-specific settings like table prefixes and property IDs.
BigQuery Integration: Efficiently processes and stores data in BigQuery with proper schema management.
Export Functionality: Enables exporting GA4 data to CSV format for external use.
Duplicate Check: Incorporates mechanisms to avoid duplicate data entries in BigQuery.
Flexible Data Retrieval: Allows data fetching from a specific date or the previous day.
Robust Error Handling: Includes effective error handling and logging for smooth operation.
Partitioning and clustering: Dynamic partitioning and clustering for optimized query performance and cost management.
Configurable End Date Range: precise control over the data retrieval period, making it easier to manage data quotas and perform historical data analysis within a specific timeframe.

Prerequisites

Google Cloud account with billing enabled.
Access to Google Analytics 4 and Google BigQuery.
Python environment (Python 3.x recommended).

Setup and Installation

Step 1: Create a New Project and Activate Analytics API

Go to Google Cloud Console to activate the Analytics API in your selected project.

Step 2: Creating a Service Account

Access Google Cloud Console: Visit the Google Cloud Console.
Create a Service Account:
- Navigate to "IAM & Admin > Service Accounts".
- Click "Create Service Account", enter a name, description, and click "Create".
- Grant necessary roles to the service account (e.g., Owner or BigQuery Admin + BigQuery Job User).
Generate a Service Account Key:
- Click on the created service account to manage it.
- Go to the "Keys" tab and click "Add Key", then "Create new key".
- Choose "JSON" as the key type and click "Create".
- A JSON key file will be downloaded. Store it securely.

Step 3: Setting Up OAuth for Desktop App

To set up OAuth for a desktop application, you need to create an OAuth client ID in Google Cloud Console. Before creating an OAuth client ID, make sure to configure your consent screen if you don't have one already.

Configure the Consent Screen:

Access Consent Screen Configuration:
- In the Google Cloud Console, navigate to "APIs & Services > OAuth consent screen".
- Select the external user type.
Fill in Consent Screen Details:
- Provide the necessary information, such as the app name, user support email, and developer contact information.
- add your email (and others, if needed) in the "Test users" section.
Publish the App:
- Once all necessary information is provided, save and publish your consent screen.

Create OAuth 2.0 Client ID:

Navigate to Credentials:
- Go to "APIs & Services > Credentials".
Create OAuth Client ID:
- Click "Create Credentials" and select "OAuth client ID".
- Choose "Desktop app" as the Application type.
- Provide a name for the client ID and click "Create".
Download Client Configuration:
- After the OAuth client ID is created, download the client configuration JSON file.
- This file contains your client ID and secret, which are essential for the OAuth flow.

Note:

The script uses a token.pickle file to store access tokens and refresh tokens. Once authenticated, you won't need to repeat the authentication process unless the token is revoked or expired.
Ensure that the JSON file is stored securely and referenced correctly in your project.

Step 4: Configuration File

Fill out and save a config.json file with your specific parameters. Example:

{
"CLIENT_SECRET_FILE": "<Path to your client secret file>",
"SERVICE_ACCOUNT_FILE": "<Path to your service account JSON file>",
"SCOPES": ["https://www.googleapis.com/auth/analytics.readonly"],
"PROPERTY_ID": "<Google Analytics Property ID>",
"INITIAL_FETCH_FROM_DATE": "2022-01-01",
"FETCH_TO_DATE": "today",
"DATASET_ID": "<BigQuery Dataset ID>",
"TABLE_PREFIX": "_backfill_GA4",
"PARTITION_BY": "Event_Date",
"CLUSTER_BY": "Event_Name"
}

Client Secret and Service Account File: Replace the placeholders with the actual paths to your OAuth client secret and service account JSON files.
Property ID and Dataset ID: Insert your Google Analytics Property ID and the BigQuery Dataset ID where data will be stored.
Initial Fetch Date: Set the initial date from which to fetch historical data in YYYY-MM-DD format.
FETCH_TO_DATE: Specify the end date for data fetching. Defaults to today's date. Format: YYYY-MM-DD.
Table Prefix: Specify the prefix for your BigQuery tables. If the specified prefix does not exist, the script will create tables with this prefix in BigQuery.
PARTITION_BY: Specifies the column for table partitioning. Default is Event_Date, which is highly recommended for optimal data management.
CLUSTER_BY: Specifies the column(s) for table clustering. Default is Event_Name, aligning with common querying patterns. While this choice is optimal for many use cases, you may customize this field.

Install necessary Python packages:

!pip install google-analytics-data==0.18.4
!pip install google-cloud-bigquery
!pip install google-auth==2.27.0
!pip install google-auth-oauthlib
!pip install google-auth-httplib2

Step 6: Running the Script

After configuring the config.json file and saving the source code with the same name backfill-ga4.py , it's time to run the script with the desired flags.

Execute the Script with Flags:
- Use the %run command followed by the script name and the desired flag.
- For fetching data from yesterday, use:
```
%run backfill-ga4.py --yesterday
```
- For fetching data from the initial fetch date specified in your config.json, use:
```
%run backfill-ga4.py --initial_fetch
```
- This will start the authentication flow

Step 7: Authentication

Run the Script:
- Execute your Python script.
- It will prompt you to open a URL for authentication.
- Ensure that you choose a Google account that has the necessary access to selected property.
- If you don't verify your app in the first step, select "Go to 'YourPublishedAPP'(unsafe)" to access the authentication code on localhost.
- Your code can be found as a part of the URL between "code=" and the next ampersand. (Screenshot attached)
- Copy and paste this code back into the script.
- Now data retrieval process based on the specified date range should be completed. It is important that a table, that has been exported, is visible in both Bigquery table and CSV downloadable file.

Step 8: QA

Check for Successful Setup:
- Upon successful completion of the script, it should indicate that the authentication process is complete and data fetching has started.
- Now, you should be able to see the new tables in your Google Analytics BigQuery dataset (DATASET_ID specified in your config.json).
- Additionally, the output.csv file in your project directory should contain the fetched data.
- If the tables are visible and the CSV file has data, everything is set up correctly.

Troubleshooting

AttributeError on Script Execution

Issue: Encountering an AttributeError related to credentials.universe_domain when running the script.

Solution: This is likely due to version mismatches in google-auth and google-analytics-data libraries. Resolve it by upgrading both libraries:

pip install --upgrade google-analytics-data google-auth

Run this command in your terminal or command prompt to ensure you're using compatible versions, which should fix the issue.

Customization

Your project can be customized to fetch different metrics and dimensions based on your specific needs. Use the Google Analytics Data API schema to understand the available metrics and dimensions. You can then modify the script to query different sets of data from your Google Analytics account.

Tailor Metrics and Dimensions: In the script, identify the sections where API requests are constructed and modify the metrics and dimensions according to your requirements.
Consult API Schema: The API schema documentation provides a comprehensive list of all available metrics and dimensions, along with their descriptions and usage.

Contributing

Contributions to this project are welcome! Here's how you can help:

Reporting Issues: Report issues or bugs by opening a new issue in the GitHub repository.
Feature Requests: If you have ideas for new features or improvements, feel free to create an issue describing your suggestion.
Submitting Pull Requests: You can contribute directly to the codebase. Please ensure your code adheres to the project's coding standards and include tests for new features.

Contact

For help, feedback, or discussions about potential features, please feel free to connect with me on Linkedin.

aliasoblomov/Backfill-GA4-to-BigQuery