Looker Cloud Integration

If your organization already uses Looker Cloud, you can connect it to Slateo to bootstrap our semantic understanding of your data. Slateo imports your LookML models, explores, and field definitions so it can generate accurate queries from day one — no manual modeling required.

To get started, create a dedicated OAuth service account in Looker and share the credentials below with your Slateo team.

What to provide

1. Looker instance details

Detail	Example
Base URL (your Looker Cloud hostname)	`https://acme.cloud.looker.com`
API version	`4.0` (default)
Region / tenant	Only required if you run multiple Looker instances

2. API credentials (API3 keys)

Create a dedicated service account user in Looker (not a personal account) and generate API3 credentials for it. Provide:

client_id
client_secret

Also confirm:

Disable email/password login for the service account (recommended).
Secret rotation — let us know your rotation cadence and process so we can coordinate credential updates.

3. Permissions

Create a Looker Role (e.g. "Slateo Integration") and assign it to the service account. Grant the minimum permissions Slateo needs for your use-case.

A. Query-only (most common)

Use this when Slateo only needs to run queries against your data.

Access to specific models and explores
Ability to run inline queries
Read access to Looks and Dashboards you want Slateo to pull from (optional)

B. Metadata and catalog sync

Use this when you want Slateo to import your semantic layer (LookML definitions, field metadata, etc.).

Read LookML model metadata (models, explores, fields)
Read folder and content structure (optional — useful for discovering existing Looks and Dashboards)

Setup steps

Create the service account

In Looker, go to Admin → Users → Add Users.
Create a new user (e.g. slateo-integration@yourcompany.com).
Disable email/password authentication for this user.
Under the user's API Keys tab, click New API Key to generate a client_id and client_secret.

Create the integration role

Go to Admin → Roles → New Role.
Name the role (e.g. Slateo Integration).
Attach the permission set that matches your use-case above (Query-only or Metadata sync).
Assign the role to the service account user.

Share credentials with Slateo

Open the Slateo Admin panel.
Go to Integrations → Looker Cloud.
Enter the Base URL, client_id, and client_secret.
Save the integration.

Slateo will validate the connection and begin importing your semantic layer metadata.

Troubleshooting

Connection failed

Verify the Base URL includes the full hostname (e.g. https://acme.cloud.looker.com, not just acme).

Authentication error

Confirm the client_id and client_secret are from the service account's API3 keys, not a personal account.

Missing models or explores

Check that the integration role has access to the models you expect. In Looker, go to Admin → Roles and verify the model set.

Permission denied on queries

Ensure the role includes the access_data and see_lookml permissions for the relevant models.

FAQ

Can I connect multiple Looker instances?

Yes, if you run multiple Looker instances, you can configure separate integrations for each one. Contact your Slateo account manager to set this up.

How often does Slateo sync LookML metadata?

Slateo syncs LookML metadata daily. If you make changes to your LookML models, they will be reflected in Slateo within 24 hours.

Does Slateo need write access to Looker?

No, Slateo only needs read access to your Looker instance. The service account should have read-only permissions.