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Connections

A Connection is how Teela accesses your data. Before you can ask questions, Teela needs to know where your data lives. Each connection links Teela to a specific data source, such as a database, a Google Sheet, an Excel file, or a CSV.

Everything Is Connection-Scoped​

This is an important concept: when you switch connections, your entire working context changes. The questions you can ask, the tables and columns available, and the question suggestions you see are all determined by which connection is currently active.

Think of it like switching between different filing cabinets. Each one has its own set of folders and documents, and you work with one cabinet at a time.

You can switch connections at any time using the connection selector at the top of the screen. Just click it, choose the connection you want, and you're ready to start asking questions about that data source.

Connection Types for Regular Users​

Teela supports several types of connections that you can set up yourself, without needing help from IT.

Google Sheets​

Connect Teela directly to your Google Sheets for easy querying.

How to connect:

  1. Click New Connection and select Google Sheets.
  2. Click Connect with Google and authorize Teela to access your Google Drive. Teela requests read-only access, so it will never modify your spreadsheets.
  3. Use the file picker to browse your Google Drive and select the spreadsheet you want to connect.
  4. Choose which sheet tabs to include. You can select all of them or just the ones you need.
  5. Click Connect.

Keeping data in sync:

  • Teela automatically syncs your Google Sheet data periodically, so your queries reflect recent changes.
  • You can also trigger a manual sync anytime by clicking the sync button on the connection. This is useful if you've just updated the spreadsheet and want to query the latest data right away.

Excel Files​

Upload Excel files directly to Teela.

How to connect:

  1. Click New Connection and select Excel.
  2. Upload your .xlsx or .xls file. Files can be up to 100 MB in size.
  3. Choose which sheets to include from the workbook.
  4. Click Connect.

Updating your data:

Excel connections are based on the file you uploaded. To update the data, replace the file by uploading a new version. Teela will re-process the new file and your queries will run against the updated data.

CSV Files​

Upload a CSV file for quick, simple data querying.

How to connect:

  1. Click New Connection and select CSV.
  2. Upload your .csv file. Files can be up to 100 MB in size.
  3. Click Connect.

Each CSV file becomes a single table in Teela. If you have multiple CSVs you'd like to query together, consider combining them into a single file or using an Excel workbook with multiple sheets instead.

Updating your data:

Like Excel, CSV connections are based on the uploaded file. To update, replace the file with a new version.

Row Limits​

For spreadsheet-based connections (Google Sheets, Excel, and CSV), each sheet or file supports up to 500,000 rows. This is more than enough for the vast majority of use cases. If your data exceeds this limit, consider filtering it down before uploading, or talk to your admin about setting up a database connection.

Personal Connections​

Personal connections are private to you: no one else in your organization can see or query them. They're designed for your own data sources, like a personal spreadsheet you use for tracking or analysis.

Personal connections require an active subscription. If you have one, you can create as many personal connections as you need using any of the connection types above (Google Sheets, Excel, or CSV).

Personal connections show up in your connection selector alongside any shared connections your admin has set up.

Teaching Teela About Your Personal Data​

You can add definitions to your personal connections to help Teela understand what your data means. Definitions are plain-English notes about your columns, abbreviations, and business rules. The more you add, the more accurately Teela can answer your questions.

See Personal Definitions for the full guide.

Relationships in Spreadsheet Connections​

When you connect a spreadsheet with multiple sheets (or tabs), Teela needs to understand how those sheets relate to each other in order to answer questions that span more than one sheet.

Auto-Detected Relationships​

Teela does its best to automatically detect relationships between your sheets. For example, if your "Orders" sheet has a customer_id column and your "Customers" sheet has a matching id column, Teela will recognize that connection and use it when you ask questions like "Show me all orders with customer names."

User-Defined Relationships​

If Teela doesn't detect a relationship automatically, or if the auto-detected relationship isn't quite right, you can define relationships manually:

  1. Open the connection settings.
  2. Go to the Relationships tab.
  3. Select the two sheets you want to link.
  4. Choose the columns that connect them (for example, customer_id in Orders matches id in Customers).
  5. Save the relationship.

Once the relationship is defined, Teela can join data across those sheets when answering your questions. This is especially useful when your column names don't obviously match (for example, cust_num in one sheet and customer_number in another).

Database Connections​

Teela also supports direct connections to databases like PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, and others. However, database connections involve server credentials and network configuration, so they're typically set up by an admin.

If you need a database connected to Teela, check out the admin guide for instructions, or use the "Get Help from IT" feature described below.

"Get Help from IT" Feature​

Need a database connected but don't have the technical details? Teela makes it easy to loop in your IT team:

  1. Click New Connection and select the database type you need.
  2. Click "Get Help from IT".
  3. Teela will generate a pre-filled request with everything your IT team needs to know, including what access is required, what information to provide, and how to complete the setup.
  4. Send the request to your IT contact, and they can take it from there.

This way, you don't need to know anything about database servers or credentials. You just point your IT team in the right direction, and they handle the technical setup.

Tips for Managing Connections​

  • Name your connections clearly. A connection called "Q1 Sales Data" is much easier to find than "Sheet1_upload."
  • Keep spreadsheets clean. Teela works best with well-structured data: headers in the first row, consistent formatting, and no merged cells.
  • Set up relationships early. If you're connecting a multi-sheet spreadsheet, take a moment to verify that Teela detected the right relationships (or add them manually). This will save you confusion later when you start asking cross-sheet questions.
  • Use personal connections for experimentation. Want to try Teela with some sample data? Upload a CSV as a personal connection and explore without affecting anyone else's workspace.

What's Next?​

  • Start asking questions: see Querying Your Data.
  • Learn about the chat interface: see Chat for tips on getting the best answers.
  • Save your results: see DataClips to save, schedule, and set alerts on queries.