Snowflake Connector | OpenMetadata Cloud Data Warehouse

In this section, we provide guides and references to use the Snowflake connector.

Supported Authentication Types:

Basic Auth: Username and password authentication
Key Pair Auth: Private key authentication with optional passphrase (see Snowflake Key Pair Auth docs)
SSO: Single-Sign-On via the authenticator connection argument

Configure and schedule Snowflake metadata and profiler workflows from the OpenMetadata UI:

Requirements

To ingest basic metadata snowflake user must have the following privileges:

USAGE Privilege on Warehouse
USAGE Privilege on Database
USAGE Privilege on Schema
SELECT Privilege on Tables

Before you grant privileges, replace these placeholders with your own values:

Placeholder	Description
`<role_name>`	Name of the new Snowflake role you want to create and assign to the user
`<user_name>`	Username for the new Snowflake user being created
`<password>`	A strong password for the new Snowflake user
`<warehouse_name>`	Name of the Snowflake warehouse the new role needs access to
`<database_name>`	Name of the Snowflake database from which you want to ingest data

-- Create new role
CREATE ROLE <role_name>;
-- Create new user
CREATE USER <user_name> DEFAULT_ROLE=<role_name> PASSWORD='<password>';
-- Grant role to user
GRANT ROLE <role_name> TO USER <user_name>;
-- Grant USAGE Privilege on Warehouse to new role created above
GRANT USAGE ON WAREHOUSE <warehouse_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
-- Grant USAGE Privilege on Database to new role created above
GRANT USAGE ON DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
-- Grant USAGE Privilege on required Schemas to new role created above
GRANT USAGE ON ALL SCHEMAS IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT USAGE ON FUTURE SCHEMAS IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
-- Grant SELECT Privilege on required tables & views to new role created above
GRANT SELECT ON ALL FUTURE TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL FUTURE EXTERNAL TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL EXTERNAL TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL FUTURE VIEWS IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL VIEWS IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL FUTURE DYNAMIC TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT SELECT ON ALL DYNAMIC TABLES IN DATABASE <database_name> TO ROLE <role_name>;
-- Grant IMPORTED PRIVILEGES on all Schemas of SNOWFLAKE DB to new role created above.
-- This is optional but required for usage, lineage and stored procedure ingestion
GRANT IMPORTED PRIVILEGES ON ALL SCHEMAS IN DATABASE SNOWFLAKE TO ROLE <role_name>;

Additional Privileges

The following workflows require additional grants:

Incremental Extraction: OpenMetadata fetches the information by querying snowflake.account_usage.tables.
Ingesting Tags: OpenMetadata fetches the information by querying snowflake.account_usage.tag_references.
Ingesting Stored Procedures: OpenMetadata fetches the information by querying snowflake.account_usage.procedures & snowflake.account_usage.functions.
Lineage & Usage Workflow: For lineage, OpenMetadata uses Snowflake’s ACCOUNT_USAGE.ACCESS_HISTORY view by default, which provides Snowflake-computed table- and column-level lineage (including for queries OpenMetadata cannot parse). If the configured role cannot read ACCESS_HISTORY, ingestion automatically falls back to parsing query logs. For the Usage workflow, and as the lineage fallback, OpenMetadata fetches query logs by querying snowflake.account_usage.query_history. Both ACCESS_HISTORY and QUERY_HISTORY require the Snowflake user to have the ACCOUNTADMIN role or a role with IMPORTED PRIVILEGES on the SNOWFLAKE database. For more information about the account_usage schema, see Account Usage.

Metadata Ingestion

To ingest metadata from Snowflake, you need to create a service connection. The service connects Snowflake with OpenMetadata. Once you create a service, OpenMetadata automatically starts ingesting metadata.

Step 1: Add New Service

Navigate to Settings > Services.
Click Add New Service.

Step 2: Select a Service and Connector

From the service type dropdown, select Database Services, then click the Snowflake connector tile.

Step 3: Add Service Name and Description

Enter a unique, descriptive Service Name. OpenMetadata identifies services by their service name. Enter a name that distinguishes this deployment from other Snowflake services you are ingesting metadata from.
Optional: Enter a Description for the service.

Note: The service name cannot be changed after it is set.

Step 4: Configure Connection Options

Specify your source credentials and verify the connection.

Enter Connection Details

Enter the connection details for Snowflake. The right-hand panel in the UI displays inline help for each field.

Username: Specify the User to connect to Snowflake. It should have enough privileges to read all the metadata.
Password: Password to connect to Snowflake.
Account: Snowflake account identifier uniquely identifies a Snowflake account within your organization, as well as throughout the global network of Snowflake-supported cloud platforms and cloud regions. If the Snowflake URL is https://xyz1234.us-east-1.gcp.snowflakecomputing.com, then the account is xyz1234.us-east-1.gcp.
Role (Optional): You can specify the role of user that you would like to ingest with, if no role is specified the default roles assigned to user will be selected.
Database (Optional): The database of the data source is an optional parameter, if you would like to restrict the metadata reading to a single database. If left blank, OpenMetadata ingestion attempts to scan all the databases.
Warehouse: Snowflake warehouse is required for executing queries to fetch the metadata. Enter the name of warehouse against which you would like to execute these queries.
Query Tag (Optional): Session query tag used to monitor usage on Snowflake. To use a query tag, the Snowflake user should have enough privileges to alter the session.
Account Usage Schema Name: Full name of account usage schema, used in case your user does not have direct access to SNOWFLAKE.ACCOUNT_USAGE schema. In such case you can replicate tables QUERY_HISTORY, TAG_REFERENCES, PROCEDURES, FUNCTIONS, ACCESS_HISTORY to a custom schema, let’s say CUSTOM_DB.CUSTOM_SCHEMA, and provide the same name in this field. When using this field, make sure you have all these tables available within your custom schema QUERY_HISTORY, TAG_REFERENCES, PROCEDURES, FUNCTIONS, ACCESS_HISTORY.
Private Key (Optional): If you have configured the key pair authentication for the given user you will have to pass the private key associated with the user in this field. For more information about key-pair authentication, see Key-pair authentication and key-pair rotation. Ensure your private key is formatted correctly before passing it. The key must be a single line with all line breaks replaced by \n. For example, if you have the following multi-line key (raw format):
-----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY----- MII.. MBQ... CgU.. 8Lt.. ... h+4= -----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----
Replace it with the following single-line key (required format):
-----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\nMII..\nMBQ...\nCgU..\n8Lt..\n...\nh+4=\n-----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----\n
Replace every newline character in your key with a literal \n, including after the final line.
Snowflake Passphrase Key (Optional): If you have configured the encrypted key pair authentication for the given user you will have to pass the passphrase associated with the private key in this field. You can check out this doc to get more details about key-pair authentication.
Include Transient Tables: Optional configuration for ingestion of TRANSIENT and TEMPORARY tables. Enabled by default, so these tables are ingested alongside permanent ones. Disable it to skip them.
Include Streams: Optional configuration for ingestion of streams. By default, it will skip the streams.
Include Stages: Optional configuration for ingestion of Snowflake stages (internal and external). By default, stages are not ingested.
Client Session Keep Alive: Optional Configuration to keep the session active in case the ingestion job runs for longer duration.
Cost of Credit (Optional): Cost of a Snowflake credit for your account, used to estimate warehouse and query costs. Defaults to 3.3.
Snowflake Source Host (Optional): Snowflake account host used to build direct links back to Snowflake, for example from lineage or query details. Defaults to app.snowflake.com.

Advanced Config (driver-level options; most connections don’t need these)

Use Access History for Lineage: Uses Snowflake’s ACCOUNT_USAGE.ACCESS_HISTORY view as the source of query lineage. ACCESS_HISTORY provides Snowflake-computed table- and column-level lineage, including for queries OpenMetadata cannot parse. Enabled by default. If the configured role cannot read ACCESS_HISTORY, ingestion automatically falls back to the legacy query-log parser.
Access History Chunk Size (Days): Number of days of ACCESS_HISTORY scanned per query when “Use Access History for Lineage” is enabled. The lineage time window is split into chunks of this size to keep each query bounded and avoid timeouts on busy accounts. Defaults to 2.

Test Connection

Once the credentials have been added, click on Test Connection and Save the changes.

Step 5: Configure Ingestion Options

In the What to Ingest step, use filter patterns to control which assets OpenMetadata ingests from your database service. Filter patterns use regular expressions applied to asset names.

How Filter Patterns Work

Include: Add one or more comma-separated regular expressions. OpenMetadata ingests only assets whose names match at least one expression. Leave blank to include all assets.
Exclude: Add one or more comma-separated regular expressions. OpenMetadata skips any asset whose name matches an expression. Leave blank to exclude nothing.

Rules match asset names using one of five expressions:

contains: matches any name containing the value. For example, sales matches my_sales_data and sales_2024.
starts with: matches names beginning with the value. For example, prod_ matches prod_db and prod_schema.
ends with: matches names ending with the value. For example, _raw matches events_raw and logs_raw.
is exactly: matches the exact name only. For example, analytics matches only analytics.
matches regex: matches names using a regular expression. For example, ^prod_.*_v\d+$ matches prod_events_v1.

When both Include and Exclude are set, Exclude takes priority.

Leave all filter patterns empty to ingest all databases, schemas, and tables available in the source.

Filter Options The Database, Schema, and Table sections each include the following filter options:

Database: Controls which databases OpenMetadata ingests from the source.
Schema: Controls which schemas within the ingested databases are included.
Table: Controls which tables and views within the ingested schemas are included.

Each section provides the following controls:

Scan Mode: You can choose between the following scan modes:
- Scan all: Ingests every asset of that type the connector can access. This is the default.
- Only specific: Enables include rules so only assets matching at least one rule are ingested.
Exclude system toggle: Use this toggle to automatically filter out system-reserved names defined by the connector, for example, Exclude system databases for the Databases section.
Always exclude: Add permanent exclusion rules (shown in red). Assets matching these rules are never ingested, regardless of include rules.
Preview: Shows a real-time summary of what will be in scope based on your current rules.
Include rules (available only in Only specific mode): Click + Add to define a rule. Added rules appear as chips; an asset is included if it matches any rule.

Step 6: Create & Deploy

Click Create & Deploy to deploy the agent and start the first metadata ingestion run. OpenMetadata saves the service configuration and immediately begins pulling metadata from the source. To monitor ingestion progress or view the service you just added, go to Settings > Services and select your service.

Configure Metadata Agent and Schedule Ingestion

The Metadata Agent extracts schemas, tables, columns, and other structural metadata from your source and keeps your OpenMetadata catalog in sync. It powers discovery, lineage, and governance across your data assets. When you click Create & Deploy, OpenMetadata automatically deploys a Metadata Agent for this service and triggers the first ingestion run. View its status and run history from the Agents tab on the service detail page. To configure the additional Metadata Agent and schedule ingestion, follow these steps:

Navigate to Settings > Services and select the service type.
Click the service you have added.
Select the Agents tab and click Add Agent > Metadata. For some services, the dropdown is not available and clicking Add Agent takes you directly to the agent configuration page.

On the Configure Ingestion page, do the following and click Next.

Name this Ingestion: Enter a unique recognizable name for this ingestion pipeline.

Agent Setup: Configure core parameters for metadata extraction. The following fields are available:

Field	Default	Description
Default Owner	—	Owner applied to all entities when no specific level owner is configured. Accepts a user or team name/email.
Service Owner	—	Owner assigned to the service entity.
Database Owner	—	Owner assigned to all ingested databases. Accepts a single owner or a per-database name mapping.
Database Schema Owner	—	Owner assigned to all ingested schemas. Accepts a single owner or a per-schema name mapping.
Table Owner	—	Owner assigned to all ingested tables. Accepts a single owner or a per-table name mapping.
Enable Inheritance	On	When on, child entities inherit the owner from their parent when they have no owner configured.
Query Log Duration	1	Number of days to look back in query logs when processing stored procedure results.
Query Parsing Timeout Limit	300	Timeout in seconds for parsing a single query.
Number of Threads	1	Number of threads to use for parallel table ingestion.
Incremental Extraction	Off	When enabled, subsequent runs only extract entities changed since the last successful run.
Successful Pipeline Run Lookback Days	7	Number of days to search back for a prior successful run to use as a baseline for incremental extraction.
Safety Margin Days	1	Additional days added to the baseline timestamp as a buffer for incremental extraction.
JSON Schema Sample Size	10	Number of rows sampled to infer JSON column schema. Only applies when Extract JSON Schema is enabled in Advanced Config.

Filter Patterns: Apply include or exclude rules to scope which databases, schemas, tables, and stored procedures this agent ingests. For more information about various filter options, see Step 6: Configure Ingestion Options.

Scope & Behaviour: Control how the agent handles metadata during ingestion. Toggle each option on or off based on your needs:

Toggle	Default	Description
Include Tables	On	Ingest table metadata from the source. Turn off to skip tables entirely.
Include Tags	On	Ingest tags from the source.
Include Stored Procedures	On	Ingest stored procedure metadata.
Include DDL Statements	Off	Ingest DDL statements alongside table metadata.
Include Owners	Off	Assign owners to ingested entities when the source owner’s email matches a user in OpenMetadata. Does not overwrite an existing owner.
Include Custom Properties	Off	Ingest connector-specific custom properties onto entities.
Mark Deleted Tables	On	Soft-delete tables in OpenMetadata when they are removed from the source. Applies only within the currently ingested schema.
Mark Deleted Stored Procedures	On	Soft-delete stored procedures in OpenMetadata when they are removed from the source.
Mark Deleted Schemas	Off	Soft-delete schemas and all their child assets when removed from the source.
Mark Deleted Databases	Off	Soft-delete databases and all their child assets when removed from the source.
Override Metadata	Off	When on, source values overwrite existing descriptions, tags, owners, and display names in OpenMetadata. When off, OpenMetadata only updates fields that have no existing value.
Enable Debug Log	Off	Sets the ingestion log level to DEBUG. Useful for troubleshooting.

Available toggles vary by connector. Stored procedure options only appear for connectors that support stored procedures.

Advanced Config: Optional connector-specific settings such as Include Views and Extract JSON Schema.

On the Schedule Interval page, set when the agent runs:
- Schedule: Choose a preset interval (Hourly, Daily, Weekly, Monthly) or enter a custom cron expression.
- On-Demand: No automatic schedule; trigger the agent manually when needed.
Click Add to deploy the agent.

Incomplete Column Level for Views

For views with a tag or policy, you may see incorrect lineage, this can be because user may not have enough access to fetch those policies or tags. You need to grant the following privileges in order to fix it. Check out the Snowflake docs for further details.

GRANT APPLY MASKING POLICY TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT APPLY ROW ACCESS POLICY TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT APPLY AGGREGATION POLICY TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT APPLY PROJECTION POLICY TO ROLE <role_name>;
GRANT APPLY TAG TO ROLE <role_name>;

Depending on your view ddl you can grant the relevant privileges as per above queries.

Usage Workflow

Learn more about how to configure the Usage Workflow to ingest Query information from the UI.

Connectors

Connector

Ingestion

Snowflake Connector | OpenMetadata Cloud Data Warehouse