---
name: PlanetScale Setup Guide
title: PlanetScale database connector by Fivetran | Setup Guide
description: Read step-by-step instructions on how to connect PlanetScale with your destination using Fivetran connectors.
---
# PlanetScale Setup Guide {% availabilityBadge connector="planetscale" /%}
Follow these instructions to replicate your PlanetScale database to your destination using Fivetran.
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## Prerequisites
To connect your PlanetScale database to Fivetran, you need:
- A PlanetScale database
- Access to the private preview of the PlanetScale connector in Fivetran
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## Setup instructions
### <span class="step-item">Choose connection method</span>
#### Connect directly
Fivetran connects directly to your PlanetScale database.
#### Connect using AWS Private Link
> IMPORTANT: You must have a Business Critical plan to use AWS Private Link.
If your PlanetScale database is configured only to allow access through AWS PrivateLink, follow our [AWS Private Link setup guide](/docs/databases/connection-options#awsprivatelink) to configure Private Link for your PlanetScale database.
### <span class="step-item">Set up PlanetScale connection string</span>
1. In [PlanetScale](https://app.planetscale.com), navigate to the database you want to connect to Fivetran and click the "**Connect**" button.
2. Create a new password for your main branch with [read only permissions](https://planetscale.com/docs/concepts/password-roles#overview).
3. Select "**General**" from the "**Connect with**" dropdown and leave this tab open, as you'll need to copy these credentials shortly.
### <span class="step-item">Finish Fivetran configuration</span>
Back in Fivetran, in your [connector setup form](/docs/getting-started/fivetran-dashboard/connectors#addanewconnector) fill in the connector values as follows:
1. **Destination schema**: This prefix applies to each replicated schema and cannot be changed once your connector is created. Note: Each replicated schema is appended with `_planetscale` at the end of your chosen name.
2. **Database host name**: Paste in the copied value for `host`
3. **Database name**: Paste in the copied value for `database`
4. **Database username**: Paste in the copied value for `username`
5. **Database password**: Paste in the copied value for `password`
6. **Comma-separated list of shards to sync (optional)**: If your PlanetScale database is **not** sharded, ignore this field. If the database is sharded, by default, the PlanetScale connector will download rows from all shards in the database. To pick which shards are synced by the connector, you can optionally provide a comma-separated list of shards in the connector configuration.
7. **Use replica?**: In PlanetScale, VStream will connect to the primary tablet for your database, which also serves queries to your database. To lessen the load on the primary tablet, set this to `true` to make Vstream read from a replica of your database.
8. **Treat tinyint(1) as boolean (optional)**: You can choose to have the connector transform tinyint(1) type columns in your database to either `true` or `false`.
9. **Fivetran IPs (optional)**: If your connection string was created with [IP restrictions](https://planetscale.com/docs/concepts/connection-strings#ip-restrictions), ensure that the Fivetran IP ranges are added to the password.
10. Click "**Save & Test**". Fivetran tests and validates our connection to your PlanetScale database. Upon successful completion of the setup tests, you can sync your data using Fivetran.
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## Related articles
[<i aria-hidden="true" class="material-icons">description</i> Connector Overview](/docs/databases/planetscale)
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[<i aria-hidden="true" class="material-icons">account_tree</i> Schema Information](/docs/databases/planetscale#schemainformation)
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[<i aria-hidden="true" class="material-icons">assignment</i> Release Notes](/docs/databases/planetscale/changelog)
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[<i aria-hidden="true" class="material-icons">home</i> Documentation Home](/docs/getting-started)