Copernicus Connect

Copernicus Connect is a QGIS plugin that makes it easy to browse, download, and visualise Copernicus data directly in QGIS.

It provides a user-friendly interface for discovering and querying datasets from the WEkEO platform using the Harmonized Data Access (HDA) API. The plugin also supports adding WMS and WMTS services to your QGIS project.

To request data from WEkEO, you need a free user account, which can be created at https://wekeo.copernicus.eu/register.

You can download the plugin as a ZIP file and install it in QGIS via the Plugin Installer:

1. Download Go to the project’s “Releases” on GitHub and download the latest ZIP package (e.g., Copernicus-Connect 10.zip).
2. In QGIS, go to Plugins ▶ Manage and Install Plugins….
3. Select the Install from ZIP tab, browse to the downloaded ZIP file, and click Install Plugin.

Workaround: Missing Icons in QGIS Menu on linux

As a temporary workaround (for versions prior to v0.11), you can manually rename the files:

mv ~/.local/share/QGIS/QGIS3/profiles/default/python/plugins/Copernicus-Connect/resources/icon.PNG \
   ~/.local/share/QGIS/QGIS3/profiles/default/python/plugins/Copernicus-Connect/resources/icon.png

mv ~/.local/share/QGIS/QGIS3/profiles/default/python/plugins/Copernicus-Connect/resources/icon/product_download.PNG \
   ~/.local/share/QGIS/QGIS3/profiles/default/python/plugins/Copernicus-Connect/resources/icon/product_download.png

The issue occurs because Linux enforces case sensitivity on filenames, whereas Windows does not.

Workaround: Update credentials in .hdarc

If you experience login issues, you can manually check and update the credentials stored in the hidden .hdarc file.

• WindowsThe file is located at:

  C:\Users\[your username]\.hdarc
  

  Make sure that “Show hidden files” is enabled in Windows Explorer.

• LinuxThe file is located in your home directory:

  ~/.hdarc
  

• macOS The file is also located in your home directory:

  ~/.hdarc
  

Open the .hdarc file with a text editor (e.g., Notepad on Windows, nano/vi on Linux, or TextEdit on macOS) and update the username and password values so they match your WEkEO account. After saving the changes, the login should work correctly.

Manual installation of hda or owslib for QGIS

If the automatic installation of required Python packages fails inside QGIS, you can install them manually.Follow these steps:

1. Locate your QGIS Python environment

   • Open QGIS
   • Go to Plugins → Python Console
   • Run the following command to check the active Python path:

     import sys
     print(sys.executable)

   • This will show you the Python executable used by QGIS (e.g., something like C:\OSGeo4W\apps\Python39\python.exe on Windows).

2. Open a terminal/command prompt with that Python

   • On Windows:Open OSGeo4W Shell or cmd.exe, then run the path you found above. Example:

     C:\OSGeo4W\apps\Python39\python.exe -m pip install hda

   • On Linux/macOS: Use the QGIS Python executable, for example:

     /usr/bin/qgis3 --noplugin --code "import sys; print(sys.executable)"

     Then install with:

     /path/to/qgis/python -m pip install hda

3. Install hda or owslib

   • To install hda:

     python -m pip install hda

   • To install owslib:

     python -m pip install owslib

4. Verify the installation inside QGIS

   • Restart QGIS.
   • Open the Python Console again and run:

     import hda
     import owslib
     print("Modules installed successfully")

   • If no error appears, the installation was successful.

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Tip: If you are behind a proxy or corporate firewall, you may need to configure pip to use a proxy, e.g.:

python -m pip install hda --proxy http://user:password@proxyserver:port