SAP BW on HANA Implementation and Migration

SAP customers who are looking to implement SAP HANA in the SAP BW environment have several choices to make as to the most effective way to carry out that deployment. Customers with a mature SAP BW environment typically consider an OS/DB Migration. Other customers perceive an SAP HANA deployment as an opportunity to cleanse an existing environment by setting up a new landscape and manually transferring the configurations from an existing implementation to a new installation. Both options have their benefits and their challenges.

The purely technical aspect of the implementation or migration is generally, only a portion of the overall project plan. Customers who choose to manually move configurations from an existing installation to a new implementation will need to address a number of challenges. These customers often have to  reach the minimum requirements (listed below), object optimization, and implementation of new features. In contrast, customers who implement new installations will not experience many problems in these areas. As a general rule, before selecting a project course of action, all customers should perform an in-depth project scoping and system analysis to determine whether migration or re-implementation is the better option.

Once the project direction has been fixed, the next step is to determine what additional functional changes can be implemented as part of the initial project scope. Customers often choose to break up the technical and functional phases of the implementation into different projects. Project scoping generally defines the initial technical phases where customers can determine what functional elements need to be included in the migration. Often, the various business units will request and require specific functionality as part of funding the overall project. In general, the greater the functional scope, the greater the required project resources, time, and costs. Customers who have migrated have determined that functionality can be implemented in a number of areas without significantly impacting their existing system.

For customers who decide to perform an OS/DB migration, SAP has provided some additional tools they can utilize to expedite some of the technical steps. When a customer performs a migration, SAP requires that a Certified Migration Consultant execute the production system activities. This person does not have to be an external, SAP, or consultant. Companies often employ staff who are certified in migrations. Even in these cases, however, it is often still advisable to work with a specialist who has been specially trained and is proficient with the following SAP BW-specific tools:

• Dual-Stack Split Tool
• Combined Unicode conversion and Database Migration
• Post-Copy Automation (PCA) tool
• Software Update Manager https://service.sap.com/sltoolset

In addition, all migrations should include an Archiving/Near Line Storage review, sizing, and post-migration review. The PCA tool provides a wizard- style interface that details the post-copy and post-migration steps to deliver an optimized system. Every installation is unique and has specific areas that require attention. When these items are documented and addressed, the overall project will run more smoothly and with a greater certainty of achieving the expected results.

Customers who are looking for a predefined service offering either delivered by SAP Consulting or their preferred implementation partner can leverage SAP Rapid Deployment solutions for a smooth migration based on best practices. The database migration of SAP BW to HANA is subject of the “rapid database migration of SAP BW to SAP HANA”.

SAP BW Near-Line Storage rapid-deployment solution helps to reduce your amount of data stored in the underlying database of BW by archiving them into SAP Sybase IQ as near-line storage  solution.

Checkout SAP BW On HANA Interview Questions

Software Prerequisites for SAP BW on SAP HANA

Now that we have dfined the basics of SAP BW and the associated architecture, it is time to consider what it takes to run SAP BW POWERED BY SAP HANA. Below we list the minimum software requirements:

• SAP BW 7.30 Service Pack 5 (Ramp-Up Release)
• SAP HANA 1.0 Service Pack 3 (Ramp-Up Release)
• SAP BW 7.3x Central Instance installed on separate hardware. No sharing with SAP HANA Appliance.

Additional System Requirements: SAP BW => 7.3x Unicode Only

• SAP BW =>7.3x Analytic Authorizations (Upgrade  Requirement)
• SAP BW Add-on software packages support confirmed.

Not all add-on software had initial support for SAP BW Powered by SAP HANA.

• SAP BW and BW JAVA must be a split-stack implementation. SAP HANA does not currently support SAP JAVA Usage Type.
• Check SAP Business Objects 4.0  support.

SAP BW provides installation options for both clean installations and upgrades. Upgrades can require additional steps. Going further, these steps frequently involve additional time, planning, and system downtime.

Check your SAP BW system for SAP HANA Readiness — free Checklist tool!

Use the Checklist Tool developed by SAP Customer Solution Adoption (CSA) and SAP Development to automate the check of best practice guidelines for operations and prerequisites for migrating an existing SAP BW deployment to the SAP HANA platform.