SAP BW/4HANA is SAP’s next generation data warehouse solution. It is a new product (not a legal successor of any existing SAP Business Warehouse solution), built entirely on one of the most advanced in-memory platforms today – SAP HANA.

It provides a simple set of objects that is well suited for modelling an agile and flexible layered architecture of a modern data warehouse. SAP BW/4HANA manages all sorts of data, whether from SAP applications or other systems, structured or unstructured, and allows accessing of all models through an open SQL interface.

SAP BW/4HANA comes with state-of-the-art user interfaces for administrators, developers, and end users as well as completely SAP HANA-optimized processes that let you leverage vast amounts of data in real time for competitive advantage.

Discover/Preparation Phase

1.      System Requirement

You need to be aware of system requirements, start releases, conversion paths, and data volume.

2.      SAP BW note analyzer

The SAP BW and SAP BW/4HANA Note Analyzer provides a clear and consistent process to update a particular component or process of SAP BW or SAP BW/4HANA without implementing support packages. The Note Analyzer is used to install all tools and updates required for a given component or process.

3.      Maintenance Planner

You need to run the maintenance planner tool as a first step in the conversion process. It checks your components, Add-Ons, and business functions to ensure compatibility with SAP BW/4HANA and creates the stack file used for the actual conversion process

4.      Pre-Check Report

These checks identify important steps you need to take to make sure that your system can be converted and that your business and data warehouse processes can start running directly after the conversion process has been completed.

5.      Custom Code program

The compatibility of custom code with SAP BW/4HANA can be checked with the SAP BW ABAP Routine Analyzer. A coming version of the Transfer Cockpit is planned to include pro-gram RS_B4HANA_CODE_SCAN to analyze embedded custom code as a standard solution

6.      Run Sizing report

It will give properly size your new SAP BW/4HANA system. Sizing is performed using program, sizing.

For example, when transferring Info Cubes to Datastore objects (advanced), the Data Store object will require more memory than the original Info Cube. option

7.      Cleanup Report

It will give which object to clean up the objects and below are some examples

1. Info Object Catalogs are not available in SAP BW/4HANA. Info Object Catalogs have been replaced by Info Areas (AREA).
2. Attribute change runs, APD executions, DB statistic updates, data change process types, index creation and deletion, aggregate roll ups, ODS activation, PSA deletion and cube compression & deletion will be removed automatically from the process chains.
3. The system will check and generate all BW queries in 3.x format. Queries in 3.x format will be automatically adjusted to 7.x format.

8.      Transfer Standard Authorizations

User roles including standard SAP BW authorizations can be converted by transporting the original roles to SAP BW/4HANA and then using the Authorization Transfer Tool to adjust the standard authorizations as required.

Explore/ Realize/ Deploy Phase

9.      System provisioning

Install a new SAP BW/4HANA system using Software Provisioning Manager (SWPM). A task list is available that will help performing the initial system setup. This is the beginning of a parallel run of original SAP BW and new SAP BW/4HANA systems.

10. In-place conversion/ Remote conversion/Shell conversion

• In-place conversion (Brownfield implementation)

The existing BW installation is migrated completely in the system and the system is then technically brought up to SAP BW/4HANA. Prerequisites are SAP BW 7.5 and a HANA database as well as the installation of the BW/4HANA Starter Add-on.

• Remote conversion (Greenfield implementation)

First, the SAP BW/4HANA system is set up. In the second step, the data models to be converted from the legacy system to SAP BW/4HANA are selected.

• Shell conversion (Greenfield implementation)

It is similar to remote conversion, but only the meta-objects are migrated, not data.

11.   Starter add-on

The first step of the in-place conversion process is to install the SAP BW/4HANA Starter Add-on. At this point it’s recommended to check that the add-on is up to date using the SAP BW Note Analyzer,

12. Transfer cockpit

The SAP BW/4HANA Transfer Cockpit is a collection of tools relevant for an in-place conversion. The tools are grouped by prepare and realization phases. This includes the pre-check, sizing, code scan, scope transfer, and authorization transfer tools to process objects that are not compatible with SAP BW/4HANA.

13. Custom code adjustments

Adjust your custom developments as identified during the Prepare Phase or when using the code scan in the SAP BW/4HANA Transfer Cockpit.

14.   System conversion

Once the system is fully HANA-optimized and custom developments adjusted, the system can be switched to B4H mode. The system can remain in this mode until go-live. That’s when downtime begins. The system will be switched to “Ready for Conversion” mode im-mediately followed by the technical system conversion to SAP BW/4HANA.

15.   Post conversion task

After system conversion need to perform the post conversion activities like report and object validations.

16. Go-Live

After completing discover/Preparation phase and Explore/ Realize/ Deploy Phase completed system will moved completely moved to BW4HANA