Series of Technology Essentials for Moving to SAP S/4HANA – tip #1: Check Your Add-ons. Now.

This is a series of blogs written by SAP subject matter experts to prepare you for your journey to SAP S/4HANA. Ready? Let’s go!

Topic #1 is add-ons.

Many customers extend their SAP ERP application with partner solutions, which are typically delivered as add-ons. In fact, three out of five SAP systems have third-party add-ons.
To keep an add-on upon conversion, you need a version compatible with SAP S/4HANA. That’s why you should review all add-ons early in your project.
Commercially speaking, there are four types of add-ons:

• SAP add-ons are developed and maintained by SAP, who also provides the installation files. You can check the compatibility and availability of these add-ons for SAP S/4HANA in maintenance planner.
• Reseller add-ons are developed by SAP partners and can be licensed through SAP. We provide the installation files if the add-on is licensed through us.
• Certified add-ons are partner solutions certified through SAP Integration and Certification Center. For these, ask your vendor to confirm the add-on’s availability and compatibility and to provide the installation files. You can find the vendor contact information in our certified solution directory .
• For unknown and non-certified add-ons, you’ll need to identify and contact the respective vendor to check support and availability for the target SAP S/4HANA release. We have no information for these add-ons.

All add-ons must be created with SAP Add-On Assembly Kit software and installed with SAP’s add-on installation tool (“SAINT”). However, occasionally vendors ship extensions in transport files. Technically, these are not add-ons and not covered by maintenance planner. Check if you have any of those in your system to avoid surprises.

We strongly advise you to prepare a simple catalog listing all your add-ons and answering these questions:

• Is the add-on functionality still required? Is a corresponding functionality available in SAP S/4HANA?
• What type of add-on is it from a commercial point of view, and who is the vendor?
• Is the add-on’s compatibility with SAP S/4HANA confirmed by the vendor (or certified by SAP), and if so, for which SAP S/4HANA releases?
• Is there an upgrade or uninstallation package available for this add-on?

Based on your answers, formulate a plan on how to deal with each add-on:

• Keep it in the system.
• Uninstall it. Consider the simulation tool available with support package manager (SPAM) version 7.4 and above. See also SAP Note 2911053 on how to plan and perform uninstallation.
• Start with the highest release of SAP S/4HANA for which this add-on is available.
• Contact SAP’s customer care program to help you with the resolution of possible issues.

A few tips to conclude:

• Execute maintenance planner early in the project.
• Partner add-ons will only be available after the general availability of the corresponding SAP S/4HANA version.
• Contact the partner or third-party vendor at an early stage.
• Clarify licensing terms and potential changes with SAP S/4HANA.
• Contact the vendor if you want to uninstall an add-on that is currently not available in SAINT.
• Most add-ons must be co-deployed on SAP S/4HANA and can only run on SAP S/4HANA if they have been explicitly released for it.

Please see more details here.

Check out all topics of the series:

tip #1: Check Your Add-ons. Now.

tip #2: Check Your Finance Data Quality

tip #3: Don’t Just Rework Custom Code. Rethink it!

tip #4: How to Build Custom Extensions

tip #5: Plan Ahead with Compatibility Packs

tip #6: Gain Insight to Build a Solid Business Case

tip #7: Hardware Planning and Data Volume Management

tip #8: Curate Your Master Data before Deployment

tip #9: Understand the Functional Impact

tip #10: Fix Issues Without Bogging Down Conversion

tip #11: Optimizing Downtime in Conversions

tip #12: Find Relevant SAP Notes

tip #13: Accelerate your Rollout with Test Automation

tip #14: Implementing SAP Fiori

tip #15: Integration Analysis in SAP Readiness Check