SAC Live Connection with S4

Ad hoc reporting in SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC) with an S/4HANA live connectio

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: The Power of Live Connections for Ad Hoc Reporting
   • Understanding the Benefits of Live Connections
   • Ad Hoc Reporting: Empowering Business Users
2. Setting Up the Foundation: S/4HANA Live Connection
   • Verifying Connection Setup and Configuration
   • Direct Live Connection vs. Import Data: A Comparative Analysis
   • Troubleshooting Network and Authorization Issues
     • OAuth Configuration
     • CORS Settings
     • ICM Parameters
3. Data Source Selection: Leveraging CDS Views and Analytical Queries
   • Why CDS Views are Preferred
   • Exploring SAP Standard Views (I_ and C_ Views)
   • Creating Custom CDS Views for Specific Needs
     • Designing Efficient CDS Views
     • Data Modeling within CDS Views
   • Field Selection and Data Overload Prevention
4. SAC Modeling Considerations: Working with Live Data
   • Understanding Limitations: No Data Replication in SAC
   • Structuring CDS Views for Dynamic Filtering and Calculations
   • Pre-Aggregations and Calculated Fields in CDS Views
   • Hierarchy and Authorization Management in S/4HANA
5. Empowering Self-Service: Ad Hoc Reporting in SAC
   • Utilizing the Exploration View for User-Driven Analysis
   • Building Interactive Stories with Drag-and-Drop Functionality
   • Enhancing Flexibility with Input Controls, Filters, and Hierarchies
   • Advanced Exploration Techniques
     • Drill down and Drill through.
     • Variable usage.
6. Performance Optimization: Ensuring Responsiveness
   • Minimizing Joins in CDS Views
   • Leveraging Indexed Fields for Faster Query Execution
   • Implementing Variable Filters (@Consumption.filter)
   • Exploring Delta Queries for Incremental Updates
   • Query Monitor in S/4Hana to identify bottlenecks.
7. Governance and Security: Protecting Sensitive Data
   • Role-Based Access Control: Integrating S/4HANA Authorizations
   • SAC Data Access Control: Layered Security
   • Audit Logging and Monitoring: Tracking Report Usage
   • Data masking within S/4Hana.
8. User Experience Enhancement: Driving Adoption
   • Developing Pre-Built Templates for Common Reporting Scenarios
   • Providing Comprehensive Training on SAC's Explorer Tool
   • Implementing Linked Analysis for Cross-Chart Filtering
   • Utilizing Bookmarks and Personalization.
9. Advanced Topics and Best Practices
   • Usage of RSRV in S/4Hana for query analysis.
   • Performance impact of complex calculations.
   • Best practices for naming conventions.
   • Documenting the reports and CDS views.
10. Conclusion and Next Steps
    • Continuous Improvement and User Feedback
    • Leveraging SAP Resources and Community Support

Detailed Exploration

1. Introduction: The Power of Live Connections for Ad Hoc Reporting

• Understanding the Benefits of Live Connections:
  • Real-time data access: Decisions are based on the latest information.
  • Elimination of data replication: Reduces storage and maintenance overhead.
  • Simplified data governance: Data remains in the source system.
• Ad Hoc Reporting: Empowering Business Users:
  • Enables users to explore data independently.
  • Fosters data-driven decision-making.
  • Reduces reliance on IT for report creation.

2. Setting Up the Foundation: S/4HANA Live Connection

• Verifying Connection Setup and Configuration:
  • Ensure the connection is active and functioning correctly.
  • Check for any error messages or warnings.
• Direct Live Connection vs. Import Data: A Comparative Analysis:
  • Live connection: Real-time, no replication, performance depends on source.
  • Import data: Faster initial loading, data replication, scheduled updates.
• Troubleshooting Network and Authorization Issues:
  • OAuth Configuration: Correct service user creation and authorization.
  • CORS Settings: Cross origin resource sharing configuration.
  • ICM Parameters: Internet Communication Manager parameters for connectivity.

3. Data Source Selection: Leveraging CDS Views and Analytical Queries

• Why CDS Views are Preferred:
  • Semantic richness: Clear and understandable data structures.
  • Performance optimization: Built-in query optimization.
  • Reusability: Can be used across multiple applications.
• Exploring SAP Standard Views (I_ and C_ Views):
  • Leverage pre-built views for common reporting needs.
  • Understand the structure and purpose of these views.
• Creating Custom CDS Views for Specific Needs:
  • Designing Efficient CDS Views:
    • Use appropriate join types.
    • Minimize the number of fields.
    • Apply filters early in the query.
  • Data Modeling within CDS Views:
    • Calculated fields.
    • Value help associations.
    • Parameters.

4. SAC Modeling Considerations: Working with Live Data

• Understanding Limitations: No Data Replication in SAC:
  • All data manipulation must occur in S/4HANA.
• Structuring CDS Views for Dynamic Filtering and Calculations:
  • Use parameters and variables for flexible filtering.
  • Implement calculations in CDS views for performance.
• Pre-Aggregations and Calculated Fields in CDS Views:
  • When possible, aggregate data in the CDS view. This reduces the amount of data that SAC has to process.
• Hierarchy and Authorization Management in S/4HANA:
  • Ensure hierarchies are defined correctly.
  • Implement row-level security through authorizations.

5. Empowering Self-Service: Ad Hoc Reporting in SAC

• Utilizing the Exploration View for User-Driven Analysis:
  • Users can explore data without predefined reports.
• Building Interactive Stories with Drag-and-Drop Functionality:
  • Create visually appealing and informative dashboards.
• Enhancing Flexibility with Input Controls, Filters, and Hierarchies:
  • Enable users to refine reports dynamically.
• Advanced Exploration Techniques:
  • Drill down and Drill through: Allow users to navigate through data hierarchies.
  • Variable usage: Use variables to create dynamic filters and calculations.

6. Performance Optimization: Ensuring Responsiveness

• Minimizing Joins in CDS Views:
  • Reduce the complexity of queries.
• Leveraging Indexed Fields for Faster Query Execution:
  • Improve query performance by using indexed fields.
• Implementing Variable Filters (@Consumption.filter):
  • Limit the amount of data retrieved.
• Exploring Delta Queries for Incremental Updates:
  • Only retrieve changed data.
• Query Monitor in S/4Hana to identify bottlenecks:
  • Use transaction ST05 and ST12.

7. Governance and Security: Protecting Sensitive Data

• Role-Based Access Control: Integrating S/4HANA Authorizations:
  • Ensure users only have access to authorized data.
• SAC Data Access Control: Layered Security:
  • Implement additional security measures in SAC.
• Audit Logging and Monitoring: Tracking Report Usage:
  • Monitor report usage for security and compliance.
• Data masking within S/4Hana:
  • Mask sensitive data before it reaches SAC.

8. User Experience Enhancement: Driving Adoption

• Developing Pre-Built Templates for Common Reporting Scenarios:
  • Provide starting points for users.
• Providing Comprehensive Training on SAC's Explorer Tool:
  • Ensure users understand how to use the tool.
• Implementing Linked Analysis for Cross-Chart Filtering:
  • Enable interactive dashboards.
• Utilizing Bookmarks and Personalization:
  • Allow users to save their own settings.

9. Advanced Topics and Best Practices

• Usage of RSRV in S/4Hana for query analysis:
  • Analyze BW queries.
• Performance impact of complex calculations:
  • Understand the performance implications of calculations.
• Best practices for naming conventions:
  • Maintain consistent naming conventions.
• Documenting the reports and CDS views:
  • Document all reports and CDS views.

10. Conclusion and Next Steps

• Continuous Improvement and User Feedback:
  • Regularly gather feedback and make improvements.
• Leveraging SAP Resources and Community Support:
  • Utilize SAP resources and community forums.