SAP Cloud for Customer Integration with ERP: Get Ready!

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Welcome to the blog series on integrating SAP Cloud for Customer with SAP ERP and SAP CRM. This series will walk you through the integration guides, highlighting key considerations as well as where you should go to ensure you have all the information you need for the integration.

In this blog we will focus on what you need to get ready to integrate SAP Cloud for Customer with SAP ERP.  We will provide recommendations on preparing for the integration, highlights key points in the ‘Prepare’ sections of the ERP-PI and ERP-HCI integration guides, and provide links to additional resources to help you prepare.

As you get ready for the integration you should do the following: 

1. Review the on-boarding guide on Service Marketplace.
2. Determine which integration guide you need (either the ERP-PI or ERP-HCI guide) and download it.
3. Review the checklist in the related integration guide.
4. Go through the ‘Prepare’ sections in the integration guide in detail and execute the required tasks.

So, let’s go through each of these!

Review the on-boarding guide on Service Marketplace

As you begin to get ready for the integration, be sure to review the on-boarding guide on Service Marketplace.  You can find it at http://service.sap.com/cloud4customer. You will find the guide by searching for ‘on-boarding.’ The on-boarding guide provides a high-level description of what is required in every phase of the integration.  

The ‘Prepare’ phase in the on-boarding guide mentions you will receive emails with your tenant information; it also mentions that you will need to request users. If you are using HCI, you will need to create a ticket in the LOD-HCI component to get your user ID.   Your SCN user ID is used to access HCI.  It also mentions that technical connectivity needs to be established and provides a link to a technical connectivity guide.  

Technical connectivity is such a critical part of your integration that our next blog will be devoted to it.  

Determine which integration guide you need and download it

When integrating SAP Cloud for Customer with ERP or CRM, you have the option to use either SAP NetWeaver Process Integration (SAP NetWeaver Process Orchestration)  or SAP HANA Cloud Integration as the integration middleware.  It’s during the sales cycle that the determination as to which would be best for your implementation is made.   On service marketplace (http://service.sap.com/cloud4customer) there are 4 integration guides (Integrating SAP ERP and SAP Cloud for Customer via PI, Integrating SAP ERP and SAP Cloud for Customer via HCI, Integrating SAP CRM and SAP Cloud for Customer via PI, Integrating SAP CRM and SAP Cloud for customer via HCI). Download the guide for your scenario and review the “Check and Prepare” sections in the guide. 

Review the check-list in the integration guide

The first part of the integration guide contains a checklist.  This provides an overview of everything covered in the integration guide.   The table below shows a part of the checklist from the ERP-HCI guide.   At this point you should ensure the prerequisites are met.  Most importantly, you must be on ERP 6.0, EHP 0, Support Package 15 as well as Support Package 18 for SAP_BASIS.   This is the minimum release required.  Some specific functionality, such as viewing PDF in Opportunity to see the Sales Quote and Sales Orders, requires EHP5.  

In addition to the required SP’s, you also need to download and install an add-on to SAP ERP.   You need to ensure you install the add-on and all Support Packages from the add-on.    NOTE: You can only access the add-on if you have purchased SAP Cloud for Customer.

If you are using SAP NetWeaver PI, the prerequisite is that you are on PI 7.11 or a higher release.

Go through the ‘Prepare’ sections in the integration guide in detail and execute the required tasks

Once you have ensured you are on the correct SAP ERP EHP and support packages, and you have downloaded and installed the add-on, then you are ready to go through the ‘Prepare’ sections in the integration guide.  This will include the SAP NW PI content that you need to install. Example of the PI content to download and import into PI is below:

Finally, in order to ‘Get Ready’ you should watch the video Integrating SAP Cloud for Customer and SAP ERP with SAP NW PI or SAP HCI – Cloud Config, Part 1. This video introduces the series for integrating ERP with Cloud for Customer.  It also describes the prerequisites required for the integration.

Hopefully this blog helps you get started integrating with SAP ERP or SAP CRM. Please join us again for a deeper discussion on Technical Connectivity.   Using this blog combined with the on-boarding guide, integration guide, and the video, you should now be able to ensure you are ready to configure the integration.