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What exactly is SAP BW PCE… and what it is not !

FrankRiesner
Product and Topic Expert
Product and Topic Expert
a month ago
6,062

Dear BW enthusiasts!
In February this year, SAP announced SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC). Amongst others, it combines the strengths of SAP Datasphere, SAP Analytics Cloud and provides many innovations including a deep integration with SAP Databricks for ML and AI use cases. In addition, the term “BW Modernization” also plays a key role in this new environment.

This blog post is meant to clarify the product behind this term, which is sometimes referred to SAP BW[4] PCE. Other terms like RISE-BW, HEC, BW cloud private edition, BW tailored option, BW BDC, SAP BW NetWeaver Cloud private edition, or SAP Business Warehouse Cloud are sometimes used in this context as well and that altogether leads to a high level of confusion. So, if you feel the same – keep on reading…BWPCE_BDC_Overview.png

So let’s start to define the term exactly: What is this SAP BW[4] PCE ?
PCE means private cloud edition and refers to a deployment in the SAP private cloud as opposed to on-premise deployments or deployments at hosting/service partners.
BW[4] is an artificial umbrella term we at SAP like to use referring to both products equally:  SAP NetWeaver BW 7.5 on HANA and SAP BW/4HANA. You surely know that both products are quite different; but here the focus is not on features&functions, but on the private cloud deployment mode.
So, the image above means, that you are on SAP´s recommended BW modernization path if you run SAP BW 7.5 on HANA or SAP BW/4HANA in SAP´s private cloud.

What is SAP BW[4] PTO?
PTO stands for private cloud tailored option and refers to infrastructure configuration in the private cloud deployment, e.g. CPU power, memory size, disc space, disaster recovery&backup concepts, SLAs just name some typical ones.
In standard PCE terms, this configuration is defined by the well-known T-shirt size approach concept. But if customer requirements cannot be covered there, a more specific approach can be designed in a “tailored option”.
So in a nutshell, PTO is a specific flavor of the SAP-managed private cloud model to meet individual customer needs regarding infrastructure. In commercial terms, standard PCE and PTO (and other...) approaches are quite different and result in completely different contracts.

What is SAP BW[4] PCE not?
Very clearly – SAP BW[4] PCE is not a new or revised product. It is not a new codeline.
It is the same codeline as BW on HANA or BW/4HANA on premise.
Also worth mentioning - it is not a public cloud solution.
Finally, it does not restrict any existing features. In terms of functionality SAP BW 7.5 on HANA  PCE provides 100% of the features of SAP BW 7.5 on HANA. And SAP BW/4HANA covers the exact same scope as SAP BW/4HANA PCE of the same release and SP level. 
Exception: The so-called Data Product Generator is available in PCE depoyments in BDC only – but what you currently use in SAP BW[4] on-premise is also available in BW[4] PCE. 

How to get to SAP BW[4] PCE?
If your BW system is managed by SAP already, then you are there already: You leverage BW[4] PCE.
For all other customers: a technical migration is needed from the current data center to a Hyperscaler data center managed by SAP. This migration is sometimes referred to as “Lift&Shift”, because in most cases it is a 1:1 move without any changes to the database or the ABAP application stack. It comes with a downtime for each system tier and some testing effort with focus on interfaces rather than on internal BW processes of course, but expectation is generally that everything keeps working in PCE in a non-disruptive way.
If the system is currently running on a 3rd party database, a migration to SAP HANA is required, because PCE´s minimal requirements are BW 7.5 on HANA. You can also include a ABAP stack update or upgrade when moving to PCE.

SAP provides the RISE methodology including tools, concepts, processes, experts etc. to bring customer SAP-landscape into PCE. So, if customers sometimes refer to their “SAP RISE BW”, but actually mean BW[4] deployed in PCE after a successful RISE project delivered by SAP.

What is different with SAP BW[4] PCE in SAP Business Data Cloud?
If your SAP BW[4] PCE subscription includes SAP BDC capacity units, you have currently one additional feature: The Data Product Generator which derives data products from SAP BW[4] PCE InfoProviders into the HANA object store of SAP Datasphere. Based on this integration, customers can redesign relevant applications in SAP Datasphere + SAP Analytics Cloud step-by-step. SAP note 3590400 explains how to enable this additional function and SAP note 3584640 explains, that embedded BW scenarios are out of scope in general. Also refer to SAP BW/4HANA help portal.

What about system maintenance end dates?
One important value added of running BW 7.5 in PCE is the automatic maintenance extension of three years until end of 2030 with no additional fees. See SAP note 3590297 and the SAP Product Availability Matrix (PAM) for more details.
BWPCE_Maintenance.png

Summary
The purpose of this blog post is to explain the significance of a private cloud deployment for SAP BW or SAP BW/4HANA. We at SAP see this as the first crucial step towards a viable modernization shifting from classic BW data flows and BW queries towards Datasphere views and SAC reporting&planning. There are still open questions regarding the detailed modernization approach, and future publication will surely follow...
However, it should be clear, that the move into PCE based on a RISE migration project is a step into the right direction which finally ends in SAP Business Data Cloud including BW[4] PCE. In a nutshell:

  1. Go through a RISE project to bring your BW landscape to an SAP-managed private cloud deployment.
  2. Then, shift&expand BW scenarios to SAP BDC (Datasphere + SAC) step by step.
  3. Finally, adopt SAP BDC completely and decommission SAP BW[4] PCE.

Let´s also emphasize once more, that we are talking of one technical migration only. Shifting from PCE to BDC is mainly a commercial adjustment but does not result in a costly or complex technical migration.

Same same - but different!
Another final message to you BW enthusiasts: Don´t be confused if one organization names it "HEC BW", another one "RISE BW", or others "PCE BW" , "PTO BW" etc... Most likely they are same same in terms of functionality - but they might be really different commercially!

Some useful notes

  • 0052505 - Support after end of mainstream maintenance or extended maintenance
  • 1648480 - Maintenance for SAP Business Suite 7 including SAP NetWeaver
  • 2741041 - Maintenance for SAP NetWeaver 7.x Business Warehouse
  • 2934895 - Maintenance for SAP BW/4HANA
  • 3590297 - Information about maintenance availability in SAP BW private cloud editions
  • 3590400 - Configuration SAP BW[4]: Data Product Generator for SAP Business Data Cloud
  • 3584640 - Data Product Generator in embedded SAP BW in SAP ERP and S/4HANA
  • SAP BW/4HANA help > Integrating Data from the Data Product Generator for SAP Business Data Cloud

Thanks to Alex and Wim for sharing their thoughts...

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