SAP Integration with Office 365, SharePoint and 150+ others

SAP data can be integrated codelessly and in just minutes with 150+ other data sources (on-premises or in the cloud) using the Layer2 Cloud Connector via SAP NetWeaver and OData. Please take a look here for supported systems and applications, e.g. Microsoft Office 365, SharePoint, Dynamics, Azure, SQL and others.

 

 

SAP Integration Office 365 SharePoint Dynamics

 

Fig. SAP can be directly connected to 150+ data sources, on-premises and in the cloud, codeless lyand with no-touch in just minutes using the Layer2 Cloud Connector.

 

 

 

How-to-connect-SAP-to-SharePoint-Office-365-YouTube.jpg

 

Fig. Please take a look at the video to connect SAP to Office 365 (as an example).

 

 

SAP Data Integration - Features and Benefits

SAP data integration with 150+ IT systems and apps with the help of the Layer2 Cloud Connector has the following features and benefits.

SAP data available everywhere, at any time, on any device, or app

Your pre-selected SAP data sets will be available everywhere, at any time, on any device, or app with all features provided by the connected system, such as Office 365 or SharePoint.

All features provided without any restrictions

All features of the connected target system are fully available without any restrictions. In case of SAP to Microsoft Office 365 / SharePoint connections you will have lists, views, search, forms, notifications, workflows, and apps.

Direct connections under your full control

The service runs locally in your network our in your cloud. No 3rd party, vendor, or service involved. Just direct connections under your full control. No changes required in the connected systems or the network.

Flexible data synchronization features for your business

Advanced features can make the difference: Flexible field mapping, Dynamic Columns to apply data cleanup, calculations, data transformation, and data translation between the connected systems to implement custom business logic in C#.

 

Write-back of external data changes to the SAP system

The OData connection allows write-back of data changes made in external system to your SAP system, if required and authorized. Great to implement cross-system business processes, such as Microsoft SharePoint workflows or actions in PowerApps, Flow, or Azure Logic Apps.

Cost-effective licensing with no hidden costs

Users are working with the connected target system only, such as Office 365, or SharePoint. The never access SAP directly. No need for any user CALs, just a one-time fee for the Layer2 Cloud Connector license. No additional costs for systems to connect to, or for data volume transferred.

SAP Integration Specific Configuration Settings

Basically, you can start with the Layer2 Cloud Connector when you are able to see valid OData (some kind of XML data) in your browser. If you are not familiar with both, OData and SAP, take a look here to learn more.

 

To connect to SAP data the data source entity must be configured as follows in the Layer2 Cloud Connector Connection Manager:

 

Sample: Configuration for SAP Integration with SharePoint

Fig. Example connection configuration to directly connect to SAP demo data in their Devcenter via OData

 

 

Please note the following specific settings.

 

  • Select the Layer2 Data Provider for OData to connect. The provider is part of the Layer2 Cloud Connector ADO.NET provider package and should be already installed. You will find an OData Provider specification here.
  • Generally, you can use a connection string like this to connect:
    url=https://mysapportal.mydomain.com/pathtomycollection; Collection=TravelAgencies;
     User=myDomain\myUser; Password=myPassword; Authentication=Windows
  • SAP offers free access to a demo system to verify the Layer2 Cloud Connector SAP connectivity. Please register here.
  • To connect to the SAP demo system you can make use of a connection string similar to this:

    url=https://sapes5.sapdevcenter.com/sap/opu/odata/IWFND/RMTSAMPLEFLIGHT/; Collection=TravelAgencies; Authentication=Windows, SAPCsrfHeader; User=P********;

    Please replace the user token with your specific account and add a password to the password field.
  • If you want to write to SAP, in some cases a CSRF Token is required to additionally secure the connection. Please use the following authentication method for this: Authentication=Windows,SAPCsrfHeader
  • Several other authentication methods are generally supported. See provider specification linked above for more information.
  • You can make use of OData to query your data as supported by the data provider and source system. For any specification of supported queries see SAP documentation. You can browse OData collections in the web browser. Simply paste your url from there.
  • You can map your data fields to specific external fields in the Layer2 Cloud Connector. Please take care about data types (simple type conversions are supported).
  • Please enter an appropriate primary key (column with unique values), depending on the query (see data preview for this).
  • You can use the connection for uni- or bi-directional synchronization. In case of inserts (full CRUD) via external systems please take care of the primary key. SAP-side IDs will not work in his case.
  • Data synchronization can be started manually in the Connection Manager, per command line or scheduled in the background by the Layer2 Cloud Connector Windows Service. Only data changes are processed (no delete/bulk import).
  • No programming required to setup a connection and sync. No need to open your local network for access from outside.
  • Depending on requirements there are some steps on the SAP-side to connect to specific data entities. Please contact SAP or view their documentation for more assistance.
  • If you don't have OData access to your SAP data yet, you can alternatively connect and sync via database queries or intermediate text / csv files created by scripts.

Step-by-Step Intros About SAP Integration and Data Synchronization

You will find some step-by-step articles here:

 

 

German-speaking prospects can find more information about SAP data integration with the Microsoft Cloud via Layer2 in this book.

 

Just some other ideas:

 

  • Sync with Microsoft Exchange (on-premises or online) for notifications, tasks, calendar events, mobile access and offline availability on any device (e.g. for BYOD).
  • Sync contacts with Microsoft Dynamics CRM or project data with Microsoft Project Server.
  • Sync with 3rd party tools based on SQL databases like Oracle, mySQL or Microsoft SQL Server.
  • Sync with Microsoft SharePoint or Office 365 for better collaboration (for example with customers or partners) or for intranet publishing.
  • Create PowerApps based on SAP-connected SharePoint Lists or Azure SQL tables and publish for use under Windows, Android, or iOS.
  • Start cross-platform actions on SAP data changes via Microsoft Flow or Azure Logic Apps using Layer2.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Please find answers to frequently asked questions about SAP data integration below.

What about technical requirements on the SAP-side?

SAP data must be provided in a format, supported by the Layer2 Cloud Connector. Typically, the desired data sets are exposed via OData by the SAP NetWeaver Gateway. This interface is SAP standard and offers maximum flexibility for both, one-way and two-way data synchronization with external sources. Learn more about exposing SAP data via OData / SAP NetWeaver Gateway.

I don't have SAP NetWeaver. Any chance to connect?

Yes, you can write your own custom OData service, or use other supported formats, such as Text/CSV, XML, Excel, or SQL databases. For example you can use SAP programming to export data in one of the formats linked above on a regular base and sync from there to your target system. This is especially helpful in case of one-way synchronizations, such as from SAP to SharePoint or Azure.

I'm not allowed to install anything on SAP. Where to go next?

You don't have to install anything on the SAP side (and also not on the other connected system). You can run the connector on any Windows Server or client in your network or in your Azure Cloud (Windows VM), where it easily could reach your SAP system via OData (HTTPS/SSL), or other supported interfaces.

What's the difference between Layer2 and Duet Enterprise?

Duet was originally developed by SAP and Microsoft for SharePoint on-premises. It uses the Business Connectivity Services to expose SAP data in external SharePoint lists. The SAP system is directly accessed in real-time from the SharePoint side for each SharePoint user call. SharePoint external lists do not have the same features, compared to native SharePoint lists, as used by Layer2. With Layer2, SharePoint users are working with true SharePoint lists, they do not access SAP directly and have all SharePoint list features available. As a result of the specific architecture, licensing the Layer2 solution is also more cost-effective, compared to other approaches and vendors. Duet is deprecated by Microsoft and it will not be available on current SharePoint versions.

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