SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC) connectivity options
Connection Type Overview
SAP Analytics Cloud supports two fundamental data access paradigms: Live (data stays in the source, queried in real-time) and Import/Acquired (data is copied into SAC). The choice between them drives architecture, governance, planning capabilities, and performance trade-offs.[learning.sap]
Live Connection Sub-Types
Before diving into the full matrix, it is important to understand the three live connection sub-types:[help.sap]
- Direct (CORS): Browser-to-source, lowest latency; requires CORS configuration on the source system
- Tunnel: Routed via SAP BTP Cloud Connector; no VPN needed for end users, slightly slower than direct
- Cloud/OAuth: Used for native cloud-to-cloud scenarios (SAC ↔ S/4HANA Cloud, IBP, Datasphere, etc.)
- “Live” keeps data in the source system and queries it at runtime; “Import” acquires and stores data in SAC.
- On-premise access from SAC usually requires SAP Cloud Connector or a reverse proxy, and appropriate SSO (SAML/Kerberos) setup for live.
- Exact certified versions, features, and limitations can change. Use the linked Help pages to confirm the latest pre‑requisites for your customer’s specific release.
High-level benefits by connection type
- Live connections
- Pros: No data replication, near real-time, honors source security and authorizations, reduced data governance overhead.
- Considerations: Source system performance/load affects analytics; modeling features are limited to what the source exposes; requires network and SSO setup.
- Import connections
- Pros: Scheduling, data preparation/blending in SAC, performant dashboards independent of source, offline analysis possible.
- Considerations: Data latency (by schedule), additional storage and lifecycle management in SAC, governance for copied data.
SAC connectivity matrix (representative options you’ll most commonly encounter)
The table below groups systems by SAP vs. Non‑SAP and by deployment flavor. Use it as a discovery checklist in workshops; confirm detailed prerequisites and feature support per customer version using Help Portal.
| Source system | SAP/Non‑SAP | Deployment (Cloud / On‑prem / RISE) | Connection mode(s) | Typical prerequisites (version/gateway) | When to prefer Live vs. Import | Key benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAP HANA Cloud | SAP | Cloud | Live, Import | HANA Cloud instance; SSO configured for Live; network allow-list | Live when real-time and HANA modeling used; Import for data prep and scheduling in SAC | Live: no replication, leverages Calculation Views; Import: SAC modeling, blending |
| SAP HANA (on‑prem) | SAP | On‑prem, RISE PCE | Live, Import | HANA SPS 12+ recommended; reverse proxy or SAP Cloud Connector; SSO | Live when leveraging HANA models and row‑level security; Import for governed snapshots | Live: source security and performance; Import: scheduled acquisitions, offline |
| SAP Datasphere (SAP Data Warehouse Cloud) | SAP | Cloud | Live, Import | Datasphere space; user/roles; network allow-list | Live for semantic layer and virtualized access; Import if preparing and persisting reshaped data in SAC | Live: central modeling in Datasphere; Import: SAC-centric prep |
| SAP BW/4HANA | SAP | On‑prem, RISE PCE | Live, Import | BW/4HANA 1.x/2.x; InA service enabled; reverse proxy or Cloud Connector for Live | Live for BEx/Queries runtime security; Import for scheduled extracts | Live: query runtime auth, no copy; Import: faster dashboards on extracts |
| SAP BW 7.5x | SAP | On‑prem | Live, Import | BW 7.5 with InA/OLAP runtime; reverse proxy or Cloud Connector | Same as BW/4; validate SP levels for features | As above |
| SAP S/4HANA Cloud (public edition) | SAP | Cloud | Live (Analytical Queries), Import (OData) | Analytical Query APIs; communication user/arrangement | Live for embedded analytics queries; Import for OData-based snapshots | Live: no replication; Import: joins and prep in SAC |
| SAP S/4HANA (on‑prem, incl. RISE PCE) | SAP | On‑prem / RISE | Live (Analytical Queries), Import (OData) | S/4HANA 1709+ recommended; InA/OData services; reverse proxy/Cloud Connector | Live where CDS analytical queries exist and security is needed; Import when staging needed | Live: runtime results; Import: scheduled and enriched models |
| SAP BusinessObjects Universe (UNX) | SAP | On‑prem | Live | Live Universe Connector (LUC) deployment; SSO; network | Use Live to reuse Universe semantics | Leverage BO semantic layer, no replication |
| SAP SuccessFactors | SAP | Cloud | Import | SuccessFactors API user, Data Replication permissions | Import for workforce data snapshots and planning | Scheduled loads into SAC for HR analytics |
| SAP Concur | SAP | Cloud | Import | Concur API credentials | Import for spend data into models | Governed scheduled acquisition |
| SAP Fieldglass | SAP | Cloud | Import | Fieldglass API credentials | Import for contingent workforce analytics | Scheduled acquisition |
| SAP Ariba | SAP | Cloud | Import | Ariba APIs / data export | Import for procurement analytics | Scheduled acquisition |
| SAP Sales/Service Cloud (C4C) | SAP | Cloud | Import | OData services and destination | Import for CRM/Service snapshots | Data prep and blending in SAC |
| SAP Marketing Cloud / Emarsys | SAP | Cloud | Import | API/OData | Import for campaigns/engagement | Scheduled acquisition |
| Generic OData Services | SAP/Non‑SAP | Cloud / On‑prem | Import | OData endpoint; for on‑prem, Cloud Connector | Import for lightweight acquisitions | Broadest interoperability |
| SAP Business ByDesign | SAP | Cloud | Import | ByD OData services | Import for ERP mid‑market | Scheduled acquisition |
| Google BigQuery | Non‑SAP | Cloud | Import (native); Live often via Datasphere | BigQuery project & credentials | Use Import for direct loads; Live via Datasphere for semantic virtualization | Quick import; live via Datasphere for governed semantic access |
| Snowflake | Non‑SAP | Cloud | Import (native/JDBC); Live often via Datasphere | JDBC/warehouse creds | Import for performance; Live via Datasphere for governed live | Flexible pipelines; virtualize via Datasphere |
| Amazon Redshift | Non‑SAP | Cloud | Import (JDBC); Live often via Datasphere | JDBC access | Import for curated marts; Live via Datasphere | Data mart extracts; live via semantic layer |
| Microsoft SQL Server | Non‑SAP | On‑prem / Cloud | Import (JDBC) | SAC Agent; JDBC driver; firewall | Import for operational reporting snapshots | Scheduled acquisition |
| Oracle Database | Non‑SAP | On‑prem / Cloud | Import (JDBC) | SAC Agent; JDBC driver | Import for finance/ops extracts | Stable scheduled loads |
| IBM DB2, Teradata, PostgreSQL, MySQL | Non‑SAP | On‑prem / Cloud | Import (JDBC) | SAC Agent; JDBC driver | Import for periodic loads | Broad RDBMS coverage |
| Files (CSV/Excel) | N/A | Cloud | Import | Upload or via Google Drive, OneDrive, SharePoint | Import for ad‑hoc or semi‑structured data | Fast onboarding of offline data |
| Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, SharePoint Online | Non‑SAP | Cloud | Import | Cloud storage connection | Import to bring collaborative files | Scheduled synchronization |
Practical guidance to prepare
- Confirm the customer’s deployment topology upfront:
- Cloud-only vs. hybrid vs. on‑prem, and whether RISE PCE applies. For on‑premises, plan for SAP Cloud Connector (or reverse proxy) for Live.
- Decide Live vs. Import per use case:
- Live for governed, near real‑time dashboards drawing on existing semantic models (HANA Calculation Views, BW Queries, S/4 Analytical Queries, Datasphere models).
- Import for performance isolation, data preparation/blending, or when the source has limited query services or unstable performance windows.
- Authentication and authorization:
- For Live, align on SSO (SAML/Kerberos) and role/authorization passthrough (e.g., BW analysis authorizations, HANA analytic privileges).
- For Import, plan technical users with least-privilege and data governance for replicated data.
- Version checks to validate in the Help Portal:
- SAP HANA (on‑prem): recommended SPS levels for InA and HTTP/CORS, reverse proxy configuration.
- SAP BW/BW/4HANA: InA runtime availability and SP levels for specific features.
- SAP S/4HANA: availability of the required Analytical Queries and OData services by release.
- BusinessObjects Universe: Live Universe Connector deployment pattern.
- JDBC imports: certified driver versions for SQL Server, Oracle, DB2, Teradata, etc.
Non-SAP Systems
| Source System | Type | Deployment | Live | Import | Key Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google BigQuery | Non-SAP Cloud DB | Cloud (Google) | ✅ (Live Direct) | ✅ | One of few non-SAP systems with live connection support [help.sap] |
| Google Drive (Sheets/Files) | Non-SAP Cloud Files | Cloud | ❌ | ✅ | File-based import [help.sap] |
| SQL Databases (generic JDBC) | Non-SAP DB | On-Prem / Cloud | ❌ | ✅ | Broad coverage: MS SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, etc. via SAC Agent JDBC [help.sap] |
| OData Services | Non-SAP / SAP APIs | Any | ❌ | ✅ | Any OData v2/v4 endpoint; covers many third-party SaaS APIs [help.sap] |
| SAP Integration Suite Open Connectors | Non-SAP SaaS (100+ connectors) | Cloud | ❌ | ✅ | Connects Salesforce, ServiceNow, Workday, HubSpot, etc. via pre-built connectors [help.sap] |
| Qualtrics | Non-SAP Survey/CX | Cloud | ❌ | ✅ | Dedicated import connector for experience data [help.sap] |
| Local Files (CSV, Excel, etc.) | Flat files | N/A | ❌ | ✅ | Direct upload; no connection needed; useful for ad-hoc or prototype models [btelligent] |
Live vs. Import — Benefits Summary
| Dimension | Live Connection | Import (Acquired) Connection |
|---|---|---|
| Data freshness | Real-time / near-real-time | Scheduled refresh (batch) |
| Data storage in SAC | None — no replication | Yes — data stored in SAC tenant |
| Data transformation | Limited (story-level calcs only) | Full wrangling, joins, enrichment [learning.sap] |
| Multi-source blending | Limited (browser-based blending for BW/HANA) | Full cross-system blending [linkedin] |
| Planning / writeback | Available for S/4HANA, BW, BPC Embedded live | Full planning on import models [learning.sap] |
| Predictive (Smart Predict) | Supported on HANA 2.0 SPS5+ direct only [help.sap] | Fully supported |
| Large data volumes | Best — no copy overhead | Depends on SAC storage quota |
| Data governance | Centralized in source system | Distributed — SAC becomes data owner [linkedin] |
| Security / data residency | Data never leaves source | Data replicated to SAC (cloud) — check compliance |
| Infrastructure requirement | CORS config (Direct) or BTP Cloud Connector (Tunnel) | SAC Agent (on-prem sources) or Cloud Connector |
| Scheduling/automation | Not applicable | Import jobs can be scheduled [learning.sap] |
Infrastructure Components
| Component | Used For | Notes |
|---|
| Component | Used For | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SAP BTP Cloud Connector | Tunnel live connections, BPC Embedded live, advanced live features | Installed in customer DMZ; bridges SAC ↔ on-prem [learning.sap] |
| SAC Agent (Data Gateway) | All on-premise import connections | Java agent installed on-prem; connects to SAC via HTTPS [help.sap] |
| CORS Configuration | Direct live connections (HANA, BW, S/4HANA on-prem) | Whitelist SAC tenant URL in ICM/profile params on source |
| OAuth 2.0 / SAML | Cloud-to-cloud live connections | Required for S/4HANA Cloud, Datasphere, IBP, HANA Cloud |
Recommended Connection Strategy by Scenario
| Scenario | Recommended Approach |
|---|---|
| Real-time operational reporting on S/4HANA RISE | Live – Cloud/OAuth or Live – Tunnel via BTP Cloud Connector |
| Finance planning with writeback to BW/4HANA | Live – Direct (CORS) with planning-enabled BW queries |
| Multi-source dashboard (SAP + Salesforce + SQL) | Import all sources into SAC; blend in model |
| Data residency / security-sensitive reporting | Live – Tunnel or Live – Direct (data never leaves on-prem) |
| HR analytics from SuccessFactors | Import via Cloud Application connector; schedule nightly refresh |
| Self-service ad-hoc analysis | Import from file (CSV/Excel) or Google Drive |
| Governed semantic layer approach | Live or Import via SAP Datasphere (preferred modern architecture) |