Stop the silo thinking. Make SAP and Microsoft work together.

What we are hearing from customers

"Can I use Power BI on top of SAP Datasphere?"
"We are moving to Microsoft Fabric - can we bring our SAP data along?"
"We have got S/4HANA and want to move our data to Microsoft. What is allowed, and what is not?"

These are not unusual questions. In fact, they have become the new normal for SAP-driven organizations. Not because anything is lacking in SAP products, but because business users are demanding faster, more accessible ways to work with data.

It is not SAP or Microsoft, it is SAP and Microsoft

Most of our clients are not looking to replace SAP — they want to extend it. While SAP continues to offer strong capabilities for core analytics and reporting, products in the Microsoft ecosystem like Power BI, Databricks or Microsoft Fabric are already widely adopted and appreciated by customers for either their self-service capabilities, real-time insights, and ease of use.

More and more, both clients and software vendors are moving towards an open data ecosystem. Strategic partnerships between products are making it increasingly easy to combine the best of both worlds. And so, a new reality emerges: a hybrid data platform. Where data lives in SAP but is used, enriched, and visualized in both SAP and Microsoft products. Seamlessly. Or at least - that is the goal. 

 The complexity of "just connecting systems"

It may sound simple: just connect SAP S/4 to Microsoft and start analyzing data. But the reality is more nuanced. Not all integration routes are equally suitable — especially when connecting directly from S/4 to the Microsoft ecosystem using database-level access, which may violate your license.

Preferred approach is to route data through SAP Datasphere, which supports two technically sound options: Premium Outbound and Open Mirroring. Since data is already stored in Datasphere, either approach is valid. The key difference lies in how data is transferred:

• Premium Outbound uses a push mechanism: data is replicated from Datasphere to the target platform on a scheduled or near real-time basis. This feature requires an additional license.

• Open Mirroring relies on a pull approach: data is accessed on-demand by the target platform, remaining in Datasphere during runtime.

However, if your organization has already invested in an external ETL tool like Alteryx, DaB, or simplement  and wants to pursue this approach, it may conflict with the Lean Core principle. As some most tools require custom logic to be implemented in the ERP system to enable third-party integration.

Choosing the right integration route depends on your company’s broader data strategy. Performance and cost are important factors, but they are part of a larger question:
How do we design a data landscape that can grow with the business — without creating complexity? Let’s look at how one organization tackled this challenge in practice.

Real-work example: compliant SAP data integration with non-SAP platforms

As an example, a leading Dutch energy provider recently faced the complexity of exposing SAP data to a non-SAP data warehouse. What initially seemed like a simple ODBC/JDBC connection via SAP Datasphere turned out to be non-compliant with SAP's HANA runtime license conditions.

In close collaboration with SAP and McCoy, the company opted for Premium Outbound replication via Datasphere - a fully compliant route that transfers data through the application layer. However, this brought new challenges, such as unexpectedly high outbound volumes (e.g., a 5.5 GB BSEG extract triggering a 167 GB Premium Outbound charge) and corresponding cost implications. By implementing deltas - a technically challenging but effective way to minimize data movement - along with pre-filters and monitoring via BTP, the organization maintained control over cost and governance, ultimately shaping a scalable and compliant hybrid data platform.

Finding the right route: proper design over technical shortcuts

Integration decisions rarely come down to a single best practice. They depend on a mix of factors like the architectural landscape, license constraints, team capabilities or integration requirements. That is why we do not recommend a one-size-fits-all solution.

To bring clarity, we typically work with clients through a Data Assessment. This structured approach surfaces the technical realities and business implications of various integration routes, helping organizations weigh integration options towards Microsoft. 

From client experience, we know that successful hybrid data platforms are not driven by tools, they are shaped by a proper design. The most effective organizations start by asking the hard questions, long before selecting a connector or cloud service is established:

• Are we investing in platforms that can evolve with our future architecture?

• Is our data strategy aligned with how the business actually consumes data?

• Where do we need speed and flexibility — and where do we require structure and stability?

• How do we maintain governance without obstructing innovation?

Building the hybrid data platform

You do not have to choose between SAP or Microsoft. But you do need to know what you are building towards. If you are exploring how to align your SAP architecture with Microsoft’s data stack (including Fabric, Power BI, and Databricks) our Data Assessment helps organizations by:

• Map their current data and integration landscape

• Understand technical feasibility and licensing constraints

• Evaluate sustainable hybrid data strategies

At McCoy, we have experience working across both SAP and Microsoft technologies - from understanding licensing and integration models to supporting clients in making sound architectural decisions. Our goal is to provide clarity and structure, not to push tools, so that hybrid platforms serve both the business and IT.

Are you interested in what our data assessment can do for you?  Request a Data Assessment or contact joury.jonkergouw@mccoy-partners.com about how we approach hybrid data platforms.