In the era of digital transformation, data is the lifeblood of business processes. Enterprises often need to connect their cloud applications with various databases to access, manipulate, and synchronize critical business data. SAP Cloud Platform (SCP) offers robust capabilities to facilitate these connections, enabling seamless data integration between cloud services and on-premise or cloud databases.
This article explores how to connect to databases from SAP Cloud Platform Integration (CPI), discussing key methods, use cases, and best practices for achieving efficient and secure database interactions.
Integrating databases with SCP enables organizations to:
The JDBC adapter is a powerful tool within SAP CPI that allows direct connectivity to relational databases such as SAP HANA, Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, and MySQL.
For SAP HANA databases hosted on SAP Cloud Platform, the SAP Cloud SDK provides APIs to interact programmatically with database services.
Many databases expose data through OData or RESTful APIs.
For on-premise SAP systems, RFC or SAP-provided database views can be used to indirectly access database data.
Install JDBC Driver
Upload the JDBC driver for your target database into the CPI tenant if it’s not already available.
Configure Connection Details
Provide the JDBC connection URL, username, password, and driver class.
Design Integration Flow
Add the JDBC adapter as a receiver or sender in your iFlow, and define SQL queries for data retrieval or manipulation.
Parameterize Queries
Use message properties or payload values to create dynamic, parameterized SQL statements.
Error Handling and Transactions
Implement error subprocesses to manage database exceptions and ensure transactional integrity.
An integration flow that retrieves updated customer records from an SAP HANA database using the JDBC adapter, transforms the data, and sends it to a cloud CRM system via REST API.
Connecting databases to SAP Cloud Platform Integration unlocks vast potential for real-time data-driven business processes and hybrid landscapes. Whether through JDBC adapters, APIs, or indirect SAP system calls, SCP provides flexible options to bridge cloud applications and data repositories.
By following best practices around configuration, security, and performance, SAP professionals can design integration solutions that are robust, scalable, and secure—driving enterprise agility and innovation.