As enterprises embrace hybrid and cloud-native architectures, the need for controlled, secure, and scalable API exposure becomes critical. While SAP Cloud Platform Integration (CPI) enables seamless process integration across diverse systems, combining it with SAP API Management allows organizations to expose those integration flows as governed APIs. This integration creates a unified digital integration layer—enhancing agility, security, and scalability.
This article explores how SAP professionals can integrate CPI with API Management to unlock the full potential of API-driven innovation within the SAP ecosystem.
SAP CPI is designed for orchestrating data and business processes between systems, while SAP API Management focuses on managing, securing, and analyzing APIs. When used together, you can:
- Expose integration flows as RESTful APIs securely and efficiently.
- Apply API policies (e.g., rate limiting, IP filtering, and OAuth) without changing the backend logic.
- Gain visibility into API usage with powerful analytics.
- Create developer portals for easy consumption of APIs by internal or external developers.
- Standardize access to backend services through consistent, versioned API interfaces.
- Expose SAP S/4HANA data through CPI and API Management for use in mobile apps or third-party systems.
- Secure partner integrations by wrapping CPI integration flows with API security policies.
- Enable B2B/B2C self-service portals by publishing APIs linked to CPI-based business logic.
- Monitor usage and enforce SLAs on CPI-powered APIs.
- Create a standard iFlow in SAP CPI (e.g., fetching sales orders from S/4HANA).
- Use an HTTP or SOAP sender adapter to expose the iFlow as a web service endpoint.
- Open SAP API Management via SAP BTP Cockpit.
- Create an API Proxy for the CPI endpoint URL.
- Define the API base path, target URL, and available operations (GET, POST, etc.).
- Add security policies: OAuth 2.0, API key validation, IP whitelisting.
- Configure traffic management: rate limits, quota control, spike arrest.
- Insert transformation policies: JSON/XML conversion, header enrichment, caching.
¶ 4. Publish and Test the API
- Deploy the proxy and test the integration flow via the managed API endpoint.
- Optionally expose it through the Developer Portal for internal or external use.
| Benefit |
Description |
| Security Enforcement |
Decouple security from backend logic using out-of-the-box policies. |
| Centralized Governance |
Manage access, versioning, and monitoring from a single dashboard. |
| Analytics and Insights |
Monitor API usage, latency, errors, and client trends. |
| Developer Enablement |
Publish CPI-powered APIs via developer portals for faster adoption. |
| Flexibility |
Quickly adapt to new consumer requirements without changing the backend flow. |
- Use the HTTP adapter in CPI to expose REST-compatible endpoints.
- Apply security policies early to prevent unauthorized traffic from reaching CPI.
- Use URL masking and versioning in API Management to decouple frontend from backend changes.
- Monitor API performance to optimize backend iFlow execution and scalability.
- Document APIs clearly for consumers using API Designer and Developer Portal features.
Integrating SAP Cloud Platform Integration with SAP API Management allows businesses to combine the robust orchestration capabilities of CPI with enterprise-grade API governance and exposure. This integrated approach not only secures and simplifies access to backend processes but also accelerates innovation by enabling agile API-first development across internal and external ecosystems.
By mastering CPI and API Management together, SAP professionals can build flexible, scalable, and secure integration architectures aligned with modern digital business demands.