SAPUI5 is SAP’s leading frontend development framework for building responsive, enterprise-grade web applications. When paired with SAP HANA Live, which provides real-time operational reporting via CDS Views and OData services, SAPUI5 empowers users with dynamic, interactive analytics and seamless user experiences.
To maximize the benefits of SAP HANA Live in your UI5 applications, it is essential to follow best practices in SAPUI5 development. This article highlights key recommendations to help developers build efficient, maintainable, and scalable SAPUI5 apps integrated with SAP HANA Live.
- Consume OData Services: Always consume SAP HANA Live CDS Views via OData services for real-time data. Use metadata-driven SAPUI5 controls like
sap.ui.model.odata.v2.ODataModel for easy binding.
- Enable Filtering and Sorting: Expose CDS view fields with proper annotations for filtering/sorting, and enable users to interact with these features in the UI.
- Use Batch Requests: When fetching or updating multiple entities, use OData batch calls to reduce network round trips.
¶ 2. Design Responsive and User-Friendly Interfaces
- Use SAP Fiori Design Guidelines to ensure consistency, usability, and accessibility.
- Utilize SAPUI5 layout controls such as
FlexBox, Grid, and ResponsiveGridLayout to support multiple devices (desktop, tablet, mobile).
- Implement loading indicators and placeholders to improve perceived performance during data fetches.
- Limit Data Loading: Use
$select and $expand in OData queries to retrieve only necessary fields and related entities.
- Implement pagination and infinite scrolling for large datasets to avoid UI freezing.
- Use deferred binding and one-time binding where appropriate to optimize rendering.
- Cache static or infrequently changing data on the client side to reduce backend calls.
-
Follow MVC or MVVM architectural patterns to separate concerns:
- Models for data
- Views for UI elements
- Controllers/ViewModels for business logic
-
Break your application into reusable components and libraries.
-
Use SAPUI5 routing for navigation to maintain state and improve user experience.
¶ 5. Handle Errors Gracefully
- Implement global and local error handlers to capture OData errors and show user-friendly messages.
- Use
sap.m.MessageToast or sap.m.MessageBox for notifications.
- Log errors for troubleshooting and analytics.
¶ 6. Implement Secure and Authorized Data Access
- Integrate SAP Gateway authorizations to restrict data exposure.
- Use CDS-based authorization checks in backend views to ensure users see only authorized data.
- Sanitize user inputs to prevent injection attacks.
¶ 7. Use Annotations and Smart Controls
- Leverage UI annotations in CDS views to enable smart controls such as
sap.ui.comp.smartTable and sap.ui.comp.smartFilterBar.
- Smart controls reduce coding effort and ensure consistency by auto-generating UI elements based on metadata.
- Keep the CDS views well-annotated for rich UI semantics.
¶ 8. Testing and Debugging
- Use SAP Web IDE or Business Application Studio with built-in testing tools.
- Perform unit tests for UI logic and integration tests for OData calls.
- Use Chrome DevTools or UI5 Diagnostics tool for performance tuning and memory profiling.
¶ 9. Documentation and Version Control
- Document app structure, data models, and business logic clearly.
- Use Git or other version control systems for code management.
- Maintain transport requests properly for deployment across SAP systems.
SAPUI5 development, when aligned with SAP HANA Live capabilities, unlocks powerful, real-time analytical applications tailored for enterprise needs. By following these best practices—optimizing data handling, designing responsive UIs, leveraging annotations, and ensuring security—developers can deliver scalable and maintainable SAPUI5 apps that maximize the value of SAP HANA Live.