Embedded Analytics is a key feature of modern SAP systems, providing real-time, integrated analytics capabilities directly within transactional applications. At the heart of this approach lie Core Data Services (CDS) views, which form the semantic layer enabling rich, reusable, and efficient data modeling on the SAP HANA platform. This article explores how CDS views are used in embedded analytics, particularly within the SAP HANA Live context, and why they are essential for delivering real-time business insights.
Embedded Analytics refers to the integration of analytical capabilities directly into SAP transactional applications, allowing users to analyze operational data in real time without the need for data replication or separate data warehouses. This approach leverages the power of the in-memory SAP HANA database and advanced data modeling techniques.
CDS views are the cornerstone of embedded analytics in SAP. They provide:
SAP HANA Live offers a library of pre-delivered CDS views that expose operational data in real time. These views serve as ready-to-use semantic models for embedded analytics. Key benefits include:
CDS views represent business objects such as sales orders, purchase orders, or financial documents, with fields, associations, and calculated measures relevant to analytics.
Annotations like @Analytics.query mark CDS views as analytical queries, enabling features such as aggregation, filtering, and hierarchies in UI tools.
CDS views can be exposed as OData services automatically, allowing seamless consumption by SAP Fiori apps, SAP Analytics Cloud, or third-party BI tools.
Embedded analytics CDS views integrate natively with SAP Fiori apps, enabling role-based, contextual analytics. They also complement SAP BW by providing operational insights without data duplication.
A CDS view named C_SalesOrderAnalysis might include:
This view can be consumed by a Fiori analytical app, providing sales managers with real-time dashboards and drill-down capabilities.
CDS views form the backbone of embedded analytics in SAP HANA Live, enabling real-time, flexible, and performant reporting integrated directly into SAP applications. By harnessing the power of CDS views, organizations can unlock immediate insights, streamline decision-making, and enhance the overall user experience without the overhead of separate analytics systems.
For SAP professionals working with SAP HANA Live and embedded analytics, mastering CDS view design and consumption is essential to delivering agile and powerful analytical solutions aligned with business needs.