Subject: SAP HANA Live | Field: SAP
With the growing adoption of Core Data Services (CDS) Views as the foundation for reporting and analytics in SAP HANA Live, ensuring optimal performance of these CDS-based solutions is crucial. CDS Views offer a powerful semantic layer tightly integrated with SAP HANA and ABAP, but without proper tuning and optimization, even the best models can lead to performance bottlenecks.
This article outlines key strategies and best practices to tune and optimize CDS-based solutions in the SAP HANA Live environment.
CDS Views operate close to the database layer, enabling efficient pushdown of calculations and filters. However, several factors impact performance:
- Complexity of view logic (joins, unions, aggregations)
- Data volume and cardinality
- Use of annotations and calculated fields
- Consumption patterns (reporting tools, interfaces)
- HANA database resources and system configuration
Effective tuning ensures that CDS Views deliver fast response times without compromising data accuracy or business logic.
- Keep Views Simple and Modular: Break down complex CDS Views into smaller, reusable basic and composite views. This improves readability and enables better performance tracing.
- Avoid Unnecessary Joins: Only join tables essential for the business logic. Use inner joins instead of outer joins where possible, as they are generally faster.
- Limit Data Volume Early: Apply filters at the lowest possible layer in the CDS view hierarchy to reduce the amount of data processed.
- Minimize Calculated Fields: Push calculations down to the database level or pre-calculate where feasible. Avoid complex expressions in consumption views.
- @Analytics.aggregate and @DefaultAggregation: Specify aggregation behavior to help HANA optimize calculations.
- @ObjectModel.foreignKey.association: Define associations properly to improve join efficiency.
- @Semantics: Use semantic annotations to guide query execution and optimize data handling.
- @ClientHandling: Appropriately manage client filters to avoid data leakage and unnecessary data retrieval.
- Leverage database functions and SQLScript for complex transformations that can be executed more efficiently on the HANA database.
- Avoid calculations or filtering on the application server or reporting layer.
¶ 4. Analyze and Optimize SQL Generated by CDS Views
- Use transaction ST05 (SQL Trace) or SAP HANA Studio’s Plan Visualizer (PlanViz) to analyze the SQL queries generated by CDS Views.
- Identify slow-running queries or expensive join operations and refine CDS logic accordingly.
- Use associations for better semantic modeling and navigation, but avoid deeply nested or circular associations which can degrade performance.
- Prefer join conditions with proper indexes on join columns.
- Apply parameterized filters or input parameters in CDS Views to restrict data dynamically.
- Use data aging or partitioning strategies for very large datasets to improve query speed.
- Ensure statistics are up to date for query optimizer.
- Use Calculation Views or CDS Views with star schema modeling principles where applicable.
- Monitor and adjust memory and CPU allocation on the HANA system.
| Aspect |
Best Practice |
| View Structure |
Modularize views; keep logic clear and simple |
| Joins & Associations |
Minimize joins; use inner joins; avoid deep nesting |
| Filters |
Apply early and specific filters |
| Aggregations |
Define explicit aggregation behavior |
| Calculated Fields |
Push calculations to database or pre-calculate |
| SQL Analysis |
Regularly analyze generated SQL and optimize queries |
| Annotations |
Use appropriate semantic and analytic annotations |
| Data Volume |
Use parameters and data partitioning |
| System Resources |
Keep HANA system tuned and updated |
Performance tuning and optimization of CDS-based solutions are vital to harness the full power of SAP HANA Live’s real-time analytics capabilities. By following best practices in CDS view design, leveraging semantic annotations, pushing logic to the database, and continuously monitoring SQL execution, organizations can significantly improve query response times and ensure scalable analytics.
As SAP’s strategic focus intensifies on CDS as the core modeling layer in S/4HANA and beyond, mastering these tuning techniques will be essential for SAP professionals aiming to deliver high-performing, robust analytical solutions.