SAP Process Integration (PI) and Process Orchestration (PO) serve as the middleware backbone for enterprise application integration in heterogeneous IT landscapes. One of the core strengths of SAP PI/PO is its ability to support multi-protocol integration, enabling communication across diverse systems using different transport and communication protocols.
This article explores how SAP PI/PO enables seamless multi-protocol integration, the types of protocols supported, and best practices for configuring and managing these integrations.
¶ Understanding Multi-Protocol Integration in SAP PI/PO
In modern enterprises, integrating various applications, whether SAP or third-party, requires handling multiple communication protocols. Protocols define the rules and conventions for data exchange, including how messages are transported, formatted, and secured.
SAP PI/PO acts as a protocol-agnostic middleware, providing adapters to communicate with systems via various protocols. This capability is essential for building flexible and scalable integration scenarios that meet complex business needs.
SAP PI/PO offers a rich set of standard adapters, each supporting different protocols:
- File/FTP/SFTP: Used for transferring files between systems over local file systems or FTP/SFTP servers.
- NFS/CIFS: Network file system shares for shared drives.
- HTTP/HTTPS: For web service communication, both synchronous and asynchronous.
- SOAP: Protocol for exchanging structured XML messages over HTTP.
- REST: Lightweight web services using RESTful APIs.
- OData: Protocol for querying and updating data, often used with SAP Gateway.
- JMS (Java Messaging Service): For reliable, asynchronous message exchange via message brokers.
- IDoc Adapter: SAP-specific protocol for exchanging IDocs (Intermediate Documents).
- RFC Adapter: Remote Function Calls used for SAP system integration.
- SOAP with Attachments: For SOAP messages with binary attachments.
¶ 4. Database and Other Protocols
- JDBC: For direct database access and integration.
- Mail Adapter: For email-based communication.
- AS2 Adapter: For secure B2B communication over the internet.
- XI Protocol: Native SAP protocol for internal PI communication.
¶ Step 1: Identify Source and Target Systems
Understand the communication capabilities of the systems involved — for example, whether they support file exchange, HTTP-based web services, or SAP-specific protocols like IDoc or RFC.
Select SAP PI/PO adapters that match the required protocol. For instance:
- Use SFTP Adapter for secure file transfer.
- Use SOAP Adapter for web service-based integration.
- Use JMS Adapter for asynchronous messaging with message brokers.
Communication Channels define the technical parameters required for sending and receiving messages. They are configured in the Integration Directory or NWDS iFlows with details like:
- Connection type and endpoint URL
- Authentication method (Basic Auth, SSL certificates)
- Message format (XML, flat file, IDoc)
¶ Step 4: Map and Route Messages
Use message mappings to transform data formats and operation mapping for protocol-specific details. Routing rules help direct messages to the correct receiver based on content or context.
¶ Step 5: Test and Monitor
Leverage SAP PI/PO’s Runtime Workbench and Monitoring tools to ensure messages traverse the correct protocol channels without errors.
- Flexibility: Connect with diverse systems using their native protocols without forcing system changes.
- Scalability: Easily add new communication protocols as business needs evolve.
- Reusability: Standard adapters reduce development effort by leveraging out-of-the-box components.
- Reliability: Built-in retry and error handling mechanisms tailored for different protocols.
- Security: Support for SSL/TLS, certificates, and secure authentication across protocols.
- B2B Scenarios: AS2 and SFTP adapters enable secure exchange of electronic documents with trading partners.
- Hybrid Landscapes: HTTP/HTTPS and REST adapters facilitate integration between on-premise SAP systems and cloud applications.
- SAP-to-SAP Integration: RFC and IDoc adapters provide fast, SAP-optimized communication.
- Event-Driven Architectures: JMS adapters allow asynchronous message processing using enterprise messaging middleware.
- Consistent Naming Conventions: Helps in managing multiple adapters and communication channels.
- Secure Communication: Always use encrypted protocols (HTTPS, SFTP, AS2 with encryption).
- Performance Tuning: Optimize adapter settings like polling intervals and batch sizes.
- Version Control: Keep track of adapter configurations in transport management.
- Comprehensive Monitoring: Set up alerts for adapter-specific errors and throughput issues.
Multi-protocol integration is a critical capability that makes SAP PI/PO a versatile middleware solution. By supporting an extensive array of communication protocols and providing configurable adapters, SAP PI/PO empowers enterprises to build complex, heterogeneous integrations with ease.
Organizations that leverage multi-protocol integration can connect legacy systems, cloud services, SAP and non-SAP applications, ensuring smooth data flow and business process continuity.