SAP BDC is a cloud-native, SaaS-based enterprise data platform designed for integration, harmonization, and analytics. Its architecture can be broken into five main components:
1️⃣ Data Integration Layer
Purpose: Ingests and integrates data from various source systems.
Features:
- Connectors for SAP systems (S/4HANA, ECC, SuccessFactors, Ariba)
- ODP / CDS / APIs / SLT-based replication
- Real-time or batch data ingestion
- External flat-file and cloud application support
Benefit: Provides a unified entry point for multi-system data.
2️⃣ Managed Data Foundation
Purpose: Central storage and processing layer.
Features:
- Cloud-managed, elastic storage
- Schema management & table storage
- Data persistence or federation options
- Historical and transactional data handling
Benefit: Acts as the trusted single source of truth.
3️⃣ Business Semantics Layer
Purpose: Harmonizes and standardizes data for enterprise-wide analytics.
Features:
- SAP-delivered business entities
- Harmonized KPIs (Revenue, Margin, Headcount, etc.)
- Master data alignment (Customer, Product, Company)
- Cross-domain relationships
Benefit: Ensures consistency, reduces reconciliation, and enables trusted analytics.
4️⃣ Enterprise Data Products
Purpose: Domain-owned, certified, and reusable datasets.
Features:
- Domain ownership & SLA
- Predefined and certified KPIs
- Governed data products for analytics and AI
- API-ready for external consumption
Benefit: Democratizes data access while maintaining governance.
5️⃣ Consumption Layer
Purpose: Provides access for analytics, reporting, and AI.
Features:
- SAP Analytics Cloud integration
- APIs for external tools
- AI/ML model consumption
- Self-service analytics for business users
Benefit: Enables real-time insights, predictive analytics, and cross-domain reporting.
🏗️ Simplified Architecture Flow
Source Systems (S/4, ECC, SuccessFactors, Ariba, External) ↓ Data Integration Layer ↓ Managed Data Foundation ↓ Business Semantics Layer ↓ Enterprise Data Products ↓ Analytics / AI / APIs / Self-Service Consumption
🎯 Interview-Ready Summary
The core components of SAP Business Data Cloud are the Data Integration Layer, Managed Data Foundation, Business Semantics Layer, Enterprise Data Products, and the Consumption Layer. Together, they enable cloud-native, governed, harmonized, and AI-ready enterprise analytics.