Data Catalog & Lineage in SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC)

Scenario

A global enterprise asks:

Where is this KPI coming from?
Which source table feeds this revenue report?
Who owns this dataset?
What will break if we change this transformation?

To answer these, you need:

👉 Data Catalog + Data Lineage

1️⃣ What is Data Catalog in BDC?

A Data Catalog is a centralized inventory of:

Data assets
Tables
Views
Analytical models
Data products
Metadata

It provides:

✔ Business descriptions
✔ Technical metadata
✔ Ownership information
✔ Data classification
✔ Search & discovery

🔹 Why It Matters

Enables self-service analytics
Reduces dependency on IT
Improves governance
Ensures trusted data usage

In BDC, domains can publish data products with metadata attached.

2️⃣ What is Data Lineage in BDC?

Data Lineage shows:

End-to-end data flow from source system to dashboard.

Example flow:

SAP S/4HANA (ACDOCA) ↓ Replication ↓ BDC Data Foundation ↓ Transformation / Model ↓ Revenue KPI ↓ SAC Dashboard

Lineage answers:

Where did this data originate?
What transformations were applied?
Which reports depend on it?

Technical Layers of Lineage in BDC

🔹 Source-Level Lineage

Tracks from S/4HANA, ECC, external systems

🔹 Transformation-Level Lineage

Shows joins, filters, calculated measures

🔹 Semantic-Level Lineage

Tracks KPI derivations

🔹 Consumption-Level Lineage

Links to SAC stories & APIs

Governance Benefits

✔ Impact analysis before change
✔ Faster root cause analysis
✔ Regulatory compliance
✔ Transparent KPI definitions
✔ Domain ownership clarity

Common Migration Challenge

When migrating from BW:

Missing documentation
Hidden ABAP logic
Poor metadata governance

Mitigation:

Clean metadata before migration
Document KPI definitions
Use standardized semantic naming

Interview-Level Insight

In a Data Mesh architecture:

Domains own data products
Catalog provides discoverability
Lineage ensures accountability
Governance is federated

30-Second Interview Answer

In SAP Business Data Cloud, the Data Catalog provides centralized metadata management, enabling discovery, ownership tracking, and governance of data products. Data Lineage offers end-to-end traceability from source systems through transformations to consumption layers like SAC, ensuring transparency, impact analysis, and trusted analytics.

You can also checkout ebooks for SAP BDC – Quick Revision – using the link :
Part 1 : https://topmate.io/vartika_gupta11/1954785

Part 2 : https://topmate.io/vartika_gupta11/1956232

Also can schedule a mock interview either by me or my team at topmate for SAP BDC – 35+ Minutes : https://topmate.io/vartika_gupta11/1962923

You can reach out to me or follow my profile for more such helpful content : Vartika Gupta | LinkedIn