SAP Solution Manager: 5 Reasons to Upgrade to 7.2

We show you the optimal path to an SAP S/4HANA migration and, through predefined processes, bring your project to a quick and successful conclusion.

The countdown is on! On December 31, 2017, SAP will stop providing standard support for SAP Solution Manager 7.1. An upgrade to the new version (7.2) is worthwhile for this and many other reasons.

The Digital Future is Hybrid

In the future, there will be standardized core solutions, which will be supplemented by expansion platforms – while agile cloud solutions can quickly cover critical requirements. That’s all well and good. Only: How can such an architecture be managed properly?

Earlier versions of SAP Solution Manager are not designed for this at all. Anyone who wants to switch to SAP S/4HANA, for example, should upgrade to 7.2. In fact, there are many reasons to upgrade to the new version. These five are among the most important:

1. It lays the foundation for future IT.

SAP Solution Manager remains a key component of the SAP strategy in the digital age and is provided free of charge to all enterprise support customers. Version 7.2 marks a crucial step on the roadmap, supporting all IT operating models and providing the appropriate interfaces. In addition, a free license for the operation of SAP Solution Manager on SAP HANA is included. Anyone who does not yet work with the database can thus gain initial experience. The upgrade also supports the introduction and operation of SAP S/4HANA solutions much better than previous versions. You can even manage your own developments on the SAP Cloud Platform.

2. Maintenance runs at least to 2025.

An NTT DATA Business Solutions study from last year has shown: Most companies want to switch to 7.2 because of the expiring support. The current release will be maintained over the next few years and extended by various feature packs.

3. Administration and implementation projects become easier.

Supplied best practices facilitate project planning and implementation. New dashboards and quality gates provide the necessary overview. In addition, SAP Solution Manager uses Release 7.2 on the SAP Fiori UX. This not only looks much more modern, but makes the operation much more comfortable.

4. Process templates and modeling make IT more agile.

A convenient modeling operation is available for end users from the specialist area. With self-service, they can now use process templates via drag-and-drop in a web interface without deeper IT knowledge, which in turn relieves the IT department. So that no one has to start from zero, detailed process templates provide a good starting point.

5. The documentation process has been fundamentally revised.

SAP has completely redesigned the documentation process. Integrated into the modeling, all processes can now be documented centrally and without major overhead. This increases the overview and makes dependencies transparent. The documentation itself can then be integrated directly into other scenarios of SAP Solution Manager, such as in Change Request Management or in Test Management.

If you are pursuing an SAP strategy, SAP Solution Manager 7.2 is a must.