SAP BTP Free-tier: Missing Free Plan Option (Cloud Foundry)

[rachitapatel]

Overview

This blog refers to the SAP BTP free-tier usage on how to get the Free service plan enabled.

A. Description:

Initially, after logging to the BTP free-tier account, in order to start with the service configuration, the Cloud Foundry Environment has to be enabled. This is normally being done, by clicking on the 'Enable Cloud Foundry' in the particular subaccount (please refer Fig.1).

Fig.1. Cloud Foundry Environment (Source: SAP BTP Subaccount Homepage)

Now, as shown in Fig.2., there is no Free-Plan service option. In the 'Plan' dropdown, only Standard environment is being shown initially. And selecting this will incur cost.

Fig.2. Enable Cloud Foundry (Source: SAP BTP)

B. Problem Statement:

How to set-up the Free-plan service in the Enable Cloud Foundry?

C. Resolution:

Please follow the below steps to get access to the Free-plan service in SAP BTP Cockpit.

Step 1: In the BTP Global Account, go to Entitlements and click on Entity Assignments.

Fig.3. Entity Assignments (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 2: Click on the Select Entities icon.

Fig.4. Select Entitiy (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 3: Check the appropriate Subaccount and click on the Select button at the bottom.

Fig.5. Select Entities (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 4: Now, go to Configure Entitlements.

Fig.6. Configure Entitlements (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 5: Immediately next step is to click on the Add Service Plans

Fig.7. Add Service Plans (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 6: Now, in the search bar of the Subaccount Entitlements, type Cloud Foundry. So, the Cloud Foundry Runtime appears, select this. And here, in the Available Plans section, the Free environment plan can be found. Select this plan and Click on Add 1 Service Plan.

Fig.8. Entitlements (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 7: To make these changes, click on Save.

Fig.9. Saving the changes (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 8: Once the Free-plan Entitlement Service is being added and saved. Now, go to the Subaccount and click on Enable Cloud Foundry.

Fig.10. Enable Cloud Foundry (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Step 9: Finally, now you can see the Free plan option, select that, the Instance Name and Org name values will be automatically populated, click on Create, and now the free-plan services are enabled for Cloud Foundry Runtime.

Fig.11. Free Plan Service (Source: SAP BTP Cockpit)

Call-to-Action

Please provide feedback about your view and experience related to this extra step for the free-tier setup! Feel free to ask question by contacting me directly or commenting below.

Also, you can also refer to my following blog which enlists the end-to-end steps for setup of free-tier SAp Datasphere plan in SAP BTP.

SAP Datasphere: Getting Started with SAP Datasphere for Free

Reference Links

Get an Account on SAP BTP to Try Out Free Tier Service Plans

 

[alejandro_sierraserna2]

Perfect and spot on. Thank you rachitapatel

It is a bit scary to explore the Free Tier knowing that a wrong click can make me fall in the normal Paid services.

Please keep doing this kind of publication!

[former_member687810]

Useful Rachita, Thank you

[some_java_dev]

Thanks.

The tutorial video https://youtu.be/0zGuMus4R10 does not reflect this.

The blog https://blogs.sap.com/2022/03/30/sap-process-automation-free-tier-is-out-create-your-own-automations... also does not mention it.

Why has this been changed anyway?

Does not make a good impression to require extra steps, its bad enough defaulting to a paid service.

It takes over 60 minutes and six status E-Mails to get started working with the platform, and in addition i have to do additional resarch as the tutorial information is outdated or incorrect.

If SAP wants to get developers interested they should improve the experience asap.

[some_java_dev]

In additon, Launchpad Service has been renamed to SAP Build Work Zone

 

[Khaled_Elghali]

Thanks rachitapatel !!

Additional information: For those who are having trouble finding the "Free (Environment)" in Step 6, please check if you are in the correct BTP.

All these steps need to be performed in SAP BTP (https://emea.cockpit.btp.cloud.sap) and NOT in BTP Trial.

[andrekleine]

Thank you very much rachitapatel!

I was lost until I found your instructions. It worked!

[M_Kalyabin]

Thank you! I spent plenty of time trying to sort it out by SAP resources and only your post helped me!

It's great that you shared this knowledge!

[johannandreasweber]

rachitapatel:

To be honest, I have been confuesd by this step and it was actually scary that it took me a few minutes to find the problem.

Fortunately I found it and deleted the plans quickly (I uses the free tier for learning purposes only).

With your info I managed to do it correctly, but this issue has it almost made giving up the attempt of getting a free-tier account, because of the possible finacial risk associated with a wrong click.

[josl]

At the first go the provided solution under 'C. Resolution' worked for me.

Then I deleted the subaccount for some reason.

Repeating the above steps 'Cloud Foundry Runtime' could not be found any more.

Instead there is a 'Cloud Foundry Environment'. Could it be used as a replacement?

Cloud Foundry Environment