Bring SAP SuccessFactors Data into SAP Datasphere

lalitmohan · ‎04-20-2023

Welcome back! In my previous blog post(click here), we discussed how business intelligence could help organizations to increase their income and profitability. We also recognized how SAP Datasphere enables any organization to deliver meaningful data to every data consumer with intact business context and logic.

The difficulties and challenges of using ad hoc reports in SAP SuccessFactors to analyze and visualize data motivate us to look at the possibility of connecting it to the SAP Datasphere.

Depending on the connection type, a connection can be used for one or more of the following features:

When building graphical and SQL views or entity-relationship models, import Remote Tables.
Extracting, transforming, and loading data by use of Data Flows.
Model Import with detailed metadata and, if supported, dependencies from any SAP system.
Replication Flows from multiple source objects from a connected source to a target, including simple projection and mapping capabilities.

When a remote table is initially deployed by default, no data is stored in SAP Datasphere, and the data is accessed directly live from the source. You can configure replication into SAP Datasphere for connection types in order to speed up data access.

In this blog post, let us take a look at how to import Remote Tables and replicate the SAP SuccessFactors data into SAP DataSphere.

Blog post series for our learning Journey with SAP Datasphere and SAP Analytics Cloud together to handle complex analytics scenarios.

Connecting SAP SuccessFactors and SAP Datasphere (click here)
Bring SAP SuccessFactor Data into SAP Datasphere (this blog)
Modeling SAP SuccessFactors Data in SAP Datasphere (click here)
Building Analytic Models for SAP SuccessFactors KPI (click here)
Build SAP Analytics Cloud’s Dashboard for SAP SuccessFactors KPI (click here)

Prerequisite

SAP BTP global account setup with SAP Datasphere service instance. Follow the excellent blog How to create SAP Datasphere service instance in the SAP BTP Platform?
A SAP SuccessFactors instance.

Let’s proceed Step by Step

Before we start, ensure that you had already followed and completed the steps mentioned in my previous article(click here) before moving on to this one.

Import Remote Tables

SAP Datasphere provides various methods for importing tables into your space. You can import remote tables from a valid connection that supports the remote table feature from the Data Builder start page or the Repository Explorer.

From the side navigation, choose Data Builder and select a space if necessary.

Choose Import Remote Tables. All the available connections are listed.

Select the connection. Choose Next Step.

Select the objects you would like to import. Choose Next Step.

You get an overview of the objects that you will import. If an object has already been imported, it is listed on the tab Already in the Repository and will not be imported again.

For the objects to be imported, you can change the technical name and the business name. Choose Import and Deploy.

The import status is displayed. Choose Close to close the wizard.

In the list of files in the Data Builder, the imported remote tables will be displayed.now click on desired table for the data preview.
Click on the view icon to preview the data. You can click on this icon to show or hide the data preview.
You can see there is a Delay in Viewing data. It may take a while and impact the remote system's performance. This is due to the view not being persisted and/or remote data not being replicated, and persisting and replicating objects can solve data viewing delays.

Choose View Data to Preview Remote Table data

First, you can see the first thousand rows in this dataset. But you can sort and filter to view different slices of the data. This allows you to find specific data easily and increases the usability of the data preview.

When a remote table is deployed, the data is directly accessed live from the source. Every time we access it via federation from the remote system, it sometimes causes a delay in data viewing which take a while and can impact the remote system's performance, as shown above.

You can schedule regular updates for connection types that support replication to keep the data fresh and up to date.

So, our next step is to do a replication of data instead of remote access.

Replicate Data in Remote Table

In the Data Integration Monitor, you can find a remote table monitor per space. Here, you can copy data from remote tables that have been deployed in your space into SAP Datasphere, and you can monitor the replication of the data.

From the side navigation, choose Data Integration Monitor.
First select the Remote Table and click Table Replication dropdown menu tab. chose Load New Snapshot to directly start a copy of the full set of data from the source in the background.

You can see the progress of the replication in the replication Status. Once the replication has finished, you can see it in the Status column.

For a successful load, you will see the status Available and the date and time of the latest update. The Refresh Frequency for a replication you started directly is None. The changed size of the remote table will also be shown in the monitor.

Summary

Now you have seen how to import Remote Tables and replicate Remote Table Data for SAP SuccessFactors in SAP DataSphere. The possibility to replicate the entire source object is useful for the use cases such as performance optimization.

What’s next?

In the next blog post, we will see how to combine, filter and enrich the SAP SuccessFactors data in a graphical no code/low code environment or using SQL statements, to create, visualize and manipulate data models.

Modeling SAP SuccessFactors Data in SAP Datasphere

Keep your anticipation high for the upcoming blog posts. Stay curious!

Reference & Further Reading

Replicate Data SAP Datasphere
SAP Datasphere: Import Remote Table
Replicate Data and Monitoring Remote Table
Introducing SAP Datasphere Integration Options

For more information and related blog posts on the topic page for SAP Datasphere.
If you have questions about SAP DataSphere you can submit them in the Q&A area for SAP Datasphere in the SAP Community.

Manjunath · ‎04-25-2023

Thanks Lalit for the excellent series of blogs. Can we import the LMS data into SAP Datasphere using the OData connection that you had setup. Thanks, manju

lalitmohan · ‎04-27-2023

Hello Manju,

Thanks for your feedback.

The connection type I have used is SAP SuccessFactors, and we also have a Generic OData to connect with the OData services.

For LMS data I am not sure. It depends on how the LMS system allows us to connect.

Best Regards, Lalit

Premnarayan · ‎05-03-2023

nice work Lalit, thanks for sharing steps guide

lalitmohan · ‎05-16-2023

Hello premnarayan.patidar2, Thanks for your feedback!

former_member786695 · ‎06-21-2023

Thanks Lalit for the series of blogs.

Since SAP Successfactors connection doesn't support real-time replication and remote table replication (load new snaphot) copies the full set of data from the source in the background, how can we setup delta replication to successfactors data into datasphere? We cannot afford to have full table replication in datasphere due to no of tables and it's size. Please share if you have any thoughts around it

SAP also recommends to use remote tables for replication only and not to use it for federated access due to certain limitations SAP SuccessFactors Connections | SAP Help Portal

lalitmohan · ‎07-03-2023

Hello Venkatesh,

Thanks for your comments.

The link you have mentioned above, clearly explains when we are using remote tables to replicate data from SAP SuccessFactors, use the SAP SuccessFactors Connection type which supports snapshot-based pagination for SAP SuccessFactors entities to ensure data consistency. But they have not recommended to use the Generic OData connection type because it doesn’t use snapshot-based pagination at all.

I mentioned earlier in my blog post that every time we access data directly live from the source it causes a delay in data viewing and can impact the remote system’s performance. Yes, we can’t replicate full data but at least we can load a snapshot which can allow us to replicate data by using snapshot-based pagination for SAP SuccessFactors to model it. It also allows us to load new and remove existing snapshot whenever required as well as schedule replication for delta changes Or enable Real -Time access.

Let me know your thoughts for the same.

ShaikAzmathulla · ‎07-18-2023

Great job Lalit.

lalitmohan · ‎07-18-2023

Hello azmathip Thanks for your feedback!

Venky999 · ‎08-08-2023

Hi Lalit,

We can replcate delta data using Data flows.

For SAP SuccessFactors, OData, and Cloud Data Integration (CDI) sources, you can enable delta loading. That is, move over the changed data records instead of doing a full load every time. Add a Source | SAP Help Portal

I couldn't see any other way than data flows.

Regards,

Venkatesh

klorn_pallier · ‎10-31-2023

Hi,

We also have a requirement to connect to Success Factors LMS from Datasphere. We've connected to other SF modules but struggled with this one. I'd be interested if anyone has archived this yet?

Regards,

Klorn

Venky999 · ‎02-14-2024

Please note , we can't bring SuccessFactors LMS data into Datasphere due to the API limitations at LMS side.

3416658 - Consuming SuccessFactos Learning (LMS Instance) in SAP Datasphere - SAP for Me