Improving the performance of SAP standard implementations using SAP PI Advance Adapter Engine (AAE) (Enhanced Document/ Version 2)

By Praveen Kurni, Yash Technologies

<For version 1 of this document, click here>

This ‘HOW TO GUIDE’ helps to improve the performance of any standard interface implementation through SAP Net Weaver PI 7.1 EHP 1 Integration Server. By utilizing the feature of PI called Advance Adapter Engine AAE, that uses new runtime implementation in message processing improves the performance. This feature can be implemented in for all SAP Products which make use of standard Interface implementation.

1.     Introduction

Performance is the common term that Project team has to improvise for any Integration projects. To do so a consultant has to drill down all possible options to optimize the solution to achieve high performance. One should update latest implementation methodologies provided by software vendors with respect to improving performance of Program/Interfaces in any project.

This also applies to SAP PI Interfaces in attaining good performance; this article tries to explain how to improve the performance of Standard Implementations. Standard implementation is one of the kinds of implementation projects where only SAP Products are involved integration. Traditionally to employ ESOA Business/Functional Consultants use wizard based configuration with easy steps in SAP PI for such kind of Projects.

With this article I want to explain increasing the performance by using advanced feature of PI Runtime for the following audience.

·        PI Consultants.

·        Functional Consultants – those who executes wizard to create configuration objects in PI.

·        Business Consultants – those who want to know about performance considerations.

As SAP explains to customers that performance increases, if interfaces are implemented with SAP PI’s AAE.

Let us get in to the concept and reap the feature to claim performance of interfaces.

2.     Business Scenario & Challenges

Business Scenario is to integrate two SAP Application systems to exchange data through PI using ESOA methodology. Here SAP Application systems may be SAP ERP at one end and SAP SRM, CRM, SCM, Oil & Gas etc., on the another end. Interface may be Asynchronous or Synchronous depending on the Application systems business functionality. Integration using SAP PI uses standard ABAP Runtime of PI for message processing, which utilizes XI adapter on either side of PI. When message processes happens through PI ABAP Runtime then a message has to various individual steps. See below diagram for the sample Interface flow of standard Interface Implementation. Here application servers could change depending on the Implementation Project.

Fig: Interface Flow

Challenges

Considering the topic in mind, our challenge is to minimize the number of steps and achieve good performance of the message processing. So what are the alternative ways to build and configure the Interface to achieve performance other than standard wizard based configuration in PI? What is the effort and cost that may invite on our journey? Alternate solutions, may not provide all the features that are offered by ABAP runtime environment then, what are the limitations we need to consider when building the Interface?

3.     Pre-Requisites

SAP ERP 6.0

·         Proxy Configurations are in place.

·         SLD Bridge is active and running in RZ70.

·         Import ERP related IR Content from Service Market place.

·         Functional configuration relevant for business functionality.

SAP SRM 7.0

·         Proxy Configurations are in place.

·         SLD Bridge is active and running in RZ70.

·         Import relevant IR content from Service Market Place.

·         Functional configuration relevant for business functionality.

SAP PI 7.11

·         Latest CR is available in SLD SAP_CR 6.6 version.

·         Technical System for SAP ERP and SAP SRM got created using SLD Bridge.

·         Created Business Systems for the corresponding client for both Application systems.

·         Import the IR content relevant for both Application Systems in to ESR.  

4.     SAP PI AAE Feature in brief

The Advanced Adapter Engine (AAE) is an evolution of the Adapter Engine that is known from former releases. It is part of SAP NW PI 7.1 It runs on SAP NW JEE5. Objectives of SAP NW PI 7.10 are High Volume Support and to be the cornerstone of customers' SOA strategy. The new AAE with its features targets both of them. The AAE enables for end-to-end message processing without any help from the Integration Engine during runtime. It increases message processing speed and throughput by reducing latencies and resource consumption (both memory and processing time). Local Processing in AAE: Integration Server (IS) is not involved during runtime (mapping and routing is also carried out within the AAE) Classical Processing with AAE: Processing also through the IS. Local processing is probably feasible for existing java-based adapters, and it represents a performance and resource usage improvement. The AAE is available centrally (i.e. with installation and instance of IS) and non-centrally.  

Traditional Message Processing using Adapter Engine and Integration Engine:

Fig: Message Processing using Adapter Engine and Integration Engine.

Advanced processing using AAE

Fig: Message Processing using Advanced Adapter Engine.

Local Processing In Advance Adapter Engine (AAE):

Fig: Local Processing in AAE

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