What is SAP PI?

SAP PI (Process Integration) is an integration platform which provides seamless integration

between SAP and non-SAP applications within the organization A2A (Application to
Application) or even outside the organization B2B (Business to Business).
What is SAP PO?
SAP Process Orchestration is a tool to automate and optimize business processes. It combines
features of SAP Business Process Management (BPM), SAP Process Integration(PI) and SAP
Business Rules Management(BRM). In other words, it's more advanced version of SAP PI and
has all the tools required to integrate applications.
Understanding SAP PI/PO with an Example
But this was a technical aspect of SAP PI, but to understand this better we will see the example
of implementation of SAP PI.

Example: To understand the concept of SAP PI more clearly, we take an example of a large-
scale Dairy Industry, which is operating in a large portion of a state and dominating the region.
But there is some small-scale dairy industries operating in the same region, parallel to the large-
scale industry which is not making a profit due to their price variation compare to large-scale
industry. So to avoid the pricing conflict and maintaining the same price all over the region, large
scale and small scale industry decide to link together, with the help of SAP PI. They interconnect
with each other with the help of SAP PI and started to work as a single unit. Now, through SAP
PI they are able to exchange all the information pertaining to dairy industry, including pricing
and share an equal amount of profit.
SAP PI connects different platforms like
 SAP and Non-SAP systems
 B2B and A2A Scenarios
 Asynchronous and Synchronous Communications
 Cross-component business process management
In this training, we will learn
 Why SAP PI/PO?
  How SAP PI/PO works
 SAP PI/PO Architecture
o Connectivity: Proxy Framework & Adapter Framework
o Adapter Framework:
o How adaptor framework works
o SAP PI Security
o Benefits of Security in SAP PI/PO
o New Features in SAP PI/PO
 Advantages of SAP PI/PO
 SAP PI/PO vs. BizTalk
Why SAP PI/PO?
Prior to SAP PI, business would connect with each other through point-to-point
communication. But this process is not used for multiple and complex processes. For smooth
communication between multiple businesses, Mediated communication or Integration
broker is used, and SAP PI adapts this system very well. It enables interconnection of a different
process via a central location known as Integration Broker, unlike the point to point connection
which is more like a spider web. The integration broker or server is an integral part of mediated
communication consist of Java based Advanced Adapter Engine (AAE) and an integration
engine for routing. Mediated communication is based on an integration broker which is executed
by exchanging XML messages.

SAP PI Overview
Let see how SAP PI handles the XML messages by the help of Integration Broker. The exchange
of data or message in SAP PI occurs in this four phases.
 Message Transformation: During message exchange, it transforms the structure of the
business data
 Message Routing: Forwarding a message sent by a sender system to one or more
receiver systems
  Connectivity Adapters: Connecting the integration broker and receiver system, the
adapter will transform the incoming message into an inbound message and later convert it
to the format of the receiving system at the other end
 Integration Processes: Cross component Business Process Management (ccBPM)
consists of functions for enhanced service orchestration.
How SAP PI/PO works
SAP PI performs three basic functions
 Connect: SAP PI has an ability to integrate with all application regardless of whether it
is an application from a 3rd party or from the SAP. It uses the adapter framework to
integrate 3rd party solutions.
 Co-ordinate: It can define a path/workflow for each business transaction that is
integrated. It ensures that each message is correctly delivered from the source to the
target destination
 Communicate: It can translate files into any format whether an internal file format or
any business to business integration standard.
SAP PI/PO Architecture

SAP PI is not a single component responsible for the integration of SAP and Non- SAP
application, but it is a cluster of components that together make SAP PI functional. This
architecture of SAP PI or components is used during design time, configuration time and at run
time. The various components of SAP PI include
1. System Landscape Directory: It is a central information provider in a system landscape.
SLD contains two types of information, "Component Information (Installable &
Installed) and Landscape description."
2. Integration Builder: It is a tool-set which contains a set of tools for accessing and
editing integration objects
 3. Integration Repository: To develop, design and maintain data types, message structures,
mappings, interfaces, integration processes and integration scenarios independently of
system landscape, integration repository is used.
4. Integration Server: It is a central processing engine of the PI. All messages are
processed using this server.
5. Central Monitoring: With the help of this monitoring of PI domain is done, and
"workbench" is the tool that is used for monitoring.
6. Adapter Engine: It acts as a connector to connect the integration engine to SAP systems
and other systems.
7. Message Processing Technique by PI: To access data from SAP and Non-SAP
application this technique is used. SAP PI uses an intermediate document like IDoc to
Flat files to transfer their data.
8. Design: Process Integration (PI) uses integration repository to design message structure
9. Configuration: Integration Directory (ID) is used to configure technical parameters for
objects created in IR ( Integration Repository)
10. Message Processing: Once the IDOC is activated in SAP system, PI takes in charge and
convert messages into XML format for its internal processing
11. Message Monitoring: The messages can be monitored and traced using "Run Time
Workbench". This tool can be useful in monitoring sender and receiver adapters,
Outgoing and Incoming messages, End to End monitoring of complete scenario and error
traces.
Connectivity: Proxy Framework & Adapter Framework
Adapter Framework:

SAP PI connects with any external systems (SAP or Non-SAP) using the Adapter Framework.
The adapter framework is based on the AS Java runtime environment and the connector
architecture (JCA) version. The adapter framework consists of two default module chains if
message processing is to be executed entirely within the adapter, default module chain for the
adapter can be used.
1. One for the sender direction
2. One for the receiver direction
There are four types of Adapters used in SAP PI
 File adapters: It exchanges files with external systems
 JMS adapters: It communicates with a messaging system
 SOAP adapters: It communicates with providers and clients of web services
 JDBC adapters: It is an extended pack for SAP PI
Other interfaces supported by adapter framework are
1. Configuration Services ( API and Adapter metadata xsd)
2. Administration Services
3. Various service APIs provided by Adapter framework- Thread Manager, Transaction
Manager)
 4. Adapter framework includes a message audit log API. The API can be used for the
technical trace and logging to write trace statements that describes the execution of the
code.
How adaptor framework works?

1. The data is received from the wire through a receive location that is listening for
messages at certain protocol at a specified address
2. After the message is received by the receive location, a message is sent to the adapter. It
creates a new BizTalk message, attaches the data stream to the message.
3. It adds any meta-data pertaining to the end-point over which the data was received and
then the message is submitted to the message engine
4. Message engine sends the message to the receive pipeline where the data is transformed
into XML, here the message sender is authenticated, a message is decrypted and the
XML is validated
5. Next, the messaging engine published the message to the message box. The message box
is a Microsoft SQL table containing messages to be processed
6. The messaging engine sends the message to either the orchestration or send port.
SAP PI/PO Security

For messages, SAP PI provides the message level security for XI message protocol, for the
SOAP adapter, for the RosettaNet protocol, for mail adapter, for the CIDX protocol and for
connectivity with WSRM (Web Service Reliable Messaging) enabled systems. In SAP PI
message level security enabled through the use of encryption, digital signature, SAML Assertion,
Username token, Certificate token, etc. Authentication methods supported by WS infrastructure
for transport level includes basic authentication (Password and Username), SAP assertion ticket,
and HTTP over SSL.
Connecting Integration Server with WSRM (Web Service Reliable Messaging) Enabled
System
To connect with WSRM enabled system you use a communication channel of adapter type WS.
 You use a sender agreement with an assigned WS sender adapter to connect the
Integration Server to a WS consumer
 You use a receiver agreement with an assigned WS receiver adapter to connect the
integration server to a WS provider
Benefits of Security in SAP PI/PO
 Permissions of the receiver application are checked against the original user
 In the receiver system, a user can be audited
 Dynamic configuration at the PI receiver channel
New Features in SAP PI/PO

The new features in SAP PI include

 Centralized monitoring based on SAP solution manager.
 Very large (binary) file to file transfer
 IDOC ( Intermediate Document ) and HTTP adapters in AAE (Advance Adapter Engine)
 User Centric perspective in the ESR
 Interface and Mapping based message split on AAE
 Time Out configuration per communication channel
 Automated Transport for Schema Validation
 Replacing Trex, user-defined message search
 User Centric perspectives in the ESR
 Add-on for SAP PI: Secure Connectivity add-on (SGTP Adapter, PGP module) & B2B
add-ons (OFTP adapter, AS2 adapter, EDI separator, EDI XML converter etc.)
Advantages of SAP PI/PO
 In comparison to any other middleware product monitoring in SAP PI is better. It offers
monitoring features like a message, performance, component monitoring and so on, all of
which can be used to track and rectify the errors.
 SAP PI supports various SAP components which are required while integrating with SAP
PI
 Adapters and mappings are good as compared with any other middleware product
 Asynchronous and Synchronous communication is possible
SAP PI vs. BizTalk

SAP PI BizTalk

 Mostly used only by SAP customers to  BizTalk is completely built on .Net,

enable SOAP-based integration certified by Microsoft and SAP to
Integrate with SAP directly without
the need of any middleware
  ESB product designed and implemented  More generalized product, ability to
to integrate SAP systems with Non- SAP integrate a variety of systems
Systems including SAP and other products

 SAP PI has pre-delivered message  Not available

monitoring system

 SAP PI can do multiple data transfer  Not available

 In SAP PI automation can be manual as  Not available

well as scheduled

 SAP uses net weaver portal solution  BizTalk uses MS SharePoint as a

portal solution

 SOA architecture paradigm for SAP is  SOA is on basis of .NET and BizTalk
eSOA ( Enterprise Service Oriented
Architecture)

 SAP PI Base Engine is priced based on  MS BizTalk server is priced based on

the overall processed message volume the server capacity. It has four
expressed in Gigabytes/month. SAP PI is different version Enterprise, Standard,
free to use between SAP-to-SAP Branch, and Developer
When SAP PI/PO is not recommended in enterprise SOA (Service Oriented Architecture)
 SAP PI is not recommended for synchronous communication as it will put a significant
load on the infrastructure service for servicing asynchronous request
 SAP PI is not recommended for UI driven scenarios if the backend is exposed as
enterprise services
 SAP PI is not needed for intermediation if a non-SAP backend like J2EE or .NET
platform is exposing business services in a UI scenario