Already on the journey to SAP Rise?

The transformation of SAP landscapes to the cloud is one of the key issues for many IT departments. Companies are faced with the challenge of taking advantage of the opportunities offered by new cloud models such as S/4 Hana Cloud on the one hand, but not recklessly abandoning the stability and investments of their existing platforms on the other. Particularly for organizations that have been relying on IBM Power for years, the question has been: Does the move to the cloud necessarily mean saying goodbye to this architecture? The Rise with SAP on IBM Power Virtual Server Hyperscaler offers an alternative. The offering is SAP-certified and fits into the Rise with SAP strategy. This gives companies that previously ran their workloads on IBM Power the opportunity to migrate to the cloud without having to switch platforms. The idea behind this: Continuity in the architecture should reduce the migration effort, minimize risks and secure the operation of business-critical applications.

SAP workloads on Power

Around 10,000 companies worldwide run their SAP systems on IBM Power. The architecture has established itself particularly in industries with high availability and performance requirements. The platform is considered robust, fault-tolerant and powerful. For many IT managers, a change of platform would involve a great deal of testing and a risk to business continuity. The ability to use this proven architecture in the cloud is therefore a decisive advantage. IBM Power Virtual Server makes this possible: the existing features of Power systems are transferred to the cloud, where they are combined with scalability, automation and flexible billing. A key technical aspect relates to the processor architecture. If the migration to S/4 Hana Cloud Private Edition involves switching to an x86 platform-based cloud environment, this entails performance baselining, regression tests and complex adjustments. If the architecture remains consistent, this effort is significantly reduced. According to studies, this can reduce the migration time by up to a quarter, and the actual conversion from SAP ECC to S/4 Hana involves more than just the infrastructure aspect. IBM has developed its own procedures for this, such as the Rapid Move methodology and the Transformation Suite for SAP Applications. These enable selective data transfers, the elimination of outdated configurations and the increased use of automated templates. The aim is to make the transition as lean as possible and enable companies to go live more quickly. IBM itself carried out the migration on a global scale: More than 150,000 users in 175 countries are now working with S/4, run on IBM Power Virtual Server under Rise. The project is regarded as one of the largest Rise transformations and delivers practical results in terms of costs, speed and availability. Among other things, savings in infrastructure costs, a significant acceleration of invoicing and payment processes and shorter contract processing times are cited.

Investment protection

In addition to the technical advantages, investment protection also plays a role. Companies that have invested in IBM Power hardware can return existing systems to IBM as part of buy-back programs. This allows migration costs to be partially offset, while ensuring the orderly and sustainable management of the hardware. Why do customers choose Rise with SAP on IBM Po-wer Virtual Server as their preferred hyperscaler? Scott Groth, Director of ERP Architecture, Pfizer, answers: „We haven't had an unplanned outage on IBM Power in over seven years. This architecture is designed for business-critical SAP workloads - and is now also available in the cloud.“ Thomas Jensen, Director SAP and IT Development, Jysk, takes a similar view: „With over 3,500 branches worldwide, it was clear to us that the S/4 migration had to be secure, scalable and future-proof. IBM Power Virtual Server as a Rise hyperscaler convinced us - with its high performance, resilient infrastructure and a strong investment package that supports our business transformation.“

Beyond the infrastructure

Cloud migration does not end with the core system. Interfaces to adjacent solutions and third-party systems must also be taken into account. IBM offers support for Day 1 and Day 2 operations. A growing partner network specializing in Rise and Power architectures is available. For companies with critical workloads, downtime is not an option and business continuity is a top priority. IBM Power is traditionally designed for high availability. With Power Virtual Server, these characteristics are transferred to the cloud, where they are complemented by security and compliance mechanisms.

Conclusion

The path to S/4 in the cloud does not have to mean a change of platform. With the IBM Hyperscaler on IBM Power Virtual Server, existing customers on Power and new customers have an option that combines technical continuity with the benefits of the cloud. For many companies, this can be a decisive factor in making the modernization of their SAP landscapes plannable, low-risk and future-proof, at the same or better conditions than with x86-based hyperscalers.