Rightsizing for SAP HANA: What you need to know

For many, rightsizing is associated with headcount reductions and divestment, but that is in fact “downsizing” with a more palatable name. In IT, rightsizing is not solely about cutting costs. It seeks to boost productivity by examining what resources are necessary and how you can get the job done more efficiently, at a reduced cost. It’s the process of restructuring a company’s IT infrastructure (including data centres and hardware) to make it more streamlined. Today, technology like virtualization and cloud computing has made the process of rightsizing easier by providing flexible service models that can be adjusted to meet a company’s needs. 

For our enterprise customers, using SAP systems, rightsizing is usually driven by an upcoming migration, such as moving to SAP S/4HANA. Data can play a massive role here and a popular approach to rightsizing starts with a landscape analysis of data assets and data processes, we call this Rightsizing for SAP HANA. 

Why is ‘rightsizing for SAP HANA’ important? 

In most cases, only 13-17% of system data is actively used. Before migrating, businesses need to ensure they’re not moving over any data they don’t need. An undersized appliance will lead to performance issues, whereas an oversized appliance is a waste of resources. This is why rightsizing is so important, the right-sized appliance will help control running costs, increase efficiency and ease migration. 

Tips for getting your ‘righsizing for SAP HANA’ right 

1. Always assess your data first 

Before you start removing anything, conduct a thorough assessment of your data. Evaluating the current state of your database will give you an idea of how much work you’re going to have to put in. Rightsizing identifies which data can be removed, what can be archived, and what needs to be migrated to SAP HANA. 

2. Having a data management strategy is crucial 

With a data management strategy in place, you can move infrequently accessed information to lower-cost tiers and increase capacity on expensive primary storage. Database and application performance will improve after reducing the size of primary data stores. Without a data management strategy, you could experience compliance or performance issues, and you won’t be able to determine what data can be archived or deleted. 

3. Control data growth post-migration 

There’s little sense archiving SAP data to aid the transition over to SAP HANA, only to generate the same amount of data in the months after migration. Through controlled data growth, you extend the lifecycle of SAP HANA appliances, preclude the need for memory upgrades and won’t have to worry about running out of space. 

Another way to reduce the work and costs involved in SAP HANA migration is to enlist the help of an organisation that understands data management and archiving. For more information about why RightSizing your SAP data is crucial before migrating to SAP HANA contact us. 

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