Private Cloud for SAP

Eurocash Group decided that the optimal solution for maintaining and developing its SAP systems and supporting systems would be a hybrid cloud model built in two geographically separated data centers and utilizing the public cloud.

The environments critical to operational activities of Eurocash – SAP CRM, SAP S/4HANA, CAR (Customer Activity Repository), and PO (Process Orchestration) – run on SAP HANA databases. Each of these systems processes data in the terabyte range, and the environments consist of three systems by design (DEV, QAS/TST, PRD). As a result, there are over a dozen database instances alone. Several dozen additional systems are dialog instances, application systems, web dispatchers, file systems, and other.

The first step in designing the hardware and software platform architecture is to ensure the required performance and scalability of the compute and storage components, taking into account future demand for computing power and disk space, in a scale-up model. Another key factor is the reliability parameter of the platform – selected at every possible level – starting from hardware component redundancy, through the use of mission-critical class devices, and ending with high availability solutions at the level of the hypervisor, operating systems, and databases.

All components selected in this manner are then subject to a detailed verification of their mutual compatibility, including SAP HANA certification for Appliances or SAP HANA Tailored Data Center Integration, compatibility of operating system versions, the virtualization layer, and even firmware, drivers, and BIOS parameters.

The result of meticulously conducted planning was a hybrid cloud architecture featuring very high availability, guaranteed compatibility with SAP systems, particularly SAP HANA, precisely defined performance, and predictable scalability. There is no room for error in this task, as any oversight could hinder or even prevent the later installation or operation of SAP systems. That is why the design and verification of the architecture were carried out by several experienced and certified consultants from the IT departments of Eurocash and All for One, with expertise in networks, servers, storage, virtualization, operating systems, and the SAP HANA environment.

According to the Eurocash schedule, the first system designated for deployment in the private cloud environment was SAP CRM. The key infrastructure components were HPE Superdome Flex 280 servers, supporting up to 24 TB of RAM and certified by SAP for SAP HANA databases, designed with highly advanced reliability, availability, and serviceability (RAS) features.

Storage resources were provided by HPE Alletra arrays with NVMe SSDs, ensuring 99.999% availability. A noteworthy advantage of these arrays is their capability to compress data on SAP HANA data and log volumes, which significantly optimizes net disk space usage. In the Eurocash environment, the data reduction ratio exceeds 2x.

The next step in the development of the cloud was the expansion of its resources to support the SAP S/4HANA system. Eurocash decided that this system – previously hosted with a hyperscaler – would be migrated to the private cloud, in line with the strategy developed by the SAP IT team. The initial deployment of this SAP S/4HANA instance in the public cloud enabled an agile project kickoff and execution of the implementation work. Due to the continuous and substantial growth of the system, the largest SAP-certified servers – HPE Scale-Up Server 3200 – were used as the computing platform, supporting 16 physical processors and 32 TB of RAM within a single operating system instance for the SAP HANA database in a scale-up model for S/4HANA, along with a multiple of 32 TB of RAM as S/4HANA scale-out nodes. This solution provides Eurocash with unlimited scalability of the cloud designed according to the growing data processing needs.

The most recent expansion of cloud resources addressed the requirements of the SAP CAR and PO systems. Several dozen terabytes of additional NVMe storage, along with eight additional servers, enable efficient operation of the environment for managing sales data.

The entire infrastructure in use was duplicated and symmetrically deployed in geographically separated data center locations, ensuring that even a failure of the entire location does not impact system availability, degrade performance, or result in data loss.

During the two-year period of operation and expansion of cloud resources so far, each successive increase in computing power has been carried out using increasingly modern technological solutions. This diversity does not affect the overall consistency of the environment; the only noticeable difference is the increasing compute density in racks.

Robert Ciechomski, IT Director at Eurocash Group sums up: “We use the latest trends according to the needs and possibilities to create new business initiatives, supporting ourselves with solutions in public and private clouds. Regardless of the type of infrastructure, we automate activities with the latest technologies. Leveraging the expertise of the Eurocash Group’s IT team and partners from All for One, we designed an optimal hardware-software architecture for our SAP system landscape. We successfully implemented it in a short time and launched our key business systems on it, without negatively impacting the continuity of these processes, while simultaneously improving SLA and availability".

The design of the cloud architecture as well as the delivery and preparation of hardware components are only the foundation of the comprehensive solution the business needs. Ultimately, it is the software solutions capable of fully leveraging the hardware layer that determine the success of the project and the fulfillment of user requirements.

Therefore, all operating systems, applications, and database engines were installed from scratch in the private cloud environment. The system migration boiled down to importing data. Thanks to this approach, the systems will operate on up-to-date versions following the migration to the private cloud. At the same time, it provided an opportunity to introduce new functionalities and improve existing ones.

Cluster management was handled using HPE Serviceguard for Linux (SGLX) – an advanced solution that ensures high availability (HA) and disaster recovery (DR) for SAP HANA systems. Thanks to the integration of HPE SGLX with SAP HANA, the cluster is aware of the database state and even allows several database instances to be included within a single cluster package, and the state of each instance to be managed independently. This is particularly useful in environments located in two data centers.

Combined with data replication using SAP HANA System Replication in Synchronous in-memory mode, each transaction is committed on both cluster nodes – simultaneously in both data centers.

Despite ensuring high performance parameters of the cloud platform, Eurocash did not require a full replication of production data in non-production environments. This was particularly important for SAP S/4HANA system data, which is characterized by a large volume of incremental growth.

The required functionality is delivered by the implemented SNP Test Data Organizer (TDO) software from the CrystalBridge platform. Depending on the configured scenarios, it enables, among other things, selective copying of data from the PRD system client to the TST client, with specifying a “cut-off” date or other criteria. As a result, the target system is refreshed with a significantly smaller volume of data, while maintaining its logical consistency. An additional functionality of SNP TDO is scrambling. It masks data when copying it to a non-production system. Examples of use include compliance with GDPR (in terms of masking personal data in non-production systems) as well as hiding other categories of data (e.g., financial data) before making them available to testers or developers.

Thanks to SNP TDO, Eurocash achieved both a significant reduction in the size of non-production databases (which directly impacts the cost of maintaining these systems) and the ability to precisely “carve out" business data for further analysis.

The hardware layer that provides computing resources for SAP HANA systems has to be meticulously and professionally designed based on manufacturers’ guidelines as well as the operational and development conditions of the SAP system in a given organization. In each case, this is a process specific to a given environment, taking into account dozens or even hundreds of factors, and often requiring several iterations to achieve an optimal outcome – balanced in terms of security, performance, availability, and cost.

The implemented software solutions are just as important as the hardware layer. They must be complementary and effectively integrated with the hardware. Only then is it possible to achieve optimal performance and reliability parameters. BIOS settings, hypervisor parameters, cluster settings, and database configuration – all together determine whether the system as a whole will operate correctly, both under normal conditions and in exceptional situations, such as a hardware failure.

The two-year period of operating the platform implemented by the All for One team at Eurocash demonstrates that all requirements have been fully met. This has been confirmed both by numerous pre-acceptance functionality tests carried out under controlled conditions and by operation to date. From the perspective of several thousand business users, the SAP systems ensure 100% availability and performance. From the perspective of truck drivers, we ensure continuous receipt of deliveries at Eurocash logistics centers and no traffic jams on the highway.

Bartosz Balicki, IT Senior Manager, SAP at Eurocash Group adds: “The collaboration between Eurocash and All for One Poland has lasted for 12 years. It is a great example of effective cooperation between two teams. Thanks to the close collaboration between our infrastructure and SAP teams (Basis and functional consultants) as well as All for One experts, our systems are not only effectively managed but also regularly optimized and upgraded. For me personally, what matters most is that, thanks to mutual understanding, experience, and commitment from both sides, we are able to quickly and efficiently find solutions even in difficult and stressful situations".

• Systems: SAP S/4HANA, SAP BW, SAP HR, SAP Business Planning & Consolidation, SAP CAR, SAP Solution Manager; including those based on the SAP HANA database
• Number of systems administered: +170
• Number of active users 3,500
• All for One services: SAP administration (since 2013), SAP application management (since 2019), SAP Maintenance, maintenance for SAP Add-ons (All for One JPK (SAF), All for One Partner Checker)

Eurocash Group is the largest Polish wholesale distributor of FMCG products, an organizer of well-known franchise, agency, and partner networks such as ABC, Delikatesy Centrum, Groszek, Gama, Duży Ben, Lewiatan, and Euro Sklep; a logistics and technology partner for local stores, as well as an owner of the number 1 e-grocery market in Poland: Frisco.pl. The clients of Eurocash are primarily local entrepreneurs. The Group offers them, on one hand, effective business models, and on the other, purchasing scale, logistics, marketing support, access to knowledge, and modern technological solutions that support the operation and growth of their stores. With over 20,000 employees and 90,000 customers, Eurocash has been consistently ranked among the TOP10 largest Polish companies, shaping the Polish retail market comprehensively and setting industry development trends. It strives to set trends in the area of responsibility as well. By 2030, the Group aims to reduce its CO2 emissions by 42% as part of the decarbonization strategy adopted in 2022 – in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement and the path defined by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTI).