The roadmap of SAP Solution Manager (SolMan) and SaaS solution SAP Cloud ALM raises more questions than it answers. One thing is certain: SAP Cloud ALM is not an adequate replacement for SolMan.
SAP Solution Manager (SolMan) is the domain-proven suite for centralized and integrated application lifecycle management (ALM) of SAP system landscapes (ERP or S/4). The ALM solution, which SAP claims is a source of truth, offers different scenarios that support the lifecycle of SAP application landscapes.
With SAP Cloud ALM, another ALM solution has been available for some time, readily branded as SolMan’s successor. It is not, however, an adequate replacement, as this solution needs to offer a comprehensive set of functions such as SolMan. Currently, it is mainly suitable for companies that exclusively use cloud solutions from SAP (S/4 Hana Cloud, SuccessFactors or the SAP CX portfolio). Unlike SolMan, however, SAP Cloud ALM offers one key benefit: It can be run quickly and delivers initial monitoring data within hours of implementation.
The tool of choice
However, SAP Cloud ALM cannot be used as a central, strategic ALM solution. It disables lifecycle management of Business Suite, ERP, and non-SAP applications. It also lacks functions for IT service management (ITSM).
SAP Cloud ALM becomes the tool of choice under the following conditions: No other monitoring tool is used, infrastructure and system monitoring is not required, and the built-in integration with the ServiceNow ITSM solution can be used. In practice, this is true only for some companies.
Integrating third-party tools such as ServiceNow is necessary because individual ALM tools are used in the overall context of enterprise IT, which typically consists of SAP and non-SAP software. Integrating such solutions prevents the creation of data silos and enables end-to-end reporting and automated support processes – a key advantage at times when qualified personnel of IT is lacking. Disadvantage: With ServiceNow – contrary to the “single source of truth” concept – an additional ALM tool is required, which also incurs license costs.
It is not advisable to do without integration and instead send tracking alerts to the e-mail inbox. This is because the support employee must bridge the gap between tools by first logging into Outlook and then manually processing each alert in a time-consuming process – goodbye, single source of truth This can lead to delays, which can cause a small “trouble” such as a performance problem to spread to a “big fire”, in the worst case to a failure of the SAP systems.
Beyond 2027
Of course, not all that glitters is gold in SolMan, either. For now, mainstream maintenance expires at the end of 2027. SAP customers who are already using SolMan or planning to use it are rightly asking themselves what happens after that. Do they have to pay licensing costs? Currently, SAP is also not planning a new release for SolMan (currently version 7.2 with SPS 15) and thus no further development; customers need to work with SPS update packages.
All this creates great uncertainty. Therefore, SAP customers are advised to seek the support of a partner with experience and necessary knowledge regarding the use of SolMan as well as SAP Cloud ALM. Such a partner can provide them with competent advice on choosing the SAP ALM tool that best suits their requirements, so that they can benefit from this investment in the long term.