SAP BTP Developer Guide Skill

Related Skills

• sap-btp-cloud-platform: Use for platform fundamentals, account management, and runtime configurations
• sap-btp-best-practices: Use for architectural guidance, governance models, and production patterns
• sap-cap-capire: Use for CAP development details, service definitions, and database integration
• sap-fiori-tools: Use for UI development, Fiori application setup, and frontend deployment
• sap-abap: Use for ABAP Cloud development, RAP patterns, and ABAP Environment specifics
• sap-btp-connectivity: Use for implementing secure connections to on-premise systems
• sap-ai-core: Use for AI Core platform setup, model deployment, and orchestration
• sap-cloud-sdk-ai: Use for SDK-level AI integration in CAP applications

Comprehensive guidance for developing, deploying, and operating business applications on SAP Business Technology Platform.

Table of Contents

Quick Navigation

• Table of Contents
• When to Use This Skill
• Runtime and Programming Model Selection
• Development Workflow
• Key Services and Tools
• Security Implementation
• Connectivity Patterns
• CI/CD Implementation
• Observability Implementation
• Tutorials and Missions
• Partner/ISV Development
• Common Errors and Solutions
• Bundled Resources
• Quick Reference Links
• Version Information

When to Use This Skill

Use when:

• Building new applications on SAP BTP (Cloud Foundry or Kyma runtime)
• Developing with SAP Cloud Application Programming Model (CAP)
• Building ABAP Cloud applications in SAP BTP ABAP Environment
• Deploying SAP Fiori or SAPUI5 user interfaces
• Connecting applications to SAP S/4HANA, SuccessFactors, or on-premise systems
• Building multitenant SaaS applications
• Implementing side-by-side extensions for SAP solutions
• Building AI-powered extensions (LLM analysis, document processing, intelligent automation)
• Setting up CI/CD pipelines for SAP BTP
• Implementing observability with SAP Cloud ALM or SAP Cloud Logging
• Using SAP HANA Cloud for data persistence

Runtime and Programming Model Selection

For detailed runtime comparison: See references/runtimes.md

Decision Matrix

CAP Application Development

CAP provides three operational profiles:

• Development: Mock services, minimal setup, SQLite/H2 for local testing
• Hybrid: Local app connected to cloud services
• Production: Full cloud deployment with SAP HANA Cloud

Key capabilities:

• Domain-driven design with CDS (Core Data Services)
• Built-in multitenancy support
• Automatic OData/REST service generation
• Platform-agnostic design (no vendor lock-in)

For CAP details: See references/cap-development.md

AI-Powered Extensions with CAP

Build intelligent side-by-side extensions by combining CAP with SAP AI Core:

1. Bind AI Core to your CAP app via MTA (service: aicore, plan: extended)
2. Use SAP Cloud SDK for AI (@sap-ai-sdk/orchestration) in CAP event handlers — never raw HTTP calls
3. Process asynchronously: LLM calls can take 30-60 seconds. Return 202 Accepted and use cds.spawn for background processing to avoid BTP load balancer timeouts
4. Store vectors: Use HANA Cloud Vector(1536) type in CDS entities for RAG scenarios
5. Externalize prompts: Store in JSON files or CDS entities for updates without redeployment
6. Allocate memory: At least 512MB for Node.js containers with AI SDK

For complete code examples, see sap-cap-capire skill (AI Integration section) and sap-cloud-sdk-ai skill (CAP Integration subsection).

ABAP Cloud Development

ABAP Cloud uses four foundational technologies:

1. Core Data Services (CDS) - Data modeling and analytics
2. ABAP RESTful Application Programming Model (RAP) - Service-oriented development
3. Restricted ABAP Language - Cloud-safe API access
4. Released Public APIs - Upgrade-stable extensions

For ABAP details: See references/abap-cloud.md

Development Workflow

Phase 1: Explore and Discover

1. Identify business problem - Conduct stakeholder interviews
2. Understand user needs - Visit customers, observe workflows
3. Define security requirements - Threat modeling, compliance planning (GDPR, HIPAA)
4. Establish governance - Set up organizational structure

Phase 2: Design

1. User Experience Design

   • Follow SAP Fiori Design Guidelines
   • Implement accessibility (WCAG 2.2)
   • Use design thinking methodology

2. Technology Design

   • Apply Domain-Driven Design for complex applications (30+ use cases)
   • Define module boundaries and communication patterns
   • Plan microservices architecture if needed

3. Security in Design

   • Secure user interfaces with SAP Fiori authentication
   • Implement RBAC/ABAC using OAuth/OpenID Connect
   • Validate CDS models for data protection

For design patterns: See references/design-patterns.md

Phase 3: Develop

CAP Development:

# Initialize CAP project
cds init my-project
cd my-project

# Add SAP HANA support
cds add hana

# Add authentication
cds add xsuaa

# Run locally
cds watch

Key development tools:

• SAP Business Application Studio (primary IDE)
• SAP Cloud SDK (OData/OpenAPI clients)
• MTA Build Tool (packaging)

Coding standards:

• Follow SAPUI5 Guidelines and SAP Fiori Design Guidelines
• Establish naming conventions
• Implement parameterized queries (prevent SQL injection)
• Use CDS constraints for input validation

For tools catalog: See references/tools.md

Phase 4: Deploy

Cloud Foundry Deployment:

# Build MTA archive
mbt build

# Deploy to Cloud Foundry
cf deploy mta_archives/my-project_1.0.0.mtar

Kyma Deployment:

# Use Helm charts or Terraform
terraform init
terraform apply

ABAP Deployment:

• Use Manage Software Components app (gCTS)
• Transport via Landscape Portal
• Partner options: Multitenant SaaS or Add-on Product

For deployment details: See references/deployment.md

Phase 5: Run and Scale

Monitoring:

• SAP Cloud ALM (central observability)
• SAP Cloud Logging (detailed logs, metrics, traces)
• ABAP Technical Monitoring Cockpit

Scaling:

• Cloud Foundry: Automatic instance distribution across AZs
• Kyma: Kubernetes-native scaling
• ABAP: Elastic scaling with ACUs (0.5 ACU increments)

Cost optimization:

• System hibernation (ABAP) - reduce to <5% operational cost
• SAP HANA Cloud Native Storage Extension
• Elastic Compute Nodes for peak workloads

For operations: See references/operations.md

Key Services and Tools

Platform Services

Development Tools

For architecture details: See references/architecture.md

Security Implementation

CAP Security Features

• Parameterized queries (SQL injection prevention)
• CSRF protection for UI applications
• Built-in authentication/authorization frameworks
• SAP Credential Store for secrets management

Security Guidelines

1. Secure environment configuration - Restrict network access
2. Security testing - Penetration testing before go-live
3. Secure deployment pipelines - Code scanning, dependency validation
4. Secrets management - Use SAP Credential Store

For security details: See references/security.md

Connectivity Patterns

Cloud-to-On-Premise

• SAP Connectivity Service + Cloud Connector
• User propagation supported
• Protocols: HTTP, RFC, LDAP, FTP

Cloud-to-Cloud

• SAP Destination Service for routing
• OAuth token management
• SAP Transparent Proxy for Kubernetes

For connectivity details: See references/connectivity.md

CI/CD Implementation

SAP Continuous Integration and Delivery provides pre-configured pipelines:

• Cloud Foundry Environment jobs (SAP Fiori, CAP)
• SAP Fiori for ABAP Platform jobs
• SAP Integration Suite Artifacts jobs

Setup steps:

1. Enable in SAP BTP cockpit
2. Assign Administrator/Developer roles
3. Configure repository credentials (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Azure Repos)
4. Add repositories and create jobs
5. Configure webhooks for automated builds

For CI/CD details: See references/cicd.md

Observability Implementation

Central Layer (SAP Cloud ALM)

• Real User Monitoring
• Health Monitoring
• Integration and Exception Monitoring
• Synthetic User Monitoring

Local Layer (SAP Cloud Logging)

• Log Analytics (OpenSearch-based)
• Distributed tracing
• Custom dashboards and alerting

OpenTelemetry is the industry standard for instrumentation.

For observability details: See references/observability.md

Tutorials and Missions

CAP Learning Path

1. Starter Mission: Full-Stack CAP Application
2. Extension Mission: Side-by-Side CAP-Based Extensions
3. Enterprise Mission: Change Tracking, Audit Logging, Attachments
4. Multitenant Mission: SaaS Application Development
5. Observability Mission: SAP Cloud Logging Integration

ABAP Learning Path

1. RAP100 Basics: Fiori apps, OData services, business logic
2. RAP100 Intermediate: Actions, dynamic feature control, unit testing
3. RAP120: AI-assisted development with SAP Joule
4. Analytics: CDS views with SAP Analytics Cloud

Sample applications:

• Incident Management (CAP)
• Flight Reference Scenario (ABAP)
• Poetry Slam Manager (Partner SaaS)

For tutorial details: See references/tutorials.md

Bundled Resources

File Structure

sap-btp-developer-guide/
├── SKILL.md                 # This file - Main guidance
├── README.md               # Quick reference with auto-trigger keywords
└── references/             # Detailed guides (22 files)
    ├── Architecture & Setup
    │   ├── architecture.md      # Platform services and architecture
    │   ├── runtimes.md          # Runtime comparison (CF vs Kyma vs ABAP)
    │   ├── setup.md             # BTP landscape setup and Terraform
    │   └── tools.md             # Development tools catalog
    ├── Development
    │   ├── cap-development.md   # CAP development guide
    │   ├── abap-cloud.md        # ABAP Cloud development guide
    │   ├── design-patterns.md   # Design patterns and DDD
    │   ├── extensions.md        # SAP solution extensions
    │   ├── mta.md               # Multitarget applications
    │   ├── testing.md           # Testing strategies
    │   └── ux-design.md         # UX design and Fiori
    ├── Integration & Security
    │   ├── connectivity.md      # Connectivity patterns
    │   ├── security.md          # Security implementation
    │   ├── hana-cloud.md        # SAP HANA Cloud
    │   └── resilience.md        # Resilience patterns
    ├── Deployment & Operations
    │   ├── deployment.md        # Deployment options
    │   ├── cicd.md              # CI/CD pipelines
    │   ├── observability.md     # Monitoring and logging
    │   ├── operations.md        # Operations and scaling
    │   └── partners.md          # ISV/Partner development
    └── Additional Resources
        ├── tutorials.md         # Learning paths and missions
        └── whats-new.md         # Changelog and updates

Reference Files by Category

Architecture & Platform (4 files)

• architecture.md - Platform services overview and architecture patterns
• runtimes.md - Runtime comparison and selection guide
• setup.md - BTP landscape setup with sizing recommendations
• tools.md - Complete development tools catalog

Development (8 files)

• cap-development.md - CAP development with Node.js/Java
• abap-cloud.md - ABAP Cloud development with RAP
• design-patterns.md - Domain-driven design and patterns
• extensions.md - Side-by-side extensions for SAP solutions
• mta.md - Multitarget application packaging
• testing.md - Testing strategies and frameworks
• ux-design.md - SAP Fiori UX design guidelines

Integration & Security (4 files)

• connectivity.md - Cloud-to-on-premise connectivity
• security.md - Authentication, authorization, and security
• hana-cloud.md - SAP HANA Cloud database
• resilience.md - Application resilience patterns

Deployment & Operations (5 files)

• deployment.md - Deployment to CF, Kyma, and ABAP
• cicd.md - CI/CD pipelines with SAP tools
• observability.md - Monitoring, logging, and tracing
• operations.md - Operations, scaling, and cost optimization
• partners.md - ISV/partner development guidelines

Learning & Updates (2 files)

• tutorials.md - Hands-on missions and tutorials
• whats-new.md - Latest features and changelog

Partner/ISV Development

Deployment Options

1. Multitenant SaaS - Cloud service operated in partner's global account
2. Add-on Product - Installed in customer's ABAP environment

Requirements

• SAP PartnerEdge Build contract
• Registered ABAP namespace (mandatory)
• Landscape Portal for lifecycle management

For partner details: See references/partners.md

Quick Reference Links

Official Documentation:

• SAP BTP Help: https://help.sap.com/docs/btp
• CAP Documentation: https://cap.cloud.sap/docs/
• SAP Discovery Center: https://discovery-center.cloud.sap/
• SAP API Business Hub: https://api.sap.com/

Design Resources:

• SAP Fiori Design: https://experience.sap.com/fiori-design-web/
• SAPUI5 SDK: https://sapui5.hana.ondemand.com/

Learning:

• SAP Developers: https://developers.sap.com/
• SAP Learning: https://learning.sap.com/

Source Documentation:

• This skill is based on: https://github.com/SAP-docs/btp-developer-guide

Common Errors and Solutions

Version Information

• Source Last Updated: 2025-11-21
• Based On: SAP BTP Developer Guide (https://github.com/SAP-docs/btp-developer-guide)
• Next Review: 2026-02-21