With its powerful application tools and development paradigms, SAP Cloud Application Programming (CAP) allows developers to build end-to-end applications, in a world of rapidly changing cloud technologies, with minimal coding, and scale each cloud-native application to meet business needs within the SAP Cloud Platform.
Read on to learn more about SAP CAP and its key components and advantages, as well as where our team of senior-level SAP consultants can fit in your organization (and help you make the most of your overall SAP investment.)
What is SAP CAP?
SAP CAP (SAP Cloud Application Programming Model) is an intuitive framework of libraries, languages, and tools to help SAP users when they’re optimizing, managing, and building enterprise-grade services and business applications efficiently and effectively. With SAP CAP functionality, developers across teams and industries are enabled to leverage proven best practices for the accelerated development of applications and the management of recurring tasks rather than diving into overly technical disciplines.
Key Components of a Cloud Application Programming Model
Here are a few of the main CAP framework features for developers and other SAP users…
1) Service SDKs
Software development kits (SDKs) for services across the SAP landscape provide the support needed for users to offer, manage, and consume services through both synchronous and asynchronous application programming interfaces (APIs), including Node.js and Java libraries.
With service SDKs, SAP users are enabled to leverage out-of-the-box integration capabilities to connect lower-level services, like on and off-boarding processes and authentication flows, and improve overall connectivity between business applications and interfaces across the SAP system.
2) Core Data Services
Core Data Services (CDS) is SAP’s data modeling infrastructure, offering the functionality needed for companies to manage CAP-based projects and adapt their solutions to meet the needs of their rapidly changing cloud technologies across the entire enterprise.
CDS, also known as the “backbone” of SAP’s core programming model, simplifies service definitions and data models for teams across the organization and helps manage data models and queries in plain object notations for quicker and easier user access.
3) Other SAP Elements
The SAP Cloud Application Programming Model provides support services for integrations with other components across the SAP system, including the SAP Business Application Studio (BAS), SAP HANA database, and SAP Fiori Elements.
With these functional integrations, SAP users have the tools needed to model their database schema, service interface, and individual applications efficiently and effectively across teams.
How is SAP CAP Both Open and Opinionated?
While the SAP Cloud Application Programming Model does offer opinionated guidance for users across systems, but it also provides the flexibility and openness needed to keep users in control of their own systems, technologies, tools, and architecture patterns.
CAP is Open as…
- Glass-box abstractions: Abstractions follow a glass-box pattern, meaning they allow unrestricted user access to all lower-level functions within the SAP system.
- UI functionality: Provide new database integrations to support other user interface (UI) technologies like Vue.js or other databases.
- No tool dependencies: CAP doesn’t depend on certain tools or tool support capabilities to function properly as everything can be done using any editor, CLI, or IDE.
- Custom handlers: Allow users to leverage custom handlers to control their own solutions and handle tedious tasks more efficiently across the system.
CAP is Opinionated with…
- Out-of-the-box support for integrations with SAP HANA and SAP Fiori.
- Dedicated support for tools in the SAP Business Application Studio, Eclipse, or Visual Studio Code.
- Out-of-the-box best practices and generalized solutions for recurring tasks in SAP.
- High-level APIs and concepts to avoid lock-ins to lower level features and protocols within the SAP system.
Understanding SAP Cloud Application Programming
The CAP SAP framework offers both proven and widely adopted open-source and SAP technologies, including CDS, platform services, development tools, and more.
Here are a few key components of the SAP Cloud Application Programming Model…
Data Modeling and Persistence
With SAP CAP, developers can easily define their data models using domain-driven design principles, making it easier to manage data in a more structured, scalable manner.
SAP users are also enabled to map them to different data sources across systems and technologies, including databases, OData services, or REST APIs.
Business Logic
SAP CAP provides a powerful set of tools for defining the business logic of applications using declarative programming models.
From offering advanced support for different API sources (i.e., OData, REST, GraphQL, etc.) to reinforcing event-driven programming with SAP Cloud Events technology, and everything in between, the CAP framework simplifies business logic for SAP users across organizations.
User Interface (UI)
CAP framework provides a modular and extensible UI foundation that enables technical developers to build responsive and user-friendly applications using web standards such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
Whether you’re building applications using web standards like CSS, JavaScript, and HTML, pre-built UI templates, or other common-use components, SAP CAP provides the functionality needed to build functional applications and extend the capabilities of each app across the entire system or organization.
Integrations
The SAP Cloud Application Programming Model provides out-of-the-box integration with other SAP services such as SAP HANA, SAP S/4HANA, and SAP SuccessFactors to further extend the functionality of the technology across groups or areas of the organization.
CAP framework also leverages standard application components and protocols, like OData, SOAP, and REST APIs, to support integration with other non-SAP systems.
Main Advantages for Your Organization
Let’s take a closer look at a few of the main advantages of CAP framework for your company…
1) Modular
CAP is built on a modular architecture foundation designed to enable technical SAP developers to separate complex applications into smaller, more manageable components as its primary focus, making it easier to develop, test, manage, and maintain new and existing applications.
2) Scalability
The SAP Cloud Application Programming Model is built to be scalable, making it ideal for building cloud-native applications that can handle large amounts of data and users.
And, in addition to its scalable nature, it also provides integrations with other SAP services to scale applications as needed to accommodate business growth and change over time.
3) Productivity
With SAP CAP documentation, developers can focus on building the business logic of their applications instead of dealing with the complexities of the core infrastructure of each application. This helps them operate more productively and enables them to deliver quality applications in a much shorter timeframe.
4) Flexibility
The SAP CAP model provides a variety of flexible deployment options and allows developers and other SAP users to run applications on-premise or in the cloud. It also supports a variety of database types, making it easier to integrate with new and existing systems.
How Can We Help?
Whether you need help leveraging SAP Cloud Application Programming features to plan, create, manage, and deploy new applications across your organization, an extra hand integrating CAP functionality with other components of the SAP system (i.e., SAP Business Technology Platform, SAP HANA, etc.), or additional support building enterprise-grade services in a short timeframe, Surety Systems is here to help.
Our team of senior-level SAP consultants has the technical skills and developmental expertise needed to manage any application design project, optimize the functionality of your SAP technologies, and eliminate the need to delve into overly technical disciplines across teams.
Getting Started with Us
Interested in learning more about the SAP Cloud Application Programming Model or where our team of SAP consultants can fit in your organization?
Ready to get started on your CAP journey, but need additional support to ensure your implementation or integration projects remain on-time and within budget?
Contact us today for more information about our SAP consulting services!
