Moving off SAP ECC before mainstream maintenance ends.
Most ECC estates we see carry twenty years of custom ABAP and a PI/PO hub nobody wants to touch. The access model was usually built one firefight at a time. We plan the S/4HANA move around those problems, starting with the code.
Cohash plans and runs SAP S/4HANA conversions and new implementations, plus the work around them.
That includes SAP GRC access control, SAP Master Data Governance and moving PI/PO interfaces to SAP Integration Suite on BTP. SAP ERP 6.0 leaves mainstream maintenance at the end of 2027. We start with an inventory of custom code and interfaces, then sequence the conversion, integration move and access redesign so they don't collide.
you probably need this if
ECC 6.0 still sits on a non-HANA database and nobody has put a price on the move.
Nobody can say how many of your Z-programs still run, or who owns them.
PI/PO carries most of your interfaces and the team that built them has moved on.
Custom code inventory with usage data and a retire, fix or rebuild decision per object
Simplification item impact list mapped to your modules and owners
PI/PO interface catalog with target pattern and wave for each flow
+ 3 more documents
who does it
S/4HANA conversion lead (brownfield and selective data)ABAP developer for custom code remediation (ABAP Cloud)SAP Integration Suite developer (PI/PO migration)
SAP Certified - Integration Developer
SAP Certified - SAP Master Data Governance
04 Feb 2020SAP ERP 6.0 mainstream maintenance ends 2027 Mainstream maintenance for SAP Business Suite 7 core applications, including SAP ERP 6.0, runs to the end of 2027. Optional extended maintenance runs to the end of 2030. source ↗
13 Oct 2026SAP ERP, private edition, transition option Business continuity from 2031 to 2033 for systems moved to SAP ERP, private edition on SAP HANA by 31 December 2030. A 13 October 2026 update says subscriptions may run to 31 December 2035, with further prerequisites. source ↗
today · Oct 22, 2026
no date yetS/4HANA 2025 release and FPS1The 2025 release follows SAP's two-year release cycle, with feature pack stacks in between. SAP Learning covers what changed in 2025 FPS1.source ↗
no date yetSAP NetWeaver 7.5 and PO maintenanceSAP NetWeaver 7.5, the base for SAP Process Orchestration, stays in mainstream maintenance to the end of 2027, with extended maintenance available through 2030.source ↗
the story · sap s/4hana estate
From the first call to a setup your own team can run.
Here's what usually prompts a call about your SAP S/4HANA estate, what we do about it and in which order, and where you end up.
01 · where it hurts02 · what we change03 · how it runs04 · where you end up
incident board · sap s/4hana estate3 open
openECC 6.0 still sits on a non-HANA database and nobody has put a price on the move.
recurringNobody can say how many of your Z-programs still run, or who owns them.
blockedPI/PO carries most of your interfaces and the team that built them has moved on.
exposure
ECC to S/4HANA conversionCustom ABAP remediationPI/PO to Integration SuiteSAP GRC Access ControlSAP Master Data GovernanceRun support and staffing
S/4EWMIS-U
startrehearsehandover
Readiness and code inventory
Path and sequence
Mock conversions
Cut-over and hypercare
we are here
ready to hand over
The board picks a path from an inventory it can audit, and the custom code work is…
By the conversion weekend the PI/PO dependency is much smaller, and the interface…
Custom code inventory with usage data and a retire, fix or rebuild decision per object
Simplification item impact list mapped to your modules and owners
chapter 01 · where it hurts
Why teams reach out
ECC 6.0 still sits on a non-HANA database and nobody has put a price on the move.
Nobody can say how many of your Z-programs still run, or who owns them.
PI/PO carries most of your interfaces and the team that built them has moved on.
chapter 02 · what we change
How we solve it
ECC to S/4HANA conversion
Custom ABAP remediation
PI/PO to Integration Suite
SAP GRC Access Control
SAP Master Data Governance
Run support and staffing
chapter 03 · how it runs
Our approach
Readiness and code inventory
Path and sequence
Mock conversions
Cut-over and hypercare
chapter 04 · where you end up
What changes
The board picks a path from an inventory it can audit, and the custom code work is scoped to objects that actually run.
By the conversion weekend the PI/PO dependency is much smaller, and the interface knowledge lives in a catalog, not in one person's head.
Custom code inventory with usage data and a retire, fix or rebuild decision per object
Simplification item impact list mapped to your modules and owners
what we do
Our SAP S/4HANA work
6 kinds of SAP S/4HANA work, each run by engineers who have done it on live tenants.
System conversion, selective data transition or a new implementation, chosen after we've run the readiness check, the simplification item list and a custom code analysis on your actual system.
We sort Z-programs into retire, fix or rebuild, adapt code to the S/4HANA data model (MATDOC, ACDOCA, business partner) and move new extensions toward clean-core patterns where it pays off.
An interface-by-interface inventory of SAP Process Orchestration, with each flow rebuilt, redesigned or retired in SAP Integration Suite on BTP, and cut over in waves.
Ruleset clean-up, role redesign for Fiori and S/4HANA transactions, firefighter (EAM) setup and access request workflows that auditors can follow.
MDG for business partner, material and finance objects, with data quality rules, change request workflows and the replication model to downstream systems.
Basis, ABAP, functional and integration engineers for post-go-live support, onsite in the US or nearshore and offshore across time zones.
capability 01 / 06in production
S/4EWMIS-U
ECC to S/4HANA conversion
System conversion, selective data transition or a new implementation, chosen after we've run the readiness check, the simplification item list and a custom code analysis on your actual system.
We sort Z-programs into retire, fix or rebuild, adapt code to the S/4HANA data model (MATDOC, ACDOCA, business partner) and move new extensions toward clean-core patterns where it pays off.
An interface-by-interface inventory of SAP Process Orchestration, with each flow rebuilt, redesigned or retired in SAP Integration Suite on BTP, and cut over in waves.
MDG for business partner, material and finance objects, with data quality rules, change request workflows and the replication model to downstream systems.
We pieced these together from SAP S/4HANA situations that come up a lot. They're patterns. You won't find a specific client in them.
case file 01
ECC 6.0 on Oracle with 9,000 Z-objects and a board date in 2027
composite · not a client story
Beforethe situation
ECC 6.0 EHP8 runs on an Oracle database with about 9,000 custom objects. The board wants a decision this year, and the last estimate came from a slide with no code analysis behind it.
What we dothe work
We run the readiness check and custom code analysis on a production copy and pull usage statistics to find which Z-objects still execute. The simplification items are mapped to module owners. Conversion, selective data transition and the private edition transition option are then costed side by side.
Afterwhere you end up
The board picks a path from an inventory it can audit, and the custom code work is scoped to objects that actually run.
case file 02
Six hundred PI/PO interfaces and one integration engineer who knows them
composite · not a client story
Beforethe situation
SAP Process Orchestration 7.5 runs around six hundred interfaces, many with Java mappings and file adapters. One engineer understands most of them, and S/4HANA conversion is planned for next year.
What we dothe work
We catalog every interface with sender, receiver, adapter and message volume, then retire the dead ones. Simple file and IDoc flows move to Integration Suite first. Interfaces that change with the S/4HANA data model are redesigned and move with the conversion.
Afterwhere you end up
By the conversion weekend the PI/PO dependency is much smaller, and the interface knowledge lives in a catalog, not in one person's head.
We don't start a step until the last one has produced something you can check.
step 01
Readiness and code inventory
We run the SAP readiness check and a custom code analysis on a copy of production, read the simplification item list against your modules, and produce a usage-weighted list of Z-objects.
step 02
Path and sequence
Conversion, new implementation or selective data transition is chosen against the inventory. We then sequence the Integration Suite waves, the GRC role redesign and MDG so they don't land on the same weekend.
step 03
Mock conversions
At least two timed mock conversions on production-sized copies, with finance reconciliation signed off by the business after each one, so the downtime window is measured rather than guessed.
step 04
Cut-over and hypercare
Production conversion with your team, followed by hypercare on period-end close, interfaces and access requests, then a handover of runbooks and the open-items log.
ai on sap s/4hana
Where AI fits on SAP S/4HANA, and where it needs guardrails.
SAP's AI for S/4HANA is Joule. Joule Assistants handle business tasks, and Joule Studio is for building custom agents. Agents reach SAP systems through Agent Gateway and the MCP Gateway in SAP Integration Suite. Before any of that, the ECC conversion and a clean authorization model matter more than which model you pick.
AI agentasks for data or an action
Scoped identityonly the access it needs
MCP serverthe one door into the platform
Logged, approveda person signs off on writes
S/4SAP S/4HANAdoes the work
In SAP's reference architecture, agents go through Agent Gateway for authentication, principal propagation and policy. The Integration Suite MCP Gateway can publish S/4HANA OData APIs as MCP tools. What an agent can actually do is the intersection of the user's rights and the agent's. So we design agent roles in SAP Cloud Identity Services, and every write is logged.
Joule Studio agent builder
SAP's Q4 2025 release highlights list the Joule Studio agent builder as generally available, with low-code and pro-code flows. Pro-code agents are built in your own IDE with a coding agent connected through MCP. We keep each agent to one business domain and test it against real S/4HANA roles.
Joule for Developers and ABAP AI
Joule for Developers ABAP AI capabilities are generally available on S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition. In conversions we use AI tools to explain old Z-programs and to write first drafts of ABAP unit tests. They also help us sort custom code into retire, fix or rebuild. Every change is reviewed by an ABAP developer.
AI in MDG and finance
SAP lists AI-assisted central governance in Master Data Governance on Private Edition, and AI-assisted allocation run results on Public Edition, as generally available. Both depend on clean master data and documented change request workflows. We fix those first. Then we switch things on.
Joule Work and Joule Assistants
SAP began rolling Joule Work out to customers at SAP Connect in October 2026. Joule Work Desktop is in an early adopter program. Customer plans name Joule Assistants such as the Accounts Receivable Assistant. For us, anything that isn't generally available is still pilot material.
Where S/4HANA, GRC, MDG and Integration Suite sit together
Integration Suite on BTP replaces the PI/PO hub between S/4HANA and the systems around it. MDG governs master data before it reaches the core, and GRC checks access risk on the same users and roles that S/4HANA enforces.
01 · Systems around the core
Salesforceaccounts · orders → SAP Integration Suite · orders · accounts
Legacy ECC and PI/POIDocs · RFC · file interfaces → SAP Integration Suite · interface migration
Entra IDworkforce identity → SAP GRC Access Control · user provisioning
02 · Integration and governance
SAP Integration SuiteBTP · iFlows · API management → SAP S/4HANA · OData · IDoc
SAP MDGbusiness partner · material → SAP S/4HANA · replicate master data
SAP GRC Access Controlrisk analysis · firefighter → SAP S/4HANA · role assignment
These are working documents, written against your configuration, so your team can run them without us.
inventory01
Custom code inventory with usage data and a retire, fix or rebuild decision per object
yours to keep
code02
Simplification item impact list mapped to your modules and owners
yours to keep
inventory03
PI/PO interface catalog with target pattern and wave for each flow
yours to keep
runbook04
Mock conversion runbook with measured timings and finance reconciliation sign-off
yours to keep
design05
GRC ruleset and role design updated for S/4HANA transactions and Fiori apps
yours to keep
design06
MDG data model, change request workflow and replication design
yours to keep
talent and delivery · sap s/4hana
Certified engineers, wherever you need them.
Some clients want a project team, some want a couple of engineers on theirs. Either works. Onsite, nearshore or offshore, with handovers across time zones that keep things moving.
S/4HANA conversion lead (brownfield and selective data)
ABAP developer for custom code remediation (ABAP Cloud)
SAP Integration Suite developer (PI/PO migration)
SAP GRC Access Control consultant
SAP MDG technical and functional consultant
SAP Basis and HANA migration engineer
due diligence · sap s/4hana
Questions to ask any partner, including us.
Put these to anyone bidding on your SAP S/4HANA work. The ones who've done it answer differently from the ones who've read about it.
Q1
How many of our custom objects actually executed in the last year, and how do you know?
Usage data from production separates live code from dead code. Estimates built on total object counts overstate remediation and hide the objects that really matter.
Q2
Which simplification items hit our modules hardest, and who on our side owns each one?
Business partner, material ledger and credit management all change how people work day to day. If nobody owns them by name, they show up as defects in the first mock conversion.
Q3
How many timed mock conversions will you run on production-sized data?
Downtime and reconciliation effort are only known after a full mock on real volumes. One rehearsal rarely catches data issues in finance and inventory balances.
Q4
Which PI/PO interfaces move before conversion, and which move with it?
Moving everything at once overloads the cut-over. Moving the wrong ones early means building them twice when the S/4HANA data model changes.
Q5
What replaces SAP Identity Management for provisioning into S/4HANA after 2027?
SAP IdM leaves mainstream maintenance in 2027. GRC access requests and role assignments still need a source of identity, and that choice affects the role design.
01Do we have to be off ECC by the end of 2027?
No, but the cost changes. Mainstream maintenance for SAP ERP 6.0 ends at the end of 2027. Extended maintenance runs to the end of 2030 at extra cost, and SAP also offers the SAP ERP, private edition, transition option for systems moved to SAP HANA by the end of 2030. Which of these fits depends on your contract, database and how fast the business can absorb a conversion.
02Brownfield conversion or greenfield implementation?
It depends on how much of your current process you'd keep. Conversion keeps history and configuration and is usually faster. A new implementation suits estates whose processes have drifted far from how the business now runs. Selective data transition sits between the two. We decide after the readiness check and custom code analysis, not before.
03What drives the cost of a conversion?
Custom code volume, the number of interfaces, data volume and quality, the number of company codes and countries, and how many test cycles the business can staff. The simplification item list and a custom code analysis turn most of those into numbers early.
04Should PI/PO move to Integration Suite before or after the S/4HANA cut-over?
Usually in waves that start before. Moving the simpler interfaces first takes load off the conversion weekend and gives your team practice with Integration Suite. Interfaces that change shape with S/4HANA, such as those touching business partner or material documents, move with the conversion.
05Does SAP GRC still make sense, or should access governance move elsewhere?
Some teams keep GRC Access Control for SAP-specific risk analysis and firefighter access, and connect it to SailPoint or Saviynt for enterprise-wide reviews. SAP Identity Management also leaves maintenance in 2027, so the identity side needs a decision either way. We map who owns each control before recommending a tool.
06Can you staff engineers into a program another partner is running?
Yes. We place ABAP, Basis, functional, GRC, MDG and Integration Suite engineers on contract, contract-to-hire or permanent terms, working onsite in the US or nearshore and offshore across time zones.
services
Related services
Projects on SAP S/4HANA usually end up touching one of these, so they're worth a look.
