What is the problem that Object Store solves ?
Modern enterprise systems increasingly deal with massive volumes of unstructured data such as documents, logs, media files, and backups. Traditional relational databases are not optimized for such workloads.
What is Object Store ?
Object storage—commonly referred to as blob storage—addresses this gap by providing scalable, durable, and cost-efficient storage for unstructured data.
Object storage is a storage architecture designed to manage unstructured data as discrete units called objects.
Each object consists of:
- Binary data (file content) : Image , File etc
- Metadata (descriptive attributes) : File size, Content type, Last modified timestamp, Storage class (hot, cool, archive)
- Unique identifier (key or URL) : unique path-like string used to locate a blob inside a bucket
The SAP BTP Object Store service is a managed, S3-compatible object storage solution integrated within SAP Business Technology Platform.It enables SAP applications and extensions to store and retrieve large volumes of unstructured data without overloading transactional systems.
Object storage is a foundational component of modern distributed system design, enabling scalable and cost-effective management of unstructured data. Within SAP ecosystems, the SAP BTP Object Store service extends these capabilities by integrating seamlessly with SAP Business Technology Platform and related services.
By offloading large data objects from transactional systems like SAP HANA Cloud, organizations can achieve better performance, lower costs, and improved scalability. When designed correctly—with proper attention to security, lifecycle management, and access patterns—object storage becomes a key enabler for cloud-native SAP architectures and future-ready enterprise systems.
What are the popular alternatives of Object Store on SAP BTP ?
- Amazon S3
- Microsoft Azure Blob Storage
- Google Cloud Storage
What are the Key Features of Object Store on SAP BTP ?
- Scalability: Virtually unlimited storage capacity
- Durability: Multi-region replication and redundancy
- Availability: High uptime with distributed access
- Cost Efficiency: Tiered storage (hot, cool, archive)
- Accessibility: HTTP-based APIs (REST/S3-compatible)
How Architects think of object storage ?
Object storage is positioned outside core compute and database layers to decouple file handling from transactional processing.
For SAP architects and BASIS professionals, object storage is critical for:
- Decoupling storage from compute
- Reducing SAP HANA footprint and cost
- Enabling scalable extensions on BTP
- Supporting AI and data-driven workloads
It plays a foundational role in modern architectures involving:
- S/4HANA extensions
- Cloud-native applications (CAP)
- Observability platforms
- Data lake ecosystems
How is data organized and accessed in Object Store ?
Bucket / Container
├── images/
├── logs/
├── documents/
Each object is accessed via a unique key
/user/{user_id}/files/{file_id}
What are pain points when using object store over Relational Database ?
- No native query capability
- Higher latency for small object access
- Requires application-level integration
- Not suitable for transactional workloads
Can SAP Object store replace SAP Opentext solution ?
Blob storage and OpenText are not interchangeable because they operate at fundamentally different layers in an SAP architecture.
Blob storage such as SAP BTP Object Store service is a low-level storage service that simply stores files as objects with minimal metadata. It has no understanding of SAP business context.
OpenText, on the other hand, is an enterprise content management and archiving platform tightly integrated with SAP systems.
Key differences:
- SAP-native integration (critical gap): OpenText integrates via ArchiveLink and ILM, enabling documents to be directly linked and visible in SAP GUI/Fiori and tied to business objects like FI documents, invoices, and purchase orders. Blob storage has no native SAP integration or business context.
- Document lifecycle management: OpenText manages versioning, retention rules, archival policies, and document status transitions. Blob storage only stores files and does not manage lifecycle semantics beyond basic storage tiers.
- Compliance and governance: OpenText supports legal retention, audit trails, and regulatory compliance. Blob storage does not provide enterprise-grade compliance capabilities out of the box.
- Search and metadata: OpenText provides advanced indexing and search capabilities. Blob storage supports only basic key-value metadata with limited query capability.
- Application functionality: OpenText includes workflows, document management features, and SAP UI integration, whereas blob storage requires custom development to achieve similar functionality.
Comments
Post a Comment