This book provides administrators, consultants, and project managers with proven methods and detailed solutions for the successful implementation and operation of SAP systems on Microsoft Windows platforms.

Each chapter contains in-depth information on topics such as application requirements, data center technologies, and IT operations. You'll quickly familiarize yourself with typical issues involved in live operations and uncover tried and tested best practices for the consistent administration of systems, different virtualization and automation technologies as well as monitoring and deployment solutions. In addition, this unique reference discusses security concepts and describes the process of planning scalable system landscapes in order to deliver high system availability.

To ensure the ongoing, stable and secure operation of your data center, the authors also provide you with a detailed coverage of new developments and challenges you'll likely have to face when implementing enterprise SOA and Windows Server 2008.

Highlights

• SAP and Microsoft: Components, Solutions, Tools
• Installation and Maintenance: Profiles, Programs, Instances, Analyses
• System Operation: Hardware and Software Infrastructure, Tools, Organizing the IT Department
• IT Services: File Services, Print Services, Active Directory, MOM
• High Availability: Data and Applications, Risk Analysis, RAID Procedures
• Security: Authentication and Authorization, Encryption, Identity Management
• Future Developments: Virtualization, Adaptive Computing, Duet, Windows Server 2008

About the Author(s)

Josef Stelzel works as an SAP Program Manager at Microsoft, Ulrich B. Boddenberg is a Senior Consultant and Software Architect, Uwe M. Hoffmann works as a Technology Consultant at Microsoft, and Dr. Michael Mißbach is a Senior Consultant at the SAP HP Competence Center. For the first time ever, these authors share their many years of experience with SAP and Windows in one single book.

Table of Contents

1. SAP Solutions on Windows ... 23
... 1.1 How SAP and Windows Came Together ... 24
... 1.2 Why Windows is the Most Widely Used Operating System for SAP ... 26
... 1.3 IT Operations for SAP on Windows ... 36
... 1.4 Development of SAP Applications ... 38
... 1.5 Summary ... 43

2. Hardware Infrastructures for SAP Applications ... 45
... 2.1 System Landscape ... 45
... 2.2 Server Systems ... 48
... 2.3 Storage Architectures ... 59
... 2.4 Network ... 74
... 2.5 Computer Center ... 84
... 2.6 Summary ... 90

3. SAP Application Server ... 93
... 3.1 SAP R/3 ... 94
... 3.2 SAP Web Application Server ... 101
... 3.3 SAP NetWeaver Application Server ... 109
... 3.4 Specific Solutions in the SAP Infrastructure ... 116
... 3.5 Summary ... 118

4. Installation and Maintenance of SAP Systems on Windows ... 119
... 4.1 SAP Service in the Windows Operating System ... 123
... 4.2 Profiles of the SAP System in Windows ... 127
... 4.3 Distributed SAP Systems in Windows ... 133
... 4.4 SAP Executables in Windows ... 136
... 4.5 Operating an SAP Instance on Windows ... 143
... 4.6 Heterogeneous SAP Systems ... 155
... 4.7 Multiple SAP Systems on one Server ... 158
... 4.8 Maintenance of SAP Systems on Windows ... 161
... 4.9 Summary ... 166

5. SAP High Availability with Windows ... 167
... 5.1 Conceptual Models ... 168
... 5.2 What is Availability? ... 170
... 5.3 Risk Analysis ... 172
... 5.4 Availability from a Data Standpoint ... 179
... 5.5 Availability from the Network Standpoint ... 193
... 5.6 Availability of Computing and Storage Systems ... 200
... 5.7 Availability from the Application's Point of View ... 207
... 5.8 Availability in Case of Catastrophe ... 220
... 5.9 Availability from the Operations Standpoint ... 223
... 5.10 Summary ... 225

6. IT Services in a Windows Data Center ... 227
... 6.1 Name Resolution ... 227
... 6.2 File Services ... 229
... 6.3 Print Services ... 231
... 6.4 DNS ... 257
... 6.5 DHCP ... 259
... 6.6 Systems Management Server ... 260
... 6.7 Microsoft Operations Manager ... 266
... 6.8 Microsoft .NET ... 282
... 6.9 Windows Server System Reference Architecture ... 293
... 6.10 Summary ... 293

7. Technological Trends and Developments ... 295
... 7.1 Virtual Machines on Windows ... 295
... 7.2 SAP Adaptive Computing ... 319
... 7.3 Dynamic Systems Initiative ... 333
... 7.4 Outlook on the Windows Server 2008 ... 337
... 7.5 New SAP User Interfaces ... 341
... 7.6 Summary ... 347

8. Security, Authentication, and Authorization ... 349
... 8.1 The Threat Landscape ... 350
... 8.2 Legal Position ... 357
... 8.3 Network and Server Security ... 361
... 8.4 Application Security ... 388
... 8.5 Data Security ... 406
... 8.6 Summary ... 409

9. Service Management of SAP Systems on Windows ... 411
... 9.1 IT Service Management Reference Model ... 413
... 9.2 Service Level Management ... 416
... 9.3 Performance Management ... 418
... 9.4 Availability Management ... 440
... 9.5 Summary ... 449

10. Organization of SAP System Operation on Windows ... 451
... 10.1 Operation of the Hardware Infrastructure ... 452
... 10.2 Operation of the Software Infrastructure ... 457
... 10.3 Tools for SAP System Operation on Windows ... 476
... 10.4 Organization of the IT Department ... 485
... 10.5 Summary ... 499

11. SAP NetWeaver and the SAP Business Suite ... 501
... 11.1 SAP Business Suite ... 502
... 11.2 SAP NetWeaver ... 519
... 11.3 SAP System and User Management ... 535
... 11.4 SAP Development Environments ... 539
... 11.5 Summary ... 542

12. Web Services, Enterprise SOA, and Microsoft .NET ... 545
... 12.1 IT Hypes ... 545
... 12.2 What Are Web Services? ... 549
... 12.3 What Are Business Applications? ... 558
... 12.4 Integration with SAP .NET Connector ... 570
... 12.5 Summary ... 577

Index ... 581