Episode #224
Introduction
In episode 224 of our SAP on Azure video podcast we talk about data. The topic of data integration, especially when it comes to integrating SAP data into Microsoft Fabric is top of mind for many of our customers. Among other things, Fabric enables users not only to work easily with Power BI, but also benefit from a tight integration with Copilot. End of 2024 our colleauge Ulrich Christ published a blog post takling about the integration of SAP data into Fabric. In addition to our out of the box capabilities from Microsoft he also mentioned several partners who have worked with us to enhance their existing SAP data integration capabilities to support Microsoft Fabric. So today we will provide a quick update on Fabric and SAP focusing on the new mirroring functionalities. In following episodes we will then take a closer look at some of these partners solutions and show how they work.
Find all the links mentioned here: https://www.saponazurepodcast.de/episode224
Reach out to us for any feedback / questions:
- Robert Boban: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rboban/
- Goran Condric: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gorancondric/
- Holger Bruchelt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holger-bruchelt/
#Microsoft #SAP #Azure #SAPonAzure #Fabric #Data
Summary created by AI
- Holger introduced the 224th episode of the SAP on Azure Video podcast, mentioning that the focus would be on data integration, particularly integrating SAP data into Microsoft Fabric.
- Podcast Introduction: Holger welcomed everyone to the 224th episode of the SAP on Azure Video podcast, highlighting that the main focus would be on data integration, especially integrating SAP data into Microsoft Fabric. He was joined by Robert and Goran for the discussion.
- Episode Focus: Holger emphasized that the episode would provide updates on the integration of SAP data into Microsoft Fabric, including new mirroring functionalities and future episodes featuring partner solutions.
- Data Integration and Microsoft Fabric:
- Holger discussed the importance of data integration for customers, highlighting the benefits of Microsoft Fabric, including its integration with Power BI and copilot. He mentioned a blog post by Ulrich on SAP data integration in Fabric and the involvement of several partners.
- Customer Importance: Holger noted that data integration, particularly integrating SAP data into Microsoft Fabric, is a top priority for many customers. He highlighted the benefits of Microsoft Fabric, such as seamless integration with Power BI and copilot features.
- Blog Post Mention: Holger referenced a blog post by Ulrich published at the end of 2024, which discussed the integration of SAP data into Microsoft Fabric and mentioned several partners who have enhanced these capabilities.
- Partner Involvement: Holger mentioned that several partners have worked with Microsoft to enhance the existing SAP data integration capabilities to support Microsoft Fabric, and future episodes will showcase these partner solutions.
- Introduction of Ulrich:
- Ulrich introduced himself as a product manager in the Microsoft Data Integration team, focusing on SAP data integration within Microsoft Fabric.
- Ulrich’s Role: Ulrich introduced himself as a product manager in the Microsoft Data Integration team, responsible for parts of the data integration topics within the fabric organization, with a specific focus on SAP data integration.
- Customer Interaction: Ulrich explained that his role involves assisting customers with integrating their SAP data with Microsoft Fabric, addressing their queries and providing solutions.
- Overview of Microsoft Fabric:
- Ulrich provided an overview of Microsoft Fabric, describing it as a comprehensive software as a service offering for modern analytics, including data integration, data engineering, data warehousing, data science, machine learning, real-time intelligence, and Power BI visualization.
- Fabric Overview: Ulrich described Microsoft Fabric as a comprehensive software as a service offering that provides modern analytics capabilities, including data integration, data engineering, data warehousing, data science, machine learning, real-time intelligence, and Power BI visualization.
- One Lake Foundation: Ulrich explained that the foundation of Microsoft Fabric is One Lake, a data lake service that supports all workloads within Fabric, ensuring seamless data integration and unified formats.
- Unified Formats: Ulrich highlighted that all workloads in Microsoft Fabric use unified formats, allowing data produced by one workload to be consumed by another without conversions or proprietary formats.
- Unified Data Platform and Partner Integration:
- Holger and Ulrich discussed the unified data platform aspect of Microsoft Fabric, emphasizing its extensibility for partners to create and ship their own workloads as part of the Fabric experience.
- Unified Platform: Holger and Ulrich discussed how Microsoft Fabric serves as a unified data platform, providing all necessary capabilities for working with data and allowing partners to develop and extend functionalities on this platform.
- Partner Workloads: Ulrich explained that partners can create their own workloads and integrate them seamlessly into the Fabric experience, making them available to customers as additional workloads.
- Partner App Store: Holger inquired about a partner App Store, and Ulrich clarified that customers can choose partner workloads through a simple user interface, with separate tabs for built-in and partner workloads.
- Data Factory and Data Integration Capabilities:
- Ulrich explained the capabilities of Data Factory within Microsoft Fabric, including data integration, transformation, monitoring, orchestration, data movement, and deployment capabilities, all supported by AI and copilot features.
- Data Factory Overview: Ulrich provided an overview of Data Factory within Microsoft Fabric, highlighting its comprehensive capabilities for data management, including data integration, transformation, monitoring, orchestration, data movement, and deployment.
- AI and Copilot: Ulrich emphasized the role of AI and copilot features in Data Factory, which assist users in creating pipelines, proposing visualizations, and coding, making the data management process more efficient.
- Connectivity: Ulrich mentioned that Data Factory provides over 170 connectors out-of-the-box, including connectivity for SAP, enabling seamless data integration from various sources.
- Database Mirroring and Change Data Capture:
- Ulrich introduced the concept of database mirroring in Microsoft Fabric, explaining how it enables near real-time synchronization of source data with the data estate in One Lake through change data capture.
- Mirroring Concept: Ulrich introduced database mirroring in Microsoft Fabric, which allows for near real-time synchronization of source data with the data estate in One Lake through change data capture, ensuring data is always up-to-date.
- Setup Simplicity: Ulrich highlighted the simplicity of setting up database mirroring, with a wizard-based experience that requires minimal configuration, making it easy for users to implement.
- Cost Efficiency: Ulrich mentioned that the compute and storage for mirrored data in Microsoft Fabric are free for customers, although there may be fees for partner solutions involved in the process.
- Real-Time Sync: Ulrich explained that the mirroring process is designed for near real-time synchronization, with changes in the source data being quickly reflected in the One Lake data estate.
- Snowflake Mirroring Demo:
- Ulrich presented a demo of Snowflake mirroring, showcasing how data from Snowflake can be mirrored into Microsoft Fabric. He also mentioned additional resources for further information on database mirroring.
- Snowflake Demo: Ulrich presented a demo showing how data from Snowflake can be mirrored into Microsoft Fabric, demonstrating the process and capabilities of database mirroring.
- Additional Resources: Ulrich mentioned that additional resources, including a Guy in the Cube session and documentation links, are available for customers who want to learn more about database mirroring.
- Supported Connectors and Roadmap:
- Ulrich outlined the currently supported connectors for mirroring, including Snowflake, Cosmos DB, and Azure SQL databases, and mentioned the roadmap for supporting more sources like SQL Server, Azure SQL Managed Instance, Postgres, and Oracle.
- Current Connectors: Ulrich listed the currently supported connectors for mirroring in Microsoft Fabric, which include Snowflake, Cosmos DB, and Azure SQL databases.
- Future Support: Ulrich mentioned the roadmap for supporting additional sources, including SQL Server, Azure SQL Managed Instance, Postgres, and Oracle, expanding the capabilities of database mirroring in Microsoft Fabric.
- Open Mirroring and Partner Integration:
- Ulrich explained the concept of open mirroring, where partners like Oracle can push change data into the landing zone, and Microsoft Fabric processes it. He highlighted the collaboration with Oracle Golden Gate and other partners.
- Open Mirroring: Ulrich introduced the concept of open mirroring, allowing partners to push change data into the landing zone, which Microsoft Fabric then processes, enabling seamless integration with third-party tools.
- Oracle Collaboration: Ulrich highlighted the collaboration with Oracle Golden Gate, which has adopted the open mirroring approach, allowing Oracle to push changes directly into the landing zone for processing by Microsoft Fabric.
- Partner Integration: Ulrich mentioned that other partners have also adopted the open mirroring approach, integrating their tools with Microsoft Fabric to provide seamless data synchronization capabilities.
- SAP Data Integration Partners:
- Ulrich discussed the ongoing collaboration with six SAP data integration partners to enhance their capabilities for mirroring in Microsoft Fabric. He emphasized that this is not an exclusive partnership and encouraged other partners to reach out.
- Call to Action for Partners and Customers:
- Holger and Ulrich encouraged partners and customers to reach out if they are interested in collaborating or using the mirroring capabilities in Microsoft Fabric, highlighting the current momentum and readiness of some partners.
- Closing Remarks:
- Holger concluded the meeting by thanking Ulrich and expressing excitement for the upcoming episodes featuring partner solutions for SAP data integration in Microsoft Fabric.
- 0:00 Intro
- 2:00 Introducing Ulrich Christ
- 2:50 Fabric database mirroring and SAP sources
- 7:40 Data Factory
- 9:15 Data Factory - Items in Fabric - Mirrored Database
- 10:45 Database mirroring
- 16:35 Demo with Snowflake
- 17:40 Other sources for Mirroring
- 18:25 Open mirroring
- 25:35 SAP Connectivity - 3rd party solutions
- 29:45 Timelines