What is involved in an SAP MDG upgrade?

Jerry van Holst - SAP Master Data Governance Consultant

More and more organizations are facing an upgrade of their SAP Master Data Governance (MDG) system. Not only because of technological developments, but also because of the growing need for reliable master data, stricter compliance requirements and more efficient operations.

However, an upgrade is more than a technical intervention. It is a strategic step that impacts processes, systems and the way data is managed. Whether you are switching from ECC to SAP S/4HANA or within S/4HANA to a newer release, proper preparation is crucial.

This blog covers the following topics:

Why upgrading SAP MDG is valuable
What steps lead to a successful SAP MDG upgrade
What important lessons from practice you should definitely take away with you
What changes when upgrading from ECC to S/4HANA
What tools and SAP Notes are available to support

With these insights, you will be better prepared for a smooth and successful upgrade, both technically and functionally.

Why upgrade SAP MDG system

Upgrading your SAP Master Data Governance (MDG) system is a worthwhile investment. It is a strategic move that strengthens data quality, security and efficiency within your organization. Newer releases offer advanced functionality such as improved automation, validation and integration with modern technologies such as AI and cloud solutions. This reduces errors, increases compliance and supports better decision-making. In addition, updates provide better security against new threats and contribute to long-term cost savings through improved performance and lower maintenance costs. Upgrading helps organizations stay future-proof and competitive.

How to upgrade SAP MDG

A successful upgrade requires careful planning and execution. Below is an overview of the most important steps.

1) Thorough analysis

Map the current MDG environment, customizations and system integrations. Set objectives (e.g., performance, features, security) and evaluate the impact of changed functionalities.

2) Planning and resource allocation.

Assemble a multidisciplinary team and reserve sufficient budget for technical upgrades, testing, training and any hardware/software modifications. Establish a project schedule with clear milestones.

3) Technical preparation

Verify that the infrastructure meets the requirements. Set up a sandbox environment for testing purposes. Perform backups and prepare customizations.

4) Upgrade and testing

Implement the upgrade in a test environment first. Perform extensive testing for functionality, performance, integration and security. Verify customizations and interfaces.

5) Training and go-live

Train end users and functional administrators thoroughly. Plan the go-live carefully with a rollback strategy as a safety net.

6) Monitoring and optimization

Monitor performance and user experience after go-live. Solicit feedback from end users for further optimizations. An upgrade is an ongoing process.

Lessons from practice

Upgrading or converting your SAP MDG system offers many advantages, but it also has pitfalls.

Below are nine important lessons from practice that you should definitely take away.

1) Activate business functions

After installation or upgrade, activation of relevant business functions for MDG is mandatory. "Switch-off" scenarios are no longer supported. Failure to activate may result in inconsistencies and data loss.

2) Handle open change requests.

For an upgrade, (depending on version) all change requests may need to have the status 'definitively approved' or 'definitively rejected'. Reason for this is that new staging tables are created; existing data is then not automatically transferred.

For mass processing of change requests, as part of the Avelon MDG Feature Pack, Avelon has developed a cleanup tool. The Avelon MDG Feature pack is an SAP Add-On with frequently requested functionalities that can be installed on top of the standard MDG solution. For more information about this SAP Add-On, contact Sander van der Wijngaart.

3) Checking data model for new fields

New standard fields may conflict with custom fields. Harmonization is essential. For a list of supported fields, see the information below:

2221398 - MDG-BP/C/S/CA: (Un-)Supported Fields in Data Model BP - SAP for Me

3134600 - MDG-M: Supported fields in Data Model MM - SAP for Me

2021246 - MDG-F: (Un-) Supported Fields in Data Model 0G - SAP for Me

As an example to BP:

After the upgrade, active and inactive versions may differ. Activate all data models with status "Different".

4) Checking UI configurations.

Check self-built UI Configurations for compatibility. As of S/4HANA 2022, LIST_ATS variants are mandatory for certain User Interface Building Blocks (UIBBs).

Some examples:

BS_BP_ADDRESS_EMAILS => BS_BP_ADDRESS_EMAILS_ATS
BS_BP_ROLES => BS_BP_ROLES_ATS
BS_BP_WORKPLACE_MOBILES => BS_BP_WORKPLACE_MOBILES_ATS

SAP recommends use of standard UI configurations, supplemented by targeted extensions and customizations.

5) Leveraging new functionalities

Each release introduces new functionality or a new way of working. It is important to be aware of this and include it in the training sessions.

Examples:

(a) New apps available in Data Quality Evaluation:

(b) New functionality within the Rule Maintenance app with rule-based simulation:

6) GDPR changes

As of S/4HANA, employees are no longer visible as business partners in search results due to GDPR guidelines. In later releases, this has been partially reversed after a customer influence request. For more information, see:

Improvement Request Details - Customer Influence

7) API for Z material fields

As of S/4HANA 2023, CL_CMD_PROD_DATA_API will be used instead of FM MATERIAL_MAINTAIN_DARK. Not all fields are supported by the new API. For more information, see:

3463981 - Value of Z-attributes enhanced in data model MM cannot be saved to backend after upgrade to S/4 HANA 2023 - SAP for Me

8) Removing personalizations

Remove all personalizations prior to upgrade to avoid UI problems.

9) Mass processing material data control logic

Since S/4HANA 2022, APIs for mass processing of material data have changed. Review of customization is necessary.

Some examples of methods replaced by the class cl_cmd_prod_data_api...:

cl_mdg_bs_mat_api->save (Material Data)
cl_mdg_bs_mat_api->check (Material Data)
cl_mdg_bs_mat_mla_api->save (Material Ledger Data)

Changes when upgrading from ECC to S/4HANA

Upgrading from SAP MDG on ECC to SAP MDG on S/4HANA goes beyond just a technical switch - it is a strategic choice to leverage richer data governance, integrated analytics and harmonized processes. The key changes are outlined below.

One of the most significant changes is the expansion of material attributes from 18 to 40 characters. This impacts interfaces, IDocs and compatibility with systems that have not yet been upgraded. Companies need to ensure that external systems and integration methods such as BAPI, RFC and IDoc are capable of handling these longer material attributes. This can be resolved through harmonized numbering or key-mapping mechanisms, depending on compatibility within the systems landscape.

SAP S/4HANA introduces simplified and updated data models - this affects MRP areas, foreign trade views, the Material Ledger (now mandatory) and field control tables. Obsolete fields have been removed or hidden, meaning older customizations may not be directly included. Organizations must align their custom MDG extensions and replication logic with the new S/4HANA structures. In addition, data from business partners on staff is excluded from governance because of privacy rules, and financial master data models are merged under the "0G" model, which requires replication to align systems.

Finally, S/4HANA adds advanced functionality, such as CDS-based Fiori process analytics, built-in data quality evaluation and integration with Central Finance via UKMS for key-mapping. This move unlocks modern governance tools, such as automatic change tracking and consolidation of financial and business partner data. However, success depends on thorough preparation, especially in terms of interface compatibility, customization and understanding which features are exclusively available in S/4HANA implementations.

Additional information and relevant SAP Notes

The following tools and SAP Notes provide upgrade support.

1) New functionalities

For more information, also check out our previous blogs on new features in S/4HANA MDG:

2) SAP Notes: Release Information Notes

SAP Release Information Notes provide a complete overview of new features, enhancements and major changes per release. They also contain information about obsolete components, compatibility requirements and recommended actions for a smooth upgrade.

Important Notes:

3) Customer Connection Program

Through the SAP MDG Customer Connection program, customers can provide direct input on the development of SAP MDG. Suggestions are reviewed and possibly included in future releases. This leads to practical improvements in usability, performance and functionality.

Learn more: https://influence.sap.com/

Relevant SAP notes:

4) SAP document: conversion from ECC to S/4 HANA

This SAP document describes considerations for conversion from ECC to S/4 HANA.

Converting the MDG Hub: From SAP MDG on ERP to SAP MDG on SAP S/4HANA

5) SAP Roadmap

For insight into planned innovations within SAP MDG portfolio through 2025, view the SAP Roadmap Explorer.

Summary

This blog provides a comprehensive guide for organizations looking to upgrade their SAP MDG system. It covers the why and how of upgrading, including the benefits in terms of data quality, compliance and operational efficiency.

A step-by-step plan helps provide a structured approach, while practical lessons provide concrete pitfalls and solution directions - such as activating business functions, customizing UI configurations and dealing with new data models and APIs.

The impact of the move to SAP S/4HANA is also highlighted, focusing on changed data models, GDPR effects and integration with Central Finance. Finally, you will find links to relevant SAP Notes, tools and programs that provide further support.

More information or interested in an SAP MDG Upgrade?

For further questions on this topic, or if you want to know how Avelon can support your organization in this, or on other topics such as SAP Workflow, Fiori or SAP Invoice Management (SIM), please feel free to contact Sander van der Wijngaart.

Successfully upgrading SAP MDG