SAP adds virtual machine support and prebuilt integrations to HANA

SAP has announced new additions to its HANA cloud platform to benefit business processes, cloud development and iOS app development.

SAP HANA's support for virtual machines means users can add workloads using existing on-premise software or languages, using runtimes directly on the SAP HANA framework. Additionally, the company is providing pre-built integrations for the Ariba Network to help foster the relationship between customers and suppliers.

SAP's API Business Hub has also been rolled out, bringing new APIs every day to the developer network, making it easier for them to build applications. Recent additions include the SAP S/4HANA Finance solution, the SAP S/4HANA Marketing Cloud solution, the SAP Hybris Product Content Management solution and the SAP Vehicles Network solution.

The company also announced updates to benefit businesses directly, including a graphical interface to help analysts create workflows quickly and orchestrate tasks as and when needed. The service is currently in beta. Similarly, business rule functionality enables businesses and key users to change and embed logic into business processes without rewriting the whole application.

Models for predictive analytics are also now available via SAP's HANA Cloud Platform predictive services, which aims to take the legwork out of creating models from scratch.

“We are extending our enterprise platform-as-a-service leadership by supporting our customers and partners through their digital transformation journey as they strive to become an agile business and optimise their business processes end-to-end,” said Bjoern Goerke, president, SAP HANA Cloud Platform, SAP said.

“The new business services can help our customers to fully embrace their innovation agenda at development speed and deployment flexibility that they have never seen from SAP before, making our SAP HANA Cloud Platform even more attractive to enterprises on their digital transformation journey.”

SAP also revealed information about its services for iOS developers. SAP HANA Cloud Platform SDK for iOS is an early adopter programme, helping developers, partners and customers develop enterprise-grade applications for iPhone and iPad. Another new service is SAP's Academy for iOS, which is available as a preview. It provides education, training and tools for iOS developers to start creating their own apps on the cloud platform and will be officially launched in 2017.