Using the SAP Business One Service Layer? Make Sure It’s Optimised – Here’s How!

“…even if you didn’t know it you probably are using the Service Layer and optimisation makes a big difference.”

On the weekend I helped a partner in Denmark with an on-premises deployment that was using the Service Layer together with B1i and they were encountering slow performance, so we went hunting for some guidance on where to look.

One of the most useful documents was SAP Note No 3139544 – Optimize Service Layer Performance that contained a number of helpful hints and tips particularly around setting the MaxConnectionsPerChild value in the Service Layer Controller.

I have attached the note here as a PDF for those of you who may not have access to the SAP Notes – if you are a customer or partner, your S number should get you access to the SAP Notes you need – they can be a great source of help – just remember that you may need to write your search a few times differently to get the results you need.

SAP Note 3139544 – PDF

If you have access to the SAP Notes, here is the direct link

3139544 – Optimize Service Layer Performance – SAP for Me

*If you are new to the Service Layer and dont know what it is, heres a quick run down.

The SAP Business One Service Layer is a relatively new generation of development architecture introduced by SAP for Business One a number of years ago.

It is an open protocol that operates over HTTP(S), providing a way to interact with SAP Business One data and business objects through a uniform and standard interface. Here’s a closer look at its key aspects:

1. RESTful API: The Service Layer is built on REST (Representational State Transfer) principles, making it a stateless, cacheable, and lightweight interface for web services. This approach simplifies the development of applications and integration with external systems, as it uses standard HTTP methods such as GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE for operations on data.
2. JSON and OData: It supports data format in JSON (JavaScript Object Notation), which is widely used for data interchange on the web due to its lightweight and easy-to-parse nature. The Service Layer also utilizes OData (Open Data Protocol) for data access, providing a standardized method for querying and updating data.
3. Authentication and Security: Secure access is a crucial aspect of the Service Layer, typically requiring OAuth 2.0 for authentication. This ensures that only authorized users and applications can access the ERP data, maintaining the security of sensitive business information.
4. Performance and Scalability: Designed with performance and scalability in mind, the Service Layer is suitable for both small and large-scale deployments. Its stateless architecture allows it to handle numerous concurrent requests efficiently, making it ideal for cloud environments and services that require high availability and responsiveness.
5. Ease of Use: The Service Layer’s use of standard web protocols and data formats makes it accessible to developers familiar with web development practices. This lowers the barrier to entry for developing custom applications or integrating SAP Business One with other systems and services.
6. Broad Functionality: Through the Service Layer, developers can access a wide range of SAP Business One business objects and functionalities, including CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations on documents and master data, transactional processing, and business workflows.

…and here is the reason why it matters

The introduction of the SAP Business One Service Layer represents SAP’s commitment to modernizing its ERP solutions and making them more open and accessible for integration and development in cloud-based environments. It allows businesses to extend and customize their SAP Business One implementation more easily and to integrate with other modern web services and applications, enhancing overall business efficiency and innovation.

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Article used with permission from Richard Duffy LinkedIn.