HANA Migration: Decision, Preparation, Costs

Whether switching from Microsoft SQL Server to SAP HANA pays off is not something you decide based on the database, but on your day-to-day work: How large is your database, which reports do you need, which add-ons do you use and how much custom SQL is in your system? This article answers the question in four steps: what sets the two editions apart, when the migration pays off, when a fresh start is the better option, and how you prepare for it.

The short answer first: SQL Server is not being phased out, SAP continues both editions. HANA pays off if you want to use the functions that only exist there, or if your reports on SQL Server are noticeably too slow. With us, a migration during ongoing operations takes 2 to 10 weeks and costs between 6,500 EUR and 27,500 EUR at a fixed price.

SQL Server and HANA compared

Both editions are the same SAP Business One with the same documents, master data and authorizations. The difference lies in the database underneath and in a few functions that SAP only offers for HANA.

As of: SAP Administrator’s Guides for 10.0 FP 2608 from October 2026.

Two common assumptions are not quite right. First: you do not need HANA for the Web Client, it also runs with SQL Server. Second: there is no official SAP statement that new functions will only come for HANA. The current focus areas, namely the Web Client, the Service Layer and AI, run on both editions. According to SAP, mainstream maintenance for SAP Business One 10.0 applies until 31 December 2028, and according to the 2026 roadmap, version 11 is also set to support both databases.

On SQL Server, you should keep an eye on Microsoft’s support:

If your SAP Business One still runs on SQL Server 2016 or 2017, a database change is due anyway. That is the natural moment to settle the question of SQL Server 2022 or HANA properly, once and for all.

When the migration pays off

The decision depends on a few criteria. If several of them point to HANA, a closer look is worthwhile.

If the migration does not pay off yet, that is not bad news. A well-maintained SAP Business One on SQL Server 2022 is a solid basis for the coming years. What HANA actually changes in daily operations is covered in a separate article: Does SAP Business One Really Need HANA Day to Day?

Migration or fresh start

With a migration, you move your existing database with all documents, master data and settings to HANA. With a fresh start, you create a new company on HANA and only transfer master data, open items and stock levels. Both are legitimate; it depends on the state of your system.

A typical case for a migration: a wholesaler with 25 users and a 30 GB database, the processes fit, only the reports are too slow. A typical case for a fresh start: a company introduced SAP Business One twelve years ago, has since changed its business model and chart of accounts, and half of the fields are no longer used. With a migration, you would then be paying to carry dead weight onto a new platform.

A fresh start is more of a new implementation than a migration. How that works is described on our page on SAP Business One implementation.

What happens technically

For the switch, SAP provides the Migration Wizard. It runs on a Windows machine, transfers the company databases to the HANA server and upgrades them to the target version in the same run. The key points according to the SAP documentation:

• The source database must be on at least version 9.2 PL00. The Overview Note of the target version states from which release a direct migration is possible.
• All add-ons must be removed before the run and re-registered afterwards. The vendor has to supply a HANA version.
• The wizard migrates user-defined fields and tables as well.
• Queries, stored procedures such as the Transaction Notification, dashboards and Crystal Reports with custom SQL have to be rewritten in HANA SQL. SAP provides a semi-automatic converter for this, but you still have to check every query.
• In the default setting, the wizard does not transfer attachments larger than 512 MB.
• With the Test Only option, you can check in advance whether the database can be migrated, without changing anything.
• For HANA, you also need a HANA licence key and, because the License Manager moves to the Linux server, a new hardware key.

How to prepare the migration

Most problems do not arise during the migration run but before it: with an add-on nobody thought of, or with a query that feeds an interface at night. You do not have to do most of the technical inventory yourself. In our system analysis, our analysis tool automatically determines:

• version and patch level of SAP Business One and SQL Server
• database size and volume of attachments
• the registered add-ons
• all saved queries, formatted searches, views, stored procedures such as the Transaction Notification and Crystal Reports with custom SQL

The number of customizations drives the effort more than the database size, which is why the fixed price is based on it as well. What no tool can read from the database, you clarify with your team:

1. Record the interfaces that access the system from outside: Which programs read or write directly via SQL, which via the DI API or Service Layer, and who maintains them?
2. Ask the vendors of your add-ons about the HANA version and its price.
3. Delete old test companies and clean up master data: duplicate business partners, inactive items, orphaned accounts.
4. Decide on the operating model: your own certified server or hosting with a cloud partner.
5. Name key users for each area and write down their most important processes as test cases, from quotation to payment.
6. Set a weekend for the cutover, not during month-end or year-end closing and not during inventory counting.
7. Agree on who is available on the Monday after go-live and how errors are reported.

Process and duration

The ranges come from our projects; SAP itself does not state a duration for the migration run. Small systems with little custom SQL are switched over in 2 weeks, large ones with many customizations need up to 10 weeks.

What the migration costs

We migrate at a fixed price. It depends on two factors: the database size and the number of customizations, meaning queries, views and reports.

All prices net. The system analysis costs 1,500 EUR and is credited if you place the order. Not included are hardware or hosting, the HANA licence and the HANA versions of third-party add-ons. You can determine your package yourself in the fixed-price calculator for the HANA migration. What to look out for in fixed-price quotes is covered in our checklist for fixed-price quotes for the HANA migration.