Customer Data Center Deployment of SAP Cloud ERP on The Rise

SAPInsiders are increasingly turning to the cloud to deploy the latest editions of SAP ERP, according to our recent Deployment Approaches to SAP S/4HANA 2025 report , including SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition. This shift to the cloud includes new customers, those transitioning from legacy SAP ERPs, as well as early adopters of SAP S/4HANA from 2015 to 2022 editions migrating to the cloud. This shift to the cloud is primarily driven by the upcoming end of mainstream maintenance for the earliest SAP S/4HANA versions.

For those organizations using SAP Cloud ERP, 61% are using SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition. Another quarter of those we surveyed are using SAP S/4HANA Cloud, private edition, customer data center option. Just 16% are deploying SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition—a software-as-a-service option. These deployment approaches show that customers are increasingly preferring to keep their SAP ERP Cloud deployments within their own data centers, rather than opting for a SaaS scenario.

Deploying with a customer data center option requires data center services from providers such as Dell, HPE, or Lenovo, as well as an infrastructure layer from companies like Intel. This enables customers to achieve benefits from SAP S/4HANA Cloud, including continued mainstream maintenance and access to SAP’s embedded AI feature for companies that may not have access to great network infrastructure or in areas where they are regulated and can’t deploy in the public cloud.

SAP’s Ecosystem Unites for Customer Data Center Deployment

To support SAP customers seeking to deploy SAP S/4HANA Cloud in their own data centers, SAP has partnered with Intel, Dell, HPE, and Lenovo. This arrangement features the SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition platform-as-a-service built on Intel infrastructure-as-a-service on externally managed hardware running in the customer’s data center from Dell, HPE, or Lenovo. This bundling is called SAP Cloud ERP Private Edition – Customer Data Center option.

From a contract perspective, this deployment option is similar to SAP Cloud ERP Private Edition deployed on hyperscalers in terms of software, service, and credit-backed service level agreement. The key difference is that customers are allowed to deploy the infrastructure at their chosen location, such as their existing data centers or other sites.
With more SAPinsiders choosing to deploy SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition in their own datacenters than those opting for SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition, it’s encouraging to see that SAP and its partners have come together to create SAP Cloud ERP Private Edition – Customer Data Center Option as an SAP-backed bundle for purchasing and implementing the latest SAP ERP offerings.

What This Means for SAPInsiders

Evaluate which SAP S/4HANA Cloud option is best for your organization. If your company is like most SAP Cloud ERP customers, a private cloud deployment is your preference. Most have chosen to go with the hyperscalers, however many are opting for the opportunity to utilize their own datacenters to as the underpinning infrastructure to SAP Cloud ERP.

SAP Cloud ERP Private and SAP Cloud ERP Public are new names for bundled deployment options that include SAP S/4HANA Cloud. These were previously referred to as RISE with SAP and GROW with SAP, respectively. Name changes are not uncommon among SAP or other enterprise software vendors, but it’s essential to note that the product itself and the ways in which it can be hosted have not undergone drastic changes.

Consider the SAP ERP Cloud deployment options for continued innovation. SAP is going to be committing most of its ERP innovation efforts into its cloud ERP offerings vs. on-premise ERP solutions. If your company is looking for embedded emerging technologies such as AI in their SAP ERP system, you should be examining which cloud deployment option is best.

Learn more about SAP Cloud ERP – Customer Data Center option here.