Hybrid SAP Disaster Recovery: Strategies for Modern Business Resilience

SAP systems are critical to business operations, and ensuring their availability is a top priority. Traditional disaster recovery approaches focused on static, on-premise systems. However, the shift to hybrid environments—combining cloud and on-premise—has transformed the landscape. This article discusses how DR strategies must adapt in hybrid SAP environments and presents field-tested practices.

Core Principles of Disaster Recovery in Hybrid SAP Landscapes

Effective DR planning in hybrid SAP environments is based on the following principles:

• Business-centric recovery objectives.
• Prioritization of critical systems.
• Data replication strategies.
• Automation and orchestration across platforms.

Key Challenges

Hybrid environments introduce several DR challenges including:

• Ensuring data consistency across platforms.
• Orchestrating recovery steps across cloud and on-prem systems.
• Meeting compliance and data residency requirements.
• Balancing cost with readiness.

Best Practices from 17 Years of Experience

Based on extensive experience, the following practices are recommended:

1. Create detailed, cross-platform DR runbooks.
2. Conduct realistic and regular DR drills.
3. Use infrastructure as code (IaC) for environment replication.
4. Implement integrated monitoring and alerting.
5. Foster cross-functional collaboration during DR planning.

Case Insight: Hybrid DR Strategy for a Global Enterprise

A global enterprise implemented a hybrid DR solution with primary SAP systems on-premise and DR site using HANA system replication, providing orchestration and bi-annual DR exercises to ensure business continuity. The final setup achieved RTO of 30 minutes and RPO under five minutes.

Data Visualization: Impact of Downtime

Below is a graph showing estimated business losses based on SAP system downtime duration:

Evolution of SAP Disaster Recovery Over Two Decades

Over the last 20 years, disaster recovery for SAP has transitioned from static backup systems and tape recovery to dynamic, automated cloud-first strategies. This evolution was driven by the need for higher availability, real-time analytics, and business continuity. Earlier, DR was a niche IT concern. Today, it is a board-level priority due to the critical nature of SAP systems in end-to-end business operations.

Comparing DR Tools and Platforms

Organizations now have a wide choice of tools for DR planning and execution. Various solutions offer cross-platform replication and orchestration. Each tool brings unique benefits and limitations—choosing the right one depends on workload type, cost constraints, integration complexity, and compliance requirements.

Cost Optimization Strategies for Hybrid DR

Balancing cost with resilience is a key goal. Not all workloads need hot standby infrastructure. Many businesses adopt a tiered DR approach, where mission-critical systems are prioritized for instant recovery while less critical systems follow warm or cold standby models. Cloud-native cost-control features such as autoscaling, spot instances, and burstable capacity help manage DR infrastructure efficiently.

Importance of Governance and Audit Readiness

Governance is an often-overlooked aspect of DR. Enterprises must document DR strategies, perform regular audits, and comply with industry regulations such as ISO 27001, SOX, or GDPR. An effective governance framework ensures recovery processes are not only technically sound but also legally defensible. Documentation, test evidence, and version-controlled runbooks are key to audit readiness.

Training and Skill Development for SAP Basis Teams

With hybrid environments becoming the norm, SAP Basis professionals must upskill continuously. DR planning now includes knowledge of cloud infrastructure, scripting, container orchestration, and API-driven automation. Investing in regular training, certification, and hands-on labs equips teams to manage hybrid disasters confidently and proactively.

Conclusion

Disaster recovery in hybrid SAP environments is a strategic priority. Organizations must move beyond legacy approaches and adopt modern, cloud-integrated DR strategies. With proper planning, automation, and testing, businesses can ensure resilience and continuity regardless of disruptions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Puneet Khatri

Puneet Khatri is a seasoned SAP technology leader with more than 17 years of experience in architecting, managing, and securing complex enterprise SAP landscapes. Currently serving as a head of service, he specializes in disaster recovery planning, high availability, and hybrid cloud strategies for mission-critical systems. Khatri has led global SAP resilience programs across industries, with a focus on AWS and Azure-based architectures. He is passionate about aligning IT resilience with business continuity and has authored multiple thought leadership pieces on AI, cloud transformation, and predictive SAP operations. Khatri actively contributes to the SAP and business continuity communities and is committed to enabling enterprises to build future-proof, intelligent infrastructure.