SAP ABAP Development Services
ABAP is not going anywhere — but the way it should be written has changed completely. Code pushdown to HANA, CDS views, the RESTful Application Programming Model and ABAP Cloud have replaced the patterns most existing custom code still uses.
CssInfotech writes modern ABAP, remediates legacy custom code for S/4HANA, and builds RAP-based services that power Fiori applications. We also do the unglamorous work: analysing twenty years of Z-programs and telling you honestly what to keep, fix or delete.
Modern ABAP vs the ABAP in Most Systems Today
If your custom code was written before 2015, it almost certainly follows patterns that actively hurt performance on HANA and block a clean S/4HANA conversion.
The code pushdown principle
Classic ABAP selects data into internal tables and then loops over it in the application server. On HANA that is backwards — the database can aggregate, join and filter far faster than the application layer. Modern ABAP pushes that work down into CDS views, AMDP methods and expressive Open SQL, and the difference on large datasets is frequently an order of magnitude.
RAP replaced the old service-building patterns
The ABAP RESTful Application Programming Model is now the standard way to build OData services and transactional applications in ABAP. It gives you a declarative behaviour definition, draft handling, authorisation checks and OData exposure with far less boilerplate than the older Gateway and BOPF approaches.
ABAP Cloud is the constraint that saves you later
ABAP Cloud restricts you to released APIs — no direct reads of SAP tables, no unreleased function modules. That feels limiting at first, and it is exactly what makes code upgrade-stable. We apply ABAP Cloud rules to new development wherever the platform allows it, even in on-premise systems.
Our SAP ABAP Development Services
New development, modernisation of what exists, and the analysis work that tells you which is needed where.
Custom ABAP Development
New objects written to current standards, not 2005 habits.
- Reports, interfaces, conversions, enhancements and forms
- ABAP Objects with clean, testable class design
- Modern Open SQL, expressions and internal table operations
- ABAP Unit test coverage for business logic
ABAP on HANA Optimisation
Make existing programs fast instead of throwing hardware at them.
- SQL Monitor and runtime analysis to find genuine hotspots
- Code pushdown into CDS views and AMDP methods
- Removal of nested loops and SELECT-inside-LOOP patterns
- Measured before-and-after runtime evidence
RAP Application Development
Transactional apps and OData services the way SAP builds them now.
- CDS data models, projection views and metadata extensions
- Behaviour definitions and implementations, managed or unmanaged
- Draft handling, validations, determinations and actions
- Service binding for OData V2 and V4, ready for Fiori elements
Custom Code Analysis
Know what your custom code actually costs before a conversion.
- ABAP Test Cockpit remote analysis against S/4HANA rules
- Usage data to identify dead code that can simply be deleted
- Simplification item impact per custom object
- Prioritised remediation backlog with effort estimates
Code Remediation for S/4HANA
The largest single workstream in most conversions.
- Fixes for data model changes: MATNR length, Business Partner, ACDOCA
- Replacement of obsolete function modules and removed transactions
- SPDD and SPAU adjustment during conversion
- Regression testing to prove behaviour is unchanged
Code Quality & Standards
Consistency is what makes a codebase maintainable by anyone.
- ATC check variants and quality gates in the transport path
- abapGit and Git-based version control adoption
- Naming conventions, documentation and review checklists
- Developer coaching so standards outlast our engagement
Key Features of the ABAP We Write
These are the standards we hold ourselves to. You are welcome to hold us to them too.
- Pushdown by default — aggregation happens in the database, not in a loop
- Unit tested — ABAP Unit coverage on business logic, not just a smoke test
- ATC clean — passes your check variant before the transport is released
- Released APIs only — no direct reads of SAP tables in new code
- Objects, not includes — classes and interfaces instead of monolithic reports
- Documented — purpose, contract and assumptions written down
- Version controlled — abapGit with reviewable commit history
- Performance measured — runtime evidence, not "it feels faster"
How We Approach an ABAP Engagement
Especially for remediation work, the analysis phase is where the money is saved. Deleting unused code is always cheaper than fixing it.
- Inventory & usage analysisWe list every custom object and cross-reference it against actual execution data. On a typical system, a substantial share of custom code has not run in years.
- Classify: delete, keep, fix, rebuildEach surviving object gets a disposition with an effort estimate, so you can make scope decisions with real numbers.
- Design & standards agreementNaming, package structure, ATC check variant, test expectations and review process agreed before development starts.
- Develop & unit testWork delivered in sprints with ABAP Unit tests, peer review and ATC checks as release gates.
- Functional & regression testBusiness users validate behaviour; for remediation we prove output is identical to before, which is the whole point.
- Transport & knowledge transferControlled transport through your landscape, plus documentation and walkthroughs for your own ABAP team.
ABAP Technologies & Tools
We work comfortably across the old and the new, which matters because most systems contain both.
Modern ABAP
- ABAP RAP
- Core Data Services (CDS)
- AMDP
- ABAP Cloud
- ABAP Objects
- Open SQL (modern syntax)
- ABAP Unit
- Service Binding
- Behaviour Definitions
- Metadata Extensions
Classic ABAP
- Reports & ALV
- BAPIs & RFC
- IDoc & ALE
- BAdIs & user exits
- Enhancement Framework
- SmartForms
- Adobe Forms
- SAPscript
- BDC & LSMW
- Module Pool
- Workflow
Tooling
- ABAP Development Tools (Eclipse)
- SE80
- ABAP Test Cockpit
- Code Inspector
- SQL Monitor (SQLM)
- SAT / ST05
- abapGit
- Custom Code Migration app
- SAP Readiness Check
- Solution Manager ChaRM
Where Our ABAP Work Typically Lands
The functional areas where custom ABAP is most concentrated, and where we spend most of our time.
Why Choose CssInfotech for ABAP Development
There is no shortage of ABAP resources on the market. There is a real shortage of ABAP engineers who write code that is fast, tested and upgrade-safe.
We delete code
Our first recommendation on a remediation project is usually to remove what is unused. That reduces your bill and your future upgrade cost, and very few partners lead with it.
HANA-native thinking
We do not just make old code compile on HANA — we restructure it to push work into the database, with measured before-and-after runtimes to prove the gain.
RAP experience, not RAP theory
We build production RAP applications, including the awkward parts: unmanaged scenarios over legacy logic, draft handling and complex authorisation.
Conversion-aware
Because we also do S/4HANA conversions, our new code avoids the patterns that cause conversion pain. We have seen where it hurts.
Quality gates, not promises
ATC check variants in the transport path and ABAP Unit coverage mean quality is enforced by the system rather than by good intentions.
Team augmentation available
Fixed-scope projects, or ABAP developers embedded in your team under your process. Both models work; we are happy either way.
SAP ABAP Development FAQs
Is ABAP still relevant, or should everything move to BTP?
ABAP is absolutely still relevant — SAP has invested heavily in it with RAP, CDS and ABAP Cloud, and the ABAP environment on BTP exists precisely so ABAP skills remain valuable in the cloud. The real question is not ABAP versus BTP but where the code should live. Logic that belongs to core ERP processes often stays in ABAP; new user-facing applications frequently belong on BTP.
How much custom code will we need to fix for S/4HANA?
It varies enormously, and guessing is a mistake. Run the SAP Readiness Check and an ABAP Test Cockpit remote analysis and you get real numbers. What is consistent is that a large share of custom objects turn out to be unused, so the remediation scope is usually much smaller than the raw object count suggests.
What is the difference between RAP and the older BOPF approach?
RAP is the current, strategic model and is what SAP builds its own applications with. It is declarative — you define behaviour in a behaviour definition rather than implementing framework interfaces — and it has built-in draft handling and OData exposure. BOPF still runs, but new development should use RAP.
Can you improve performance without rewriting our programs?
Often, yes. Many long runtimes come from a handful of specific statements — a SELECT inside a LOOP, a missing index, an unbounded internal table read. We use SQL Monitor and runtime analysis to find the actual hotspots, and targeted fixes frequently deliver most of the available gain without restructuring the program.
Do you follow our development standards or your own?
Yours, if you have them. If you do not, we bring a documented standard covering naming, package structure, ATC check variants, unit test expectations and review process, and we will set it up as a starting point that your team owns afterwards.
Can you provide ABAP developers to work in our team?
Yes. We provide ABAP developers on a dedicated or part-time basis, working in your sprints, your transport landscape and your tooling. We keep a technical lead involved for code review, because staff augmentation without review is how quality quietly degrades.
Related SAP Services
ABAP work is usually part of a bigger picture. These are the adjacent services.
Get an Honest Assessment of Your Custom ABAP Code
We will run a custom code analysis and tell you what can be deleted, what needs fixing before S/4HANA, and what it will realistically cost. Most clients are surprised how much can simply go.