What is our primary use case?
It's a technical product. We primarily use the solution for our infrastructure.
It's a mid ware. We use it due to the fact that we need to deal with messages between our system and external systems. We need to construct communication channels, interface with them to define how much time or how many times we need to complete each interaction between the system. We also need it for monitoring issues, and we use Solution Manager to monitoring interfaces.
What is most valuable?
The solution is working well. We don't have any operational problems with it at all.
We don't have to load or deploy technologies from several vendors. It's a mid ware that provides us all that we need in a technical view. For example, if we need to use a Java connector, it provides this for us. It's a specific and specialized product.
The most valuable feature for us is the fact that we can deploy interfaces in a secure way. It helps us reduce vulnerabilities on the internet due to the fact that it allows for the best interface in a dedicated link between companies.
The solution offers very good documentation and manuals to assist with understanding the solution.
What needs improvement?
We centralize all interfaces that we need to have. However, we spend too much money and time to construct each interface. This is required due to the fact that the systems are outdated. We need to be working with new interfaces that are required in the SAP Process Orchestration or use an older interface that is not by SAP PO.
It can be dangerous if you don't have enough security, as you can be exposed to a virus attack.
It's very difficult to find errors in a simple way. There isn't a simple way to troubleshoot. When we working with Java technology, Java programming, we need to leverage tracing tools in order to find out where the problem is. It's difficult when errors occur. Troubleshooting is very hard.
For how long have I used the solution?
Our organization has been using SAP for 15 years. We've been using this particular solution for at least ten years at this point.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the solution is good. It's a good tool overall. There aren't bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. We find it to be reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
All products from SAP have manuals and guides to installing in several ways. The client can choose at what level they want to deploy the product. They can deploy a simple installation without high availability or scalability.
In our case, our company needed the orchestration in high availability. It was a clustered installation. In terms of scalability, we needed to install additional application servers in the same installation. It's a simple way to have a stronger environment. If you need to grow processing you can just add application servers to the same position. Therefore, I'd say it's pretty easy to achieve scalability if you need to.
While we have a few IT people using the solution closely, in general, almost everyone is on it. It just works in the background, and they may not know it's there, and yet it is.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is excellent. SAP provides a portal online to allow users to post any kind of problems they need to solve. It's a good service and it doesn't cost anything. Overall, I would say we've been satisfied with the level of assistance provided.
How was the initial setup?
While it does vary from company to company, the initial setup and configuration process is largely straightforward. Some companies may face more complexity.
In our case, it took us about two to four weeks to deploy the solution.
What other advice do I have?
We are just an end-user and customer. We don't have a business relationship with SAP.
We had two PI or PO installations in my company. Both installations need to be updated or upgraded.
We have several SAP installations in our environment, and I can say that all of them need to be updated. My company takes a long time to make decisions in terms of investing in updating systems. The next investment will need, dozens of millions of dollars in updates. That's not in the local currency, however. We've been postponing updating since I've worked here. Over the next two years, we will need to start a project to renovate everything. We are thinking of installing SAP S/4HANA as all of the servers in our company need to be refreshed anyway.
I'd advise other organizations to not contract outsourcing to make strategies for the company. You need to have your own specialist on your team that can construct or design the strategies for the interface.
I would rate the solution at an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
*Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.