Today, as SAP S/4 HANA adoption grows quickly, many businesses struggle to choose the best SAP EWM solution for their operations. This blog provides functional comparisons of SAP S/4 HANA EWM deployment alternatives, assisting you in selecting the best EWM option for your business based on factors like enterprise structure, present system landscape, future automation strategy, cost, and so on.
This blog’s goal is to provide customers, consultants, and partners with a clear understanding of the SAP S/4 HANA EWM deployment alternatives. Additionally, this article provides a few significant points that must be taken into account while selecting the EWM deployment choice. The entirety of the information is based on SAP S/4 HANA EWM’s most recent releases.
Deployment Options:
- EWM can be used in two different deployment modes of SAP S/4HANA systems:
- Embedded EWM on SAP S/4HANA
- Decentralized EWM on SAP S/4 HANA
1. Embedded EWM on SAP S/4 HANA:
Which integrates only with the local ERP storage locations, is available in two license versions:
- Basic EWM: SAP offers the Basic EWM application component with default S/4 Hana license.
- Advance EWM: To avail the advance functionalities additional licensing required.
Benefits with SAP S/4 HANA Embedded EWM
- Embedded EWM reduced data replication as Business Partner data, Material Master Data, Batch Master Data does not need to be replicated. It can be directly access from S/4 HANA ERP.
- Core Interface (CIF)is not required to be used anymore.
- Transnational data like Purchase Order data or production order data can be read directly.
- Elimination of the use of additional documents like outbound delivery.
- SAP S/4 Hana ERP and SAP EWM can run on same landscape.
- It has simplified system structure compared to decentralized option.
Embedded S/4 HANA EWM reduce the total cost as the license of basic EWM functionality is included in the SAP S/4HANA ERP license.
Data Transfer between SAP S/4 HANA & Embedded EWM

Limitations with SAP S/4HANA Embedded EWM.
- With this option, it is not possible to integrate with storage locations in other SAP ERP systems.
- The solution is not very adaptable with multiple warehouses or with large MFS system traffic.
- It cannot keep operational in case of ERP system down.
2. Decentralized EWM on SAP S/4 HANA:
This option for deployment places SAP EWM on a different server platform and connects it to the SAP S/4 HANA system via RFCs and CIF. Released for connectivity with the SAP S/4HANA and SAP ERP systems is decentralized EWM on SAP S/4HANA. (with ERP role).
Decentralized EWM, which has a single license version, can be integrated with other clients’ or systems’ ERP storage locations but not with local ERP storage locations.
Since the decentralized EWM system runs on a distinct instance, it can manage a higher volume of transactions without affecting the performance of other operations.
This deployment option is quite capable of managing large warehouses, high-performing material flow systems, and other automation.
Benefits with SAP S/4 HANA Decentralized EWM.
- It has ability to handle big size volume of transactions.
- It can keep operational even if the ERP system is down.
- It has ability to handle the multiple warehouses on same landscape.
- It has better ability to support automatic warehouses (Integration with MFS, ASRS)
- Both systems can be upgraded without impacting each other.
- It can connect to multiple ERP systems.
Data Transfer between SAP ERP & Decentralized EWM

Decentralized EWM on a S/4 HANA server is the recommended best practice option for complex warehousing operations, according to SAP.
Simple EWM solutions will be helpful in usage if the warehouse structure is straightforward and automation is not anticipated in the future.
However, when making a decision, it is crucial to take into account all of the points listed.
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Well informative
Need some more information
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