Understanding SAPs S/4HANA Maintenance Phases and Your Options Beyond 2025

SAP’s support strategy for ECC and its new ERP transition options have received significant attention, but another critical development is the end of extended maintenance for S/4HANA on-premise releases 1709, 1809, and 1909 on December 31, 2025. As this deadline approaches, it is crucial for SAP customers to understand their options and the financial and technical implications of these changes.

SAP’s Maintenance Strategy: What You Need to Know

While the end of extended maintenance is a key milestone, it does not mean the end of support. SAP’s maintenance strategy consists of four phases:

1. Mainstream Maintenance: Available for five years for releases prior to 2023 and seven years for releases starting in 2023. This phase includes Feature Package Stacks (FPS) with new functionality, enhancements, patches, and bug fixes, followed by Support Package Stacks (SPS) with bug fixes, legal updates, and stability improvements.

2. Extended Maintenance: Available for certain releases at a premium cost of 2% to 4% of maintenance fees. Extended maintenance was offered for S/4HANA releases 1709, 1809, and 1909 but is not available for all SAP products.

3. Customer-Specific Maintenance (CSM): If extended maintenance is not offered or selected, customers are automatically transitioned into CSM. CSM does not include new support packages, legal updates, or technology updates and may require customers to pay for consulting services for unresolved issues.

4. Priority-One Support: An optional support phase available after mainstream maintenance ends for certain SAP BusinessObjects and SAP Predictive Analytics solutions.

Key ERP Products Facing Maintenance Milestones

In addition to S/4HANA, other ERP products will see major changes in maintenance timelines:

• Global Trade Services (GTS) Version 11.0:Mainstream maintenance ends December 31, 2025with no extended maintenance available. Customers must upgrade to GTS E4H or transition into CSM.

• SAP Commerce (Hybris) Version 2205: The last on-premise version of SAP Commerce, reaching end of mainstream maintenance on July 31, 2026. No further on-premise releases are planned, and customers must transition to SAP Commerce Cloud or a third-party alternative.

• SAP BusinessObjects (BOBJ) 4.3: Mainstream maintenance extended to December 31, 2026 to allow customers to upgrade to SAP BusinessObjects BI 2025, available in March 2025.

How SAP Uses These Deadlines to Push RISE Adoption

SAP will leverage these deadlines to encourage cloud migration, positioning RISE with SAP as the preferred path forward. This strategy includes:

• Pushing cloud adoption by emphasizing risks of remaining on legacy releases.

• Increasing maintenance fees for on-premise customers.

• Limiting negotiation flexibility for customers staying on legacy systems.

Your Options After S/4HANA Mainstream or Extended Maintenance Ends

If you are using S/4HANA 1709, 1809, or 1909, you need to evaluate your options carefully:

1. Upgrade to a Newer On-Premise S/4HANA Release

SAP offers mainstream maintenance for S/4HANA 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023, but most customers will upgrade to S/4HANA 2023, which has mainstream maintenance through December 2030. The 2025 release will likely become available in late 2025, providing another upgrade option.

2. Roll Over to Customer-Specific Maintenance (CSM)

CSM has no additional fees, but its limited support means no security or legal updates, potentially leading to higher costs for third-party consulting.

3. Move to RISE with SAP

While SAP’s sales teams aggressively promote RISE, it comes with significant business, operational, and technical challenges. Moving to RISE requires six to twelve months of planning and negotiation, so early preparation is essential. SAP’s Safekeeper Service helps customers transition by providing support for two additional years.

4. Implement a Partial RISE Strategy

Some customers limit RISE adoption to specific regions or business units, providing a test environment without full commitment. This approach allows businesses to negotiate Safekeeper services for part of their legacy footprint.

5. Use a Third-Party Support Provider

Companies offer support at up to 50% lower costs. This is best suited for companies with stable SAP environments that require only compliance and regulatory updates or those planning to move away from SAP entirely.

Final Thoughts

With SAP’s extended maintenance for S/4HANA 1709, 1809, and 1909 ending on December 31, 2025, customers must evaluate their upgrade, support, and cloud migration strategies. SAP is using this deadline to push RISE adoption, but alternatives such as on-premise upgrades, CSM, third-party support, or hybrid strategies should be carefully considered.

To avoid last-minute decisions, unexpected costs, and potential disruptions, start planning your SAP go-forward strategy today.