What functions does SAP Solution Manager include?

SAP Solution Manager ensures that the system landscape is continuously monitored and its smooth operation is guaranteed. It provides all necessary content, tools, and services used in Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) to maintain system functionalities and optimize application usage.

What happens after maintenance ends in 2027?

The regular maintenance period for SAP Solution Manager ends in 2027. After this, there will be no regular updates or technical support available. SAP offers optional Extended Maintenance until the end of 2030. Therefore, replacing Solution Manager in a timely manner is strategically sensible for many companies.

Do I have to switch from SAP Solution Manager to Cloud ALM?

No, a switch is not mandatory. Many companies use third-party tools like SmartChange instead. SmartChange provides a modern, streamlined, and easily administrable solution for SAP Change Management.

What are alternatives to ChaRM?

An alternative to ChaRM is SmartChange. This solution covers all relevant requirements in SAP Change Management and offers significantly higher automation. For companies currently using ChaRM, SmartChange offers a seamless transition through an automated migration solution.

What is SAP Solution Manager used for?

SAP Solution Manager is mainly used within Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). It helps to monitor, control, and optimize SAP systems throughout their lifecycle by providing functions for management, troubleshooting, and test management. This ensures efficient use and long-term stability of SAP applications.

SAP Solution Manager 2025:
Overview, future & alternatives

Q: What is SAP Solution Manager?

Solution Manager is a central software for the administration of SAP enterprise applications . As a solution for application management, Solution Manager provides functional support to the IT infrastructure and helps optimize effective management of the software environment throughout the entire lifecycle of the applications.

For many organizations, SAP Solution Manager (SolMan) remains the primary solution for the administration of their SAP enterprise applications. Here you will find out what SolMan does, what functions it offers, but also what challenges come up when using Solution Manager. And most importantly, how you can prepare for the end of maintenance in 2027.

SAP will end maintenance and further development for Solution Manager in 2027.

What is SAP Solution Manager (SolMan)?

SAP Solution Manager, also known as SAP SolMan or just SolMan, is an intelligent platform for Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). ALM in turn comprises tools and processes that are necessary to manage the entire lifecycle of software: from the initial idea through development and operation to decommissioning.

Basically, SolMan is a collection of tools and services that help manage and monitor SAP environments. Solution Manager is already integrated as a toolset in all SAP systems and can generally be used by license customers at no additional cost.

Solution Manager is the central platform for optimizing and automating business processes that supports companies in their digital transformation. As a central tool, SolMan provides transparency in complex system environments and enables secure SAP system administration. As a reliable “single source of truth”, SAP Solution Manager makes a significant contribution to reducing costs and increasing efficiency by centralizing the applications of an SAP environment and thus minimizing administrative effort.

SAP SolMan offers the following advantages:

Deep system integration: SolMan is closely integrated with existing on-premises SAP systems - ideal for companies with a historically grown SAP landscape.
Extensive monitoring functions: Powerful system monitoring and root cause analysis for local systems - particularly relevant for sensitive or critical infrastructures.
Strong tool support: Including established tools such as ChaRM, Test Suite, IT Service Management - can be fully integrated into existing processes.
Proven & refined: Decades of development and use – especially proven in complex SAP environments.
Stable operation in familiar infrastructure: No dependency on the cloud infrastructure.
Central platform for ALM: Manage all relevant SAP systems and processes in one place - ideal for standardized application lifecycle management.
Free use for SAP licensees: SoLMan is available without additional license costs.
Supports ITIL processes: Integrates central ITIL areas such as incident, problem and change management for professional IT service management.

Solution Manager 7.2

The latest version of SAP Solution Manager is version 7.2, which can be used to implement, maintain, operate and take over all, even non-SAP, IT solutions of a company. Version 7.2 provides functions to extend and improve system landscape management, such as the following:

A new as well as intuitive user interface that supports web-based interfaces and management dashboards. It enables platform-independent operation of Solution Manager with role-based access to functional areas.
A revision of the solution documentation that fully integrates the system to SAP test management.
In the IT Service Management (ITSM) section, there is a completely updated interface.
The Maintenance Optimizer (MOPZ) was also completely revised in the process of the changeover and replaced by its successor, Maintenance Planner, in order to optimize change management.
SolMan 7.2 ensures increased productivity through the availability of IT tools and resources.
The latest version of SolMan supports the use of the SAP HANA database and can be used under SAP S/4HANA via SAP Cloud Platform: The integration of cloud-based and classic on-premise solutions thus enables the seamless management of hybrid software environments.

Structure and functions of SAP Solution Manager

Solution Manager is modular, so you can flexibly adapt it to the individual needs of your company. Thanks to its deep integration, Solution Manager has access to all technical information within the SAP system landscape. In this way, it not only supports stable system operation, but also enables agile, future-proof application lifecycle management. Below we list the most important modules and their functions:

Application Operations

Provides central functions for system monitoring, integration monitoring and user experience monitoring. Administrators can keep an eye on the status of all systems and react proactively to problems.

Business Process Operations

With the help of the Business Process Operations module, companies can always keep track of all aspects of the core business process, such as costs In addition, this allows you to ensure that all processes are in line with internal priorities.

Data Volume Management (DVM)

Data Volume Management checks and controls the data volume of the entire SAP system landscape.

Custom Code Management

Custom Code Management provides a central component for all functions to monitor and manage the entire development cycle of code generation.

Change and Request Management

SAP Solution Manager enables companies to customize changes in their SAP landscape using “Change and Request Management” (ChaRM). Alternatively, changes in the SAP landscape can easily be made with REALTECH SmartChange. SmartChange is a flexible tool that can be operated without much effort, is cost-effective and can be integrated into various systems.

IT Service Management (ITSM)

IT Service Management (ITSM for short) is the provision of IT as a service – for employees and customers. This includes all processes and activities related to the planning, compilation, delivery and support of IT services.

An excellent alternative is SmartITSM, which covers all functions from ticketing and IT operations to CMDB. SmartChange also offers the option of integrating SAP transports directly into your ITSM tool. This enables transparent end-to-end processes and saves you the detour via Solution Manager.

Landscape Management

Landscape Management describes processes in the IT landscape that run across multiple tools and enables efficient planning of all changes within an SAP system landscape that are necessary for smooth operations.

Optimize your landscape management with a CMDB. The CMDB collects scattered data in a central location, including data that is not usually stored in SAP. Information about the entire infrastructure (SAP and non-SAP) is made easily accessible.

Project Management

Solution Manager is integrated with the project management functions of SAP Portfolio and Project Management (SAP PPM). This allows you, for example, to easily manage project times, resources and the status of processes and developments .

Test Management

The “Test Management” module supports you in performing tests of new developments and checks their environments and conditions. The function covers all test phases, from planning and execution to the creation of test reports.

Cross Topics

Here you will find information on overarching topics in Solution Manager such as Content Activation, SAP Solution Manager Setup, SAP Engagement and Service Delivery, Analytics and more.

Diagnostics & Monitoring

SAP Solution Manager Diagnostics is part of SAP’s own “Standards for Solution Operations” and is the central analysis and monitoring tool for identifying problems and performing cross-system analyses in the SAP landscape.

SAP Solution Manager: Challenges

As powerful as SAP Solution Manager is, in practice its use often presents companies with specific challenges. These relate to the technical side as well as organization, know-how and strategic orientation.

Due to its extensive range of functions, SolMan is very complex and not so easy to manage. The introduction alone is time-consuming and cost-intensive. Furthermore, the operation requires high personnel costs and corresponding expertise, which is difficult to obtain in the current times.

Due to the proprietary architecture and the lack of standardized interfaces, complete integration is difficult and involves additional effort.

The most common pain points are:

High operating costs: Solution Manager is complex and requires time, internal resources and in-depth SAP expertise. Without experienced personnel, operations can quickly come to a standstill.
Maintenance intensity: Unlike modern cloud solutions, SolMan requires regular manual maintenance: system updates, security patches, technical upgrades. This ties up valuable resources and causes long-term costs, especially when IT capacities are limited.
Steep learning curve: Many of the tools included (e.g. change request management or solution documentation) have their own logic, functions and best practices. This often leads to teams being overwhelmed if they lack training or experience.
Slow innovation: While cloud-based tools such as SAP Cloud ALM are constantly receiving new functions, the further development of Solution Manager is increasingly stagnating - especially with a view to the end of maintenance in 2027. This means that new requirements can only be implemented to a limited extent in some cases.
Limited cloud capability: Solution Manager is primarily designed for on-premises scenarios. In hybrid or cloud-first architectures, it reaches its functional limits, for example when integrating cloud-native SAP applications or using automated updates.

SmartChange: Your simple alternative to SolMan ChaRM

SmartChange offers a simple, efficient and cost-effective solution for change management – faster, more secure and more user-friendly than SolMan ChaRM.

SmartChange

What is Solution Manager capable of today?

Despite the approaching end of maintenance, SolMan is still indispensable in many companies. It supports IT departments in the management, monitoring and optimization of complex SAP system landscapes, especially in on-premises environments. SolMan covers a wide range of business-critical functions: from solution documentation, test and change management to system monitoring, IT service management (ITSM) and business process monitoring.

Thanks to its deep integration into existing SAP landscapes and broad tool support, Solution Manager is still indispensable for many companies today. Companies with stable, non-cloud-based infrastructures in particular benefit from the tried-and-tested platform.

SAP Solution Manager End-of-Life in 2027

At the SAP ALM Summit 2022, SAP announced that the lifecycle of SAP Solution Manager will be aligned with that of SAP ECC. The platform will be maintained until the end of 2027, with a possible maintenance extension until the end of 2030. SAP also announces that there will be no further releases for the current 7.2 release of SolMan. The upcoming end of maintenance for SAP Solution Manager is a challenge for many SAP customers.

For many SAP customers, this is a strategic turning point: SAP is clearly shifting its focus to the cloud, or more precisely to SAP Cloud ALM as the successor solution. While SolMan focused on individual adaptability, Cloud ALM pursues a standardized cloud approach. Whether this change makes sense for your company depends heavily on your system landscape.

SolMan End of Life

Find out more about the end of Solution Manager maintenance and how you can prepare.

Learn more

What does this mean for IT managers?

The upcoming discontinuation makes strategic decisions necessary now. It is crucial to consider these questions:

What is your long-term ALM strategy?
Is SAP Cloud ALM enough for your requirements or do you need functionally stronger alternatives?
How can new tools be integrated into existing ITSM structures and processes?

What do SAP Basis admins need to consider now?

For SAP Basis, the elimination of Solution Manager means far-reaching changes in operations:

ChaRM, ITSM and system monitoring need to be revised
Historical data (changes, tickets) must be migrated (without official SAP support)
Tools such as SmartChange can help to make operations efficient and future-proof

Looking for a ChaRM alternative?

SAP teams that rely on ChaRM in particular face major challenges. Cloud ALM is not an adequate alternative for change management. So how can you manage your SAP transports without ChaRM? Discover third-party solutions that can be even better than SAP SolMan.

ChaRM alternative

Migrate ChaRM Change Documents

Finding an alternative is the first step. However, the transition itself is not trivial as well. Discover SmartChange, which is not only a reliable successor to ChaRM, but also an automated migration solution. This way you don’t have to worry about your important change documents.

ChaRM migration

How does SAP Solution Manager fit into your SAP strategy?

The SAP Solution Manager fulfills a strategic bracket function within your entire SAP system architecture. It not only networks technical tools and services, but also ensures that your SAP landscape is operated in a sustainable, compliant and future-proof manner – especially in times of technological transformation and growing IT complexity.

The end of mainstream maintenance for SAP Solution Manager, which has long played a central role in the management of your SAP systems, forces you to take a critical look at your current SAP strategy.

The proven methods and tools that were based on SolMan now need to be re-evaluated in the context of a changing SAP world. It’s all about how you can ensure the stability, security and efficiency of your SAP landscape in the future.

This phase of reorientation requires a comprehensive analysis of your current situation and answers to the following key questions:

What role has SolMan played in our SAP strategy to date and which functionalities are critical?
What alternative solutions and technologies are available to us (e.g. SAP Cloud ALM, third-party tools)?
How can we optimize and modernize our SAP processes in order to be future-proof?
What impact will the end of maintenance have on our IT budgets and resource planning?

The end of SAP Solution Manager maintenance is therefore a wake-up call that requires an urgent review and adjustment of your SAP strategy.

Change Management beyond ChaRM

The end of Solution Manager is coming: What’s next for your SAP Change Management?

Learn more

Solution Manager Alternatives

Will Cloud ALM replace Solution Manager?

The answer is yes and no. SAP Cloud ALM is not designed as a 1:1 replacement for SAP Solution Manager, but is aimed at other target groups with a cloud-centric approach. While SolMan primarily supported on-premise systems in complex SAP landscapes, SAP Cloud ALM focuses on standardization, cloud integration and modern usability.

Find out more about Cloud ALM

Criteria	SAP Solution Manager	SAP Cloud ALM
Infrastructure	On-Premise	Cloud
System Monitoring	Comprehensive	Lightweight
Change Management	ChaRM integrated	Not available
Usability	Complex & technical	Modern & intuitive
Future prospects	End of maintenance 2027	Long-term support

What third-party alternatives are possible?

Not every company needs the full scope of SAP Solution Manager. Many deliberately rely on specialized third-party tools that map individual ALM disciplines better, faster and more user-friendly.

REALTECH also offers solutions that replace individual Solution Manager features. Our product portfolio includes lean and easy-to-administer software for change management (SmartChange), as well as the ITSM solution SmartITSM, which serves all your IT service management needs, including SAP-Integration.

REALTECH SmartChange

SAP change management made easy with SmartChange: Automated deployments, integrated quality assurance and simple system retrofits for effortless SAP transport management.

SmartChange

Conclusion: Is SAP Solution Manager still state of the art?

With the announced end of maintenance in 2027, SAP Solution Manager is increasingly losing its strategic relevance. New innovations will primarily flow into SAP Cloud ALM, which is positioned as a modern, cloud-based alternative. Companies should now examine whether a switch makes sense – depending on their infrastructure, processes and cloud strategy.

Third-party solutions also offer practical alternatives, especially for companies that are not aiming for a complete cloud migration. One thing is clear: acting early ensures technological stability and long-term planning security.

Understanding the essentials

Definition: SAP Solution Manager is the central tool for application lifecycle management (ALM) in classic SAP system landscapes. It integrates functions such as change management (ChaRM), ITSM, system monitoring, test management and much more.
End of maintenance: SAP has set the end of maintenance for SolMan at 2027 (optionally until 2030). At the same time, the focus is shifting towards SAP Cloud ALM, a new, cloud-based platform with a standardized range of functions.
For companies, this means:

Strong pressure for action: The time remaining until the end of maintenance requires strategic decisions.
Cloud is not suitable for everyone: SAP Cloud ALM does not replace SolMan 1:1 and functions such as ChaRM are missing.
Complex migration: Historical data and processes need to be rethought or migrated.

What are the options?

SAP Cloud ALM: Cloud solution with a focus on standardized scenarios.
Third-party tools such as SmartChange: solutions that replace individual modules such as Change Management or ITSM. SmartChange also supports you with the migration of historical SolMan data.

Helpful advice: Evaluate your current use of Solution Manager and define your requirements. Not every company needs all SolMan functions. Many deliberately opt for third-party tools that support individual ALM disciplines more efficiently.

Key topics:

FAQs: SAP Solution Manager

Solution Manager is a central software for the administration of SAP enterprise applications. As an application management solution, SolMan provides functional support to the IT infrastructure and helps optimize the effective management of the software environment throughout the application lifecycle.

SAP Solution Manager is primarily used as part of Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). It helps to monitor, control and optimize SAP systems throughout their entire lifecycle by providing functions for administration, troubleshooting and test management. This ensures the efficient use and long-term stability of SAP applications.

SAP Solution Manager ensures that the system landscape is continuously monitored and its smooth functioning is guaranteed. It provides all the necessary content, tools and services that are used within the framework of Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) to maintain system functionalities and the optimal use of applications.

The regular maintenance period for SAP Solution Manager ends in 2027, after which there will be no more regular updates or technical support. SAP does offer optional extended maintenance until the end of 2030. For many companies, it therefore makes strategic sense to replace Solution Manager in good time.

SmartChange is an alternative to ChaRM. The solution covers all relevant requirements in SAP change management and offers a significantly higher degree of automation. For companies currently using ChaRM, SmartChange offers a seamless changeover thanks to an automated migration solution.

No, a change is not mandatory. Many companies rely on third-party tools such as SmartChange instead. SmartChange offers a modern, lean and easy-to-administer solution for SAP change management.