# SAP ECC 6.0 EHP8 Upgrade Readiness Checklist > Source: https://netray.co/tools/sap-ecc-ehp8-upgrade-readiness-checklist > Publisher: Netray (netray.co), AI and integration engineering for ERP and manufacturing systems. > Section: Free Tools ## Short answer A step-by-step readiness checklist for upgrading SAP ECC 6.0 from EHP4 to EHP7 to EHP8 on NetWeaver 7.50 with SUM. ## Category sap ## Erp SAP ECC 6.0 ## Audience - SAP Basis administrator - ABAP developer - Upgrade project manager ## Tool **Kind:** checklist **Groups:** #### Planning **Items:** Record current SAP_APPL, SAP_BASIS and EA-* component levels from System > Status > Component information **Text:** Calculate the EHP8 target stack and SPS in Maintenance Planner and download the stack XML **Critical:** true **Text:** Check every add-on (SAINT installed list) for EHP8 / NetWeaver 7.50 compatibility in the PAM and vendor notes; plan add-on upgrades in the same SUM run **Critical:** true **Text:** Confirm database and operating system versions are released for NetWeaver 7.50 in the Product Availability Matrix **Critical:** true **Text:** Confirm the system is Unicode (System > Status shows Unicode System: Yes); NetWeaver 7.50 does not support non-Unicode **Critical:** true **Text:** If the system is ABAP + Java dual-stack, split it with Software Provisioning Manager before the upgrade **Critical:** true Check the kernel release SUM will install for 7.50 and the matching SAP kernel note for your OS and database Decide which business functions (SFW5) will be activated after the upgrade; activation is a separate decision and cannot be reversed for most Agree the downtime window and test a full upgrade on a production copy first #### Pre-upgrade checks **Items:** **Text:** Download the latest SUM 2.0 (the SUM line for ABAP target releases 7.50 and higher) and read its central note and the SUM guide for your database **Critical:** true Run the SUM prerequisite and Checks phases and resolve every error before booking downtime Update SPAM/SAINT to the latest version in the source system Check free space in the database, the SUM directory and the transport directory against SUM's check results **Text:** Clear or plan for open update records in SM13 and stuck queues in SMQ1/SMQ2 **Critical:** true **Text:** Empty logistics extraction queues (LBWQ) and BW delta queues (RSA7) if the system feeds BW **Critical:** true Release or complete open transports and agree a development freeze date List modifications and enhancements so SPDD and SPAU effort can be estimated from the test run Archive or delete data you do not need to shorten table conversions **Text:** Take and test a full backup immediately before downtime **Critical:** true #### Execution with SUM **Items:** Follow the SUM roadmap: Extraction, Configuration, Checks, Preprocessing, Execution, Postprocessing Choose the SUM configuration mode (single system, standard or advanced) consciously and record the choice, since it decides how much runs on the shadow instance during uptime **Text:** Adjust dictionary modifications in SPDD when SUM stops in phase ACT_UPG; collect them in a transport for reuse **Critical:** true Lock users and stop batch scheduling (BTCTRNS1) before the downtime phase begins Monitor the shadow instance and long-running phases; keep the SUM log directory for analysis #### Post-upgrade **Items:** **Text:** Adjust repository modifications in SPAU and enhancements in SPAU_ENH; collect in transports for QAS and PRD **Critical:** true Review SAP Notes in SPAU: reset notes that are now obsolete and reapply the ones still needed via SNOTE Run SGEN to regenerate ABAP loads before users return Release batch scheduling again (BTCTRNS2) and check critical jobs in SM37 Test RFC destinations in SM59, IDoc ports and partner profiles, and third-party interfaces Apply kernel patch level and profile parameter changes recommended by the upgrade notes #### Test and cutover **Items:** **Text:** Run the regression test pack for the core order-to-cash, procure-to-pay and plan-to-produce processes **Critical:** true Compare response times with a pre-upgrade ST03N baseline for the top transactions Check ST22 and SM21 daily during hypercare **Text:** Document the rollback decision point and restore procedure before go-live **Critical:** true Repeat the same SUM stack XML and adjustment transports in QAS and PRD so all systems match **Scoring Note:** Critical items are the ones that most often stop a SUM run or force a rollback. Clear all of them on the production-copy rehearsal first. ## Content **Intro:** This checklist walks an SAP ECC 6.0 system from EHP4 to EHP7 to EHP8 on SAP NetWeaver 7.50 with the Software Update Manager. It is ordered the way a Basis team actually works: plan the stack, prove the prerequisites, run SUM, adjust, test and cut over. **Sections:** #### Why EHP8 and what it changes **Body:** EHP8 is the last enhancement package for SAP ERP 6.0, and it moves the technical stack to SAP NetWeaver 7.50. SAP ended mainstream maintenance for EHP0 to EHP5 at the end of 2025, while EHP6 to EHP8 keep mainstream maintenance to the end of 2027 with optional extended maintenance after that. Staying supported on ECC therefore means EHP6 or higher, and most teams go straight to EHP8. An EHP upgrade installs new software versions but does not activate new business functions by itself; activation in SFW5 is a separate, mostly irreversible decision. The upgrade is also the moment to confirm Unicode and single-stack status, because NetWeaver 7.50 requires both. #### How to use the checklist **Body:** Work through it twice: once on a sandbox or production copy, where you record real runtimes and SPDD/SPAU effort, and again for production using the transports and stack XML from the first runs. Tick items as you complete them and export the list to Excel for the project log. The critical items are the ones that most often stop SUM or cause a rollback: an unsupported add-on, a non-Unicode or dual-stack system, open update records or extraction queues, missing SPDD adjustments and an untested backup. **Bullets:** - Phases of an SAP upgrade in SUM: Extraction, Configuration, Checks, Preprocessing, Execution, Postprocessing - SPDD happens before the switch so dictionary objects are not lost; SPAU follows after - Add-ons are upgraded in the same SUM run using the stack XML and vendor packages #### Add-on upgrade steps **Body:** List installed add-ons in SAINT or in System > Status. For each one, find the compatible release for NetWeaver 7.50 in the PAM or the vendor's note, and download the upgrade or exchange package. Maintenance Planner includes SAP add-ons in the stack calculation; third-party add-ons need the vendor's packages placed where SUM asks for them during Configuration. If an add-on has no compatible version, SUM stops: you then need the vendor, an uninstall option if one exists, or a different target. Finding this out in the rehearsal, not on the production weekend, is the point of the checklist. #### How to check the result **Body:** After the upgrade, System > Status should show the new SAP_APPL and SAP_BASIS 750 levels. SPAU should list no open objects. SM37 should show standard jobs running again, SM59 connection tests should pass, and ST22 should be quiet. Compare ST03N response times with the baseline you took beforehand, and keep the SUM evaluation file for the next system in the landscape. **Cta:** If you want your team to ask your upgraded ECC system questions in plain English on your own servers, we can add a private AI layer once the upgrade settles. **Faq:** #### How do I upgrade SAP ECC 6.0 EHP4 to EHP8? **Answer:** Confirm Unicode and single-stack status, check DB/OS and add-ons in the PAM, calculate the EHP8 stack in Maintenance Planner, and run SUM with the stack XML. Adjust SPDD during the upgrade and SPAU afterwards, run SGEN, test interfaces and regression, then repeat the same stack and transports in QAS and PRD. #### What are the phases of an SAP upgrade? **Answer:** In SUM the roadmap steps are Extraction, Configuration, Checks, Preprocessing, Execution and Postprocessing. Most of the work, including the shadow system and SPDD, runs while the system is still up; the downtime part falls in Preprocessing and Execution. Postprocessing covers SPAU and cleanup. #### Does an EHP8 upgrade activate new functionality? **Answer:** No. It installs new software components, but business functions only become active when you switch them on in SFW5, and most cannot be switched off again. Plan activation as a separate change with its own testing, after the technical upgrade is stable. #### Do I need to split a dual-stack system before EHP8? **Answer:** Yes. NetWeaver 7.50 does not support ABAP and Java in one system for ERP, so a dual-stack system has to be split with Software Provisioning Manager before the upgrade. Do this as a separate project step and test it on a copy first. ## Search terms upgrade sap ecc 6.0 ehp4 to ehp8, sap ecc 6.0 ehp 8 upgrade guide, sap erp 6.0 ehp8 upgrade guide, sap system upgrade steps, phases of sap upgrade, addon upgrade steps in sap, sap ehp8 upgrade checklist, sum upgrade spdd spau --- Talk to an engineer: https://netray.co/contact?intent=erp_ai | Machine catalog: https://netray.co/agent/catalog.json