SAP SuccessFactors
This article outlines the integration with the SAP SuccessFactors connector, enabling streamlined metadata management through features such as crawling, manual lineage, profiling, sample profiling, and data preview. The connector extracts metadata from SAP SuccessFactors OData entities and their attributes, providing comprehensive visibility into metadata stored in the SAP SuccessFactors environment.
The connector establishes connectivity through the SAP SuccessFactors OData REST APIs and supports both Basic Authentication (API Key) and OAuth 2.0 authentication methods. It authenticates using a dedicated SAP SuccessFactors service account with the required API permissions to validate the connection, crawl metadata, perform profiling, retrieve sample data, and execute related connector operations.
Overview
Connector Details
Connector Category
RDBMS
OvalEdge Release Supported
Release6.x and later
Connectivity
[How the connection is established with SAP SuccessFactors]
REST APIs
Connector Features
Crawling
✅
Delta Crawling
❌
Profiling
✅
Sample Profiling
✅
Query Sheet
❌
Data Preview
✅
Auto Lineage
❌
Manual Lineage
✅
Secure Authentication via Credential Manager
✅
Data Quality
❌
DAM (Data Access Management)
❌
Bridge
✅
Metadata Mapping
The following objects are crawled from SAP SuccessFactors and mapped to the corresponding UI assets.
OData EdmEntitySet
EntitySet name
Table name
Tables
Table
OData EdmEntitySet
EntitySet Text
Table comment
Tables
Table
Columns
property name
Column name
Columns
Column
Columns
EDM type
Column Type
Columns
Column
Columns
length
Column length
Columns
Column
Set up a Connection
Prerequisites
The prerequisites to establish a connection:
Service Account User Permissions
Validate credentials
Authentication — Basic (API Key)
GET
{server}/odata/v2
APIKey: {password}
Authentication — OAuth 2.0
POST
POST
GET
{server}/oauth/idp
{server}/oauth/token
{server}/oauth/validate
-
List Tables
GET
{server}/odata/v2/$metadata
APIKey or Bearer
List columns
GET
{server}/odata/v2/{table}/$metadata (×2 calls)
Header auth
Data preview
GET
.../{table}/$metadata
Header auth
Data preview
GET
.../{table}?$select={cols}&$top={limit}
Header auth
Row count
GET
{server}/odata/v2/{table}/$count
Header auth
Column profiling
GET
.../{table}/$metadata
Header auth
Column profiling
GET
.../{table}?$select={col}
Header auth
Sample profiling
GET
.../{table}/$metadata
Header auth
Sample profiling
GET
.../{cols}&$top={sampleSize}
Header auth
Connection Configuration Steps
Log in to OvalEdge, go to Administration > Connectors, click + (New Connector), search for SAP SuccessFactors, and complete the required parameters.
Connector Type
By default, "SAP SuccessFactors" is displayed as the selected connector type.
Authentication
The following three types of authentication are supported for SAP SuccessFactors:
Basic Authentication
Oauth2.0
Credential Manager*
Select the desired credential manager from the drop-down list. Relevant parameters will be displayed based on the selection.
Supported Credential Managers:
Database
HashiCorp
AWS Secrets Manager
Azure Key Vault
For more details, click here.
Connector Name*
Enter a unique name for the SAP SuccessFactors connection
(Example: "SAPSuccessFactors_Prod").
Connector Environment
Select the environment (Example: PROD, STG) configured for the connector.
For more details, click here.
Connector Description
Enter the description related to the connector.
Server*
Enter the IP address or hostname of the SAP SuccessFactors server that the connector uses to establish the connection to the data source.
API Key*
Enter the API key configured for the SAP SuccessFactors environment.
Proxy Enabled*
Select Yes to route the connection through a configured proxy, or No to connect directly without a proxy.
Credential Manager*
Select the desired credential manager from the drop-down list. Relevant parameters will be displayed based on the selection.
Supported Credential Managers:
Database
HashiCorp
AWS Secrets Manager
Azure Key Vault
For more details, click here.
Connector Name*
Enter a unique name for the SAP SuccessFactors connection
(Example: "SAPSuccessFactors_Prod").
Connector Environment
Select the environment (Example: PROD, STG) configured for the connector.
For more details, click here.
Connector Description
Enter the description related to the connector.
Server*
Enter the IP address or hostname of the SAP SuccessFactors server that the connector uses to establish the connection to the data source.
Client id*
Enter the configured Client ID for the SAP SuccessFactors application.
Username*
Enter the username of the SAP SuccessFactors account that OvalEdge uses to authenticate and access the SuccessFactors environment.
Token URL*
Enter the configured Token URL used to authenticate with the SAP SuccessFactors application.
Certificate Path*
Enter the path to the configured certificate file used to establish a secure connection with the SAP SuccessFactors application.
Company ID*
Enter the configured Company ID associated with the SAP SuccessFactors tenant that OvalEdge will connect to.
Proxy Enabled*
Select Yes to route the connection through a configured proxy, or No to connect directly without a proxy.
Default Governance Roles
Default Governance Roles*
Select the appropriate users or teams for each governance role from the drop-down list. All users and teams configured in OvalEdge Security are displayed for selection.
Admin Roles
Admin Roles*
Select one or more users from the drop-down list for Integration Admin and Security & Governance Admin. All users configured in OvalEdge Security are available for selection.
No of Archive Objects
No Of Archive Objects*
This shows the number of recent metadata changes to a dataset at the source. By default, it is off. To enable it, toggle the Archive button and specify the number of objects to archive.
Example: Setting it to 4 retrieves the last four changes, displayed in the 'Version' column of the 'Metadata Changes' module.
Bridge
Select Bridge*
If applicable, select the bridge from the drop-down list.
The drop-down list displays all active bridges configured in OvalEdge. These bridges enable communication between data sources and OvalEdge without altering firewall rules.
After entering all connection details, the following actions can be performed:
Click Validate to verify the connection.
Click Save to store the connection for future use.
Click Save & Configure to apply additional settings before saving.
The saved connection will appear on the Connectors home page.
Manage Connector Operations
Crawl/Profile
The Crawl/Profile button allows users to select one or more data objects for crawling and profiling.
Navigate to the Connectors page and click Crawl/Profile.
Select the data objects to crawl.
The Crawl option is selected by default. Click the Crawl & Profile radio button to enable both operations.
Click Run to collect metadata from the connected source and load it into the Data Catalog.
After a successful crawl, the information appears in the Data Catalog > Databases tab.
The Schedule checkbox allows automated crawling and profiling at defined intervals, from a minute to a year.
Click the Schedule checkbox to enable the Select Period drop-down.
Select a time period for the operation from the drop-down menu.
Click Schedule to initiate metadata collection from the connected source.
The system will automatically execute the selected operation (Crawl or Crawl & Profile) at the scheduled time.
Other Operations
The Connectors page in OvalEdge provides a centralized view of all configured connectors, including their health status.
Managing connectors includes:
Connectors Health: Displays the current status of each connector, with a green icon for active connections and a red icon for inactive connections, helping monitor connectivity to data sources.
Viewing: Click the Eye icon next to the connector name to view connector details, including Tables and Columns.
Nine Dots Menu Options:
To view, edit, validate, configure, or delete connectors, click on the Nine Dots menu.
Edit Connector: Update and revalidate the data source.
Validate Connector: Check the integrity of the connection.
Settings: Modify connector settings.
Crawler: Configure data extraction.
Profiler: Customize data profiling rules and methods.
Access Instructions: Add notes on how data can be accessed.
Business Glossary Settings: Manage term associations at the connector level.
Delete Connector: Remove a connector with confirmation.
For more details on connector settings, click here.
Connectivity Troubleshooting
If incorrect parameters are entered, error messages may appear. Ensure all inputs are accurate to resolve these issues. If issues persist, contact the assigned support team.
1
Failed to authenticate with SAP SuccessFactors: Invalid credentials passed!
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector validation fails because the provided API credentials are invalid. This issue typically occurs when an incorrect API key is configured, or the authentication details do not match the target SAP SuccessFactors environment.
Resolution:
Verify that the configured API key is correct and active.
Ensure that the SAP SuccessFactors server endpoint URL is correct.
Confirm that the SAP SuccessFactors OData v2 API is enabled for the configured environment.
Validate that the API credentials have the required permissions to access the SAP SuccessFactors APIs.
Update the connector configuration with valid credentials and retry the connection validation.
2
Failed to get access token: {message}
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector validation fails because the OAuth authentication process could not obtain an access token. This issue typically occurs due to incorrect OAuth configuration or a failed SAML token exchange.
Resolution:
Verify that the Client ID is correct and active.
Ensure that the User ID and Company ID are valid.
Confirm that the Token URL is correct and accessible.
Validate that the configured certificate is valid, not expired, and matches the certificate configured in SAP SuccessFactors.
Ensure that the OAuth client is configured with the required permissions.
Retry the connection after updating the OAuth configuration.
3
Bearer Token is Blank
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector validation fails because the authentication service did not return an access token. As a result, the connector cannot authenticate and establish a connection to the SAP SuccessFactors environment.
Resolution:
Verify that the OAuth client ID and client secret are correctly configured.
Ensure that the OAuth client registration in SAP SuccessFactors is valid and active.
Validate that the SAML assertion is correctly generated and has not expired.
Confirm that the token endpoint is accessible and returns a valid access_token.
Review the connector configuration for any incorrect authentication settings.
Retry the connection after correcting the OAuth configuration and SAML assertion.
4
Failed in creating the SAML Assertion
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector fails to create the SAML assertion required for authentication because the OAuth identity provider (IdP) request could not be completed. This issue is typically caused by an invalid certificate, private key, token URL, or incorrect client registration in SAP SuccessFactors.
Resolution:
Verify that the configured certificate and private key are valid and correctly configured.
Ensure that the OAuth Token URL is correct and accessible.
Confirm that the OAuth client is properly registered in SAP SuccessFactors.
Validate that the client ID, client credentials, and authentication settings are correctly configured.
Review the getOauthResponse method logs for additional error details.
Retry the connection after correcting the authentication configuration.
5
Private Key Not starting with BEGIN ENCRYPTED/END ENCRYPTED
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector validation fails because the provided certificate file does not contain a valid encrypted private key. The certificate is in an unsupported or incorrect format.
Resolution:
Verify that the uploaded certificate file is in the PEM format.
Ensure that the certificate contains a valid encrypted private key enclosed between -----BEGIN ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY----- and -----END ENCRYPTED PRIVATE KEY-----.
Confirm that the correct certificate file is being used for the connector configuration.
Replace the certificate with a valid .pem file containing the encrypted private key if necessary.
Retry the connection after updating the certificate file.
6
Certificate path is Empty Please Provide the Certificate.pem path
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector validation fails because the certificate file path required for OAuth authentication is not configured. As a result, the connector cannot load the certificate needed to establish a secure connection.
Resolution:
Specify a valid path to the Certificate.pem file in the connector configuration.
Ensure that the certificate file exists at the configured location and is accessible to the application.
Verify that the configured certificate is valid and corresponds to the SAP SuccessFactors OAuth configuration.
Confirm that the application has the required permissions to read the certificate file.
Retry the connection validation after configuring the certificate path.
7
ERROR_GETTING_REMOTE_TABLES
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector failed to retrieve the list of remote tables because the OData $metadata request could not be completed or the returned metadata could not be parsed. As a result, the connector cannot discover the available objects.
Resolution:
Verify that the SAP SuccessFactors OData API endpoint is accessible.
Ensure that the configured user has permission to access the OData $metadata endpoint.
Confirm that the $metadata endpoint returns a valid EDM XML response.
Validate that the service URL and authentication credentials are correct.
Review the OData service response for errors or invalid metadata definitions.
Retry the connection after resolving the OData API or metadata issues.
8
Response failed for table {table} {message}
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector failed to retrieve metadata for the specified table because the request returned an unsuccessful response. This issue is typically caused by insufficient entity-level permissions or an invalid table (entity) name.
Resolution:
Verify that the specified table (entity) name is valid and exists in the SAP SuccessFactors instance.
Ensure that the configured user has the required entity-level permissions to access the table.
Confirm that the SAP SuccessFactors API user is assigned the appropriate roles and permissions.
Validate that the OData service is accessible and the entity is available through the configured endpoint.
Retry the operation after updating the table name or access permissions.
9
ERROR_GETTING_FIRST_N_ROWS
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector failed to retrieve the first set of records from the selected entity. This issue typically occurs because the data feed request failed due to unsupported query parameters or insufficient read permissions.
Resolution:
Verify that the selected SAP SuccessFactors entity supports the $select and $top query parameters.
Ensure that the configured user has read permission for the target entity.
Validate that the entity is accessible through the SAP SuccessFactors OData API.
Review the connector configuration and confirm that the entity name and query parameters are correct.
Retry the operation after updating the permissions or using a supported entity configuration.
10
Error in getRowcount / ERROR_GETTING_ROW_COUNT
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector failed to retrieve the row count for the requested entity. This issue typically occurs when the entity does not support the $count operation or when the configured user does not have sufficient permissions to access the entity.
Resolution:
Verify that the SAP SuccessFactors entity supports the $count operation.
Ensure that the configured API user has the required permissions to access the entity.
Confirm that the entity name and endpoint are valid and accessible.
Validate that the API credentials and authentication settings are correct.
Retry the operation after updating the entity configuration or access permissions.
11
ERROR_GETTING_SQL_PROFILE_RESULTS
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector failed while retrieving SQL profiling results. This issue may occur due to profiling API failures, incorrect column type mapping, row count inconsistencies, or temporary resource issues with DuckDB during profile generation.
Resolution:
Verify that the profiling API is accessible and functioning correctly.
Validate that the source table contains valid data and confirm the row count.
Check that the source column data types are correctly mapped during profiling.
Ensure that sufficient temporary disk space and memory are available for DuckDB operations.
Review the application logs for errors related to getSqlProfileResults to identify the root cause.
Retry the profiling operation after resolving any data mapping or resource issues.
12
Repeated 403 during crawl/profile
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors crawl or profiling operation fails because the bearer token used for authentication has expired. As a result, the connector cannot authenticate API requests and receives repeated HTTP 403 (Forbidden) responses.
Resolution:
Verify that the OAuth client configuration is correct.
Ensure that the client ID, client secret, and authentication endpoint are valid.
Confirm that the connector can generate a new bearer token successfully.
Check whether the OAuth credentials have expired, been revoked, or changed.
Retry the crawl or profiling operation after validating the OAuth client configuration.
If the issue persists, review the authentication logs for token generation failures.
13
Requests hang / time out
Error Description: The SAP SuccessFactors connector request does not complete within the configured timeout period. This issue typically occurs when the SAP SuccessFactors API is responding slowly or when network or proxy connectivity delays prevent the request from completing.
Resolution:
Verify that the SAP SuccessFactors API is available and responding within an acceptable time.
Check network connectivity between the OvalEdge application and the SAP SuccessFactors environment.
Validate that any configured proxy server is reachable and not introducing connection delays.
Review firewall and network settings that may affect API communication.
Note that the connector uses a 120-second connection timeout, a 240-second read timeout, and 5 automatic retry attempts before the request fails.
Retry the operation after resolving API performance or network connectivity issues.
14
Relationships enabled but none crawled
Error Description: Relationship crawling is enabled for the SAP SuccessFactors connector, but no relationships are retrieved because relationship extraction is not supported by the connector.
Resolution:
Verify that relationship crawling is enabled only if relationship extraction is required.
Confirm that the SAP SuccessFactors connector does not currently support relationship crawling.
Ignore this message if metadata crawling completes successfully, as it is expected behavior.
Review the connector configuration to ensure other crawling options are configured correctly.
Contact OvalEdge Support if relationship crawling support is required in a future release.
FAQs
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