PUBLIC

Document Version: 1H 2025 – 2025-05-16

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

© 2025 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved.

THE BEST RUN

Content

1 Instance Refresh Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2 Known Technical Gaps of the Instance Refresh Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

3 Refresh Instance in Different Environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

4 Important Notes while Using the Instance Refresh Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

5 Instance Refresh Status Workflow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

6 Knowing Your Company's Refresh Entitlement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

7 Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

8 Pairing the Source Tenant to the Target Tenant in Instance Refresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

9 Creating an Instance Refresh Request. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

10 Approving Production Tenant Refresh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

11 Deleting an Instance Pair. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

12 Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

13 Post Refresh Activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

14 Downloading the Error Log File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

15 Canceling Instance Refresh Request. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

16 Change History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

2 PUBLIC Content
1 Instance Refresh Overview

The Instance Refresh tool helps you to create a replication request of SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite and monitor
the status of the request from the source to target instance.

A refresh is the process of copying data and configuration from source to target, without impacting the integrations
in the target. The source is the instance from which data and configurations are copied to the target instance. The
target is the instance to which data and configurations are copied using Instance Refresh. Essentially, admin should
have access to both the source and target instances.

 Note

During an instance refresh, replication excludes certain data such as attachments, audit logs, and so on.

The Instance Refresh tool cannot be used for cloning.

The key features of the instance refresh tool are as follows:

• You can create a refresh request by choosing the target instance on any future preferred date of refresh. Log
in to the source instance to launch the Instance Refresh tool through Admin Center from which you can initiate
refresh on a desired target instance.
• You can view the history of all refreshes initiated from the logged in source instance.
• You can view and track the status of already submitted refresh request which has not been completed yet.
• You can cancel the refresh request as long as the status of refresh request is not In Progress.
• You can download the error log file as audit report for any refresh requests that didn't succeeded.
• The admin, who initiates the request, receives email notification alerts containing the instance refresh status
and the subsequent steps.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Overview PUBLIC 3
2 Known Technical Gaps of the Instance
Refresh Tool

The Instance Refresh tool has some limitations that you must know before using the tool.

• The Instance Refresh tool cannot be used to refresh SAP SuccessFactors Onboarding 1.0. Please contact
Technical Support to refresh SAP SuccessFactors Onboarding 1.0.
When you schedule an instance refresh request where the source instance has SAP SuccessFactors
Onboarding 1.0 enabled and the target instance has SAP SuccessFactors Onboarding enabled, the target's
SAP SuccessFactors Onboarding 1.0 configuration is replaced with a blank configuration.
• Refresh is supported only when the source and target instances are in the same data center.
• The instance refresh tool doesn't support refreshes from Preview to Production environment during the
blackout period for Preview upgrade.
• During an instance refresh, the Enable Personalized Recommendations setting for Learning is disabled on your
refreshed target instance. To ensure learners have access to personalized recommendations, re-enable the
setting on your target instance.
• The instance refresh tool doesn't support refreshing the following modules:
• Recruiting Marketing
• Workforce Analytics
• Canvas Reports
• Open Text
• Integration Center Jobs
• Intelligent Service Center
• OAuth Configurations
• Employee Central - Timesheet Integration
• SAP SuccessFactors Instance Refresh tool does not support Joule.
• Only user data, permission data, and configurations are migrated from the source to the target tenant
during Instance Refresh.
• Joule integration settings remain on the source tenant and are not transferred.
• Ensure that you save necessary user data, permission data, and configurations from the target tenant
before the refresh.
• Reconfigure permissions and run user-related configurations in the target tenant as needed.

Related Information

Important Notes while Using the Instance Refresh Tool [page 6]

Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance [page 14]
Post Refresh Activities [page 36]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

4 PUBLIC Known Technical Gaps of the Instance Refresh Tool
3 Refresh Instance in Different Environments

You can perform a refresh for instances that are in different environments.

You can refresh the SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite, SAP SuccessFactors Learning or combination of SAP
SuccessFactors HCM suite and SAP SuccessFactors Learning product with:

• Preview as source to Preview as target

• Production as source to Preview as target

 Note

The Enable Instance Refresh Tool for SAP SuccessFactors Learning switch must be enabled for your instance
from Provisioning to use this feature.

 Remember

As a customer, you don't have access to Provisioning. To complete tasks in Provisioning, contact your
implementation partner or Account Executive. For any non-implementation tasks, contact Technical Support.

For information on how to manage instances using the Instance Refresh and the Instance Synchronization tools
refer to the link in the Related information.

Related Information

Known Technical Gaps of the Instance Refresh Tool [page 4]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Refresh Instance in Different Environments PUBLIC 5
4 Important Notes while Using the Instance
Refresh Tool

There are some important notes to keep in mind while using the instance refresh tool.

• After refreshing the target instance using the instance refresh tool, it cannot be reverted using the tool.
• Make sure to have enough lead time for activities that you wish to perform after refreshing the target instance.
It is recommended to schedule the refresh request at least seven days in advance.
• The Instance Refresh Tool supports source tenants with schema sizes of 650 GB and beyond, thus providing
increased efficiency. You can find the details of schema size under Manage Data Storage Total Usage, and
you can calculate the refresh qualified tenant size using the formula: Total Usage - (minus) Audit Data.

 Note

When you do an instance refresh on SAP SuccessFactors Learning tenant, the final export file excludes the
unnecessary Performance History (PH) tables. This optimization allows the export size validation to be set
to a schema size limit that aligns with the BizX settings (that is 650 GB).

• Since the refresh activity is a one to one wipe-out of the target instance and replace with the source instance,
any customizations present in the target instance are overwritten. These customizations include, but are not
limited to:
• Any existing configurations present only in the target instance (For example, from ongoing
implementations or other related activities).
• Any Configuration Change requests (CCOR) that was only performed in the target instance.
• Any other configuration only present in the target for testing purposes
• If the instance refresh request for SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite, or SAP SuccessFactors Learning, or a
combination of both fails, then the next refresh will be blocked until the failed application is restored to its
original state.
• If the source instance has (Single Sign-on) SSO setup and target has Non-SSO setup, make sure that a
Non-SSO admin account is maintained in the source instance, before refreshing your target instance. This
admin account allows you to access the target instance after refresh, by customer or partner.
• Only Employee Profile Emails and Recruiting Emails are masked as a part of the refresh. This is applicable only
if you have populated the Mask Recruiting Candidate Email Address and Mask Employee Profile Email Address
fields during the submission of the request.
• It is important to take a backup of the setting if Career Site integrated with Identity Authentication Service is
configured on your target instance.

 Note

To create a backup of the setting go to Target > Admin Center > Manage Service Provider Configuration for
Identity Authentication Service (IAS). Note that post refresh you have to manually revert this in the target
instance.

• The tool doesn't support restoration of the URLs under Provisioning > Company Settings > Enable Employee
Central V2 Timesheets. If you have this configured in your target instance, save the URL displayed while
accessing Time and Attendance page in the target instance, and open a case with support LOD-SF-PLT to
reconfigure this back in Provisioning.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

6 PUBLIC Important Notes while Using the Instance Refresh Tool
• The instance refresh tool supports refreshes from the source tenant to the target tenant under the following
conditions:
• Both the source and target tenants were enabled with advanced encryption.
• Both the source and target tenants were disabled with advanced encryption.
• The source tenant had advanced encryption disabled while the target tenant had it enabled.
• The source tenant had advanced encryption enabled while the target tenant had it disabled.
• Audit logs are not copied from the source to target instance post refresh.
• After an instance refresh, the x.509 certificate mapping for regular (non-technical) users needs to be manually
re-added in the system. However, for technical users, the system automatically renews the mapping, and no
manual intervention is required
• The Instance Refresh tool supports SAP SuccessFactors Generative AI features.
• Feature role-based permissions and AI Service Administration settings will be reflected in the target
system as they are in the source system.
• An internal job ensures that prompt templates are updated in the target system, especially for newer
releases.
• You may need to manually enable HCM Content Generator or HCM Skills provisioning settings in certain
cases.
• If there is an issue with auto-enablement of the provisioning settings for HCM Content Generator or HCM
Skills upon instance refresh, contact Technical Support.

 Remember

As a customer, you don't have access to Provisioning. To complete tasks in Provisioning, contact your
implementation partner or Account Executive. For any non-implementation tasks, contact Technical
Support.

The Instance Refresh process generally transfers SAP SuccessFactors Generative AI configurations and
settings to the target system. However, in some specific cases, you may need to manually perform certain
tasks to ensure the complete functionality.
• After the Instance Refresh process, the AI-Assisted skills data from the source instance are replicated to the
target instance.

Related Information

Advanced Encryption
Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance [page 14]
Post Refresh Activities [page 36]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Important Notes while Using the Instance Refresh Tool PUBLIC 7
5 Instance Refresh Status Workflow

The Instance Refresh status work flow shows the end to end flow of the refresh process.

Context

To view the simplified version of the workflow in the Instance Refresh tool:

Procedure

1. Go to Admin Center Instance Refesh .

2. Choose View Status Workflow.

Results

The Instance Refresh Status Workflow appears. The status types are as follows:

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

8 PUBLIC Instance Refresh Status Workflow
Status Description Next Step

Scheduled Displayed when refresh is scheduled for the selected date/time. NA

Validation in Progress Displayed when a set of validation checks is being executed to ensure NA
that the refresh can be successfully submitted for execution. Some of the
parameters that are validated on the source and target instances are:

• Missing features in target instance like Generic Objects and Instance

Refresh.
• Duplication of refresh request on same target instance by multiple
source instances.
• Target instance release version compatibility with the source instance
release version.
• Schema size of the source and target instance.

Validation Failed Displayed when the validation check fails, and the refresh could not be Download the error log
submitted. file and contact SAP
Cloud Support with the
log file.

In Progress Displayed when the refresh execution is in progress. NA

 Note
It is not recommended to access the target instance when the refresh is
in the In Progress status until the status is Completed on the scheduled
date.

Successful Displayed when the target instance is refreshed successfully. NA

Completed with Errors Displayed when the refresh is scheduled for more than one product in the Download the error log
same request and the refresh fails or reverts for one of the products. file and contact SAP
Cloud Support with the
 Example log file.

If you try to refresh SAP SuccessFactors Learning and HCM Suite and
one of the refresh conditions occur:

• HCM Suite successful and SAP SuccessFactors Learning fails.

• HCM Suite fails and SAP SuccessFactors Learning successful
• HCM Suite reverted and SAP SuccessFactors Learning successful

 Note
The Enable Instance Refresh Tool for SAP SuccessFactors Learning
switch must be enabled for your instance from Provisioning to use this
feature.

 Remember
As a customer, you don't have access to Provisioning. To complete
tasks in Provisioning, contact your implementation partner or Account
Executive. For any non-implementation tasks, contact Technical
Support.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Status Workflow PUBLIC 9
Status Description Next Step

Completed with Displayed when one or more of the conditions occur during the refresh: Download the error log
Warnings file and contact SAP
• Rebuilding of indexes fails, this failure can slow down the search
Cloud Support with the
process. log file.
• Masking the internal users with provided input parameter are
successful, while creating the refresh request fails. This failure can
result in sending emails to real users with reference to test job
executions.
• Traces of audit logs are present in the target instance from the source
instance after refresh is complete. These logs might appear in your
audit reports and the target instance functions as expected.

Instance Stabilization Displayed when the basic refresh on your target instance is complete and NA
in Progress one or more of the following activities are being performed:

• Deleting the NoSQL data. This activity is to avoid inconsistencies in

audit logs and data.
• Deleting the audit logs. This activity is to avoid inconsistencies in audit
logs and data.
• Rebuilding of the Solr indexes. This activity is to improve the search
process in your target instance.
• Masking the internal users email ID. This activity is to avoid sending
emails to real users in your target instance with reference to test job
executions.

 Note
Failure of any one of the activities can result in changing the status of
Instance Refresh request to Completed with Warning. If all the activities
are completed without a failure then the request is Successful.

Failed Displayed when one of these conditions occurs: Download the error log
file and contact SAP
• The target instance refresh fails.
Cloud Support with the
• The target instance is not fully refreshed or reverted. log file.
• The target instance is down.

Reverted Displayed when the refresh did not execute successfully. In this case, there Download the error log
is no change in target instance data and configuration. file and contact SAP
Cloud Support with the
log file.

Canceled Displayed when you cancel the instance refresh request. NA

 Note
You can cancel the request only when the status of the request is
Scheduled or Validation In Progress.

Post-Refresh Activities Displayed when a user sync job is triggered to sync the user data between NA
in Progress HCM Suite and SAP SuccessFactors Learning.

The user sync jobs are triggered when you select:

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

10 PUBLIC Instance Refresh Status Workflow
Status Description Next Step

• Only HCM Suite

• Only SAP SuccessFactors Learning
• A combination of both HCM Suite and SAP SuccessFactors Learning,
provided Anonymize Rest of the Sensitive Fields checkbox is selected.

 Note
If you select HCM Suite and SAP SuccessFactors Learning for refresh
without selecting Anonymize Rest of the Sensitive Fields, the user sync
fails.

An email notification is sent to you on every status change of the instance refresh request. The notification is sent
to the email ID saved in the contact information for business on the Employee Profile page. To check the contact
information, in your source instance go to People Profile Contact Details .

As a pre-validation check, we've integrated Check Tool in the email notifications. The email notification displays the
result of the checks that were last run using the Check Tool.

 Note

We recommend that you run the checks using Check Tool just before you submit an instance refresh request
and fix the errors and problems in the source instance to avoid replicating the same issues in the target
instance, post refresh.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Status Workflow PUBLIC 11
6 Knowing Your Company's Refresh
Entitlement

You can view your company's entitled refreshes including the number of completed, scheduled, and remaining
refreshes.

Prerequisites

Make sure either the View Refresh Requests or the Manage Refresh permission is enabled.

Context

Every company is entitled to two refreshes per tenant for a calendar year. For example, if your company has five
tenants including production and non-production tenants, then every year your company is entitled to get 10
refreshes as a part of the standard purchase.

SAP SuccessFactors Implementation Partners have their own tenants and can perform refreshes from their own
refresh entitlement quota. For Implementation partner resellers, the entitled refreshes are calculated for their
customers based on the number of tenants the customers have. When Implementation Partners perform refreshes
from their tenant into customer tenants, the refresh entitlement is counted towards the customer’s entitlement
quota.

Let us consider an example where an Implementation Partner has 5 tenants of their own and 10 tenants from 3
different customers (Customer1 has 3 tenants, Customer2 has 3 tenants, and Customer3 has 4 tenants). Totally,
Implementation Partner has 15 tenants in their ecosystem.

Implementation Partners are entitled to do 10 refreshes per calendar year. Their customers are entitled based on
the number of tenants they have. Considering the above example: Customer1 is entitled to 6 refreshes per calendar
year, Customer2 is entitled to 6 refreshes per calendar year, and Customer3 is entitled to 8 refreshes per calendar
year.

 Note

Refresh Entitlement is application only for SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite refreshes and only for the refreshes
that are triggered using the instance refresh self-service tool.

Procedure

1. Go to Admin Center.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

12 PUBLIC Knowing Your Company's Refresh Entitlement
2. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh. Access the tool by clicking on the search result.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option selected.
3. Choose Next.
4. Choose View Refresh Entitlement.

Results

After selecting View Refresh Entitlement button, you can see:

• Total: Gives a count of the total number of refreshes allocated to your company.
• Completed: Gives a count of all refreshes that are completed while using the self-service Instance Refresh tool,
with status Successful and Completed with warning. This includes refreshing only SAP SuccessFactors HCM
suite, or a combination of both SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite and SAP SuccessFactors Learning product.
• Remaining: Gives a count of all the remaining refreshes after successful refreshes.
• Scheduled: Gives a count of all the refreshes that are currently scheduled in your instance.

 Remember

• You can't carry forward any unused refreshes from the current year to the next or subsequent years.
• There's no restriction on the refreshed tenants. For example, all 10 refreshes could be used to refresh
the same target instance.
• You can't refresh your instance after you’ve exhausted your limit of the entitled refreshes.
• You can't view Scheduled Refresh Count forSAP SuccessFactors Learning.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Knowing Your Company's Refresh Entitlement PUBLIC 13
7 Things to Know Before Refreshing the
Target Instance

Before you refresh any target instance, you must know certain points that can impact your target instance.

Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

Product Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

Integration Center • All integrations defined in Integration Center are copied from source to target instance.
• Existing scheduled jobs related to Integration Center are deleted.
• Destination Settings and Source Settings configurations of Integration Center are not
copied to the target instance after refresh.
• Integration Center does not copy Security Center artifacts from source to the target
instance to avoid inconsistency or corruption of data during instance refresh. Security
Center artifacts related to target instance will be restored after instance refresh.

Integration Service Registration Subscriptions in Event Subscription Management or ISC – Event Connector might be ab-
Center sent in the target company after an instance refresh. Configurations in Integration Service
Registration Center might be absent in the target company after an instance refresh. In such
scenarios, create the subscriptions manually using the corresponding views. If a significant
number of subscriptions are missing, reach out to Support at LOD-SF-INT-INC-FWK.

Onboarding • Documents in the Print Forms Service (PFS) are not copied to the target instance.
• DocSign Configuration is not copied to target instance after refresh. Make a note of
DocuSign account ID and the associated email address.
• Process definition for Onboarding /Offboarding is not copied to your target instance.
• If the target instance has Onboarding and source instance has Onboarding 1.0, then post
refresh, the target instance's configurations are overwritten with the source instance's
configurations.

 Note
Before refreshing an instance having Onboarding integrated with SAP SuccessFactors
HCM suite, make sure that the ReportID set for Ad Hoc Reports Export jobs are existing
in both the source and target instances.

The report IDs required are:

• Onboarding User Sync

• Onboarding Permission Sync

These report Ids are required as a part of job configuration in Provisioning. For more
information on scheduling an Ad Hoc Reports Export job, see KBA 2193439 in the
Related Information section.

Ad Hoc reports are included for the SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite product refreshes,
hence if the report is only existing in the target instance and not in source, the reports
are deleted after refresh.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

14 PUBLIC Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance
Product Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

Mobile 1. For any change in the application data, for example, org changes, it might take up to 1
day for the changes to be visible.
2. Post refresh, if there are any new users added in the target instance, then the new users
must activate the device to use the SAP SuccessFactors application.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance PUBLIC 15
Product Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

Learning • Quick guide images, Company logos, and Custom thumbnails are not restored. Take a
backup of these files, to restore it in the target instance after refresh.
• Custom labels, custom pages, or reports unique to the target instance are not restored.
Export the labels, pages and reports, to restore it in the target instance after refresh.
• All configuration property files in System Administration> Configuration> System
Configuration of the target system are restored.

 Note
Post refresh, if you encounter issues with AI-assisted capabilities, we recommend
disabling and enabling the following configuration properties:
• AI-assisted skill association for Open Content Network items:
[Link][defau
lt] ( System Administration System Configuration OPEN CONTENT

NETWORK .
• AI-assisted skill inference for learning items: enableSkillInference

( System Administration System Configuration LMS_ADMIN)

• All the queued up notification emails from Learning are cleared.

• All the archived emails are deleted.
• All the email addresses are cleared so that erroneous emails are no sent out.
• Automatic Process Management (APM) or Recurring Report Jobs will be disabled. After
performing the refresh, you can re-enable all previously enabled jobs copied from the
source instance. This can be achieved through the Learning Administration page, spe-
cifically under System Administration > Configuration > Global Application Settings >
Instance Refresh. You can re-enable these jobs within a period of up to fourteen days
after the database refresh.
• The one-time jobs scheduled in the source are copied to the target instance and as-
signed the scheduled status.
• Email notification is disabled.
• Post refresh, Virtual Learning Systems (VLS) events are removed from the target in-
stance. You need to create VLS events again.
• Post refresh, Configuration > Content Deployment Locations, Entity Configuration,
External Learning Request and VLS Configuration are restored from the target instance.
• Post refresh, VLS instructor mapping data is restored from the target instance only if the
instructor exists.
• Post refresh, if the Learning Target System is integrated with Identity Authentication and
Identity Provisioning Services (initiated or activated),
• All Sites copied from source are created as an application in Identity Authentication
Service and the corresponding Learning Site, SAP Identity Service Application ID is
updated.
• The Global User ID is cleared.
• If only SAP SuccessFactors Learning is selected as a Product to Refresh, then
post refresh all User under User Source System values are cleared and the User
Identification Process is initiated and the SuccessFactors User Connector is run.
• If you selected Learning as a Product to Refresh and the Learning Target System is
integrated with Identity Authentication and Identity Provisioning Services (initiated or
activated),

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

16 PUBLIC Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance
Product Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

• Go to SAP Cloud Identity Services Identity Provisioning . Under the target

system go to Identity Authentication Transformation Rule and set sendMail
to false to prevent sending email notifications to a dummy email address which
may hinder email server performance.
• Decide on the approach for maintaining parity between the Learning Site and the
Identity Authentication Application. When performing a refresh, a new Identity Au-
thentication application is generated for each Site refreshed from the source. How-
ever, Identity Authentication applications corresponding to Sites from the previous
target configuration are not removed. If you wish to reference the configuration
for Sites created by the refresh, you have the option to manually remove Identity
Authentication applications corresponding to the pre-refresh target Sites. Another
option is to delete the Sites in the target configuration before the refresh, which will
also eliminate the corresponding Identity Authentication Application

Goal Management If the latest version of Goal Management is enabled in the source instance, then after in-
stance refresh, the same version is enabled in the target instance and cannot be reverted to
the legacy version.

Platform If legacy picklists are not migrated to MDF picklists in the source system but are migrated
in the target system, then post refresh, the migrated picklists in the target is overwritten
with the legacy pick lists. To avoid overwrite, you can cancel the scheduled refresh. Please
inform Technical Support that the source and target instances have different type of picklist
by creating a support ticket to get guidance on the next steps.

Administrators can choose to either retain or clear the Global User ID during data replication
to a target instance. Retaining the Global User ID, especially when source and target share an
Identity Authentication Service (IAS), reduces the time and effort required for an initial full
user data synchronization.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance PUBLIC 17
Product Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance

People Analytics • Table Reports, Spreadsheet, Dashboard, Pixel Perfect Talent Card (PPTC), Classic Re-
ports, and List Views can be refreshed using the Instance Refresh Tool.
• Stories in People Analytics aren't copied from the source instance to the target instance
during the Instance Refresh. However, if the target instance has Stories in People Analyt-
ics, then the connection will be retained and post-refresh all the stories will exist under
All Reports.

 Note
If the source instance has Stories in People Analytics enabled and the target in-
stance doesn't, then post-refresh you have to manually enable Stories in the target
instance.

• Ensure you have added the following property in IPS - SAP Analytics Cloud target
system:

Name Value

[Link] true
ities

• Ensure you don't change any IPS properties or transformations in the IPS source or
target systems.
• Don't invoke IPS Reset in either the IPS source or target systems, as doing so erases all
user's contexts. Losing user's contexts in IPS, skips user delete operations from the SAP
Analytics Cloud target.
• Cancel scheduled IPS recurring jobs before the instance refresh starts. This ensures IPS
jobs stop and don't run during or immediately after the instance refresh. For Stories, it's
recommended to run the IPS RESYNC job right after the instance refresh.

• Advanced Reporting in Employee Central is not supported via Instance Refresh Tool. Ei-
ther you can perform or request the Customer Support to place an Advanced Reporting
Metadata refresh.
• Canvas Reports and Workforce Analytics are not supported by the Instance Refresh
tool. It is important that you specify that Canvas Reports and Workforce Analytics are
implemented in your target instance. This is to ensure that post-refresh, the connection
to Canvas Reports and Workforce Analytics are re-established in the target instance.

Related Information

Scheduling an Ad Hoc Reports Export Job

How to Update the ECP Target System in SAP SuccessFactors
Attachments are empty post refresh
Multiple Learning Application Entries in Identity Authentication
Quick Guide to Enable People Analytics Report
People Analytics not Working After Instance Refresh
User Identification Process

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

18 PUBLIC Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance
Site Migration
SAP SuccessFactors Learning and SAP Cloud Identity Services Integration Overview
SAP Note 3466216

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Things to Know Before Refreshing the Target Instance PUBLIC 19
8 Pairing the Source Tenant to the Target
Tenant in Instance Refresh

Before refreshing your target instance, you must pair your target instance with the source instance. The pairing is a
one-time task with a three-step process.

Prerequisites

• Identify the source and the target tenants in each pairing relationship.
• Enable the following permissions:
• Manage Refresh
• Admin access to MDF OData API
• Manage Integration Tools
• Manage Business Process Engine
• Enable Generic Object

Procedure

1. On the source instance, go to Admin Center.

2. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option chosen.
3. Choose Next.

The Instance Refresh Center page appears.

4. Choose Create New Request.

The Create Instance Refresh Request page appears.

5. Choose Add New Pair.

Instance Pair Wizard opens with the Select Target Details step active on it.
6. Select the target data center and target environment.
7. Enter the target Company ID.

 Note

To know your target instance company ID, go to Source Instance > User ID on the global header of your
instance > Show Version Information.

8. Choose Generate Token.

An authentication token is sent to the target company ID.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

20 PUBLIC Pairing the Source Tenant to the Target Tenant in Instance Refresh
  Note

The generated token is valid only for one hour from the time it has been generated. If the token expires, you
must regenerate the authentication token again.

9. Go to target instance and access the Instance Refresh page.

10. Click the  Copy icon under the Copy Token column, for the corresponding source instance, from which
authentication token was generated.
11. On the source tenant, go to Admin Center > Instance Refresh Page > Create New Request > Add New Pair.
12. Choose the target instance from which the authentication token was copied.
13. Choose the link at the bottom of the Get Authentication Token step which is active on the Instance Pair Wizard.
14. Paste the token in the Authentication Token text box.
15. Choose Validate.

 Note

If the token is invalid or has expired, an error occurs and you must generate a new token to pair the tenants.

Results

Pairing the target instance with the source instance is successful. You can now find the target instance details in
Create Instance Refresh Request page to refresh the target instance from your source instance.

Related Information

Creating an Instance Refresh Request [page 22]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Pairing the Source Tenant to the Target Tenant in Instance Refresh PUBLIC 21
9 Creating an Instance Refresh Request

Allows you to request a new instance refresh from a source instance on a selected target instance.

Prerequisites

• Make sure you have enabled the following permissions:

• Manage Refresh
• Admin access to MDF OData API
• Manage Integration Tools
• Manage Business Process Engine
• Enable Generic Object
• Both the source and target instances must be present in the same data center.
• Ensure that there is no ongoing implementation changes being performed in your target instance by either one
of the following:
• Your own internal implementation teams
• Third-party partners and/or consultants
• The SAP-SuccessFactors professional services team

 Caution

Once the instance refresh is complete, you can't revert the changes in the target instance.

Procedure

1. On the source instance, go to Admin Center.

2. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option chosen.
3. Choose Next.

The Instance Refresh Center page appears.

4. Choose Create New Request.

Terms and Conditions page appears.

5. Choose Accept after reading the conditions, to create a new instance refresh request.

 Note

The source instance information like, data center, environment, company ID are auto populated in the
Create Instance Refresh Request page.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

22 PUBLIC Creating an Instance Refresh Request
6. Choose the data center of the target instance from the Target Datacenter dropdown list.

 Note

If you do not find any of your target information like data center, environment, or company ID for selection
you must pair your target instance with the logged in source instance.

7. Choose the environment of the target instance from the Target Environment drop-down list.
8. Choose the company ID of the target instance from the Target Company ID drop-down list.

 Note

• Instance Refresh using the self-service tool is not supported if the Target Company ID is a productive
tenant. The validation check fails and the instance refresh request is not submitted. You receive
an email notification with the status Validation Failed. This is applicable when you refresh only SAP
SuccessFactors HCM suite product.

9. Choose the products to be refreshed from Products to Refresh.

• If you choose to refresh only SAP SuccessFactors Learning, then set the Refresh Schedule Date.
• If you choose to refresh either SAP SuccessFactors HCM Core, or a combination of SAP SuccessFactors
HCM Core and SAP SuccessFactors Learning then,
• Set the Refresh Schedule Date.
You can schedule instance refresh requests up to 182 days in advance, so that there are enough slots
available to place an instance refresh request. Target instance refreshes can be scheduled throughout
the year, including weekends, excluding the planned downtime periods. Additionally, 2 PM time slots
have been enabled for refreshes of non-production tenants.

 Note

If your desired schedule date is unavailable, please select another available date for it.

• Enter an email ID in the Mask Recruiting Candidates Email Address text box, to overwrite or mask the
external candidates email address in the target instance with the email address of your choice.

 Note

Masking email ID of external or internal candidates is possible only when the source instance is
enabled with SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting feature.

• Optional: Enter an email ID in the Mask Employee Profile Email Address text box, to overwrite or mask
the Employee Profile email address in the target instance with the email address of your choice.
• Do not delete global user IDs: When you select this option, the system keeps global user IDs during the
instance refresh. If you don't select it, the system deletes the global user IDs. This option is unchecked
by default.
• To mask personally identifiable information apart from email addresses of employee profiles and
recruiting candidates, choose Anonymize Sensitive Information.

Data Anonymization Option Description

Do Not Anonymize Select the option when you don't want any fields to be
anonymized in the target instance after you submit a

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Creating an Instance Refresh Request PUBLIC 23
 Data Anonymization Option Description

new instance refresh request from a source instance on

a selected target instance.

Anonymize All Supported Fields Select the option when you want to anonymize all fields
in the target instance after you submit a new instance
refresh request from a source instance on a selected
target instance.

Anonymize Selective Fields Select this option when you want to anonymize
selected fields in the target instance after you submit a
new instance refresh request from a source instance on
a selected target instance.

Choose Download Template to manually mark the

anonymization of fields and upload the template in
Customized Sensitive Information. You can also use an
existing template.

 Caution

Once the anonymization is performed it can't be reverted back to non-anonymization.

10. Choose Submit.

The basic refresh of your target instance will be completed in a couple of hours. In addition to this, depending
on your company's data volume, instance stabilization activities like deleting the NoSQL data, deleting the
audit logs, rebuilding of the solr indexes, and so on can take longer duration.

 Note

If your instance exceeds the threshold limit, you can contact SAP Cloud Support for completing the refresh
request.

If you encounter an error while submitting the refresh request, try submitting it for individual products. If
you are still unable to submit the refresh for an individual product, please contact SAP Cloud Support.

A pop-up message appears stating refresh has been successfully scheduled.

Results

The status of the instance refresh request appears in the Overview page.

The details of the instance refresh request that you can find in the Overview tab are:

Scheduled Date The scheduled date for the refresh of the target instance.

Completed Date The date when the refresh is completed.

Refresh Status The current status of the refresh request.

Target Info The company ID of target that is being refreshed.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

24 PUBLIC Creating an Instance Refresh Request
Products Refreshed The products chosen to be refreshed.

Requested By The user ID of the person who has requested the refresh. To
view their details choose the business card icon.

 Note
The Business Card icon is displayed only when you have
the Manage User permission. For details on the permis-
sion, see List of Role-Based Permission in Related Infor-
mation section.

Next Steps

To check the status of the instance refresh request click the  question markicon button under the Refresh Status
column for the identified instance refresh request. The Refresh Status Information window appears with the error
list.

Related Information

Pairing the Source Tenant to the Target Tenant in Instance Refresh [page 20]
Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields [page 29]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Creating an Instance Refresh Request PUBLIC 25
10 Approving Production Tenant Refresh

You can refresh your production tenant during the implementation phase, prior to deployment with necessary
approvals from the administrator.

Prerequisites

• Ensure that both the source and target instances must be present in the same data center.
• The source and the target tenants are paired.
• Ensure that you can select the production tenant in the target tenant drop down when submitting a refresh
request.
• You have the Administrator Approve Production Tenant Refresh Request permission to approve the
refresh request. Administrators with this new role based permission can only approve refreshes for live
production tenants.
• You have enabled the Manage Refresh and View Refresh Requests permission to trigger and view the refreshes
respectively.
• You must open a ticket or incident (using the component LOD-SF-PLT-CGC) requesting to enable the
Admin Center Manage Permission Roles Edit Role for SuperAdmin Manage Instance Refresh Approve
Production Tenant Refresh Request option in your instance. For further assistance, contact Technical
Support.

Context

Production tenant refreshes are irreversible and requires approval from an administrator. We've introduced two
levels of approvals to schedule the refresh request. Administrators with Instance Refresh Tool (IRT) refresh
permissions can choose a production tenant as the refresh target and configure additional options such as the
refresh date and data anonymization before submitting their request. After each refresh, SAP will disable the
refresh functionality to protect production tenant data and prevent accidental refreshes.

 Note

You must initiate a manual refresh for SAP SuccessFactors instances with Learning Management System (LMS)
integration.

Procedure

1. Go to Admin Center Instance Refresh Center Create New Request Create Instance Refresh Request
page.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

26 PUBLIC Approving Production Tenant Refresh
2. Enter the required source tenant and target tenant information in the Create Instance Refresh Request page.
If you select a production tenant as the target tenant, a message pop up appears asking whether you want to
proceed.

 Note

If you select and proceed with the refresh of your production tenant as the target tenant result in the
complete and irreversible deletion of all data, including transactional data, general audit, read audit, and
change audit logs, as well as configurations within the production tenant. This action is irreversible.

3. Click Submit, if you want to proceed with the refresh.

If you proceed with Submit, then the initial Refresh Status in Instance Refresh Center page is set to Pending
Approval.

 Note

The refresh request is canceled if it is not approved within 24 hours of the scheduled date.

A pop up message appears, requesting you to select the Acknowledgment and Acceptance. Click Ok to
proceed.
4. Click on Refresh Status to see the refresh status information as a pop up.
The list of designated reviewers with the Approve Production Tenant Refresh Request permission appears in the
Refresh Status Information pop up.
5. Click the ellipsis button under the Action column for the identified instance refresh request, and then click
Approve or Reject.
When you select Approve, a Production Tenant Refresh Request Requires Review pop up appears.

 Note

Click Submit on the pop up after you acknowledge and agree to proceed with the production tenant refresh.
After submission, the Refresh Status appears as Validation In Progress in the Refresh Status column.

Related Information

Creating an Instance Refresh Request [page 22]

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Approving Production Tenant Refresh PUBLIC 27
11 Deleting an Instance Pair

Remove invalid instance pairs using the Delete Pair option.

Procedure

1. On the source instance, go to Admin Center.

2. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option chosen.
3. Choose Next.
4. Choose Create New Request.

The Create Instance Refresh Request page appears.

5. Choose Delete Pair and delete the invalid pairs from the Instance Pair Wizard.

 Note

If the refresh status is In Progress, Validation in Progress, Post Refresh Activities in Progress, Scheduled, or
Instance Stabilization in Progress, deletion will not occur.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

28 PUBLIC Deleting an Instance Pair
12 Instance Refresh Data Anonymization
Fields

Know the generic names of all the fields that are anonymized in the refreshed target instance.

Data anonymization is a type of information sanitization with the intent of privacy protection. It is a process of
either encrypting or removing personally identifiable information from data sets, so that the people whom the data
describe remains anonymous.

You can anonymize data in your target instance using Instance Refresh. There are different types of anonymizing
your data. The types used in Instance Refresh are:

• Deterministic Anonymization, in this type of anonymization, the actual value is replaced with any alpha-
numeric value in the target instance. For example, If Place of Birth is London, it can be anonymized as 12E3RT.
If the Nationality is Indian, it can be anonymized as 258935.
• Fixed Value, in this type of anonymization, the actual value is replaced with a predefined value
in the target instance. For example, If Email ID is [Link]@[Link], it is anonymized to
dummy@[Link]. If Address1, Address2, and Address3 is 91 Talbot Street, San Lorenzo, CA
94580, it is anonymized as address1, address2, address3.
• Null Value, in this type of anonymization, the actual value is replaced with a blank in the target instance. For
example, the photo of a user is anonymized by keeping it empty in the target instance.
• Random Date In this type of anonymization, the actual date is replaced with a random date. For example, if
Date of Birth is 22-Oct-84, it can be anonymized with some other random date as 14-Nov-79.
• Random Gender, in this type of anonymization, the gender is anonymized as Male in the target instance
irrespective of any gender value in the source instance. For example, If the Gender is Female, it is anonymized
as Male. If the Gender is Male, it is still anonymized as Male in the target instance.
• Randomize, in this type of anonymization, any value related to compensation or Benefit rate is anonymized to
a random numeric value. For example, if the employee compensation is 45 it can be anonymized to 23.
• Randomize Percentage, in this type of anonymization, the value related the Employee direct deposit amount
is anonymized to value range from 0 to 100 in the target instance. For example, if the employee direct deposit
amount is 450000 it can be anonymized as 100.
• Based on User Key, in this type of anonymization some of the user management fields are anonymized with
the fixed or null type. The fields are:
• Address fields, where any value in the fields ADDR1, ADDR2, and ADDR3 are anonymized with the value
address1, address2, and address3 respectively.
• Email ID, where any value in the field is anonymized with the value dummy@[Link].
• Gender, irrespective of any gender (Male or Female) in the field is anonymized with the value Male.
• Business phone number and Fax number, is anonymized to any other random number.
• Shuffling Column Values, in this type of anonymization, the actual value of a user in a table can take the value
of some other user from the same column. See the example table before and after anonymization:

Before Anonymization
User ID First Name Last Name Middle Name

1234 Marko Debric Veljko

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields PUBLIC 29
 User ID First Name Last Name Middle Name

1235 Stevan Vesiljevic Slobodan

1236 Milica Atlagic Zdravko

1237 Jelena Polinger Misa

After Anonymization
User ID First Name Last Name Middle Name

1234 Milica Polinger Zdravko

1235 Jelena Atlagic Misa

1236 Marko Vesiljevic Veljko

1237 Stevan Debric Slobodan

The table lists all the fields with the generic name that are anonymized for the Recruiting Management, Employee
Central and, User Management fields.

Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

User Management User ID | First Name User ID | First Name | Last Shuffling Column Val-
| Last Name | Middle Name | Middle Name ues
Name

User Management User ID | First Name Display Name Deterministic Anonym-

| Last Name | Middle ization
Name

User Management Email Email Fixed or Null dummy@successfactor

[Link]

User Management Gender Gender Random Gender

User Management Nickname Nickname Deterministic Anonym-

ization

User Management Suffix Suffix Deterministic Anonym-

ization

User Management Address1 | Address2 | Address Fixed or Null Address 1, Address 2,

Address3 and Address 3

User Management SSN | Date of Birth SSN | DOB Deterministic Anonym-

ization

User Management Business Phone | Busi- Phone Deterministic Anonym-

ness Fax ization

User Management Photo Photo Null

Employee Central Actor Actor Fixed Value dummy@successfactor

[Link]

Employee Central Role ID Role ID Fixed Value dummy@successfactor

[Link]

Employee Central Date of Birth | Date of Date of Birth | Date of Random Date
Death | Married Since Death | Married Since

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

30 PUBLIC Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields
 Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

Employee Central Address Info Address<1-20> Fixed or Null Address 1, Address 2,

and Address 3. All
other address fields
have null value.

Employee Central Address Info Address<1-20>_alt1 Null

Employee Central Address Info Address<1-20>_alt2 Null

Employee Central Address Info Notes Null

Employee Central Email Emergency Contact Email Fixed or Null If an email address is
present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Employee Central Email Is Dependent Fixed Value If the value is present,

then it is updated to 0
(zero).

Employee Central Email Is Address Same as Em- Fixed Value If the value is present,
ployee then it is updated to 0
(zero).

Employee Central COMPA_RATIO Is Highly Compensated Fixed Value 0

Employee

Employee Central COMPA_RATIO Benefits Rate Randomize

Employee Central COMPA_RATIO COMPA_RATIO Fixed Value 0

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Gender Random Gender

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO DOB Randomize

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Date of Death Randomize

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO First Name Shuffling Column Val-

ues

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Last Name Shuffling Column Val-

ues

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Middle Name Shuffling Column Val-

ues

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Display Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Formal Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO DISPLAY_NAME_ALT1 Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO DISPLAY_NAME_ALT2 Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO FORMAL_NAME_ALT1 Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields PUBLIC 31
 Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO FORMAL_NAME_ALT2 Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Preferred Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Second Last Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Partner Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Partner Name Prefix Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO LAST_NAME_ALT1 Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Birth Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central PERSONAL_INFO Initials Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central EMAIL_ADDRESS EMAIL_ADDRESS Fixed Value dummy@successfactor

[Link]

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: EMP_PAYCOMP_RECUR- Randomize

AMOUNT RING: AMOUNT

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: EMP_PAY- Randomize

AMOUNT COMP_NON_RECUR-
RING: AMOUNT

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: PER- EMP_PAYCOMP_RECUR- Randomize

CENT RING: PERCENT

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: PER- EMP_PAY- Randomize

CENT COMP_NON_RECUR-
RING: PERCENT

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: NUM- EMP_PAYCOMP_RECUR- Randomize

BER RING: NUMBER

Employee Central EMP_PAYCOMP: NUM- EMP_PAY- Randomize

BER COMP_NON_RECUR-
RING: NUMBER

Employee Central PLACE_OF_BIRTH PLACE_OF_BIRTH Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central Phone Phone Number Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central Phone Primary Phone Number Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central Phone Secondary Phone Number Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

32 PUBLIC Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields
 Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

Employee Central Suffix Suffix Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central ACCOUNT_NUMBER ACCOUNT_NUMBER Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central JOB_TITLE Job Title Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central Extension Extension Fixed Value 0123

Employee Central IM_INFO IM_ID Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central IM_INFO URL NULL

Employee Central Amount Amount Randomize Percentage

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Pay Grade Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Sick Pay Supplement Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Continued Sickness Pay Null

Period

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Contract End Date Fixed Value 07-07-2025

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Continuous Sickness Pay Null

Measure

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Pension Protection Fixed Value 0

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO Teachers Pension Fixed Value 0

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO CALC_METHOD_INDICA- Fixed Value 0

TOR

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO PERMIT_INDICATOR Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO PCFM Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO FGTS_OPTANT Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO FGTS_DATE Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO FGTS_PERCENT Null

Employee Central EMP_JOB_INFO TUPE Organization Num- Null

ber

Employee Central National ID National ID Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Employee Central CALCU- CALCULATED_AMOUNT Fixed Value 0

LATED_AMOUNT

Recruiting Candidate Email Post RCM Candidate Profile Fixed Value If an email address is
Conversion Conversion present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields PUBLIC 33
 Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

Recruiting Candidate Email RCM Candidate Email Ad- Fixed or Null If an email address is
dress present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Recruiting Personal Information RCM Application Candi- Deterministic Anonym-

date Info ization

Recruiting Candidate Name RCM Candidate Name Shuffling Column Val-

ues

Recruiting Candidate LinkedIn In- RCM Candidate LinkedIn Null

formtion

Recruiting Offer Information RCM Offer Detail Info Fixed or Null If an email address is
present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Recruiting Agency Email RCM Agency Info Fixed or Null If an email address is
present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Recruiting Agency Recruiter RCM External Recruiter Shuffling Column Val-

Name ues

Recruiting XML response to BGI RCM BGI Request Re- Null

request sponse

Recruiting Contact Email RCM Secondary Candi- Fixed or Null If an email address is
date Email present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Recruiting Secondary Candidate RCM Secondary Candi- Shuffling Column Val-

Name date Name ues

Recruiting Offer Letter RCM Offer Letter Null

Recruiting Candidate Contact Contact Number Deterministic Anonym-

Number ization

Recruiting Home Phone Number Home Phone Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Recruiting Fax Fax Number Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Recruiting Cell Phone Number Cell Phone Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Recruiting Agency Primary Con- Primary Contact Deterministic Anonym-

tact ization

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

34 PUBLIC Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields
 Type of Anonymiza-
Module Generic Field Label Generic Field ID tion Fixed Value Details

Recruiting Agency Phone Number Phone Number Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Recruiting Social Security Num- SSN Deterministic Anonym-

ber ization

Recruiting Secondary User name Secondary User name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Recruiting Candidate Residential Address Fixed or Null If an address is

Address present, then it is
updated as dummy
address.

Recruiting Attachments Attachments Fixed -99999

Recruiting Candidate Unique RCM Candidate Unique Randomize

Email Email

Onboarding Email Recipient Email Fixed or Null If an email address is

present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Onboarding Recipient Recipient Name Deterministic Anonym-

ization

Onboarding View Email Message Body Null

Onboarding Attachments Email Attachment Null

Onboarding Email Argument Email Argument Null

Onboarding Primary Email RCM Primary Email Fixed or Null If an email address is
present, then it is up-
dated to
dummy@successfactor
[Link].

Onboarding Subject Sent Email Subject Deterministic Anonym-

ization

 Note

Some of the previous field names have been merged with new field label names for Recruiting:

• email_address is merged with Candidate Email

• rcm_candidate_info and rcm_application_d_candidate_info are merged with Personal Information
• rcm_application_candidate_name, rcm_application_d_candidate_name,
rcm_offer_detail_job_app_name, and candidate_name are merged with Candidate Name
Custom fields are not within the scope of the Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Process.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Instance Refresh Data Anonymization Fields PUBLIC 35
13 Post Refresh Activities

Once you receive an email notification with refresh status as Successful, you must perform certain activities.

• Delete the data from the Data Replication Monitor to keep the target instance clean. For more information, see
the Employee Central Data Replication Monitor link in the Related Information section.
• Ensure that the integrated systems that replicate data from HCM Suite run a full sync to keep the data
consistent and integrations working seamlessly.
• Certain jobs are deleted, copied, or restored to the target instance to process the job data based on the
configuration.
For example, certain jobs that don't have an impact on any other integrated systems are copied from the
source to the target instance. After the refresh, these jobs must be scheduled based on the configurations
and data in the refreshed target instance. There are certain jobs, like FTP jobs, that have an impact on other
integrated systems, where the FTP endpoints and credentials on the production instance can be different from
those on the preview instance. In such cases, a backup of the target instance is taken before refreshing it. After
the refresh, all the jobs are restored in the target instance. Jobs scheduled in the source or target but don’t
need to be copied or restored after the refresh are deleted from the target instance.
• Post refresh, references to all the attachments from the source instance are copied to the target instance.
However, the content of all the attachments are replaced with dummy content. If necessary, post refresh, you
can manually upload your attachments. This is applicable only to the attachments that are available in SAP
SuccessFactors HCM suite and not to SAP SuccessFactors Learning.

 Note

If the source instance is using a third-party storage provider to store attachments, for example OpenText,
then these attachments aren’t copied from source to target instance, post instance refresh. To view your
company’s document storage vendor, go to Admin Center Configure Document Management .

• Only Employee Profile emails and Recruiting emails (internal and external candidates) are masked as part of
the refresh process. If you've enabled Employee Central in the source instance and have set business emails for
some users, then post refresh, you must import Business email to mask Employee Central - business emails.
This avoids the masked email in user data file (employee profile emails) to be overwritten with live email.
• After your target instance is refreshed successfully, a backup of your target instance (which was taken before
refreshing) is kept for 10 days. This is applicable for both manual refresh and refresh using the Instance Refresh
self-service tool.
• Ensure that the PGP Keys are restored as part of the post refresh activity.

Post Refresh Activities

Product Post refresh activities

Career Explorer Post refresh, if Career Explorer isn’t available in the target instance, then you must enable
the required permissions to see Career Explorer in the target instance. For more information
on enabling Career Explorer, see the related link section.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

36 PUBLIC Post Refresh Activities
 Product Post refresh activities

Onboarding If your instance has Onboarding:

• Enable PFS using the same credentials as the source instance. To enable PFS, see the
Enabling Print Forms Service link in the Related Information section.
• Upload the forms. To upload forms, see the Uploading a Document Template link in the
Related Information section.
• Set up DocuSign using the target instance credentials that you noted before refresh.
To set up DocuSign, see the Setting Up DocuSign for Onboarding link the Related
Information section.
• Deploy BPE schema in your target instance. To deploy BPE schema, see the Deploying
Onboarding Process Definition link in the Related Information section.

Post-refresh:

• The Onboarding Dashboard will display copied Onboarding New Hire records from the
source system to the target system.
• All tasks for New Hires will be marked as completed.
• It's recommended that you run the Onboarding Process Closure Job to remove all the
Onboarding processes that are copied from the source instance.
• To reuse the Onboarding processes that are copied from the source instance to the
target instance, it's recommended that you restart or cancel the Onboarding process
from the Onboarding Dashboard by choosing Restart.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Post Refresh Activities PUBLIC 37
Product Post refresh activities

Identity Provisioning Service When your target instance SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite is integrated with SAP Cloud
(IPS) Identity Services - Identity Authentication, the Identity Provisioning Service (IPS) admin
must verify IPS template where refreshed target instance is the source system and then
do a manual resync in IPS. This configuration allows users to access the refreshed target
instance. To configure the IPS job with proper user:

• Ensure that all user entities are synched to IAS using IPS. Run a resync job in the source
systems to ensure that the users are synced. See Managing Job Log Jobs from Identity
Provisioning in the Related Information section.
• Before doing the IPS resync, you need to verify IPSADMIN and corresponding per-
missions in the refreshed target instance. See Manage Properties from Identity
Provisioning in the Related Information section.
• If you have set up real-time user sync, you need to verify and update the integration
configuration for the business scenario Real-time User Account Sync from SAP Suc-
cessFactors to SAP IPS. For more information, refer to the Related Information section.
• If there are no users with the permission to export user data with one of the conditions,
perform the corresponding action.

Condition Action

You’re able to log in to the refreshed target Create users with the permission to export
instance. user data. To create users with this permission,
see Granting Permissions and Setting API
Login Exceptions from SAP SuccessFactors
HCM Suite OData API: Developer Guide in
the Related Information section.

No one is able to log in to the refreshed target You can perform one of the following options:
instance. • Your IAS admin must change the login
name of a user in IAS to that of a
known SAP SuccessFactors admin from
the source instance. To change the login
name, see List and Edit User Details
from Identity Authentication in the Re-
lated Information section.

• Your IAS admin can manually create a

user in IAS that matches a known SAP
SuccessFactors admin from the source
instance. To create an IAS user, Create a
New User from Identity Authentication in
the Related Information section.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

38 PUBLIC Post Refresh Activities
 Product Post refresh activities

Learning When your Learning Target System is integrated with Identity Authentication and Identity
Provisioning Services (initiated or activated) and user data was synched to Identity Authenti-
cation from Learning prior to refresh, all Learning-only users must be removed from Identity
Authentication and a full sync run to keep the data consistent.

To delete users in Identity Authentication:

• Ensure that all user entities have User Source System populated.
• Remove Learning-only users by setting [Link] to: username eq "xxx" in Identity
Provisioning> Source Systems> Learning> Properties tab, where “xxx” is a username
that doesn’t exist. On the Jobs tab, select the Run Now action.

To resync user from Learning to Identity Authentication:

• Resync Learning-only active users by modifying [Link] to: sourceSystem eq

"Learning" and active eq "true" (thereby removing username="XXX"). On the Jobs tab,
select the Run Now action. Verify the job execution to ensure all users needed in your
Identity Authentication environment are synched and the Identity Authentication Global
User ID is populated in the Learning user record, Global User ID field.

 Note
If Identity Authentication was activated, a password must be established for a learn-
ing-only user to access the Target system. An Identity Authentication administrator
can set the initial password for existing users. For users created after the refresh,
the Identity Provisioning transformation rule to send mail can be enabled.

When your Learning Target System is integrated with Identity Authentication and Identity
Provisioning Services (initiated or activated), Child applications (Learning sites) in Identity
Authentication will inherit the Learning Application settings. Any overrides required must
be configured in Identity Authentication since each site copied from source will be created
as a new application in Identity Authentication. You can choose to manually delete Identity
Authentication child applications left over from the original target instance data.

If your Learning Target System integration with Identity Authentication and Identity Provi-
sioning Services wasn’t initiated, you can proceed with the setup process if such integration
is needed.

Integration Center Destination settings need to be manually maintained and the integration has to be explicitly
saved.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Post Refresh Activities PUBLIC 39
Product Post refresh activities

People Analytics For Stories in People Analytics, run the IPS sync twice. In the first run the IPS will read the
users once and delete the delta users and in the second run, it will create the users correctly
with the new information and Person UUID that came from the source.

If the IPS Sync fails with an Authentication Error, check if the source instance and the target
instance have the same password for the user. If they don't match, you can run a Read job to
confirm if it fails to read users. If yes, update the password in IPS.

 Note
If you do not know the password, reset it on SAP SuccessFactors and update it in the IPS
source system and IAS source system.

Fundamentally, users who were already synced before the instance refresh should be re-
moved from SAP Analytics Cloud. New user records in SAP SuccessFactors should sync
successfully. To achieve the correct deletion, creation, and updating of users from the SAP
SuccessFactors tenant after an instance refresh, please review the following steps:

 Note
If you're already using SCIM IPS connectors, we strongly recommend migrating to per-
mission-based user sync after an instance refresh. This approach limits user sync to
only those with Report Center permissions. For detailed migration instructions, please
refer to the "Migrating to Permission-Based User Sync for Stories in People Analytics"
topic. You can also check the enablement configurations section in the "Implementing
Design Principle" guide.

• Ensure the refreshed SAP SuccessFactors system doesn't have any duplicate email IDs.
If duplicates exist, update each user with unique email IDs before invoking IPS RESYNC.
• Do not invoke IPS Reset or modify any properties or transformations in the IPS source
or target. Ensure the IPS SAC target properties are updated as mentioned in the "Things
to Know" section, with [Link] set to true.
• Run the IPS RESYNC job two to three times and ensure it completes without any errors.
• With each sync, ensure there are no errors, especially during read operations from the
SAP SuccessFactors source. If there's any error in reading users from the source, IPS
won't delete any users in the connected target systems, such as SAP Analytics Cloud.

Related Information

SAP Note 2835061

Employee Central Data Replication Monitor
Implementing the Employee Central Compound Employee API
Manage Jobs and Job Logs
Manage Properties
Granting Permissions
Setting API Login Exceptions

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

40 PUBLIC Post Refresh Activities
List and Edit User Details
Create a New User
Enabling Print Forms Service
Uploading a Document Template
Setting Up DocuSign for Onboarding
Deploying Onboarding Process Definition
SAP Note 2301924
Synchronizing User Account from SAP SuccessFactors to SAP Identity Provisioning Service in Real Time
Enabling Career Explorer
How to migrate User Passwords from SAP SuccessFactoes to Identity Authentication

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Post Refresh Activities PUBLIC 41
14 Downloading the Error Log File

Download the error log file to find more details on the error status of the instance refresh request.

Prerequisites

Either the View Refresh Requests or the Manage Refresh permission must be enabled.

Context

When the status of your refresh request is in Validation Failed, Completed with Warnings, Failed, or Reverted, the
Instance Refresh tool generates an error log file in which you can find the details of these errors, and the summary
of an instance refresh request. You can download the error log file from the Overview tab of the Instance Refresh
Center page. An email notification is also sent to you providing the details of these errors.

As a pre-validation check, we've also integrated Check Tool in the error log file. With the help of the Check Tool
integration, administrators can fix potential problems and errors in the source instance, before refreshing the target
instance. This avoids replicating the same errors in the target instance, post refresh.

There are two types of errors that can occur during refresh request:

• Technical Errors are the once that you can fix by contacting SAP Cloud Support. As a next step, download the
error log file, and then contact SAP Cloud Support through support ticket and attach the downloaded error log.
• Non-Technical Errors are the ones which you can fix. To know the errors, download the error log file and fix
accordingly.

Procedure

1. Logon to your SAP SuccessFactors source instance.

2. Go to Admin Center.
3. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh. Access the tool by clicking on the search result.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option selected.
4. Click Next.

The Instance Refresh Center page appears.

5. Identify your instance refresh request.
6. Click the ellipsis button under the Action column for the identified instance refresh request, and then click
Download Log.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

42 PUBLIC Downloading the Error Log File
Results

A text file is downloaded to your system with the error details. The error log also displays the results of the checks
that were last run using Check Tool.

 Note

We recommend that you run the checks using Check Tool just before you submit an instane refresh request and
fix the errors and problems in the source instance to avoid replicating the same issues in the target instance,
post refresh.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Downloading the Error Log File PUBLIC 43
15 Canceling Instance Refresh Request

Certain steps are required to cancel the instance refresh request.

Prerequisites

• Either the View Refresh Requests or the Manage Refreshpermission must be enabled.
• The status of the request should be either Scheduled or Validation in Progress.

Procedure

1. Logon to your SAP SuccessFactors source instance.

2. Go to Admin Center.
3. In the Tools Search field, enter Instance Refresh. Access the tool by clicking on the search result.

The Instance Management page appears with the Full Copy (Instance Refresh) option selected.
4. Click Next.

The Instance Refresh Center page appears.

5. Identify your instance refresh request.
6. Click the ellipsis button under the Action column for the identified instance refresh request, and then click
Cancel.

Results

The instance refresh request is canceled and the status Cancel is updated in the Overview tab.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

44 PUBLIC Canceling Instance Refresh Request
16 Change History

Learn about changes to the documentation for Instance Refresh in recent releases.

1H 2025

Type of Change Description More Info

Added Added information about steps to ap- Approving Production Tenant Refresh
prove production tenant refresh. [page 26]

Added Added information about scheduling re- Creating an Instance Refresh Request
freshes over the weekend using the In- [page 22]
stance Refresh Tool.

Changed Added information about the supported Important Notes while Using the Instance
schema size limit being increased to 650 Refresh Tool [page 6]
GB.

Added Added information on the Do not delete Creating an Instance Refresh Request
global user IDs option. [page 22]

2H 2024

Type of Change Description More Info

March 14

New We added new information regarding the Things to Know Before Refreshing the
things to know before refreshing a target Target Instance [page 14]
instance for Stories in People Analytics.

New We added new information regarding the Post Refresh Activities [page 36]
post refresh activities for Stories in Peo-
ple Analytics.

October 11

New The Instance Refresh Tool supports de- Deleting an Instance Pair [page 28]
leting invalid instance pairs.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

Change History PUBLIC 45
Important Disclaimers and Legal Information

Hyperlinks
Some links are classified by an icon and/or a mouseover text. These links provide additional information.
About the icons:

• Links with the icon : You are entering a Web site that is not hosted by SAP. By using such links, you agree (unless expressly stated otherwise in your agreements
with SAP) to this:

• The content of the linked-to site is not SAP documentation. You may not infer any product claims against SAP based on this information.

• SAP does not agree or disagree with the content on the linked-to site, nor does SAP warrant the availability and correctness. SAP shall not be liable for any
damages caused by the use of such content unless damages have been caused by SAP's gross negligence or willful misconduct.

• Links with the icon : You are leaving the documentation for that particular SAP product or service and are entering an SAP-hosted Web site. By using such links,
you agree that (unless expressly stated otherwise in your agreements with SAP) you may not infer any product claims against SAP based on this information.

Videos Hosted on External Platforms

Some videos may point to third-party video hosting platforms. SAP cannot guarantee the future availability of videos stored on these platforms. Furthermore, any
advertisements or other content hosted on these platforms (for example, suggested videos or by navigating to other videos hosted on the same site), are not within the
control or responsibility of SAP.

Beta and Other Experimental Features

Experimental features are not part of the officially delivered scope that SAP guarantees for future releases. This means that experimental features may be changed by
SAP at any time for any reason without notice. Experimental features are not for productive use. You may not demonstrate, test, examine, evaluate or otherwise use the
experimental features in a live operating environment or with data that has not been sufficiently backed up.
The purpose of experimental features is to get feedback early on, allowing customers and partners to influence the future product accordingly. By providing your feedback
(e.g. in the SAP Community), you accept that intellectual property rights of the contributions or derivative works shall remain the exclusive property of SAP.

Example Code
Any software coding and/or code snippets are examples. They are not for productive use. The example code is only intended to better explain and visualize the syntax and
phrasing rules. SAP does not warrant the correctness and completeness of the example code. SAP shall not be liable for errors or damages caused by the use of example
code unless damages have been caused by SAP's gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Bias-Free Language
SAP supports a culture of diversity and inclusion. Whenever possible, we use unbiased language in our documentation to refer to people of all cultures, ethnicities, genders,
and abilities.

Using the Instance Refresh Tool

46 PUBLIC Important Disclaimers and Legal Information
Using the Instance Refresh Tool
Important Disclaimers and Legal Information PUBLIC 47
[Link]/contactsap

© 2025 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form

or for any purpose without the express permission of SAP SE or an SAP
affiliate company. The information contained herein may be changed
without prior notice.

Some software products marketed by SAP SE and its distributors

contain proprietary software components of other software vendors.
National product specifications may vary.

These materials are provided by SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company for

informational purposes only, without representation or warranty of any
kind, and SAP or its affiliated companies shall not be liable for errors or
omissions with respect to the materials. The only warranties for SAP or
SAP affiliate company products and services are those that are set forth
in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and
services, if any. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an
additional warranty.

SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as
their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP
SE (or an SAP affiliate company) in Germany and other countries. All
other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their
respective companies.

Please see [Link] for

additional trademark information and notices.

THE BEST RUN