Updated: 14 November 2026
C_HAMOD, the SAP Data Engineer certification exam for SAP HANA (SAP Certified - Data Engineer - SAP HANA), has only two topic areas: Data Access and Calculation Views, each weighted 41-50%. You show both in one 3-hour task inside a live SAP system. This guide turns each topic area into the concrete tasks you should be able to do, and shows how to split six weeks of practice between them.
What are the two topic areas in the SAP Data Engineer certification?
The two C_HAMOD topic areas are Data Access (41-50%) and Calculation Views (41-50%). SAP publishes no other areas. Both are tested in one system-based activity of 3 hours, and you need 60% to pass.
Those figures come from SAP's C_HAMOD certification page, checked on 14 November 2026. The same page describes the exam as checking "data provisioning and data modelling skills in SAP HANA Cloud and SAP HANA". In plain terms, Data Access means getting data into reach of the database, and Calculation Views means modelling that data for reporting.
| Exam fact | Value on SAP Learning (14 Nov 2026) |
|---|---|
| Code | C_HAMOD (no version suffix) |
| Assessment type | System-based assessment (SyBA), 1 activity |
| Duration | 3 hours |
| Pass score | 60% |
| Topic areas | Data Access 41-50%, Calculation Views 41-50% |
| Language | English |
Both areas share the same range, so neither can be skipped. Even at the low end, each one carries 41% of the result.
What does Data Access look like as hands-on work?
Data Access is the work of connecting SAP HANA Cloud to data that lives somewhere else. You either read it in place, copy it, or transform it on the way in. In the system that means remote sources, virtual tables, replication and flowgraphs.
SAP's Provisioning Data course (code HAHC55) lists the skills. You create a remote source through the user interface or with SQL. You create virtual tables both in a classic schema and in an SAP HANA Deployment Infrastructure (HDI) container. You access remote tables without a virtual table, set up replication with SQL, replication tasks or replication services, and build flowgraphs for transformation.
The hard part is rarely the clicks. It is the choice. A brief that says the source stays the single system of record points to virtualisation. A brief about heavy, repeated aggregations over a slow link points to a local, refreshed copy. Practise saying which method fits before you build anything, because a working replication can still be the wrong answer to a brief that asked for live data.
What does Calculation Views work look like in the system?
Calculation Views work means building graphical views in SAP Business Application Studio (BAS) that return correct, reportable results. You create dimension and cube views, combine nodes, add calculated logic and parameters, then build and test.
SAP's Developing Data Models course (code HC300) has 20 units. They run from creating calculation views, common nodes, joins, union nodes, data slices and ranking, through functions, dynamic views and hierarchies, to custom SQL logic, best practices and performance tools. A short end-to-end example is SAP's cube calculation view tutorial: create the view, join it to a table, configure the join, configure semantics, then build and test.
In a timed task, "correct" means the numbers. A cube view that deploys but double-counts revenue because of a wrong join cardinality is still wrong. Check every view against a plain SQL count or sum before you move on.
The tooling also moves. Jan Zwickel of SAP keeps an overview of calculation view features on SAP Community, with separate posts for SAP HANA Cloud releases. So practise on a current system, not from old screenshots.
Which course units map to which exam tasks?
Each SAP course unit translates into a task you can rehearse and a check that proves you finished it. SAP does not publish this mapping. The table below is my own reading of the unit titles against the two topic areas.
| Topic area | SAP course content | Task to rehearse in the system | Done when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Access | HAHC55: remote sources (UI or SQL) | Create a remote source to a given system | Remote objects are browsable |
| Data Access | HAHC55: virtual tables, classic schema and HDI | Expose a remote table as a virtual table in your project | A SELECT returns rows |
| Data Access | HAHC55: remote tables without virtual tables | Query a remote table directly | The query returns the same rows |
| Data Access | HAHC55: replication (SQL, tasks, services) | Keep a local copy of one source table | Row counts match the source |
| Data Access | HAHC55: flowgraphs | Read, filter or map, and load a target table | The run succeeds and target columns are right |
| Calculation Views | HC300 units 2-4: views, nodes, joins | Dimension view plus cube view with a star join | Preview totals match a SQL sum |
| Calculation Views | HC300 units 5-7: union, data slices, rank | Combine two sources; return top N per group | Row counts and ranks are as expected |
| Calculation Views | HC300 units 8-9: functions, dynamic views | Calculated column, input parameter, variable | A test value returns the expected rows |
| Calculation Views | HC300 unit 10: hierarchies | Level or parent-child hierarchy | It drills correctly in the preview |
| Calculation Views | HC300 units 13-14: performance | Set cardinality; check pruning with the tools | Unused joins are pruned |
| Both | HC300 units 1, 17-18: projects, lifecycle | Build and deploy the whole project | Build log is clean |
The last row matters most under time pressure. In a system-based assessment, a view that will not deploy leaves nothing to score.
Why don't SAP's course hours match the exam weights?
SAP's two courses are very unequal in length, but the exam weights are equal. The modelling course lasts 11 hours 35 minutes; the provisioning course lasts 3 hours 57 minutes. That is roughly 75% versus 25% of the course time.
Both durations are shown on the course pages in the Data Engineer learning journey, which has two courses. Added up, 695 minutes of modelling content sit against 237 minutes of provisioning content. The exam then gives each area the same 41-50% band.
My reading: don't let course length set your practice split. The provisioning course is short because there are fewer concepts, not because the tasks are easy. Data Access tasks also need a configured source system, which a personal trial may not have. Both courses list a hands-on practice system, and the provisioning one is the easier place to rehearse remote sources and replication.
How should you split six weeks between the two topic areas?
Give each topic area the same number of hands-on hours, and spend the rest on setup and timed rehearsal. At 7 hours a week for 6 weeks, that is 14 hours for Data Access, 14 for Calculation Views, and 14 shared.
| Week | Topic area | Focus | Done when |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shared | BAS dev space, HDI project, sample tables, technical readiness check | You deploy a table from scratch in under 15 minutes |
| 2 | Data Access | Remote sources, virtual tables (classic schema and HDI), direct remote access | You can say virtualise, replicate or transform for three made-up briefs |
| 3 | Data Access | Replication and flowgraphs | One replication and one flowgraph run without errors |
| 4 | Calculation Views | Dimension and cube views, star join, union and rank nodes, calculated columns | Every view previews totals that match SQL |
| 5 | Calculation Views | Input parameters, variables, hierarchies, cardinality, performance tools | Week 4 views take a parameter and still total correctly |
| 6 | Shared | Two timed, unbroken 3-hour rehearsals mixing both areas | You finish a mixed brief inside 2.5 hours |
This C_HAMOD study plan assumes some SQL experience. If you already build calculation views at work, fold weeks 4 and 5 into one and give the spare week to Data Access. If you are new to SAP HANA Cloud, keep all six weeks.
One practical detail for trial users: SAP's free tier tutorial notes that free tier instances are stopped every night and must be restarted before you work. Start the instance first, then start the clock on your session.
What does the system-based format change about practice?
A system-based assessment scores what you build, not what you can recall. You get a task brief and a live system, the clock runs without pause, and your result comes from the state of the system when you confirm completion.
According to SAP's practical exams FAQ, results are based on "the successful completion of defined tasks and system outputs, reviewed automatically or via evaluation scripts". The same FAQ says the exams are open book, with SAP Help Portal, SAP Learning and SAP Community as recommended sites. My inference: when a script checks the output, names and details in the brief matter. Copy object names exactly as written.
Diana Roesner, SAP's Head of Certification Transformation, explained the reason for the change in SAP's 30-year certification feature: "As AI changes how people work, certification must change with it, moving beyond what someone knows to validating what they can actually do."
SAP reports that more than 100 certifications have moved to scenario-based and system-based assessments, with more than 100,000 exams completed (Certification in the AI Era). For C_HAMOD specifically, SAP's certification page adds: "In addition to the SAP Learning Journeys we recommend to enroll to the hands-on practice system to prepare for the exam."
SAP's system-based assessment FAQ adds the exam-day rules:
- The timer starts when you click "Start the Certification Exam". Breaks do not pause it, and all tasks must be finished in one session.
- Some systems need a reserved slot, which you can cancel up to 24 hours before.
- When you finish, confirm completion. The review usually takes 15 minutes, and a score report appears under My Learnings > My Certifications.
- An attempt fails if the activity limit expires or the passing score is not reached.
Which tasks should you rehearse before booking?
Rehearse every task in the mapping table without notes, timed, until each one works on the first try. Then run at least one full 3-hour mixed brief in a single sitting.
Project and environment - [ ] Create a BAS dev space and an SAP HANA database project bound to an HDI container. - [ ] Deploy a table with sample data and find it in the database explorer. - [ ] Fix a deliberately broken artefact by reading the build log, without recreating it.
Data Access - [ ] Create a remote source and a virtual table, then query it. - [ ] Explain virtualise, replicate or transform for a given brief, in two sentences. - [ ] Build a replication for one source table and check that rows arrive. - [ ] Build and run a flowgraph that filters or maps columns into a target table.
Calculation Views - [ ] Build a dimension view and a cube view with a star join. - [ ] Use projection, join, union, aggregation and rank nodes for the right requirement. - [ ] Add a calculated column and a restricted column, and check both against SQL. - [ ] Add an input parameter and a variable, and test a value that should return no rows. - [ ] Add a hierarchy and check it in the data preview. - [ ] Set join cardinality and confirm pruning with the performance tools.
For a mixed rehearsal brief, write something like bring sales orders from a remote source into a cube view with a currency input parameter and a region hierarchy, then work it through without stopping.
Between system sessions, ERPPrep's C_HAMOD sample questions include six free sample questions and one free scenario on decisions like virtual table versus replication, or dimension versus cube view, each showing the correct option and a rationale. They check your reasoning, not your clicks, so treat them as a supplement to system time.
Where do candidates usually lose time?
Most lost time comes from five avoidable problems: deployment errors, the wrong provisioning method, inflated totals, parameters that are not wired through, and long detours. These come from how the assessment works, not from survey data.
- Deployment errors. A missing synonym, wrong namespace or broken reference stops the build. Learn to read the build log fast.
- Wrong provisioning method. Replicating data the brief wanted virtualised can run fine and still miss the task.
- Inflated totals. A wrong join type or cardinality multiplies rows. Compare every total with a simple SQL query.
- Unmapped parameters. An input parameter defined in one view but not mapped in the view above it fails silently.
- Long detours. The clock never stops, so decide in advance when you park a task and come back.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What are the C_HAMOD topic areas and weights? Data Access (41-50%) and Calculation Views (41-50%), per SAP's certification page on 14 November 2026. SAP lists no other areas, so plan for both at close to equal weight.
Q: What is the C_HAMOD passing score? 60%. The exam is one system-based activity of 3 hours, delivered in English, according to SAP Learning.
Q: What are the C_HAMOD requirements in 2026? An SAP Learning Hub subscription that includes certification attempts, and an SAP Universal ID with a secondary email. SAP's FAQ asks for at least two emails with different domains. Run the Technical Readiness Checklist on your exam machine.
Q: Is C_HAMOD about SAP HANA Cloud or on-premise SAP HANA? SAP's description names both SAP HANA Cloud and SAP HANA. The learning journey and both courses are built on SAP HANA Cloud and SAP Business Application Studio, so practise there.
Q: What are the best C_HAMOD resources in 2026? Start with SAP's learning journey and its two courses, HC300 and HAHC55, plus their hands-on practice systems. Add SAP's developer tutorials for SAP HANA Cloud, and use SAP Help Portal and SAP Community during practice, as the exam is open book.
Q: Can I pause the C_HAMOD timer for a break? No. You can take breaks, but SAP's FAQ says the timer keeps running and all tasks must be finished in a single session.
Q: How soon do I get my C_HAMOD result? After you confirm completion, SAP reviews the attempt. SAP's FAQ says this usually takes 15 minutes, and the score report appears under My Learnings > My Certifications.
Key takeaways
- C_HAMOD has two topic areas, Data Access and Calculation Views, each 41-50%, tested in one 3-hour system task with a 60% pass score.
- SAP's course time is about 75% modelling and 25% provisioning. The exam weights are equal, so give both the same hands-on hours.
- Turn every course unit into a task with a clear "done when" check, and rehearse until each one works on the first try.
- Finish with at least one unbroken 3-hour mixed rehearsal that ends with a confirm-completion step.
Last reviewed: 14 November 2026. Exam facts checked live on SAP Learning on that date.
For more SAP HANA modelling and certification guides, see the SAP HANA Central homepage.
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