What are the types of CDS Views in SAP S/4HANA?

SAP S/4HANA uses four types of CDS Views: Basic (foundation layer on tables), Composite (joins multiple Basic Views), Consumption (application-ready with UI annotations), and Transactional (supports CRUD operations in the RAP model).

What is the difference between a Basic and Consumption CDS View?

Basic Views provide a clean, reusable abstraction over database tables without business logic. Consumption Views sit at the top of the VDM hierarchy, add UI annotations and authorization, and are designed for direct use by Fiori apps and OData services.

Guide July 19, 2026

Types of CDS Views: Basic, Composite, Consumption, and Transactional

Understand the four VDM layers of SAP CDS Views — Basic, Composite, Consumption, and Transactional — and when each type is used.

The Four Types of CDS Views

SAP classifies CDS Views into four layers within the Virtual Data Model (VDM). Each layer has a distinct purpose and sits at a specific level in the data access hierarchy.

Basic Views

Basic Views (also called Interface Views) are the foundation layer. They sit directly on top of database tables and provide a clean, reusable abstraction. Basic Views typically:

Select fields from one or a few database tables
Rename technical field names to business-friendly names
Add key field annotations and associations
Do not contain business logic or calculated fields

Naming convention: I_<BusinessObject> (e.g., I_SalesOrder).

Browse all Basic Views

Composite Views

Composite Views combine multiple Basic Views to create richer business objects. They add joins, unions, and calculated fields to assemble data from multiple sources into a coherent entity.

Join multiple Basic Views
Add calculated fields and type conversions
Still relatively generic and reusable

Naming convention: I_<BusinessObject><Aspect>.

Browse all Composite Views

Consumption Views

Consumption Views are the top layer, designed for direct use by applications, OData services, and analytical queries. They add UI annotations, authorization checks, and application-specific filtering.

Carry @UI annotations for Fiori rendering
Defined for specific use cases (list reports, analytical queries, etc.)
Often exposed as OData entities via Service Definitions

Naming convention: C_<BusinessObject><UseCase>.

Browse all Consumption Views

Transactional Views

Transactional Views enable create, update, and delete operations (not just read). They are used in the ABAP RESTful Application Programming Model (RAP) for transactional processing.

Support draft handling and BOPF integration
Carry @ObjectModel annotations for behavior definition
Used by Fiori Elements apps with editing capabilities

Summary Table

Type	Layer	Purpose	Naming
Basic	Foundation	Clean table abstraction	I_*
Composite	Middle	Joins and enrichment	I_*
Consumption	Top	App-specific, UI-ready	C_*
Transactional	Top	CRUD operations (RAP)	I_* / R_*