Author: saptechnicalguru

FIORI app support

FIORI app support is a nice tool. With the tool, you can get support on app issues.

The tool can help with:

  • Getting specific version information for a FIORI app
  • Checking if the SICF services are active
  • Checking if the ODATA services are active
  • Checking for authorization errors

This blog will explain these topics and will explain how the setup of the function works.

How to use the FIORI app support

In any FIORI app (not the main launchpad), click on your person icon:

And open the app support from the menu:

Now the app support screen will first open with the version information:

Clicking on Front end server shows the front end server status for this app:

In this case you can already see there are issues with the backend:

You can download the logs by pressing the Download Logs button:

By clicking on all the checks and logs, you can quickly detect where any issue of the FIORI application might be.

How to setup the FIORI app support

FIORI app support needs to be setup. First activate these 2 SICF services;

  • /default_host/sap/bc/bsp/sap/sui_flp_app_sup
  • /default_host/sap/bc/ui5_ui5/sap/sui_flp_app_sup

And activate this ODATA service: sui_flp_app_sup_srv.

Start transaction /UI2/FLP_CONF_DEF to check this entry is present (and if not present, create it):

Now use transaction /UI2/FLP_CUS_CONF to check that this entry is set to active. If not, create the entry and set it to active:

Another option is via business catalog.

For both methods: read the SAP help file.

SAP references and OSS notes

SAP blog on FIORI app support: link.

Help file on App support: link.

S4HANA migration cockpit as successor of LSMW

LSMW is the old legacy system migration workbench. In S4HANA this is now replaced by S4HANA migration cockpit.

This blog will explain the basic configuration required to get the migration cockpit going.

Warning: in between versions SAP also released LTMC transaction. This will become obsolete. See OSS note 2988692 - SAP S/4HANA Migration Cockpit – Information about different versions.

Activation of the S4HANA migration cockpit

First action is to activate the S4HANA migration cockpit FIORI app. Reference data for the app can be found on the FIORI reference library. To activate run STC01 task list SAP_FIORI_CONTENT_ACTIVATION for business role SAP_BR_CONFIG_EXPERT_DATA_MIG. See this blog for full details on activation.

Checking the correct activation

After the activation add the SAP_BR_CONFIG_EXPERT_DATA_MIG role to the correct user ID’s. Now start the FIORI launchpad and you should be able to see the Data Migration tile:

Then you can create data migration projects:

How to run the migration

Many blogs exist on how to run the migration.

OSS note 2733253 – FAQ for SAP S/4HANA migration cockpit. Migration approach: Transfer / Migrate data using staging tables contains links to very extensive FAQ documents.

Tips and tricks can be found in this SAP blog.

Performance tips and tricks can be found in this OSS note: 3065607 – Performance tips & tricks for SAP S/4HANA Migration Cockpit: Migrate Data Using Staging Tables.

Master notes:

Data archiving: archiving infostructures

Several retrieval functions in SAP data archiving require the setup of archiving infostructures.

More on archiving data retrieval in general can be found in this blog.

Activation of infostructures

Using transaction SARJ you can configure the infostructures for archiving:

Using display, you can see the fields that are put in archiving infostructure:

On the first screen you can activate the infostructure by pushing the Activate button.

Activation is only activating the structure for future archive runs, not for past runs. For these you need to fill the structures first.

Filling the structures for existing archive files

Filling the structures for existing archive files is bit hidden. Goto transaction SARJ and select the object. Now choose menu Environment and choose Fill Structure.

In the next screen select the files you want to fill (these are normally yellow):

After selection, choose the Fill Structures button to start the batch job filling them. Don’t select too much. It is intense on reading the archive.

Green ones are done. Red ones have failed.

Most common cause for failures is that the variant for the WRITE program was set so the same document got archived twice into different archive files.

What can be done? If it is OK to have the same document in different files, you can ignore the archive session entries with error in SARI.

To avoid having duplicate keys in the infostructure in future, you can add the filename as an extra key field to the infostructure. This can be done as follows:

– SARJ ->Infostructure -> Display
– Technical data
– Change the field “File Name Processing” from ‘D’ to ‘K’

Archiving infostructure status

Use transaction SARI to check the status of the archiving infostructures:

From here you can go to the Status to check the status of the files.

Archive explorer jumps to SARE transaction for the explorer.

Customizing jumps to the SARJ transaction described above.

Data archiving: data retrieval

When you perform data archiving, from time to time you need to give support on data retrieval issues.

This blog will explain some of the general data retrieval concepts.

Questions that will be answered in this blog are:

  • How does single record retrieval work?
  • How can I use the archive explorer?
  • How can I get a list of data from the archive?

Single record retrieval

Single record retrieval is different per archiving object.

Some objects (like FI_DOCUMNT) are nicely integrated. In FB03 the system will check first database, then look into the archive inforecords to find if the document is archived. And then it will show the document in same layout.

Most objects have archive read program which you can find in SARA:

Now run the read program:

And fill out the record(s) you need:

Now you need to select the data files:

If you didn't label your files correctly, you need to select them all, which makes data retrieval slow.

Results are shown:

Results might look ok, or very basic. This is different per archiving object.

Use of archive explorer for table level

An alternative way is the use of the archive explorer. This will give details on table level.

Start transaction SARE:

Fill out the required object and archive infostructure. In this case we used change document. In the second screen fill the object:

Now you can see list of changes:

Double click on the record to see the tables:

Double clicking on the table will give the actual table line content.

Filling infostructures

More on infostructures can be read in this dedicated blog.

List transactions

Some transactions (especially in FICO domain) have integrated reporting with the data archive. We will use transaction FBL3N as example.

Start FBL3N:

Then click on Data Sources, include Archive, and select the needed files:

If you didn't label your files correctly, you need to select them all, which makes data retrieval slow.

How to check SE16N usage?

SE16, SE16N and SE16H are frequently used transactions. They can be used in positive way to quickly fetch data. They can also be a security risk, since it might lead to unwanted data display.

Questions that will be answered in this blog are:

  • Which users used SE16N?
  • How much data do the user pull using SE16N?
  • Which tables did the users read using SE16N?
  • How to check which changes were performed using SE16N?

Which users are using SE16?

Start transaction ST03 or ST03N, and create detailed settings for recording of SE16N:

Save the values and let the system collect the data.

Now in ST03 in the tree below Transaction Profile, the Details for SE16N are shown. Double clicking on the EXEC function will give details on the execution step:

The DB data is normally shown more to the right.

This will give you information on who used SE16N, and how much data transfer was happening.

Which tables were read using SE16N?

If you want to know which table was read during SE16N, you must first activate activity DU9 (generic table access) in the SAP audit log. Go to transaction RSAU_CONFIG and make sure this activity is on:

Now you can use audit log display the audit log with transaction RSAU_READ_LOG or RSAU_READ_LOG_ADM (this is the version without user ID and terminal):

Select DU9 only to make the report faster.

You can now see the tables accessed via SE16N:

In many analysis cases it is sufficient to see which tables are read, and how frequently.

Use RSAU_READ_LOG to see also user and terminal information.

The audit log is a powerful tool. Be aware of privacy related rules in your company.

SE16N performance

Notes on SE16N performance:

Changes done with SE16N

On ECC or S4HANA systems, changes to SE16N are recorded in tables SE16N_CD_DATA and SE16N_CD_KEY. You can display the changes done using report RKSE16N_CD_DISPLAY:

OSS notes for RKSE16N_CD_DISPLAY:

How to check RFC usage in your ABAP system?

Security teams might request to you as basis administrator: which RFC calls are being made to and from your ABAP system? And you need to know which users and applications are calling on RFC.

Questions that will be answered in this blog are:

  • Which users and systems are calling my ABAP system using RFC?
  • Which programs and processes are using RFC?
  • How much data is transferred using RFC?

If you need to check HTTP usage in your ABAP system: read this blog.

RFC statistics in ST03

Go to transaction ST03N or ST03, and open the total for this month. Then open the analysis view for RFC statistics. First check the WEB Client Statistics:

This already gives a lot of information: function modules and amount of data. On the tabs for Transaction, User and Remote destinations, Remote servers and Local servers you can get even more details you need for RFC transaction source.

On all 6 tabs on all 4 reports you can double click to get more details:

Tab PageMeaning
Function ModuleTransactionUserWhat workload is caused by the function modules, transactions, or users (depending on the selected RFC profile, as the RFC client or the RFC server)?
Remote DestinationRemote ServerLocal ServerWhere is the RFC workload created?

Reference OSS notes

OSS notes:

How to check HTTP usage in your ABAP system?

Security teams might request to you as basis administrator: which HTTP calls are being made to and from your ABAP system? Or you might be requested to switch off HTTP (allowing only HTTPs) and you need to know which users and applications are still calling on HTTP.

Questions that will be answered in this blog are:

  • Which users and systems are calling my ABAP system on HTTP?
  • Which systems does my ABAP system call using HTTP?
  • Which programs and processes are using HTTP?

If you need to check RFC usage in your system: read this blog.

Web statistics in ST03

Go to transaction ST03N or ST03, and open the total for this month. Then open the analysis view for web statistics. First check the WEB Client Statistics:

This already gives a lot of information: host and port information, amount of calls. On the tabs for Transaction, User and URL you can get even more details you need for transaction source, user and URL’s on HTTP.

On all 4 tabs on all 4 reports you can double click to get more details. After double-click both HTTPs and HTTP are show. Be sure to filter on HTTP:

StatisticsDescription
WEB Client StatisticsWorkload due to requests for which the system acts as a Web client
WEB Client Dest. StatisticsWorkload due to requests for which the system acts as a Web client, broken down by different client destinations
WEB Server StatisticsWorkload due to requests for which the system acts as a Web server
WEB Server Dest. StatisticsWorkload due to requests for which the system acts as a Web server, broken down by different server destinations

Common cases

Common cases you might want to check for HTTP use:

End users using HTTP

Most of the calls will work on HTTPs as well as HTTP. The most common problem is that end users will have bookmarked the HTTP version in their browser. They will need to be informed the HTTPs version (with a different port number). If you switch off HTTP in this case when a lot of people are still using HTTP you will get a lot of tickets and complaints. Use the web client statistics as explained above to see which entry URL’s they are using. Then mail them to use the new HTTPs entry URL’s with the appropriate port and ask them to switch. Repeat this a few times until the amount of stubborn users is low enough to disable HTTP.

Disabling HTTP check

In transaction SMICM go to the Services icon and then check there is nothing running with an HTTP port.

If you are using SAP Focused Run, read this blog to set up a Security and Configuration validation rule to execute a landscape wide scan on use of HTTP port.

Sending hyperlink in email with ABAP code

This blog will explain the ABAP code you can use to send an email from SAP system which is in HTML format including hyperlink.

Questions that will be answered in this blog are:

  • Which basis settings do I need to make for HTML mail format sending?
  • What code snippets can I re-use to send a hyperlink in an email from my custom ABAP program?

Basis settings for HTML mail

In order to be able to send an mail with a hyperlink the mail must have HTML format.

First check this table entry exists in table SXCONVERT2:

If not create it.

Now go to transaction SCOT and set the output format of RAW to HTM:

Save the settings.

ABAP code to mail hyperlink

The ABAP code to mail is as follows:

*&---------------------------------------------------------------------*
*& Report zemail_cl_bcs
*&---------------------------------------------------------------------*
*&
*&---------------------------------------------------------------------*
  REPORT  zemail_cl_bcs.

  CONSTANTS:
    gc_subject TYPE so_obj_des VALUE 'ABAP Email with CL_BCS',
    gc_raw     TYPE char03 VALUE 'HTM'.

  DATA:
    gv_mlrec         TYPE so_obj_nam,
    gv_sent_to_all   TYPE os_boolean,
    gv_email         TYPE adr6-smtp_addr,
    gv_subject       TYPE so_obj_des,
    gv_text          TYPE bcsy_text,
    zls_text         TYPE soli,
    xhtml_string     TYPE xstring,
    gr_send_request  TYPE REF TO cl_bcs,
    gr_bcs_exception TYPE REF TO cx_bcs,
    gr_recipient     TYPE REF TO if_recipient_bcs,
    gr_sender        TYPE REF TO cl_sapuser_bcs,
    t_hex            TYPE solix_tab,
    gr_document      TYPE REF TO cl_document_bcs.

  DATA: zlv_longstring_message TYPE string.
  DATA: zlt_et_soli TYPE soli_tab.
  DATA: zls_et_soli TYPE soli.

  TRY.
      "Create send request
      gr_send_request = cl_bcs=>create_persistent( ).

      "Email FROM...
      gr_sender = cl_sapuser_bcs=>create( sy-uname ).
      "Add sender to send request
      CALL METHOD gr_send_request->set_sender
        EXPORTING
          i_sender = gr_sender.

      "Email TO...
      gv_email = 'guru@saptechnicalguru.com'.
      gr_recipient = cl_cam_address_bcs=>create_internet_address( gv_email ).
      "Add recipient to send request
      CALL METHOD gr_send_request->add_recipient
        EXPORTING
          i_recipient = gr_recipient
          i_express   = 'X'.

      CONCATENATE '<html><strong>Decission needed</strong><br/><br/>'
      '<tr><th style="color:blue;">Approval item</th>'
      '<a href=https://server:port/sap/bc/ui2/flp#WorkflowTask-displayInbox?allItems'
      '=true&/detail/XXX999_PGW/000000226597/TaskCollection(SAP__Origin=&#39;XXX999_PGW&#39;,InstanceID=&#39;000000226597&#39;)> click here to decide 000000226597</a>'

                   INTO zlv_longstring_message.

      CONCATENATE zlv_longstring_message '</html>' INTO zlv_longstring_message.

      CALL FUNCTION 'SCMS_STRING_TO_XSTRING'
        EXPORTING
          text   = zlv_longstring_message
        IMPORTING
          buffer = xhtml_string
        EXCEPTIONS
          failed = 1
          OTHERS = 2.

      CALL FUNCTION 'SCMS_XSTRING_TO_BINARY'
        EXPORTING
          buffer     = xhtml_string
        TABLES
          binary_tab = t_hex.

      gr_document = cl_document_bcs=>create_document(
                      i_type    = gc_raw
                      i_hex    = t_hex
                      i_length  = '1200'
                      i_subject = gc_subject ).
      "Add document to send request
      CALL METHOD gr_send_request->set_document( gr_document ).

* set send immediately flag
      gr_send_request->set_send_immediately( 'X' ).
      "Send email
      CALL METHOD gr_send_request->send(
        EXPORTING
          i_with_error_screen = 'X'
        RECEIVING
          result              = gv_sent_to_all ).
      IF gv_sent_to_all = 'X'.
        WRITE 'Email sent!'.
      ENDIF.

      "Commit to send email
      COMMIT WORK.

      "Exception handling
    CATCH cx_bcs INTO gr_bcs_exception.
      WRITE:
        'Error!',
        'Error type:',
        gr_bcs_exception->error_type.
  ENDTRY.

The end result is as follows in the mail:

The hyperlink in the mail jumps to the URL, which in this case is the URL link to this specific workflow item in the FIORI inbox.

The coding explained

We use the CL_BCS class from SAP. BCS stands for Business Communication Service. This class provides all modern options to send mail. We set the sender and receiver.

We now build the mail in HTML. All is stored in zlv_longstring_message. We start with the <html> tag, and a header text in bold (strong). Then we add the text with the hyperlink (a href) in blue color.

The hyperlink towards the FIORi inbox contains ‘ characters. This does not convert well for all further on steps. So we replace ‘ instead the &#39 text. This &#39 text is the HTML character coding for an apostrophe (‘). In this way there is no misinterpretation at any browser.

At the end, we add the closing tag </html>. Now the HTML build up is ready and can be used to send.

The HTLM is converted via function modules SCMS_STRING_TO_XSTRING and SCMS_XSTRING_TO_BINARY to a binary. This binary is set as document with type HTM to the mail. The mail is then sent with immediate flag.

OS commands

In some cases OS commands might be needed to perform maintenance work. It can also be misused by hackers.

Questions that will be answered in this call are:

  • How to fire OS commands via SM49 or SM69?
  • How to fire OS command via program RSBDCOS0?

OS commands via SM49 and SM69

OS commands can be defined and executed using transaction SM49 or SM69:

You can use the SAP standard commands and define your own Z commands.

Issues with external commands? Read OSS note 1328083 – An external command behaves differently than expected.

OS command via ABAP program RSBDCOS0

There is also an ABAP program to fire external commands: RSBDCOS0. OSS note for this program: 2443193 – Report RSBDCOS0 – Execute OS command from SAP GUI.

Start the program and enter the command (in this case ls command):

Output is shown:

The action is registered in the SM21 system log:

SAP Activate methodology for S4HANA implementations

In the past there was the RunSAP implementation methodology. This is now succeeded with the SAP Activate methodology. The most important one is the S4HANA implementation.

You can go to the methodology using this link.

The roadmap now opens:

The methodology is split into several phases:

  • Discover
  • Prepare
  • Explore
  • Realize
  • Deploy
  • Run

The method is focusing more on using out-of-the-box SAP software and focused on Agile/Scrum way of implementing S4HANA.

On the tab content you can find useful content per phase:

And accelerators per phase:

Keep in mind the method is focusing on green field implementation. Nevertheless you can still use the content and accelerators in your own projects.