SAP Releases

SAP R/2

Initial SAP release was known as SAP R/2. This release was designed to work on mainframe computers. Mainframe computing is two tier architecture. The database and application sits on the mainframe computer and users access the application through terminals. Terminal is simply a dumb box without a CPU; keyboard and a monitor is attached to this box. In comparison to three-tiered architecture you can think mainframe as applications server and a database server combined and a terminal as a presentation layer

SAP R/3

The next generation of SAP software was called SAP R/3.This was the most popular release. Even today the term SAP is used synonymously with SAP R/3 (the usage may not true anymore). SAP R/3 was based on client server architecture. The presentation layer and the business logic would reside on a desktop. The database would run on a database server. All desktops would connect to the database server to write and read data. If one has to upgrade the business logic then the entire desktop would need to be patched.

SAP ECC

Finally SAP ECC arrived. ECC stands for ERP Central Component. SAP ECC is based on three tiered architecture (Presentation Layer, Business Logic Layer, Database Layer).This architecture is very flexible and scalable and would also support SOA as well. The main strength of SAP ECC in the NetWeaver software running underneath it as a common technology. SAP ECC is the latest generation of SAP business software.

Primary objective of a company is to make money. A business produces either a product or a service in order to make money. Products or services are sold to customers. The raw material and operating supplies are purchased from vendors. The company needs to manage customers and vendors. Also the company would produce reports each month (or each period) showing the progress of the business. Also the company would need to manage all aspects of the business e.g. employees, bank accounts, inventory etc.In order to make things manageable there would be various departments in the company each looking after a particular aspect of the business e.g. Finance Department, Manufacturing Department, Human Resources Department etc. Each department would need to use some kind of software in order to manage their day to day activities. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software is an enterprise wide solution. ERP software consists of modules. Each department of the company could use one or more modules (specific to that department) of the ERP software in order to manage its day to day tasks. All modules of ERP software are connected. This way management can have a view on the company as a whole. SAP is leading ERP software with largest market share.

Usually the term SAP refers to both the company and its software.SAP AG is a company based in Walldorf, Germany. AG in German stands for "Incorporated". SAP is pronounced as s-a-p, not as sap.

SAP was founded in 1972 in city of Mannheim, Germany. SAP AG is an older company than both Oracle and Microsoft. A group of five ex-IBM engineers formed this company. The idea was to develop a software that integrates business functions in a manner that reflects industry best practices. This way a company could replace multiple software (financial, warehousing, production planning) with one single software having integrated modules. Maintaining a single version of truth results in: synergies and communication benefits. This idea soon evolved into a product called "System, Applications, and Products in Data Processing" (SAP). 
In German SAP stands for "Systemanalyse und Programmentwicklung".

SAP was designed in such a way that it could be installed on a variety of hardware platforms and could work with variety of back-end databases

This gave its customers flexibility and is a major factor in propelling SAP into forefront.

SAP supports:

§  More than 40 languages

§  More than 50 currencies

§  More than 30 industry specific solutions

§  More than 20 combinations of hardware platforms/database/operating systems

Within two decades of its birth, SAP was not the only business software vendor. IBM was facing a tough competition from SAP

Various players emerged including:

§  BAAN

§  Oracle Corporation

§  PeopleSoft

§  JD Edwards

Some small players start gaining grounds as well including:

§  Great Plains

§  Navision SAP remained the leader throughout, mainly due its support for diverse platform.

JD Edwards was purchased by PeopleSoft, which was later on purchased by Oracle Corporation. Currently, Oracle Corporation is number one rival for SAP with its software called Oracle E-Business Suite.

SAP AG is based in Germany and listed on New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol of SAP. The company has about 43,000 employees. SAP has about 2000 support partners. About 46,000 customers have purchased SAP software and more than 100,000+ installations are in place around the globe. The company does business in more than 50 countries. There are more than one million SAP end-users. Primary competitors of SAP are Oracle and Microsoft.

All three, SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft provide:

§  Business software for large enterprise

§  Solutions for small and medium sized business

§  Software development platforms

§  Ability to tie together disparate systems (Integration Solution)

All three help sustain one another. Examples are:

§  Most installation of SAP runs on Oracle database (Oracle Corporation makes database as well as their own business software).

§  Microsoft Windows is most popular desktop operating system to access SAP software

SAP instance

SAP instance resides on an Application Server under the directory: 

Windows: x:\usr\sap\sapsid 
Unix/Linux: /usr/sap/sapsid 

The SAP instance on an Application Server communicates with a database associated with this instance. 

SAP instance on an Application Server together with its associated database is called an "SAP System". 

The term "SAP System" is also known as "SAP Installation". 

When you talk about an SAP System or an SAP Installation, you are talking about an SAPSID folder on an Application Server and the database associated with this folder.

Multiple SAP Instances

One Application Server (or host) could contain multiple SAP instances. 

In other words there would be multiple SAPSID folders under the directory /usr/sap (x:\user\sap on Window). 

Where SAPSID is the actual name of the SAP identifier; for example: PROD, TEST etc. 

Each SAPSID folder would point to its own database. 

SAP System refers to the pair of SAP instance and its database. 

The folder /usr/sap could contain more than one SAP instance. 

It is important to know the difference between SAP System (pairing) and SAP instance (folder).

Load Balancing

When number of users increases, load balancing is implemented. 

The SAPSID folder is simply cloned to more than one Application Servers. 

Load is shared by making users connect to different Application Servers. 

Load balancing software controls which user would connect to would Application Server. 

SAPSID folders on all Application Servers would be talking to the same database. 

All sibling SAPSID folders together with their database would be called one SAP System. 

When load balancing is implemented, SAP System would consist of multiple SAPSID folders on difference Application Server machines and a database. 

An Application Server may host more than one SAP instance under the directory /usr/sap

Operating System for SAP

Following factors should be considered when deciding which Operating System to use with SAP.

§  Current skill set of IT staff, cost of retraining, and cost of hiring new staff

§  Support from operating system vendors

§  Confidence on the Operating System and the vendor

§  Verifiable client references

§  Relationship of operating system vendor with SAP

64-bit OS

Starting 2007, SAP software is only supported on 64-bit operating systems. 64-bit hardware is more prevalent. The demand for 32-bit hardware and therefore 32-bit operating system is reducing with time. For SAP systems, only 64-bit hardware should be considered unless you have good reasons to support older versions of SAP or some other related software that only runs on 32-bit environment.

Selecting OS

When making a decision on which Operating System to use with your SAP system, you should keep in mind following features:

§  Memory Management

§  Crash Recovery

§  Patch Management

§  Security

§  Clustering Capabilities

§  Support for third party management utilities

§  Presence of built-in management utilities

It may or may not be compatible with your IT department's vision to invest in new toolsets. In that case you also have to make sure that your existing monitoring applications, virus scanning software and backup solutions would work with this operating system.

SAP OS Directory Structure

On UNIX and Linux OS, SAP is installed on the directory: 

/usr/sap 
On Windows SAP resides in: 
x:\usr\sap 
Where x is a drive letter.

On windows the folder x:\usr\sap is shared as SAPMNT. 

You can access this folder from other machine as \\machinename\sapmnt

where machine name is the name or IP address of the machine hosting SAP. 

If you have multiple SAP instances on Windows machine then all instances must be installed under the same directory SAPMNT. 

On all OS, UNIX, Linux, and Windows the next directory level is SID. 

SID stands for SAP system identifier.

SAP Hardware

SAP Hardware

Hardware is an essential component of a SAP system. Hardware consists of:

•   Servers (middle tier and database tier computers)
•   Disk Storage System
•   Network Gear (routers, switches etc)
•   Take Backup Units

All of these components work together to create a healthy system. Failure of even one component could halt the whole system, costing the company millions of dollars. 

All kind of systems are available in SAP hardware marketplace, from small and medium user platforms to large and highly resilient platforms.

Some large platforms are also capable of scale on the fly to meet the changing needs. 

When making a hardware purchase decision, solutions from different vendors should be compared. 

Most solutions cannot be compared as apples to apples. E.g. one solution could support the same workload as the other system but the level of scalability, availability, and reliability offered by the two systems could differ considerably. 

Spending little more money upfront could save the company tons of dollars on monthly maintenance and downtime costs.

Server Hardware

Server hardware comes in three main categories:

•  Small
•  Medium
•  High

A server can cost from a few thousand dollars to several million. Servers vary in performance as well. Main factors influencing server performance include:

• CPUs
• Speed of CPUs
•  Amount of RAM
•  Internal server architecture
•  Support for high-speed disk operations

Servers also vary in terms of configuration flexibility and adaptability.

SAP Hardware Solution

An SAP solution may utilize severs from any of the three categories. Typically high performance servers are used at database tier, while a middle tier could utilize inexpensive servers. Some businesses choose to utilize high performance machines at all tiers. Machines could be carved up into partitions or virtual machines. While other businesses might decide to go with low end hardware across the board relying on SAP's horizontal scalability.

Propriety Platforms

Most large hardware vendors use proprietary CPU (Central Processing Units) chips in their machines. Also most large vendors support only proprietary OS (Operating System)

Examples are:

•  IBM’s PowerPC chip running AIX operating system.
•  HP’s end-of-plife PA-RISC running HP-UX operating system.
•  HP’s Itanium2-based IA64 running HP-UX operating system.

You should also explore the ability of the machine to run other operating system as well. If you seek to retire SAP then you can simply use the same box internally after deploying less expensive operating system like Linux. 

For example HP's Itanium2-based IA64 also supports Linux and Windows operating systems

X64 Platforms

Late trend is investing in x64 platforms. An x64 platform is a low cost server based on Intel or AMD CPU rather than proprietary CPU. Windows based desktops and laptops that you buy from retail stores are also x64 machines. Recently x64 machines have become very powerful and now are rivalling proprietary systems in terms of high availability and visualization options. HP and Dell are big players in this market. Sun also offers bit of a choice. One time low up front cost should be a decision making criteria. Total cost through the life time of the system should be considered while making a decision.

High Availability

High availability feature is very important for an SAP system. Even if you are incurring additional charges you should consider high availability feature for SAP. High availability is an implementation of features that ensures a certain absolute degree of operational continuity. High availability features include:

•  Redundant power supplies
•  Disk array controllers (RAID) (array of disks keeps system running even if one disk fails)
•  Support for multiple network cards

Networks should be configured in a redundant fashion as well. Using dual network switches is a good example in this regards.

Disk Subsystem Hardware

Disk subsystems are enclosures for multiple disks. Disk subsystems could be used at database tier or at middle tier. Storage Area Networks (SANs) are example of most robust and high performance disk systems. Network-attached storage (NAS) is example of lesser extent disk systems. SANs and NAS devices are marketed under three categories: low-tier, mid-tier, and high-end.

Storage for SAP

Storage used with SAP system should support redundant connectivity between the storage device and the servers connected to it. This will avoid the single point of failure

RAID

RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) should be configured as well. RAID is a technology that allowed computer users to achieve high levels of storage reliability from low-cost and less reliable PC-class disk-drive components. This is achieved by arranging the devices into arrays for redundancy. RAID comes in following levels:

•   Level 0
•   Level 1
•   Level 5
•   Level 10

Different levels provide various combinations of availability, cost, and performance. 

RAID 0 is the cheapest and RAID 10 is the most expensive option.

BASIS DAILY ACTIVITIES

SAP DAILY ACTIVITIES

1] Check that all the application servers are up:
sm51 SAP Servers
sm04/al08 Logon Users

2] Check that daily backup are executed without errors
db12 Backup logs: overview

3] SAP standard background jobs are running successfully. Review for cancelled and critical jobs.
sm37 Background jobs--- Check for successful completion of jobs. Enter * in user-id field and verify that all critical successful jobs and review any cancelled jobs.

4] Operating system Monitoring
st06

5] Extents monitoring
db02 Database monitoring--Check for max-extents reached

6] Check work-processes(started from sm51)
sm50 Process overview-- All work processes with a running or waiting status.

7] Check system log
sm21 System log-- Set date and time to before the last log review. Check for errors ,warning, security, message-bends,database events.

8] Review workload statistics
st03 Workload analysis of
sto2 tune summary instance

9] Look for any failed updates
sm13 update records

10] check for old locks
sm12 lock entry list

11] Check for spool problems
sp01 spool request screen-- check for spool that are in request for over an hour.

12] Review and resolve dumps
st22 ABAP Dump analysis

13] Checking .trc file in SAP trace directory for block corruption on daily basis.
C:\ORacle\sid\saptrace

14] Archive backup
brarchive -f force -cds -c
Insert the archive backup tape

15] Review NT system logs for problem
-> NT system log- look 4 errors or failures
-> NT security log- failed logon 2 sap servers
-> NT Application log -look 4 errors or failures

What is BASIS?

BASIS- A set of middleware programs and tools that provide the underlying base that enable applications to be interoperable across operating systems. SAP Basis includes a RDBMS, GUI, and client server architecture. Beyond the interface aspect of Basis, it also includes such components as a data dictionary as well as user and system administration.

Basis is a business application software integrated solution. Simply, Basis is the administration of the SAP system.

It's a piece of middleware which links the application with the database and the operating system. Basis is most commonly associated with the GUI interface to the SAP, and the Basis administrator is an SAP, professional who is responsible for configuring the SAP environment, including the GUI screens and SAP application servers.

R/3 Basis includes client/server architecture and configuration, a relational database management system (RDBMS), and a graphical user interface (GUI). In addition to the interface between system elements, Basis components include a development environment for R/3 applications, and a data dictionary, as well as user and system administration and monitoring tools.

Client Copy

Client Copy
Purpose
You can use the client copy to create, for example the following clients:

· new clients from the SAP reference client 000 during initial installation of an SAP system.

· training clients

· demo clients

· test clients

· production clients

The source client can be in the same or another system.

You can copy selected parts of an existing client into another client, e.g. the user master data with the copy profile SAP_USER, with the client copy tools.

You are strongly advised to use the profile SAP_CUST to copy client 000 to create your first client because the consistency of the application data in the SAP delivery client is not guaranteed.

You are no longer required to transport clients before you can copy them between systems. You can make a remote copy instead. SAP will continue to support the transport function.


Preparation
Target client
You can create a new client in the client maintenance (transaction SCC4). You need a user with sufficient authorization in the target client, for the client copy.

The newly-created client contains the initial benutzer SAP* with the password PASS, which you can use to copy a client.


The user SAP* is inactive by default in a new client. To activate the user SAP*, set the profile parameter login/no_automatic_user_sapstar to 0, and restart the application server.


You do not need to delete an existing client before the copy.

Resource requirements
Copying clients requires a large amount of system resources. To avoid premature termination due to bottlenecks, you should ensure that enough resources are available by considering the following points:

· Database storage space

Perform a test run before copying a client. The total of copied and deleted data in kB is at the end of the log file.

For ORACLE, INFORMIX, ADABAS and DB2/CS databases, you can check the test run log to see whether there is sufficient database space available.

Storage requirements can only be estimated, because space already allocated, but not yet used, is not taken into account. A client without application data needs approximately 500 MB in the database. In most databases, space made free by deleting data is only available after a reorganization.

For pool tables, the estimate is very imprecise, because their extent size is very large. You must assume that a new extent is required for each pool table, which must be added to the estimate.

· Runtime

Copying a client can take several hours or even days. Users or background processes in clients other than the source or target clients, can make the time longer. For example, locks in a third client in the same system can obstruct the processing of individual objects. You can technically work in the system while client copy is running, but you are strongly advised not to do so, or only in exceptional cases.

You may have to increase the standard timeout value for these processes if you are working in the foreground with slow databases, large clients or clients with a lot of users:

§ ...

i. To increase the default timeout value, call the transaction Maintain Profile Parameters (RZ 11).

ii. Specify the profile parameter rdisp/max_wprun_time.

iii. Choose Display.

iv. Choose Change Value.

v. Specify a new value for the profile parameter.

We recommend a value of 2000 seconds.

If you use parallel processes, dialog processes are used even if the job is scheduled in the background. The standard timeout value is usually sufficient. If the database is loaded by additional processes, it can be advisable to increase the profile parameter.

· System load

Copying or transporting a client can take a long time because large amounts of data are moved. One or more dialog processes are occupied for this time. The database interface is heavily loaded.

Protecting clients against user logon
· You must ensure that no users logon to the system during the copy. For technical reasons, only the target client is locked. If, e.g. the lock is not reset after a copy is cancelled, you can reset it by calling the transaction SCC3 in any client.

Users who are in the target client before the start of the copy cannot be locked automatically, so you must ensure that they leave the system.

· The source and target clients should both be additionally protected by a system message (SM02). Monitor compliance in both clients (e.g. in SM04)

· You should not work in the source client either during the copy.

Constraints
· You cannot access archived data in the target client if the target client number is not the same as the source client number.

· Change documents (tables CDHDR, PCDHDR, CDPOS and PCDPOS): User administration change documents and generic logs (application log tables BAL*) are not copied