Ask the Experts

Ask the Experts

• How does SAP MM stock transport order help track goods shipment?

  Stock transport order in SAP MM helps you transfer, track and monitor goods movement between supplying and receiving plants.  Continue Reading

• How does SAP Planned Delivery Time help with procurement?

  SAP Planned Delivery Time can help cut inventory carrying costs, writes expert Jawad Akhtar.  Continue Reading

• Do you need an SAP data mart, or an SAP data warehouse?

  Do you need an SAP data mart, or a data warehouse? It depends if you need to deploy data across an enterprise, or need something more focused.  Continue Reading

• Why The Charmer Sunbelt Group Is Sticking with SAP WM

  Although alcohol wholesaler The Charmer Sunbelt Group has considered some parts of EWM, find out why it feels EWM isn't a good fit for its industry.  Continue Reading

• The case for a phased SAP HANA implementation

  Installing SAP HANA is no easy task. Read about why Scotts Miracle-Gro decided on a phased rollout of its HANA implementation.  Continue Reading

• The business case for integrating Hadoop with SAP HANA

  Adobe tracks everything its users do and dumps the data into Hadoop. How did the company make the business case for integration with SAP HANA?  Continue Reading

• What's the difference between SAP ABAP and SAP Basis?

  Confused by the difference between SAP ABAP and SAP Basis? Developer Ethan Jewett explains how to tell them apart.  Continue Reading

• What's the difference between different SAP production types?

  In this tip, expert Jawad Akhtar outlines how to differentiate between discrete, process and repetitive production types and how SAP ERP supports them.  Continue Reading

• Quick fixes for the most common post go-live SAP error messages

  There are a number of SAP error messages that can occur post ERP go-live, writes Jawad Akhtar. Here's how to knock them out.  Continue Reading

• How to fix a slip print-out error in an SAP Smart Form

  An SAP user is looking to fix an error with a packing slip print-out in an SAP Smart Form.  Continue Reading

• Assigning personnel numbers in SAP HR

  An SAP HR users wants to know how to assign a person to two different personnel numbers in SAP HR while generating a single invoice.  Continue Reading

• Creating an SAP IDoc for sales orders

  A SearchSAP.com reader wants to know how to create an SAP IDoc along with sales order details when sales orders are created, changed or cancelled.  Continue Reading

• Using separate trading partner fields in SAP function FB01

  An SAP R/3 4.7 user wants looking to post a document entry using different trading partner fields for credit and debit for function FB01.  Continue Reading

• Using SAP standard reports to track changes in SAP HR

  A SearchSAP.com reader is looking for a standard report that can track changes made to the hierarchy of SAP HR with SAP transaction code PPOME.  Continue Reading

• Using SAP change documents to make change logs visible

  A SearchSAP.com reader who is writing a program to update SAP tables wants to know how to make updates visible in a change log by using an SAP change document.  Continue Reading

• Using audit report to track changes to employee data in SAP HR

  Find out how to track changes to employee data using an audit report in SAP HR, and learn how to configure the audit report to pick up changes to the data retroactively.  Continue Reading

• Configuring SAP EDI for sales orders

  Learn how to configure SAP EDI for sales orders.  Continue Reading

• How to correct an SAP ABAP dump with an oversize condition

  Find out how to correct an SAP ABAP dump with an oversize condition to avoid an SAP ABAP dump giving an DBIF_RSQL_ INVALID_RSQL error at the SQL statement.  Continue Reading

• Locating user email addresses in SAP SU01 transaction code

  A SearchSAP.com reader who stores user email addresses within the SAP SU01 transaction code and wants to know where to locate the data.  Continue Reading

• Creating a function group for an SAP ABAP table maintenance generator

  Learn how to create a function group and authorization group using an SAP ABAP table maintenance generator on a Z table.  Continue Reading

• How can I get an ABAP program displaying Excel data to wrap text?

  Learn how to display details from a Microsoft Excel database table using the Wrap Text function when developing an SAP ABAP program.  Continue Reading

• How to install an add-on using a SAINT transaction in SAP Basis

  A SearchSAP.com reader is using a SAINT transaction in SAP Basis and wants to install an add-on.  Continue Reading

• Viewing SAP transaction codes and profiles

  An administrator is looking for a way to see what profiles belong to a particular T-Code.  Continue Reading

• Retrieving content from an SAP workflow attachment

  An SAP user wants to know how to retrieve the content of an SAP workflow attatchment.  Continue Reading

• Changing reserved status of a workflow item

  An administrator is looking to change the status of a work item so that one user can access it while another is absent.  Continue Reading

• How to manually add files to an SAP transport queue

  An administrator wants to learn the procedure for manually adding files to a transport queue.  Continue Reading

• Changing SAP spool servers for all the printers in your QA system

  Employing menu settings in Tcode (SPAD) can change SAP spool servers for your QA system. Learn how in this expert tip.  Continue Reading

• What is the difference between SPFILE and PFILE in Oracle?

  One reader asks about the difference between SPFILE and PFILE and advice for setting Oracle 10G parameters for SAP ECC6. Read an expert's take here.  Continue Reading

• Make function module calls in SAP from an external system

  How to make function module calls in SAP from an external system  Continue Reading

• Error when clicking the SAP GUI logon button

  An SAP user receives a curious error message when he clicks the logon button in the SAP GUI.  Continue Reading

• What's the difference between an SAP system and a non-SAP system?

  What is the difference between an SAP system and a non-SAP system?  Continue Reading

• Clicking on the SAPGUI logon button brings error message

  I'm getting the following error message when I click on the logon button in the SAPGUI. I have already started the service in the management console. The lights turn from gray to yellow to green.  Continue Reading

• Changing a customer message priority level after it's sent

  I mistakenly sent a customer message with the wrong priority level. How can I change the priority level of the message sent?  Continue Reading

• Fixing inconsistencies in TemSe and Spool systems

  I have found some inconsistencies in TemSe and in the Spool system. Please let me know the causes of these inconsistencies. How can I analyze and rectify these inconsistencies?  Continue Reading

• What does the Parameter tab mean in SU01

  In SU01, what does the tab Parameter mean?  Continue Reading

• Deleting entries from a dynamic table

  I have dynamic internal table . How do I delete entries from this table on the basis of some condition.  Continue Reading

• Display the subtype text for an infotype

  I am making an HR report in ABAP wherein I need to display the subtype texts for infotype 0045. How do I find the table where I can get this text field?  Continue Reading

• Setting soft breakpoints in ABAP that reside in Smart Forms

  I've always set hard-coded breakpoints in ABAP code that reside in a Smart Form. Is it possible to set soft breakpoints instead?  Continue Reading

• Viewing a list of SAP interfaces

  Is there a way to view a list of SAP interfaces such as RFC, BAPI and ALE?  Continue Reading

• SAPgui disconnection problem

  We are having a problem with clients disconnecting from the SAPgui. They are attempting to connect to a Solaris/Unix server through a firewall. We have found that the connection to the Wintel server is fine, but not the UNIX server. Clients on the ...  Continue Reading

• Adding a navigational attribute to an existing InfoObject

  We have a scenario where we would like to add one additional navigational attribute to an existing InfoObject (currently there are already two navigation attributes). My question is what needs to be done to the Planning Object Structure in APO DP ...  Continue Reading

• What's the difference between ODS and DSO in SAP BI?

  In SAP BI, what is the difference between ODS and DSO?  Continue Reading

• Where to find your SAP installation number

  Where can I find my installation number in the SAP system?  Continue Reading

• Changing the hostname in a server migration

  I am trying to do server migration from an existing server to a new server (though it is same OS). We will need to change the hostname for this. What is the best method or process for this task? Is there anywhere else it stores hostname info apart ...  Continue Reading

• Retroactive accounting period differences

  What is the difference between "earliest Retroactive accounting period" and "Retroactive accounting date"?  Continue Reading

• Problems with the output device 'LOCL'

  I am setting up shop papers (PM) in Smart Forms using Helvetica font. The shop papers were designed with output device LOCL. The output changes (spaces between words) based on the output device. How do I fix this?  Continue Reading

• Comparing locally managed and dictionary managed tablespaces

  What is the difference between a locally managed and a dictionary managed tablespace, and what are the benefits of using a locally managed tablespace?  Continue Reading

• What do the .att and .pat files from a support package extraction contain?

  When we extract the .car file from our support pack we get .att and .pat files. What data do these files contain?  Continue Reading

• How do I create a link in an email message that executes a workflow item in R/3?

  A reader asks how to make it so that a user will receive an email in Outlook with a link that takes them to the appropriate transaction (in change mode) of the exact document that needs to be processed.  Continue Reading

• How do I fix errors in an automatic workflow customization?

  When performing an automatic workflow customization, "RFC User could not be created" appears.  Continue Reading

• Reverting transport request changes

  Can it hurt anything to go back to the original version of SAP without the new objects generated by transport requests? Bert Vanstechelman sheds some light on the matter.  Continue Reading

• What are the best practices for pricing configuration?

  A reader states, "our pricing and contract management is a mess" in SA. Expert Srini Katta offers some general suggestions for determining a pricing configuration.  Continue Reading

• What are technical and functional specs?

  Expert Jay Narayanan explains the difference between these two terms.  Continue Reading

• Listing TCODE transactions used to view what users are logged in to SAP

  Does an authorization code exist to collect a list of all TCODEs and users logged in to SAP during a time period?  Continue Reading

• Printing multiple line items in a box for a purchase order

  What could cause a box command to print line items only once instead of multiple times? Expert Mark Smithson surmises the answer.  Continue Reading

• Printing addresses without a country line using SAPscript

  The address key is handy for printing addresses, but what if you don't want the country name printed? Expert Mark Smithson lets you know how to disable the country line.  Continue Reading