ABA Development Overview

[Former Member]

I'm a microsoft developer that's been asked to convert a complex VB/Access application (I wrote) to a SAP application. I've read ABAP Objects and understand the language reasonably but I lack a broad overview of the development issues. I'd like to ask some general questions.

1 Can I develop the application on my mini-sap server at my office and then transfer it to the clients development sever for additional work and then upwards to the production server? Any issues.

2 Any issues accessing user and system tables from code?

3 Do I need to be any sort of 'registered' developer to do any of this work?

4 Any 'gotchas' in moving from VB to ABAP/4.6?

Any help greatly appreciated.

walter

[athavanraja]

Welcome to SDN.

<i>1 Can I develop the application on my mini-sap server at my office and then transfer it to the clients development sever for additional work and then upwards to the production server? Any issues.</i>

you can do it, but the only issue would be that your mini-sap wont have module specific tables and data. Mini-sap is only teechnical content.

<i>2 Any issues accessing user and system tables from code?</i>

There wont be any issue coding this, but the users who executes this code should have necessary authorization.

<i>3 Do I need to be any sort of 'registered' developer to do any of this work?</i>

You need developer key to develop objects in ABAP.

<i>4 Any 'gotchas' in moving from VB to ABAP/4.6?</i>

Sorry no idea.

Regards

Raja

[Former Member]

Hi

Before developing the application on MiniSAP just make sure the version of your client SAP R/3 matches to that of your MiniSAP. Mini SAP is just the basis and may not have application tables ( Like table of purchasing / S & D etc ).

If all the above checks pass then you can develop and just pass the transports ( workbench transports created for the objects you develop ) to the client . They can upload into their system . If no change is required on their system ( i.e. you can make the application program stable on your Minisap itself ) then you donot need a developer key / access on their system .

Cheers.

[Former Member]

Hi Walter,

Welcome to the SAP world and SDN. Are you going to rewrite your application in ABAP? Why not simply make some calls to your existing VB code from ABAP instead of reinventing the wheel? RFC technology will help you do that? If, as you say, your VB code is complex, then it may take a while to completely port it to ABAP, particularly if you are just starting in ABAP. With the new service oriented architecture, SAP is moving towards an architecture where everything will be a sevice, available for someone to assemble easily to support a new business process or new application.

Now with regards to your questions, as others pointed out here, yu can write code, but you cannot access any application tables. You can move your code to your client's machine but you need create a transport in your mini SAP system and copy your transport files and give them to the client's basis people, or you need a transport path established between your mini SAP and the client's server, which is very unlikely.

You need a developer key to do the coding in ABAP workbench, but if you are developing on your mini SAP and transporting it by a disk, I don't think you need one. But since you are planning to additional development in the client's machine, you need developer key there.

Any 'gotchas'? Depends on what your VB application does? Are you moving the entire application to ABAP or are you moving portions of it? Are you using some very special features of VB? May be they are not available in ABAP.

Have a look at RFC help and also DCOM connector(it is or it is going to be out of support) or other options for connecting and executing external applications from SAP.

Please don't forget to reward those answers that helped you. That is way your fellow SDNers know how well their answer helped you.

Also, please don't forget to close it once you think you got your answer. That way people will not attempt to answer it long after your issue is resolved.

Regards,

Srinivas

[Former Member]

Hi Srinivas

Many thanks for the comprehensive answer.

1 question - how do you get a developer key?

regards

walter

[Former Member]

The system is registerred at OSS. Here you can obtain the key. You need a login for this. So probably your customer has this.

[Former Member]

Hi again Srinivas

Forgot to mention the VB issue, my application makes heavy use of subforms (up to 4) nested within a main form. The subforms can all be linked so that a selected record in 1 will affect the display in the next and then in the next and so on ..

Cab ABAP screens do this?

I could change this GUI, but the users would have to be retrained and that's another can of worms.

regards

walter

PS I have rewarded all who responded, very helpful

[Former Member]

Hi,

You can get the developer key from OSS.

1. Login to the SAP Support Portal:

https://websmp101.sap-ag.de/support

2. Go to Keys & Requests > SSCR Keys > Reqistration

If you can't do this by yourself ask your customer to register you as a developer to the system and then ask them to send you the key.

Regards,

Ville

[Former Member]

Bas

Sorry to be bumbling along on the ground like this but what's OSS and is the key some sort of string or something physical?

I did order the latest SAP R/3 handbook but it doesn't appear to be available till Dec '2005. Can you recommend any books to give me this background?

Many thanks

walter

[Former Member]

Ville

I can't keep up with the pace of these answers, many thanks for the info.

walter

[Former Member]

Hi,

1. OSS stands for "On-line Service System".

2. The key is a string which will be asked the first time you do some changes to the system.

Regards,

Ville

[Former Member]

Dear Walter,

OSS is used to communicate with SAP. You're SAP sytem (of the customer) is registerred there. The developers are registerred there so SAP knows who is doing what (you're modifications and developments are logged in the system). In order to be are registerred developer you need a key (is indeed a string). THis key can only be obtained by someone who is administrator of the system (customer) this way not everyone can alter the SAP sytem. Once you got the developer key you can develop in the system.

[Former Member]

Dear Walter,

Regarding you're question about screens. In SAP this is known as Transaction Development. You can create a sequence of screens and also use sub-screens within screens. All data can be transferred from one screen to the other. In the and you can use a COMMIT to write everything to the database (SAP uses a different Logical Unit of Work for this).

[Former Member]

Bas

Many thanks, It's all happening a bit fast here.

I clicked the 'solved problem' radio button by accident on 1 reply, it seems to have wiped my question from the forum. Any way of getting back?

I guess I should read the guidelines ..

walter

[Former Member]

If I'm correct the post on the top of this thread has a button "I have not solved this question". It should restore the thread as a question.

[Former Member]

Hi Walter,

Yes, you're right sometimes it's a bit hectic here Welcome to SDN forums!

If you made a mistake while giving points I think you can just simply go and change those points by selecting another radio button next to the reply.

Regards,

Ville

[Former Member]

Bas

I can't find a button but I seem to have edited the reply back to 'Helpful' and it's back there.

In fairness, I thought the date/time in the right column was the posting date but ofcourse it is tracking the last reply, maybe I was looking in the wrong section .. so much to learn so little time!!

Many thanks

walter

[Former Member]

Hi Walter,

Apologies for not coming back to you sooner, but I was lazing around because it was weekend. I hope your questions are answered by the many others in this forum.

As explained by others here, OSS is the online SAP support service which is now replaced by sevice market place. You can find it at www.service.sap.com. You need to get your service market place ID first. Then you can get your developer key.

I am slightly confused here about your setup. You said you have minisap. Are you going to get the developer key for that or on your client's server? If it is the client's server, it is just a matter of asking the client to provide you with a developer key. I am sure they must already have an established SAP administrator.

As far as the GUI capabilities of SAP are concerned, yes you can certainly do all sorts manipulations.

Regards,

Srinivas

[Former Member]

Hi Srinivas

Thanks for all the help you and others have given me on this posting.

I believe the MiniApp works with ID supplied with package, I wrote some code anyway.

My concern was when I 'transported' it to the clients system I would need to do further development there, that's where I thought I would need a key, and I do as you have stated. I now understand this and will talk to the client about it.

The reason I'm so nervous about this setup is that its all new to me and I have to make a decision whether I want this job and to quote a price. I don't want to find myself down a blind hole.

I am eager to be involved in this ABAP development for various reasons but not if it bankrupts me!

Many thanks again.

walter

[Former Member]

Welcome to the ABAP or should I say SAP technical world. I am sure you will find it exciting enough.

Srinivas