• <b>Data element</b>: is definition of the properties and type for a table field. It is an intermediate object between the object type domain and the table field. A field in R/3 system is always associated with a data element, which at the same time is related to domain.
• <b>Domain:</b> is formal definition of the data type from a technical point of view. It sets the attributes such as data type, length, possible value range and so on.
<b>Creating Domain</b>
Domain as already explained defines the technical properties of a field such as type and value range. A domain can be created from initial screen of data dictionary by clicking on create and clicking domain Radiobutton. Parameters to be passed are:
Data type: Where you need to enter the data type available in SAP.
Field length: Field length is the number of valid position.
Value table: Name of a table to be entered. The fields referring to this domain may only assume values contained in the value table.
Once the domain is created, save and activate it, so that it can be used for further objects (basic rule of dictionary).
<b>Creating Data Element</b>
The second step of table creation is to create data element. It assigns a certain meaning to the table field, which are defined using that data element. A Data element always needs to be defined over a domain and field is always defined over a data element. This allows all fields with same technical properties to use the same data element.
Parameters to be passed when creating a data element:
Short text: Mandatory field.
Domain: A mandatory field. If the domain does not exist, SAP can take you directly to domain definition screen.
Text element: You can enter description is short or long text for the field. This text is used when
entering data for these fields.
Save and activate.
Regards,
Santosh
