Load Inventory Balance in S/4HANA with LSMW

Posted on October 21, 2020 by - Data Migration, MDA Workbench

You can load inventory quantity and value for materials in S/4HANA 2020 using IDoc Type MBGMCR04.

Yes, SAP S/4HANA Migration Cockpit is the “recommended by SAP” tool for loading data in S/4HANA. But there are exceptions to its efficacy. For example, IDoc type MBGMCR is exactly how it’s done in SAP Rapid Data Migration with SAP Data Services (On Premise), Migration Inventory Balances (‏W38‏).

If you’re not using SAP Data Services then Legacy System Migration Workbench (LSMW) is also relevant, using exactly the same IDoc approach that SAP delivers with Rapid Data Migration. What’s more, LSMW (more precisely, IDocs) remains essential for data migration in SAP Retail. For confirmation of necessity, see SAP Note 2538170 – Migration of Retail Objects to SAP S/4HANA on-premise.

MDA Workbench is a free and simple tool for creating such LSMW projects, and for creating a comprehensive kit of deliverables for data migration.

Security and Controls in Development Systems

Posted on October 18, 2020 by - Architecture

Excluding production, I’m regularly astonished by lax Security and Controls in SAP Landscapes. With S/4HANA, astonishment becomes concern.

I’m not talking about the blatantly obvious; no, we don’t regularly see SAP_ALL granted in Development systems as in days of yore.  It’s more subtle than that, but perhaps not by much.

What is Listing in SAP Retail?

Posted on October 12, 2020 by - SAP Retail

Is this Product authorized for business processes at this Location on this date?

In SAP Retail, Listing Conditions answer this simple question, but the complexity of producing the answer is massively underappreciated.

There are three main parts to the story: Data Management (business process), Execution (system process), and Listing Conditions (the result).  And then there are common exception scenarios to be handled.

Archive SAP Retail Site and Business Partner

Posted on October 7, 2020 by - Business Partner, Site Master

Archiving is a tedious task! And so infrequently done, who can remember the steps? I’ve carefully documented it here so that you and I never forget again!

The steps for archiving Site Business Partner also apply to plain old Business Partners and dependent objects. So now you’ve got that in your bag of tricks too!.

Archiving is a seldom-executed process in the course of implementing SAP Retail. And archiving of Site Master is even less likely to occur, unless as a necessary corrective for mistakenly created data. That’s a less-than-ideal occasion for dusting off old or never-practiced archiving skills.

Worry not! You’ll be prepared for success with this detailed guide to archiving Retail Site, Business Partner, and dependent objects.

SAP Retail Text?

Posted on October 4, 2020 by - Article Master, SAP Retail, Site Master

The SAP lexicon is fun. Similar or same words commonly describe different things, and different words describe the same or similar thing. As such, speaking precisely requires effort, if not blind faith.

This is particularly true in SAP Retail, where a so-called “Retail Text” was historically applied to rename business objects. Materials became Articles, Plants became Sites, and more.

With S/4HANA, Retail Text is no more. The standard labels Material and Plant appear on screens, not Article and Site. But not consistently.

SAP Number Range Shenanigans

Posted on October 2, 2020 by - SAP ERP

The shenanigans of alphanumeric SAP Number Ranges are a surprise even to seasoned experts.

You’re likely well aquatinted with the mundane task of maintaining numeric number ranges for most business objects. The behavior is easily understood because the SAP system straightforwardly considers them as, well … numbers. Adding alpha characters to the mix is less common, and the resultant behavior is significantly less intuitive.

Commodity Code Conundrum

Posted on September 8, 2020 by - Article Master, Material Master

Commodity Code data in SAP S/4HANA are completely different than in ECC 6.0; what you knew to be true in ECC 6.0 is no longer true.

There’s a new data model and new Fiori apps for managing Commodity Codes. The upshot is that your master data processes for Commodity Code require redesign, and master data processes for Material Master require redesign, including inbound interfaces that assign Commodity Codes.

Commodity codes in S/4HANA are now time-dependent, and valid for a material and a country or multiple countries.