Tools for Generic Data Extraction using SAP BW

Business Scenario requirement for generic data extraction using SAP BW is as explained below.
l. Your company wants to analyze the purchase requisitions created in R/3 in the Business  Information Warehouse. Since Business Content does not include an Info Source for this purpose, you have been given the task of generating a Data Source for purchase requisitions using the tools for generic data extraction.
2.The requested quantities are to be analyzed according to material. Similarly, reports are also to be supported using the old material number that was transferred from the legacy system to the material master in the R/3 System. 
3.The old material number is to be maintained as a material attribute. In order to do so, you have to generate a new Info Source for the material characteristic with the attribute "old material number".

When should you use the tools for generic data extraction for creating a Data Source?

  1. Business Content does not include a Data Source for your application.
  2. The application does not feature its own generic data extraction method.
  3. You are using your own programs in SAP R/3 to populate (fill) your tables.
Transaction and Master Data

The tools for generic data extraction are launched with the transaction RSO2.You can use this transaction to create Data Sources for both transaction and master data, and for texts.The technical name of new characteristics (Info Objects) must be between 4 and 9 characters long.The characteristics are created in two steps: 
First, the properties of the characteristics (the extractors) are defined with the relevant extractor type and characteristic compounding.
Next, the Info Objects (if they exist) are assigned to the characteristic attributes defined in the extractor. If these do not exist, they must be created using the 'Assign attributes' transaction.




Creating Data Sources for Transaction Data

When you create a generic Info Source for transaction data you first have to enter the application component and texts for describing the Info Source. The application component determines where the Data Source is stored in the Data Sources tab in the Administrator Workbench after the Data Sources have been replicated.

You can then select the data source for the generic Data Source. Here you can choose both transparent tables and database views. You can also use SAP Query Info Sets to extract data.Choose the 'Extraction from view' button, if you want to extract the data from a transparent table or database view, and enter the name of the table or view. The extract structure of the generated Data Source is then identical to that of the view or table.

Choose the 'Extraction from Query' button if you want to use an SAP Query Info Set as a data source.
Then select the required Info Set from the Info Set catalog.You can go to the screen for maintaining an existing Info Set by double -clicking on its name.

Digression: Extraction Using View

You create views with transaction SE11 (ABAP Workbench Dictionary). To do so, you have to choose the view type 'Database view'.The tables must be joined by identical fields in the join conditions.All of the key fields in the tables must be defined as view fields, otherwise some data records may overlap and the data will not be transferred to BW. Characteristics can be ignored if you are certain that they are not used in the table keys. If characteristics with only one attribute are used, they can be assigned selection conditions (Goto > Selection conditions). If the master data is time-dependent, the DATE TO and DATE FROM fields have to be included in the view.

The sequence of fields for defining a database view for extracting texts is fixed.
ŸClient
ŸLanguage with the domain SPRAS, if the defined texts are language dependent
ŸKey field: if compounding is used, all of the relevant characteristics have to be listed.

ŸIf the data is time-dependent, the DATE TO and DATE FROM fields Ÿ Short, medium and long texts 

If one of the text fields is not required, it must not be checked. If there is no medium-length text, the last two fields are the short text and long text fields.


Digression: Creating Info Sets

SAP Query is a powerful tool for defining reports in the OLTP system and supports different forms of reporting. It allows users to define and execute their own reports on data in the SAP System without any knowledge of the ABAP programming language.

Reports are structured by entering texts and selecting fields and options in SAP Query. The relevant fields can be selected more easily using Info Sets (before Release 4.6C: functional areas) 'Info Sets' are seen as 'data sources'. These data sources can be used for extracting in BW.

The procedure for creating an Info Set from the Data Source definition:

1. Fill out all of the required entry fields (application component, descriptions).
2. Choose the 'Extraction from query' button.
3. Choose the 'Create' icon. A new screen is displayed.
4. Enter a name for the Info Set and press the 'Info Set maintenance' button.
5. In the screen that follows, press the 'Create' button.

Then carry out the following steps:
Ÿ
Select the data source (DB tables/views, joins, logical DB)
ŸDefine the field groups and assign the fields


Info Sets

'Info Set' from OLTP, until then the valid name is 'functional area'.

An Info Set is a special view of a data set (logical database, table join, table, sequential file) and is used by SAP Query as a data source. Info Sets, therefore, determine the tables or fields in these tables that can be referenced by a report. In most cases, Info Sets are based on logical databases.SAP Query features a component for maintaining Info Sets. When you create an Info Set, a data source in an application system is selected.

SAP Query is relevant for the Business Information Warehouse because it allows you to define the extract structure by selecting fields in a logical database, table join or other data sets in the form of an Info Set. In this way, you can use the generic data extraction function for master or transaction data from any Info Set. When you do so, a query is created for an Info Set that retrieves data and transfers it to the generic extractor.

Info Sets represent an additional, convenient data source for extracting data generically. Logical databases in all R/3 applications, table joins and further data sets can be used as a data source for BW.

To create Info Sets with access to a logical database, you first have to make just two entries:

Ÿthe name of the Info Set
the logical database.

The automatic text identification leads to the text being shown for table fields that support this function. It is deactivated for extraction purposes.




Since the number of fields in a data source (logical database) can be very high, fields can be  combined in logical units called field groups. Field groups are groups of several fields representing a
logical unit in an Info Set. The extract structure is always formed from all of the fields in all of the field groups.

When you create an Info Set, you have a choice of options for forming field groups ('read all table fields', 'read key fields' and 'create empty field groups'). You can create other field groups if you need
to.The fields need in the extractor must be assigned from the the logical database to the field groups. You then have to generate the Info Set.



Related Posts

No comments :

Post a Comment