Table Of Contentfile:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/index.html
Sams Teach Yourself ABAP/4® in 21 Days
Introduction
Week 1 at a Glance
Chapter 1 The Development Environment
Chapter 2 Your First ABAP/4 Program
Chapter 3 The Data Dictionary, Part 1
Chapter 4 The Data Dictionary, Part 2
Chapter 5 The Data Dictionary, Part 3
Chapter 6 The Data Dictionary, Part 4
Chapter 7 Defining Data in ABAP/4, Part 1
Week 1 in Review
Week 2 at a Glance
Chapter 8 Defining Data in ABAP/4, Part 2
Chapter 9 Assignments, Conversions, and Calculations
Chapter 10 Common Control Statements
Chapter 11 Internal Tables
Chapter 12 Advanced Internal Tables, Part 1
Chapter 13 Advanced Internal Tables, Part 2
Chapter 14 The write Statement
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/index.html (1 of 2)3/8/2007 4:51:13 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/index.html
Week 2 in Review
Week 3 at a Glance
Chapter 15 Formatting Techniques, Part 1
Chapter 16 Formatting Techniques, Part 2
Chapter 17 Modularization: Events and Subroutines
Chapter 18 Modularization: Passing Parameters to Subroutines
Chapter 19 Modularization: Function Modules, Part 1
Chapter 20 Modularization: Function Modules, Part 2
Chapter 21 Selection Screens
Week 3 in Review
Appendix A
Appendix B
© Copyright, Sams Publishing. All rights reserved.
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/index.html (2 of 2)3/8/2007 4:51:13 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
Sams Teach Yourself ABAP/4® in 21 Days
Day 1
The Development Environment
l Chapter Objectives
l What is R/3?
m What Is the Purpose of R/3?
m Why Do You Need to Know This?
l Discovering What R/3 Looks Like
m Using the R/3 System Conceptual Areas
m Discovering the R/3 User Interface
l Understanding Basis
l Understanding Client/Server
l R/3 System Architecture
m Presentation Server
m Application Server
m Discovering the Database Server
m Configuring the Servers
m Defining an R/3 System
m Defining an R/3 Instance
l Application Server Architecture
m Understanding a User Context
m Understanding a Roll Area
m Understanding a Dialog Step
m Understanding Roll-In/Roll-Out Processing
m Discovering How the Data Is Sent to the Presentation Server
m Understanding the Components of a Work Process
m Understanding the Types of Work Processes
m Understanding the Logon Client
m Understanding Client-Dependent and Client-Independent Tables
l Using SAP's Open SQL
m Portability
m Buffering Data on the Application Server
m Automatic Client Handling
l Summary
l Q&A
l Workshop
m Quiz
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (1 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
m Exercise 1
Chapter Objectives
After you complete this chapter, you should be able to answer the following questions:
l What is an R/3 system?
l What is an R/3 instance?
l What is Basis?
l What platforms does R/3 support?
l What are the possible R/3 system configurations?
l What is the R/3 server architecture?
l What is a logon client?
What is R/3?
R/3 is an integrated suite of applications designed to handle the data processing for large corporations. It was developed in Germany by the
company named SAP (an acronym for Systems Applications and Products for data processing).
TIP
When you see the word SAP by itself, it is pronounced "ess-ay-pea." When it is combined
with another word, it is pronounced sap, as in "tree sap." You should never say "sap" when
referring to the company SAP. Always pronounce it as "ess-ay-pea." Saying "sap" is the
surest way to say, "I don't know anything about SAP."
Within R/3 is a runtime environment and an integrated suite of application programs written in SAP's 4GL-ABAP/4. These application
programs are designed to meet the data processing needs of very large businesses. R/3 and its predecessor R/2 are particularly popular with
the manufacturing sector.
R/3 is the system in which your ABAP/4 programs will run. Logically, it looks like Figure 1.1.
Figure 1.1 : Application modules are all written in ABAP/4, which is interpreted by Basis executables, which in turn, run on the operating
system.
What is the Purpose of R/3?
The sole purpose of an R/3 system is to provide a suite of tightly integrated, large-scale business applications. A few of these can be seen at
the top of Figure 1.1. The standard set of applications delivered with each R/3 system are the following:
l PP (Production Planning)
l MM (Materials Management)
l SD (Sales and Distribution)
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (2 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
l FI (Financial Accounting)
l CO (Controlling)
l AM (Fixed Assets Management)
l PS (Project System)
l WF (Workflow)
l IS (Industry Solutions)
l HR (Human Resources)
l PM (Plant Maintenance)
l QM (Quality Management)
These applications are called the functional areas, or application areas, or at times the functional modules of R/3. All of these terms are
synonymous with each other.
Traditionally, businesses assemble a suite of data processing applications by evaluating individual products and buying these separate
products from multiple software vendors. Interfaces are then needed between them. For example, the materials management system will need
links to the sales and distribution and to the financial systems, and the workflow system will need a feed from the HR system. A significant
amount of IS time and money is spent in the implementation and maintenance of these interfaces.
R/3 comes prepackaged with the core business applications needed by most large corporations. These applications coexist in one
homogenous environment. They are designed from the ground up to run using a single database and one (very large) set of tables. Current
production database sizes range from 12 gigabytes to near 3 terabytes. Around 8,000 database tables are shipped with the standard delivery
R/3 product.
Why Do You Need to Know This?
This is important for you, as an ABAP/4 programmer, to know because these applications are all written entirely in ABAP/4. These are the
applications you must understand to be a proficient developer in R/3.
For example, assume you know ABAP/4 and you have been asked to write a financial report summarizing debits and credits by fiscal year for
each vendor in the enterprise. You might know how to code in ABAP, but would you know how to begin to solve such a request?
Or perhaps your job entails new development in ABAP/4. You are asked to design a system that provides stock quotations to potential
buyers. If you do not know the financial and sales and distribution systems, you won't know if you are creating something that already exists
in R/3. Nor can you know if there are R/3 tables that already contain data similar to or identical to the type of data you want to store. These
applications are highly integrated. A developer who takes the approach "I'll build my own tables and keep my own copies of the data," might
soon find his data is redundant and must be routinely synchronized with the rest of the database. He has built an application that does not take
advantage of the highly integrated nature of the R/3 environment.
I only point this out because many developers who wish to become independent consultants think that learning ABAP/4 is all they need to
develop in the R/3 system. It is certainly a great start, but it is only the start. The importance of training in a functional area can be overlooked
or unknown to those interested in becoming proficient ABAP/4 consultants. Obviously, much of this learning can and will be done on the job.
However, I hope to illustrate the point that learning the ABAP/4 language is only the beginning of a long journey into SAP. If you desire to
be successful as an independent consultant, you will eventually need to acquire functional area knowledge.
TIP
You can learn about the functional areas by reading the R/3 online reference (R/3 menu path
Help->R/3 Library). It contains tutorials and information for all of the functional areas. If
you have access to a system with IDES data (International Demo and Education System),
you can work through the R/3 Library exercises as well. For availability of training courses,
contact SAP (http://www.sap.com) or Lambton College (http://www.lambton.
on.ca).
Discovering What R/3 Looks Like
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (3 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
In a Windows environment, you will sign on to R/3 either by choosing a menu path from the Start menu, or by double-clicking on an R/3
icon, such as the one shown below in Figure 1.2.
Figure 1.2 : The R/3 icon on the desktop.
The R/3 system will prompt you for a user ID and password. The logon screen appears in Figure 1.3. You will fill in these two fields and then
press Enter.
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (4 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
Figure 1.3 : The R/3 logon screen prompts you for a password.
The R/3 system will then display a copyright screen, and when you press Enter, the system will display the R/3 main menu as shown in
Figure 1.4.
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (5 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
Figure 1.4 : The R/3 main menu.
Using the R/3 System Conceptual Areas
From the main menu, you can go to three conceptual areas in the R/3 system:
l the Applications area
l the Basis area
l the Development Workbench
In the Applications area, you initiate transactions for the functional areas within R/3. To access these, from the R/3 main menu choose one of
the following: Logistics, Accounting, Human Resources, or Information Systems.
In the Basis area, you can run transactions that monitor the R/3 system itself. To access the Basis area, from the main menu choose the menu
path Tools->Administration. Here you will find many performance, tuning, and database administration tools.
The Development Workbench is used to create and test ABAP/4 programs. As an ABAP/4 programmer, you will spend most of your time
within the Workbench. To access the Development Workbench, choose the menu path Tools->Development Workbench. However, your
code will most probably read or update application data, and so it will be destined to become part of the application area. With that in mind,
let's have a look within an Applications area first.
For our example, imagine that you are a clerk working in an accounts payable department. A vendor calls to say his address has changed.
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (6 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
You put a bookmark in the magazine article you were reading (A Criminologist's View of the Problems with Creative Accounting) and
proceed to update his address in the R/3 system. First, you reach the Accounts Payable menu by choosing the menu path Accounting-
>Financial Accounting->Accounts Payable (see Figure 1.5).
Figure 1.5 : The menu path to update a vendor master record (part 1).
You then bring up the vendor master record maintenance transaction by choosing the menu path Master Records->Change (see Figure 1.6).
You will see the Change Vendor: Initial screen.
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (7 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm
Figure 1.6 : The menu path to update a vendor master record (part 2).
From the Initial screen shown in Figure 1.7, you type his vendor number, tickmark the Address check box, and press the Enter key. You will
then see the Address screen (see Figure 1.8).
file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/ch01/ch01.htm (8 of 35)3/8/2007 4:51:31 PM
Description:file:///D|/College/Sams%2021%20Days%20ABAP/index.html. Sams Teach Yourself ABAP/4. ® in 21 Days. Introduction. Week 1 at a Glance. Chapter 1.
