Application Permissions
Rebuilding the authorization concept
SAP*: The SAP* user is part of the SAP kernel, and since it is hard-coded in the SAP system, it does not require a user master set. If there is no user master set for SAP*, anyone can log on to the SAP system after rebooting with this user, as the default password will then apply. The user thus has access to all functions, since Authority Checks in this case do not take effect. You can prevent this behaviour by setting the login/no_automatic_user_sapstar profile parameter to 1. If you want to copy clients, you have to set this parameter to 0 again before you do so, because the user SAP* is required for this. Safeguard measures: Despite the parameter setting, the SAP user should have a user master set in all clients. However, you should remove all profiles and lock the user. In addition, change the password, assign the user to the SUPER user group, and log it with the Security Audit Log.
Help, I have no permissions (SU53)! You want to start a transaction, but you have no permissions? Or the more complex case: You open the ME23N (show purchase order), but you don't see any purchase prices? Start transaction SU53 immediately afterwards to perform an authorization check. The missing authorization objects will be displayed in "red". You can also run SU53 for other users by clicking on Authorization Values > Other Users in the menu and entering the corresponding SAP user name.
User & Authorization Management with SIVIS as a Service
For an authorization concept, a clear goal must first be defined that is to be achieved with the help of the concept. This should list which regulatory requirements the respective SAP system must fulfill and the associated authorization concept must take into account. In this way, the legal framework conditions are defined. In addition, uniform naming conventions should be used because, on the one hand, many things cannot be changed after the initial naming and, on the other hand, this ensures searchability in the SAP system. Clearly defined responsibilities ensure the effectiveness of a concept. Specific persons must be named or at least roles defined in a separate section. A chapter should be dedicated to the process for user management. Here, it must be described how users obtain existing SAP authorizations, how new users are integrated into the SAP system, and who is responsible for approving authorizations. The chapter on the process for authorization management defines who is allowed to create and edit which roles and who is responsible for the development of various related processes. The chapter on special authorizations describes processes and special features in the area of non-dialog operations. These include job management and interface convention. Other administrative authorizations can also be described. The chapter on role concept explains how business requirements are transferred to a technical role. The role concept takes on a special significance, since it describes the actual mapping of business roles to the technical roles and thus to the authorizations in SAP.
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Finally, we want to give you some recommendations for securing file access. The SPTH table allows you to protect the file system from ABAP programme accesses without granting permissions and to deliberately define exceptions. The problem is identifying the necessary exceptions. However, because the SPTH check is always performed together with the S_DATASET object check, you can use a long-running permission trace to find the paths that are used with filters for the S_DATASET authorization object. The procedure for this is described in detail in our Tip 39, "Maintain suggestion values by using trace evaluations". If you are using applications that access files in the DIR_HOME directory without a path, such as the ST11 transaction, you must specify access to the allowed file groups individually (e.g. dev_, gw_), because there is no wild card for DIR_HOME.
During go-live, the assignment of necessary authorizations is particularly time-critical. The "Shortcut for SAP systems" application provides functions for this purpose, so that the go-live does not get bogged down because of missing authorizations.
Careful maintenance of suggestion values in the relevant authorization objects results in recurring benefits in creating and revising roles for Web applications.
However, the use of SAP authorization tools is a great advantage for many companies.