Performing SAP system copies automatically
Consideration of additional QA clients
Third-party tools sometimes have a different focus than TDMS. The tools each offer a more or less generally understandable user guidance and are thus "out-of-the-box" products that do not require external consulting on implementation or application.
In the case of BSC, sophisticated mechanisms make it possible to exclude configuration errors, since relevant parameter settings are made automatically and according to predefined rules. For example, it is automatically recognized whether the system is an Abap, Java or double-stack system.
SAP system startup and shutdown, including virtual hosts
Until now, it has been common practice to create test systems as a client or system copy of the production system on a specific date. In these cases, a single client or the entire SAP system is duplicated. The corresponding instances of the SAP system have to be reinstalled. In addition, a copy of the source database must be created. These are standard procedures, but they can be disproportionately expensive for productive data sets of several terabytes. SAP and third-party tools for selective data extraction can significantly reduce the cost of deploying non-production SAP systems.
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The third-party providers have adapted their tools to various special areas. For example, the "Clone & Test" tool from Pecaso, which is now part of Accenture, specializes in transferring data from SAP's HR module. In addition to HR data, the "Data Sync Manager" from the provider Epi-Use makes it possible to select additional objects from the areas of accounting and logistics. As with TDMS, "Infoshuttle" from Gamma Enterprise Technologies gives users the option of selecting any data from the SAP system. For transport, the tool uses Idocs, which, however, can only be used to transfer small amounts of test data. SNP's "Data Distillery" can either write extracted data directly into the tables of the target system via RFC or generate an export file that can be imported into target systems multiple times. In the source system, users can select by objects, processes and transactions. Further selection options, for example by organizational units or fiscal year, allow a percentage of the data to be filtered out of the system as consistent test data.
With "Shortcut for SAP Systems" a tool is available that simplifies the SAP system copy and offers additional possibilities.
Procedure: - Identify the largest or longest running tables in the system that determine the total system copy time - Perform an initial copy of these tables at source system production time - Record the changes to these tables - Copy the delta using RFC, at source system production time - Use the standard procedure to copy all non-IMIG tables (downtime).
Some useful tips about SAP basis can be found on www.sap-corner.de.
Complete shutdown of the production system is best avoided altogether.