PL5 is now available from Service Marketplace.

For details refer to SAP Note  2030419

Highlights:

UI improvements:

• A new standard theme, SAP Blue Crystal, is available under the "Theme" field in the "Personalize" dialog box.This is applied to the shell, Index and New Tab page, and also to SAP GUI transactions - unless you specify "Use SAP GUI theme" in the  personalization settings. Also available as setting in the administrator NwbcOptions.xml file ("<Theme>BlueCrystal</Theme>")

• New admin and user setting "Show system information in tab title"
  
  Users can select this checkbox to display the system/client information as a prefix in the tab title; this is now valid not only for SAP GUI transactions but also for Web Dynpro ABAP applications, service maps, and NWBC overview pages. Also available as administrator setting "ShowSystemInfoInTabTitle".

Further
platform support:

• Windows 8.1/IE11

• NWBC shell touch enablement for Windows 8.x desktop - for details, see What's New in SAP NetWeaver Business Client, section "Support for Microsoft Windows 8 Touchscreen Input"

NWBC Runtime PL 45 is out with corrections for the following symptoms:

NWBC Runtime

• Enterprise Search is not active in NWBC for Desktop, if there is no role assigned to the user.

NWBC for HTML

• Navigation with navigation mode "1" - "EXTERNAL" to an URL that contains a number sign ("#") does not work in MS Internet Explorer.
• Work protection (data loss popup) does not work in Internet Explorer 11.
• In some scenarios application windows are not sized properly.

Please see Note 2148130.

This has been a hot topic for some time, but now is probably a good time to formalize some informal discussions, and outline the latest version of the roadmap. Now, firstly because Ingo Deck of this parish is releasing the latest version of the UI Roadmap soon, and secondly because I had the opportunity of addressing the ASUG UX Special Interest Group just before Easter (27th March), and presented this information to them.

The last time I presented a roadmap was Teched in November. The overall strategy was clear then, and hasn't changed, either in my lecture (UXP106 : "What's New in NWBC"), or in Nis Boy Naeve's talk (TEC104: "SAP's User Experience Strategy"):

- in particular: "The SAP Fiori launchpad (FLP) will become the web-based entry point for SAP business applications across platforms and devices" . If you look closely, this included a "Desktop" capability, ie support for SAP GUI for Windows native.

The challenge was to put some flesh on these bones, which we are now doing with the new roadmap. This represents less of a revolution, more an incremental change from the previous roadmap (Teched November 2014), but I think it is worth discussing here in some detail, because we have had so many queries on this topic, and I promised to keep you all informed.

Planned innovations

The first big news is this (from "Planned" in the roadmap slide):

I talked about this at TechEd 2014, but we have now moved it to "Planned", so it should be available, all things being equal, in Fiori Wave 9. This means that, for the first time, we will soon officially support Fiori content in NWBC. (;-) !). Users can access all their usual content (SAP GUI native, WD ABAP etc) and their Fiori apps from one index page:

There are limitations:

• no app to app navigation
• no Quicklaunch support
• no support for Fiori Launchpad services like catalogs etc

... but for a simple ESS/MSS app, this still represents a big step forward.

This is our first step in realizing the vision of NWBC as a bridge between the established and new worlds, which we first introduced at Teched 2014.

Future Vision

And the next big step is this:

So what's changed?

• First of all: NWBC for Fiori UX is an unofficial, working name for a concept that I alluded to at Teched 2014, but for which I can now offer more details:
  • Specifically, NWBC for Fiori UX  will enable you to launch all your  Fiori content and your SAP GUI for Windows transactions directly from the Fiori Launchpad.  This is also the main idea of the first bullet point: "Fiori Launchpad in NWBC with SAP GUI native experience"
• "Fiori Launchpad configuration only" - enables you to maintain assign catalogs, groups, etc, directly in the Fiori Launchpad configuration environment
• The third point is a corollary of this: "Enable business experts, not administrators, to configure content" - ie allowing customers to split authorization and content configuration -> making life simpler for both the LOB experts and the IT teams. This is something that many customers have been asking for for some time, so it's good to get this implemented.
• And similarly, the fourth point is also a corollary of the second:"Integration of content from SAP HANA" - ie by using Fiori Launchpad catalogs to access HANA content.

This could look something like this:

Open your Fiori Launchpad, click on the "My Sales Orders" tile...

and the intent-based navigation points to a SAP GUI for Windows transaction, which opens in a new tab.

The main limitation is that Desktop support is planned for Windows; we are not planning to offer a native Fiori desktop client for Macintosh (eg OS X), or Linux.

Summary

So the final step remains the same: Fiori Launchpad will become the Web-based entry point for SAP business applications across all platforms and devices. In addition, it will (as announced at Teched) be available in 3 flavors:

• Browser - zero footprint, default for all, available for some time
• Mobile - also available for some time, offering device integration and optimizing performance
• Windows - offering SAP GUI for Windows support; available in future

... so your options look roughly like this:

I hope this clarifies our overall UI Client strategy. I will be updating our overview slides accordingly.

Introduction

There are business scenarios in which the application needs to jump from one system to another, or the application requires information from a remote system.

For example:

• application wants to call a transaction from a remote system
• application wants to navigate to a Web Dynpro application that is located on a remote system
• application wants to execute an Object-Based Navigation (OBN) or intent-based navigation (IBN) targeting a remote system
• application needs to read data from a remote system
• application wants to generate a URL that would be available outside the corporate network and needs to point to a Web dispatcher
• application wants to call an OData service from a remote system

In most cases, when there is a need to communicate or navigate to a remote system, the application can use RFC destination names, defined in SM59 as ABAP Connection (Connection type 3). However, in some cases the information provided in the RFC destination is not enough to resolve a request (for example, the application wants to navigate to a Web Dynpro application using HTTPS), and runtime additionally requires the HTTP destination for the remote system.

The following article covers only ABAP-based use-cases and is targeted at application developers and system administrators working with NetWeaver Business Client (NWBC) and Fiori Launchpad.

Supported Shells

The resolution of the remote system configuration and the processing of cross-app (cross-system) navigation is handled by the shell that hosts the application.

The following shells need remote system configurations and must be able to handle cross-system navigation:

Use-Cases

To refer to remote systems, you can use the SM59 name (RFC Destination Name) or System Alias -the normalized/base form of the SM59 Destination Name(see below).

There are several places and services in which the System Alias can be used, as described in the following list:

• Transaction PFCG. The attribute, Target System, of the navigation menu entry. This indicates that the application shall be called by the remote system that is specified by the System Alias.

• Transaction LPD_CUST. The mandatory parameter, System Alias, in the Change Launchpad Role screen. The application shall call the remote system that is specified by the System Alias. The System Alias can be resolved by the ABAP runtime (NWBC) or by Portal runtime.

• As a dynamic parameter, SYSTEM,when navigating by OBN (PFCG-based) or resolving the Report Launchpad (LPD_CUST) link. Passed as a URL parameter that overwrites customized values defined in LPD_CUST or in PFCG ( ...?sap-client=001&sap-language=EN&SYSTEM=ERP1 ).

• As a dynamic parameter, sap-system, passed within intent (intent-based navigation in Fiori Launchpad -> ... #SalesOrder-display? sap-system=ERP1). The parameter overwrites the System Alias parameter defined in LPD_CUST.

• As a parameter for System Alias Repository API web service implemented for NWBC 5.0.

Naming Convention

SM59 does not allow you to create several destinations with the same name even if the connection types are different. The trick for referencing several destinations by the same name is to have multiple SM59 entries with the same base name and an extension (_RFC, _HTTP, _HTTPS) attached to it to distinguish between the different types of connections.

For example, if the system name is XYZ, the different destination names should be the following:

• SM59 name-resolving sequence for SAP GUI aliases: XYZ_RFC,XYZ
• SM59 name-resolving sequence for HTTP aliases: XYZ_HTTPS, XYZ_HTTP, XYZ

Using this approach, it is possible to reference multiple connections by passing the base name only. Using the example above, it would be XYZ. The following name extensions (suffixes) can be used:

• _HTTP (XYZ_HTTP) - to define HTTP connection settings. Can be applied for connection types G and H.
• _HTTPS (XYZ_HTTPS) - to define HTTPS connection settings. Can be applied for connection types G and H.
• _RFC (XYZ_RFC) - to define RFC / SAP GUI connections. Can be used for connection type 3.
• _BOE (XYZ_BOE) - to define additional HTTP connection for BI. Can be used for connection types G and H.

For connection types RFC (3) and HTTP (H,G), the name extension can be omitted (base name equal to SM59 destination name) and the runtime will still resolve the connection data properly. This fallback allows you to reuse existing definitions without extra configuration.

Referencing by System ID and Client

From UI Add-On SP09 onwards, it is also possible to reference a system not only by logical aliasing but also by system ID and client. The use-case could be the generation of the callback location by the service called remotely: the remote service does not know the name of his system used by the caller, and can only provide its own system ID and client.

If referencing by system ID is required, the following syntax must be used:

sid(SYSTEMID[.CLIENT]) for example : sid(U00.111) or sid(U00)

The syntax is case-sensitive. sid definitions may be used in the following cases:

• PFCG -> Target System field
• LPD_CUST -> System Alias field
• SYSTEM -> URL parameter for OBN/LPD_CUST link resolving (... ?SYSTEM=sid(U00.111)...)
• sap-system -> intent parameter in Fiori Launchpad ( ...#SalesOrder-display?sap-system=sid(U00.111)...)

The system-resolving logic is as follows:

1. Look up SM59 destinations with explicit match, that is, with the system alias equal to string sid(SYSID.CLIENT).
2. If this is not found, parse sid string into System ID and Client
3. Search in SM59 for RFC destination associated with given SYSID with specified client (or without, if not provided)
4. Detect base name of system alias from RFC destination name (use as is, or remove _RFC name extension)
5. Collect system data using system alias

To enable the SM59 destination to be searchable by SID + client notation, the Load Balancing setting of the corresponding RFC destination must be set to Yes, and the target system settings must be properly maintained.

Because the repository (SM59) can have more than one destination pointing to the same SYSID + client, the first matching value is returned.

Which Connection Types to Maintain?

Different SM59 destination types are used for supporting different application technologies. It is recommended to always maintain all connection types even if you do not need them currently. This ensures stable resolution even if your application technology should change in the future.

RFC Connection Definition

When maintaining the RFC connection, you can either select Load Balancing or provide direct settings (= Load Balancing OFF + Target Host address). Having Load Balancing switched off in the RFC connection definition ensures that your connection can be used for all versions of NWBC for Desktop and all versions of the NWBC server runtime. If you want to implement load balancing using the RFC connection setting, you need to run NWBC 5.0 together with the server runtime for SAP NetWeaver User Interface Services on User Interface Add-On 1.0 for SAP NetWeaver SPS 09 or SAP NetWeaver 7.4 with software component SAP_UI SPS08.

Referencing by System ID and Client is only supported if RFC Load Balancing is enabled.

Technical Settings (Load Balancing)	Technical Settings (Direct)
Settings for load balancing can be taken from corresponding SAP Logon system connection. See below for more details.	Target Host can be taken from SM51 host Instance No. can be taken from SAP Logon connection definition. See below for more details.

Logon & Security

Logon & Security (SNC)

Leave Language empty if you want to use the language from the calling application A generic user is not yet supported, so you cannot hard code a user and password here Ensure that the Client that you have defined in all connection types is the same. If Client is not specified, Client of calling Application will be added Set SSL to Active if you want to use Single Sign-On; you need to define SNC settings first.

SNC settings can be taken from the corresponding SAP Logon connection. Partners corresponds to SNC name, QoP corresponds to security settings.

HTTP Connection Definition

Technical Settings	Logon & Security
HTTP host and port can be found in transaction SICF of corresponding system You can use Path Prefix to define a fixed prefix path for ALL your web addresses. For example, if you work only with UI5 : /sap/bc/ui5_ui5/	Leave Language empty if you want to use the language of the calling application Generic user is not yet supported, so you cannot hard code a user and password here Ensure that the Client that you have defined in all connection types is the same. If Client is not specified, Client of calling application will be added For HTTP connection, SSL must be set to Inactive

HTTPS Connection Definition

Technical Settings

Logon & Security

HTTPS host and port can be found in transaction SICF of corresponding system You can use Path Prefix to define a fixed prefix path for ALL your web addresses. For example, if you work only with UI5 : /sap/bc/ui5_ui5/

Leave Language empty if you want to use the language from the calling application Generic user is not yet supported, so you cannot hard code a user and password here Ensure that the Client that you have defined in all connection types is the same. If Client is not specified, Client of calling application will be added For HTTPS connection, SSL must be set to Active. Ensure that you have entered HTTPS Port in the Service No. field on the Technical Settings tab.

How to Find System Settings

HTTP Hosts and Ports

• In the remote system, call transaction SICF -> F8
• On the application toolbar, press the button Host and Port Information

SICF transaction	Host and Port information

RFC Load-Balancing Data

Data for configuring the RFC destination can be found in the properties of the corresponding connection defined in SAP Logon (or in NWBC 5.0 System Selector):

• Load-balancing settings can be found on the Connection tab of the SAP Logon connection
• SSO settings can be found on the Network tab.

SAP Logon System Settings (Connection)	SAP Logon System Settings (Network)

NWBC 5.0 System Selector	SM51 Server List

System Alias not Resolved?

If runtime is unable to determine the system configuration provided by the system alias, it will use the local system (relative path to the application), and will pass the unresolved system alias parameter (SYSTEM or sap-system) for further processing by the application. If a system alias that is dynamically passed (as a URL or Intent hash parameter) is resolved, the URL/Intent parameter is deleted from the parameter list and is not forwarded to the application.

If the application refers to a remote target using System Alias,it normally tries to point to the origin of the target. There are two types of origin:

• Data Origin: Points to the location of data used/consumed by the target application, and indicates the location from where the data shall be loaded. For SAP UI5 applications, this will be a backend system implementing OData services.

• Application Origin: Points to the location of the application sources, and indicates the location from where the application itself shall be loaded. For SAP UI5 applications, it is the front-end server.

The Application Origin may be the same as the Data Origin;examples of this are SAP GUI and Web Dynpro applications. For SAP UI5 applications, the SAP GUI, Web Dynpro, or URL system alias that is passed for resolution with the sap-system parameter is treated as Data Origin in all cases. It should not be used for any other purpose. It is not yet possible to explicitly pass the application origin. Instead, the Fiori Launchpad resolves the Application Origin based on the most likely default:

• SAP UI5 application: FLP origin (front-end server) is assumed to also be the application origin.
• SAP GUI, Web Dynpro, and URL: System Alias(data origin) is assumed to also be the application origin.

Existing documentation

• Configuring remote systems to be used in NetWeaver Business Client (NWBC)
• Configuring of remote systems to be used in ABAP Report Launchpad (LPD_CUST)

Requirements

• UI Add-On SP09 (support of sid format and load-balancing in NWBC 5.0)
• To integrate content from other systems by using the property Target System in PFCG, users need display authorization for SM59 in the back end. (NWBC 5.0)

Hi everyone,

After delivering a successful Webinar on NWBC for the user groups ASUG and DSAG, we have decided to provide an additional live Webinar for the other user groups:

SAP NWBC - What's New in 5.0

The latest release of SAP NetWeaver Business Client (October 2014) was a major breakthrough: For the first time, we offer for expert users one installation file, one SAP UI landscape, and even improved SAP GUI integration. In the last year, SAP has also introduced many other UI innovations. End users often want to experience these, while continuing to benefit from a native desktop environment. This session will show how SAP NetWeaver Business Client for Desktop bridges the gap between these two worlds, and and provides some outlook on how in future you will be able to consume SAP Fiori applications in NWBC.

Presenters are : Julie Plummer and Sandra Thimme, SAP User Experience Product Management, SAP SE

Tuesday, June 16th, 2015, 10:00 AM CET EMEA Berlin (English)

Tuesday, June 16th, 2015, 09:00 AM GMT EMEA London (English)

Tuesday, June 16th, 2015, 4:00 PM CET EMEA Berlin (English)

Tuesday, June 16th, 2015, 3:00 PM GMT EMEA London (English)

The Webinars will be recorded and made available through the user groups.

Just to give you a flavor, you can see the question and answer session from the ASUG Webinar here: ASUG UX Group: Wrapup

If you are interested in this, then you should apply for details (dialin information, etc) via your country-specific or region-specific user group.

To find out more about the SAP user groups, including how to join, see:  SAP User Groups

I hope as many of you as possible can make it.

1. Open the SAP Support Portal (https://support.sap.com/home.html) .
2. Choose Documentation:

3. Choose N (for NetWeaver)

4. ChooseSAP NetWeaver

5. Choose Installation and Upgrade Information (in the centre part of the page)

6. Choose the link English by the side of Additional Installation Information. This displays the ‘old’ Installation and Upgrade Guides SMP page for NetWeaver

7.  Scroll down the navigation panel and click User Interface Add-On for SAP NetWeaver; NWBC 4.0 is available with other UI Add On documentation.

Introduction

I recently presented a session titled “Under the covers with NetWeaver Business Client” at the annual SAP Australian User Group (SAUG) Summit in Sydney Australia.

"Ever wondered how the SAP NetWeaver Business Client works? Well dust of your propeller hats and grab a seat. This session will give you a peak under the covers and into the nuts a bolts that make up one of SAPs strategic UI clients. You will learn what makes NWBC tick and the important parts on both the client and the server side, how to debug problems and get an insight into the inner workings of the product"

In a series of blog posts here on SCN I would like to share this session with the rest of the SAP community and get your feedback, so please use the comments section to let me know your thoughts.

To set the scene the story is of Bob. Bob is supporting NWBC for his organisation and he needs to solve a series of problems that users have reported. Along the way I hope you will gain insight into how NWBC works “under the covers” and learn some tools and tips that you will find useful. You can find the accompanying slide deck here (there is a useful slide that shows the basic NWBC architecture that might help too)

So lets go… here is the first problem for Bob:

#1 -  Alice can’t Logon

Alice has reported that when she starts NWBC she is unable to see any systems to log on to.

Key Learnings

Summary

I hope you enjoyed this first post. We still have four more problems to solve so please keep an eye out for the next instalment on Bobs courageous journey to solve all his users NWBC problems! Please don’t forget to let me know what you think in the comments section below and please add any other problems you’d like to see Bob tackle!

Yes, with alarming speed, Teched season is almost upon us again:

Las Vegas: October 19–23, 2015
Barcelona: November 10–12, 2015

This year,we are offering a lecture and (I hope) 2 Expert Networking sessions.

The lecture: UX108 "SAP NetWeaver Business Client, Release 5.0: Strategy and Outlook

If you look at the abstract, you will see that I kept it fairly high-level. I apologise for this; it was a necessary evil. However, since I wrote that, we have been developing at a cracking pace, so I will be able to offer a lot more detail. Specifically, I want to address customers who are currently mainly on SAP GUI transactions (especially for Windows - ie "Wingui"), who want to ensure access to those transactions wherever necessary, but also provide a new user experience with Fiori where desirable. I will show how you can integrate Fiori standalone apps in NWBC, and also what you will be able to do in future. I'll wrap up by showing how NWBC fits the overall UX strategy.

NB: This is not slideware - I will provide "previews from the labs" either as demos (if the Teched system can cope) or (more likely) video.

Also, since I have a lot to cover regarding the strategy, I will not be using this session as "NWBC in a Nutshell". I will however cover the basics in an expert networking session.

I will be presenting in person in Barcelona; my colleague Johannes Wasserfall will present in Las Vegas. I have also just been told that the Las Vegas session will also be recorded, so I hope that we can link to that later - for those of you who can't make it in person.

Official info is here: UX108 "SAP NetWeaver Business Client, Release 5.0: Strategy and Outlook"

The Expert Networking sessions

...will be finalised in mid-September. You will hear it here first.

Customer session: Intel Corp (Las Vegas only)

Excellent news: Intel's Lavaughn Urbano has kindly agreed to hold an NWBC session, as part of the ASUG series. Here is their abstract:

Intel’s best practices for improving user experience with NWBC & SidePanels

Take control and change user reality. We will deep dive into the NWBC and its Side Panels, sharing ways to improve the user experience within SAP GUI. We will highlight quick wins; delve into the security implications of using Side Panels and explore the technical aspects and challenges of passing parameters to Side Panels across systems and platforms.

Other sessions

... that caught my eye, in no particular order:

TEC112 Key User Interface Technologies in SAP S/4HANA - Dr Johannes Wasserfall

UX109 Update on SAP GUI and How It Fits Into SAP's UI Strategy - Dr Ralph Resech

UX204 SAP Fiori Apps: Implementation, Discovery, Technology, and Architecture - Michael Falk

UX207 SAP UI Technologies and Clients: Overview, Strategy, and Best Practices - Michael Falk and Oliver Lehman

UX118 SAP Screen Personas Version 2 to 3: Migration and New Opportunities - by Steve Rumsby

UX263 Improve the SAP User Experience with SAP Screen Personas - by Steve Rumsby

For more information, see : SAP Teched Global Home Page

Welcome back to this series of posts diving “under the covers” with the NetWeaver Business Client. If you haven’t already done so please go back and take a look at the previous one.

In this next instalment we will continue to look into common problems and how to diagnose and fix them, in this case we are going to look at how the NWBC user menu is determined. Our hero Bob ("the support dude with attitude") has received a call from a user who thinks he should be seeing more entries in his NWBC menu because he has seen that his colleague Alice has more entries than he has.

How will Bob work out what’s going on?

Which of his tools will he apply to solve this problem?

Let’s find out...

#2 - Missing Menus

Key Learnings

I really hope you are enjoying this series, please leave your comments below, I’d love to hear your thoughts. We still have 3 more problems for intrepid Bob to solve so keep an eye out for the next one Under the Covers with NWBC #3 - Broken Navigation.

Welcome back to this series of posts diving “under the covers” with the NetWeaver Business Client. If you haven’t already done so please go back and take a look at the previous one.

So far our hero Bob has had things pretty easy really, some logon problems and some missing menu entries… that’s child's play! At this rate he’ll be heading home early and might even fit in a lunchtime nap. But hang on this next one is a bit trickier and is going to take all his mental horsepower to work out, I hope he’s had his mid morning coffee!

His old mate Robert (what a great name Bob thinks) from the procurement team has called him over and shown him a problem he is getting when he tries to navigate to view material details within his Purchasing Work List in SRM. You’d better cancel that nap Bob and get your propellor hat out for this one.

Let’s go...

#3 - Broken Navigation

Still with me? That was a good one right? Bob may have lost a few more hairs working that one out. I really hope you are enjoying this series, please leave your comments below, I’d love to hear your thoughts. We still have 2 more problems for intrepid Bob to solve so keep an eye out for the next one. Do you have a problem you’d like Bob to solve? If you do please let me know.

That last one was a doozie, probably time for our hero Bob to take a break and sort out an easy one. This one is much more simple; Alice is getting an authorisation issue when she tries to create a new customer. She can see the entry in her NWBC menu but when she clicks on it she gets a an authorisation error. Never fear Alice… Bob's got this one covered too.

Well if you’re a security or BASIS administrator then that probably wasn’t anything new to you, if you come from a portal background or are new to all this then maybe it was. So while not the most complex problem to solve it does bring up an interesting question… Do you split your roles into Menu Roles and Authorisation Roles? Doing so certainly has it’s advantages and disadvantages, I’m in favour of having separate menu roles to aid maintenance (imagine having your menu scattered across 100s of potential security roles, being managed by multiple people). I’d be interested to hear how you manage your roles, please comment below if you'd like to share.

There’s one more challenge left for Bob before he can pack up and head home Under the Covers with NWBC #5 - Respond to SAP Support

Welcome back to this series of posts diving “under the covers” with the NetWeaver Business Client. If you haven’t already done so please go back and take a look at the previous one.

It’s almost time to clock out. It’s been a big day for our hero Bob, but before he hops on is moped and heads to the nearest watering hole he remembers that he needs to update a message that he has raised with SAP support. He thinks to himself “I hope this doesn’t take too long”… don’t worry Bob there are some nice features of NWBC that will help. There are also some great tips on where to set a breakpoint, where to look into logs and how to clear the menu cache.

#5 - Respond to SAP Support

So there you have it, that’s the final chapter in this series diving Under the covers with NetWeaver Business Client. I hope it has been useful to you and that you might have even learned something new along the way. If you have enjoyed it or even if you haven’t please take 2 minutes to comment below, I really value all your feedback.

*With our next release (UI add-on 2.0 SP01, SAP_UI 750 SP01 - NW 7.50) in October 2015, the product name will be changed to SAP Business Client 6.0 **On-premise edition

We are receiving more and more questions about SAP Business Client and SAP S/4 HANA.

“We are considering transitioning from Business Suite to Business Suite on HANA. However, we are heavily invested in NWBC and are happy with our solution. If we move to SAP S/4 HANA, would our investment be wasted?”

No!

SAP’s product strategy fully safeguards your investment in SAP NetWeaver Business Client.

Fiori is the preferred UI technology for SAP S/4HANA. SAP Business Client is fully integrated into SAP S/4 HANA on-premise. And SAP S/4 HANA still contains a significant footprint of Web Dynpro ABAP and SAP GUI Screens, which means that navigation will be familiar to Business Suite users. So SAP Business Client is building a bridge between the familiar SAP GUI world and SAP‘s strategic Fiori UX

With SAP Business Client 6.0, you simply open a new connection type for the Fiori Launchpad (Picture1) and display the Launchpad as your start page. Then, open your Web Dynpro Applications from a Fiori tile (Picture2). With SAP Business Client 6.0, you still have all your Business Suite functionality, with significantly enhanced ease of use.

Picture1: New Connection Type in SAP Business Client

Picture2: SAP Fiori launchpad with SAP GUI native experience

And SAP Business Client 6.0 will be the only SAP UI client that provides one single point of entry to:

• SAP GUI for Windows native transactions
• Side panels
• FPM applications
• Fiori apps
• Fiori Launchpad

Be sure not to miss the TechEd-Sessions in Vegas and Barcelona as for example:

TEC200 – Executing the UX Strategy

UX113 – Applying UI Theme Designer

UX162 – Effectively Configure & Manage SAP FLP

UX108 – SAP NWBC

UX201 – FLP Deployment Options

UX106 – SAP Fiori Launchpad Overview and Recommendations

Also see:

http://scn.sap.com/community/netweaver-business-client/blog/2015/08/20/nwbc-at-teched-2015

Since Thursday, SAP NetWeaver 7.5 has been available. This includes (among a few other features ;-) ) a new PFCG type, which lets you easily add Fiori apps to a normal PFCG role.

If you ‘re not ready to upgrade to NW 7.5, you will find the same feature in SAP NetWeaver UI Add-Ons, version 2, SP0.

If you have NWBC 5.0, PL7, you can now integrate Fiori apps in a standard PFCG role.

You actually have 2 options – one for the “standalone apps”, and one for all the apps in the Fiori catalog.

NOTE: You can do all this in NWBC 5.0; you don't need Business Client 6.0. If you want to know more about SAP Business Client 6.0, see SAP Business Client 6.0: Released!

Standalone apps

This option is available for 10 apps with the biggest reach. They are all ESS/MSS scenarios and they are all self-contained – they don’t require the end user to navigate app-to-app.

This is the simplest option: You need to configure the Fiori launchpad in the standard way, you need the relevant Gateway service activated, the relevant authorizations, and so on, BUT you don’t need FLPDesigner - ie you don’t need to define catalogs, tiles, or target mapping, or assign catalogs and groups in PFCG.

For a list of the 10 apps, see: SAP Note 2103156 . For more information on how to configure these apps, see the documentation: SAP Help: Running a Fiori Application Standalone . For information on the Gateway service you need, see SAP Fiori Reference Apps Library .

All apps

OK, this option is still relatively simple, but you do need to need to configure the relevant catalogs, tiles, target mapping etc in the Fiori Launchpad Designer, and then assign these in PFCG.

The benefit is, firstly, you have access to all the Fiori apps you have installed. Secondly – crucially – you can configure genuine intent-based navigation for these apps. This is a really powerful Fiori concept: Instead of getting a developer-based view of a transaction with all functions visible to everyone, and having to pick your way through different tabs to fill the fields you want, the admin can now set up different intents for different users – ie different end users can perform different actions on thesame semantic object. (I still love to Graham Robinson’s description of this: What is SAP Fiori? Maybe it's more than you think ).

What you need to do

• Before you start: Make sure the app is working in a browser (just saying).
• Also, you need to be familiar with creating new PFCG entries in general. (If not, it’s all here: Role Maintenance: Navigation Tree . )
• Even if you are inserting a Fiori app/ launchpad from the same system, you need to create RFC destinations in SM59 mapping the local system (ie where the PFCG role is stored) to the ABAP Frontend Server (ie where the Fiori apps and Launchpad are stored), since the Fiori Launchpad start-up URL must be defined here. The ABAP connection must be specified in the “Target Sytsem” field.

ABAP connection GM6CLNT001 contains information used for establishing SAP GUI connections (message server, port) as well as logon options (e.g. client),

HTTP connection contains server and port information as well as the relative Fiori Launchpad start-up URL

• you must create RFC destinations in transaction SM59, specifying server addresses, ports, logon information, and in particular, the SAP Fiori launchpad start-up URL (for more information about this, see the NWBC space on SCN Configuring Remote Systems in SM59).

Then in PFCG:

1. Either open an existing role or create a new one.
   (Note: For test purposes, I have tended to lump all my Fiori apps in one role. In general, for a real end user though, that’s obviously not good practice.)
2. In the Menu tab, create a new app of type SAP Fiori App.
   You get this dialog (I’m using the example MyLeaveRequests):
3. Choose Intent (not Fiori Launchpad).

Now you have 2 options:

For a standalone app:

There is no real intent:

• Semantic object always = Shell;
• Action always = runStandaloneApp.

You then enter the name/value pair for the component and the location. To get the correct values, again see: SAP Note 2103156 . (The “location” is actually an ICF node):

For any app in the Fiori catalog

Intent = Semantic object + Action

To get the semantic object and action for the app, simply open the Fiori Apps Reference Library and choose Implementation Information:

4. Choose Enter.

That’s your entry created. You must, however, do one more thing:

5. Double-click the menu entry you have just created, and choose Other Node Details. Under Target System, enter the target system, where all your Fiori apps are located - ie your "Frontend Server. " - ie the system you configured in SM59.

OK, that's it! At runtime, the end user should see something like this:

ie when he logs on to the system, he gets the standard index page with all the usual SAP GUI transactions, FPM applications - plus the new application type, Fiori app.

I will, of course, be dealing with this in detail at Teched Barcelona.

SAP Business Client 6.0 is the new name for the latest version of SAP NetWeaver Business Client.

With SAP Business Client 6.0 for the first time you can launch SAP GUI  transactions directly from the SAP Fiori Launchpad (using the embedded SAP GUI for Wondows)!

Prerequisites

There are back-end dependencies for the full usage of the SAP Fiori launchpad connection which is related to SAP Fiori launchpad resources on the front-end server. To be able to render transactions with SAP GUI for Windows, the front-end server requires User Interface Add-On 2.0 SP01 for SAP NetWeaver or SAP_UI 750 SP01.

Backend system requirements are described in the documentation, chapter Business Client Versions, on SAP Help Portal.

Relevant SAP Notes

Software, operating system and browser requirements as well as restrictions are listed in SAP Note 2227396. Planned release dates for the next patch can be found in SAP Note 2227431.

Download and Installation

Download from Support Portal

Index "B"

What's New

SAP Business Client offers an integration of the SAP Fiori launchpad to allow a unified SAP Fiori user experience. The end user can click on a tile in the SAP Fiori Launchpad to open an SAP GUI transaction.

Integration of the SAP Fiori Launchpad:

• Launch SAP GUI transactions using embedded SAP GUI for Windows
• SAP Fiori Launchpad as start page
• Additional system connection type (Fiori connection)*
• Business role configuration purely SAP Fiori Launchpad-based

Other benefits:

• SAP Blue Crystal as default theme
• Option to keep the System Selector dialog box open

SAP Business Client 6.0 is fully downward compatible with NWBC 5.0. Migration from 5.0 to 6.0 = easy!

*To make the Fiori launchpad usable for end users, they need certain authorizations. For details ee Assigning Users to Roles.

With NWBC 5.0, PL7 (+ upgrade to NW 7.5 or SAP NetWeaver UI Add-Ons, version 2, SP0) you can integrate Fiori apps in a standard PFCG role:

Integrating NWBC 5.0 and Fiori Apps

Hi all,

There have been a few comments lately on how to integrate the fiori launchpad into (NW) BC, guess it is just BC from now on

In BC 6.0 SAP have added the possibility to use a fiori launchpad connection. While you get a fancy new icon, there isn't much functionality right now, as the navigation bar for example now only can be used for web adresses and not to write transactions. This blog is how you can get the fiori launchpad as well as the full support of BC.

NB: BC 6.0 is still in PL 0, so there is still plenty Cof time to improve this, so brace yourself with patience.

1. Create system variable.

Firstly what we will do is to add a variable link, so we can more easily transport our role between our systems.

Go to transaction SM30_SSM_VAR and create a variable and assign hostname and port to this. In this example i use local.

Pay attention to if you are using a / in the end of the string, this is quite important.

2. Create role and add fiori launchpad

Go to transaction PFCG and create a role. In this role add a folder and then add a web url to this folder. Add the <variable name> from before. (Mine is local) and then the rest of the url to the launchpad. If you have added the / in the string in transaction SM30_SSM_VAR, then it should be without a / between <local> and SAP in the below screenshot.

Afterwards it should look like this.

Add the role to your user.

3. Change BC parameters

Now you need to change the parameters in your BC by going to settings --> Personalize.

Change the value Entry Page to "First Pinned Tab"

Afterwards go back to the BC menu and hold CTRL down while hovering over help, then go to extended supportability --> Clean-Up --> Reload navigation tree from server.

Finally find you newly created folder in your index page and launch the fiori launchpad.

Right-click on the tab and press pin tab.

4. See result

Now logoff and then restart BC and log on to your BC connection (Not the fiori connection). And voilá it should now just open the fiori launchpad as your new "index page". You now have the fiori launchpad, but also the full capability of the BC.

My upcoming blog will show you how to get the fiori search integrated into BC.

Hello again.

So i promised i would create a blog to show how you can get the Fiori search into the BC.

So first of all one of the best things i have seen with Fiori is the Fiori factsheets. These are dependant on a HANA system, but provides the user a really good seamless interaction with SAP data.

We take "advantage" of a standard feature in the BC. Namely the search provider.

See these links for more info:

3.4.2 Configuring Search Providers - SAP NetWeaver Business Client - SAP Library

5.9 Menu - SAP NetWeaver Business Client - SAP Library

1. Find search URL

So to do this we must first load the fiori launchpad to find the search string needed.

So open up the search dialog on the launchpad and enter a search string.

Once you press enter, the fiori search will load and you can grab the URL from the navigation toolbar.

What you should be interested in is everything up to the "searchterm="

Save this into a notepad for later use.

2. Add search provider to role

Now go to PFCG and create a role ( or use an existing if you want). Create a new folder and name it @SEARCH@ (See more on this in the links provided in the beginning of the blog.)

In this folder add a web url link.

Now paste in your search string from earlier and after searchterm= add {0}. Maybe change the hostname and port to a variable like we learned in this blog How to get Fiori launchpad as Business Client startup page. And name it a suitable name.

Then save your role and make sure it is added to your user.

Restart your BC to get the new features.

3. Adjust BC settings (Optional)

Now here we have a few options. Currently the search is actually already working. So if you search using the BC neavigation bar, you can go to search and choose your newly created search provider.

But you can also make this search provider work with just adding the search string and pressing enter. To do this there is a few settings that needs to be adjusted.

Firstly go to your search providers

And deselect the all content and move your search provider to the top.

Secondly go to settings --> Personlize

And make sure the start transaction without validation check is deselected.

Now when you search in the navigation bar, the default option is to use your search provider

Edit: Please bear in mind that I am currently on a SAP NW 7.4 and therefore not able to test the functionality on BC 6.0 fully, as i don't have a 7.5 ABAP system or the 7.5 UI addon to the NW 7.4.

SAP has recently released the Business client 6.0 (From now on called BC). It is a great step forward in terms of getting a centralized unified platform to present SAP technologies. There is still a way to go, but one of the good things about the BC in recent years is that it is improving rapidly.

Fiori connections is now available directly in BC. These are great in terms of getting the launchpad into the BC, however they also limit much of the highly appreciated functionality of the BC. For example you can't launch a transaction in the navigation bar.

Just add the fiori launchpad to the BC like i have shown in this blog, you might think. However this does come with some limitations as well, for example when launching a transaction in the fiori launchpad, then it will open in webGUI.

So that might leave us at a bit of a crossroad, do we choose NWBC and add the fiori launchpad or do we choose the Fiori connection and limit ourselves?

Luckily there is a third option. I will in this blog show you how you can implement an application that will ease the management of the catalogs and groups maintained for Fiori and also give you the native capabilities of BC as well as SAP GUI.

First a little history, i have been building catalogs and groups for a POC i recently did. It takes a LONG time to create these, when you are trying to convert roles with transactions into the Fiori launchpad. You have to:

• create the semantic objects used in the navigation.
• add entries to the launchpad in LPD_CUST.
• Create the target mappings for navigation from the semantic objects to the launchpad entries in LPD_CUST.
• Add the tiles to the catalog
• Create the groups with tiles (Optional)
• Add catalog and group to a role.

I had around 100 transactions i needed to map and i took me a full day.

I know that SAP are implementing some changes to the launchpad designer, so this will be easier in the future, however currently there is no standard catalogs you can reuse, so this is much a manual activity.

Ok now for the solution. I created a web dynpro application that acts as a "jump station" between the launchpad to the desired end point, this being a transaction or WDA.

1. Implement the WDA

I have to give a big shoutout to Lars Hvam for creating this fantastic little program, that lets you export code from your backend system and add it to the GIT. So follow this guide on how to implement this little program as you need this to import my WDA.

Git client for ABAP - alpha release

Github link: larshp/abapGit · GitHub

Once that is in place then download the zipfile here kovboyjder/zit_launcher · GitHub

Upload this to your SAP system.

Ok step one done.

2. Create semantic object

Now we need to create a semantic object, this is used to navigate from our tile in the fiori launchpad to the launchpad we are going to create in the following step.

For this we need to go to transaction /ui2/semobj (remember the /n ) Click the new entries and name the object and the name. I call mine ZIT_LAUNCHER in both.

Here is the first difference to the normal approach. We only need to create one semantic object as we will use this as a trigger to go to the WDA. Normally you would have to create one for each transaction or WDA you wanted to access. EDIT: You can create a semantic object and then use the actions to seperate the transactions. I would recommend you create one per module, for example MM, SD, PP etc.

3. Create launchpad in LPD_CUST

Now it is time to create a launchpad in the traditional sense. These launchpads are used widely in the enterprise portal, but also extensively in Fiori navigation. This is done in LPD_CUST.

Firstly we need to create the launchpad. Add the details for your launchpad like mine in the screenshot below.

Afterwards doubleclick your newly created launchpad and then press the new folder. Name it something to easily understand.

Now it is time to create the application, so click the "new application" button.

Add in your details for the text, application parameters, system connection and the application alias.

This is also a one time action, normally here you would need to add all the "endpoints" where the user needs to be able to go.

4. Add target mapping in the launchpad designer

Ok it is time to start looking at the fiori part of this. We need to open up the launchpad designer. I haven't seen a transaction to launch this yet, so i do it the manual way. For

• Cross-client = configuration, use transaction /UI2/FLPD_CONF
• Current client = customizing, use transaction /UI2/FLPD_CUST

Now create a catalog.

Afterwards click the target mapping and press create target mapping

Add the following parameters

This also only needs to be done only once. Whereas the standard way is to add a target mapping for each transaction you want to use.

That was it for the this section, almost done!

5. Create tile in catalog

Click back to your tiles and click the + button. Add a new static tile.

Add the following to this:

Pay special attention to the parameters, this is where the magic happens. We are sending the parameters TYPE and TRCODE to the WDA. The WDA translates the type and passes this on to the respective end point.

Currently the following types are supported:

• TRCODE
  • Add parameter TRCODE=transaction code
  • Example: TYPE=TRCODE&TRCODE=SU01
• WDA
  • Add parameter APPLICATON=Name of the WDA
  • (Optional) Add parameter CONFIGURATION=Name of the application configuration
  • Example: TYPE=WDA&APPLICATION=LO_OIF_MAIN_APP&CONFIGURATION=LO_OIF_SDOC_APPL
• OBN
  • Add parameter OBJECT=Business object
  • Add parameter METHOD=Object method
  • Example: OBJECT=salesorder&METHOD=display

For this example we add the TRCODE parameters.

Add an icon and give a description.

Optionally you can add the tile to a group, in this example we won't.

6. Add catalog to role

Go to PFCG and add your catalog to a role.

Add your user to your group.

And you are done!

Now fire up your launchpad in the Business Client.

Find your newly created tile in the tile catalog and add it to your home.

Go back and press the maintain user. This will then quickly open up our "jump station" WDA and then launch the transaction.

This is a video of our hard work.

Maintain User launch in native GUI

Ok so what have we actually achieved here?

Well first of all we can now use the Business client with all its great features combined with the Fiori launchpad. The problem before have been that you launch the webgui by using the "standard" navigation using the launchpad.

Also i have shown a simpler way to maintain navigation. Normally you would need to do the following actions for each "endpoint" you want to reach

1. Create semantic object for each module you want to reach
2. Create launchpad in LPD_CUST for each endpoint
3. Create target mapping for each endpoint
4. Create tile for each endpoint.

With the solution listed here step 1 - 4 only needs to be done once. So this saves a lot of time in the end on administration.

This video shows the SAP standard way of doing the configuration.

Generic setup

And this is shows the effort using my approach assuming you have already mapped the ZIT_LAUNCHER once.

The  alternative approach

To be honest whether or not i would use this productively i am not sure. But however i have shown an alternative to the standard SAP way, which gives a lot of benefits as well.

I am very interested to hear your comments.

One question popped up several times, in various guises: Is Business Client about to die?

Not surprisingly, I’m going to say no, it’s not; however, I am going to point out the scenarios where we recommend it, and those where we don’t.

First, the scenarios where SAP BC is not the best client. This was very much on my mind, listening to Björn’s keynote (which was a real eye-opener for me), attending lectures on Cloud and IoT and so on.

We recommend SAP BC for on-premise, ABAP, transactional scenarios, in the Business Suite. For Cloud applications, including Success Factors, we recommend HANA Cloud Portal. (Thomas Hensel talked about this in UX107 "SAP HANA Cloud Portal: Overview, Scenarios, and Enhancements"; see replay here). Analytics has its own, dedicated clients.

The phrase “in the Business Suite” is key, too. If you mainly work with development or admin transactions – “Basis transactions” SE11, SE37 etc – then there is no real reason to work in SAP BC – all the UI innovations, like side panel, POWLs, Fiori apps, are in the Business Suite transactions.

I’ve covered this in detail in When to use NWBC..., if you want to explore this issue in detail.

So you can’t consume SAP BC on Mars; that’s my recommendation, anyway.

So: Business Client – what is it good for? If our UX strategy is increasingly pointing to Fiori, and our offering in the Cloud is growing at a great rate, why should you consider SAP BC?

In reality, while most customers like what they see with Fiori, at present they are still largely working with SAP GUI transactions ( and occasionally FPM). SAP BC bridges the gap. From the BC index page, you can open all your usual transactions , side by side with your Fiori apps. Or you can integrate your Fiori launchpad as the BC home page, and from there open both Fiori apps and SAP GUI for Windows transactions:

(click to enlarge)

I will be blogging about this shortly; in the meantime, I have created this slide deck, SAP Business Client and Fiori Integration.

In summary: Business Client is not the destination, but it is a bridge between your  on-premise, ABAP, transactional world and the new Fiori UX world:

(click to enlarge)

Next steps

Watch the replay from Las Vegas (Johannes Wasserfall, featuring 3 live demos):

UX108: SAP NetWeaver Business Client, Release 5.0: Strategy and Outlook | SAP TechEd Online

Decide whether SAP BC is the right client for you: When to Use NWBC - and When You _Really_ Shouldn't

If so, download SAP BC from Service Marketplace:http://service.sap.com/installations , then search in A-Z Index under B. (not N).

For a detailed guide to setting up SAP BC 6.0, see SAP Business Client for Desktop 6.0 Setup(slide deck)

(all updated for Fiori integration)

For an overview of NWBC, see: SAP NetWeaver Business Client 5.0 Overview (Slide deck).

(soon to be updated)

Questions and Answers

One big question: Is SAP Business Client 6.0 a new product, or an evolution of NetWeaver Business Client 5.0?

Yes, SAP Business Client 6.0 (SAP BC) is the latest version of NWBC. The main new features are here: SAP Business Client 6.0: Released!

Integration - Fiori

I have SAP BC 6.0, with Fiori Launchpad as my entry page. If I open a new app by clicking a tile, how is this opened: in-place, new tab, new window?

This depends on the application type:

- Genuine intent-based applications, such as Fiori apps are opened in-place.

- Older applications, like SAP GUI transactions or FPM applications, are opened in a new tab by default. (For these older applications, you can specify their behavior in PFCG: Navigation Tree - User Interface Add-On for SAP NetWeaver - SAP Library ).

Integration - Personas

Can I consume SAP Screen Personas flavors in SAP BC or NWBC?

Yes. In fact, in Personas 3.0, it will shortly become even easier. In Personas 3.0, we moved more of the processing into the ERP server away from the browser. This  means that any rendering engine has access to the Personas resources – flavors, themes, etc.

=>  any screens you edit in Web GUI  can be rendered in any flavour of SAP GUI - SAP GUI for Windows (SAP GUI), SAP GUI for HTML (Web GUI), SAP GUI for Java (Java GUI). For more details on this, see Peter Spielvogel's blog:

SAP Screen Personas 3.0 Is Generally Available, including Service Pack 1

(Note: This feature is partially available since Service Pack One for Personas 3.0; it will be fully supported in a future patch level of SAP GUI for Windows).

Is there a performance hit?

No, if the system is configured correctly, there should be no difference between Personas in a standalone SAP GUI client and Personas in NWBC / SAP BC. In fact, the new service pack 1 for SAP Screen Personas 3.0 improves performance : As I said above, we have moved more of the processing to the server. This means that only Personas-relevant elements are sent from server to browser. For example, if you have hidden fields in a Personas flavor, then these will not be sent to the browser   - to the point where performance may be faster than SAP GUI for HTML ("Webgui") !

Integration - Other

Can I consume S/4HANA, on-premise edition in NWBC / SAP BC? When will this be available?

Yes you can. As of now!

I will be updating the blog When to Use NWBC...  to discuss this asap, probably just after Christmas.

Can I consume Cloud applications, eg Success Factors, in SAP BC?

In theory, almost any content that can be accessed by a URL can be consumed in SAP BC.

However, SAP BC does not use a standalone browser, but rather the MS Web Browser Control.

SAP BC 6

When will SAP Business Client 6.0 be available?

Now! It was released on 28th October, 2015. (ie between the Techeds Las Vegas and Barcelona. One day we will reflect on the wisdom of doing 2 Techeds and a major release in the same month ).

How can I migrate from NWBC 5.0 to BC 6.0?

The frontend installation is easy: Just download from SAP Service Marketplace: http://service.sap.com/installations , then search in A-Z Index under B. (not N).

For the back end, make sure you have the right system: For SAP Business Client 6.0, you need SAP NetWeaver 7.5 or SAP NetWeaver UI Addons, Version 2, Service Pack 1.

For details on how exactly to distribute and configure BC 6.0, Sandra Thimme has updated the Setup Guide.

Other

Is the Edge browser compatible with SAP BC?

No it is not. You must have MS IE 9-11 installed to use SAP BC.

Is there a version of SAP BC for Macintosh or Linux?

No, sorry, only Windows.

Is touch enablement available for SAP BC / NWBC shell?

Yes, for NWBC  from PL5 onwards. For details, see SAP Library: What's New in SAP NetWeaver Business Client .

For details of NWBC 5.0 patches, see SAP Note 2030419 .

Support for touch enablement within the content area depends on the application.

Resources:

Running an Application Standalone - User Interface Add-On for SAP NetWeaver - SAP Library

http://service.sap.com/sap/support/notes/2103156

Configuring Navigation - User Interface Add-On for SAP NetWeaver - SAP Library

Fiori Reference Apps Library - Configuration Information

That's it for now. If you were present at Teched and would like to ask a question, please post it in the comments.

If you’ve been using Business Client 4 (a.k.a NWBC 4) for a while and are moving to version 5 or 6, or even if you are just starting out on your Business Client journey you will likely be faced with setting up system connections for the Business Client system selector. When faced with this recently I needed to refresh my memory on how all this worked so went to the SAP Help documentation and had a read...

Administrator Configuration - User Interface Add-On for SAP NetWeaver - SAP Library

On the face of it is seemed fairly straightforward but as soon as I started digging in a bit I realised that I was not fully understanding how it was working. After a bit of trial and error I think I’ve worked out what’s going on so I thought I’d share it here and hopefully save others some of the pain.

So to cut to the chase this was my “AH-HA" moment… In NWBC 4 you basically had the NwbcOptions.xml file in which you could configure all the options for NWBC as well as the system connection details. In BC 5 and 6 you still have the NwbcOptions.xmlBUT you no longer configure the system connection details in this file, it is only used purely for NWBC options, no systems. You also still have the NwbcRemoteOptions.xml file in which you can point to a remote NwbcOptions.xml file (e.g. one you store on a web server or file share) - but to reiterate this is only for NWBC options not for system connections.

So "Where do the system details go now?" I hear you ask…

All the system details are now stored in the SAPUILandscape XML files. That’s files with an “s”… yes there are two of them. One that is for end user defined systems called SAPUILandscape.xml and one for administrator defined systems SAPUILandscapeGlobal.xml. They are both located in the same folder on the user's PC (%APPDATA%/SAP/Common).

So as an administrator if you would like to make a standard set of systems available to all your end users you can create the SAPUILandscapeGlobal.xml file and distribute it to your users. You can either push the file to the end user’s PC or you can let the end user pull the file from a web server or file share. The documentation actually does a fairly decent job of explaining that:

There are a couple of ways to achieve the distribution of the centrally defined connection settings. One way is you can set the location of the file in the registry, via key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\SAP\SAPLogon\Options, for example you might do this via a group policy setting that is pushed out to users. Alternatively you can push out a version of the SAPUILandscapeGlobal.xml file to the local PC (maybe you package it up and it is included when the user installs NWBC).

Inside that SAPUILandscapeGlobal.xml file you can point to additional files located on a file share or web server. The part of the file you need to take care of to do this is the <Includes></Includes> section. You can even include multiple files, they need to be in the format of the SAPUILandscape.xml file and then they will be merged and included for you.

<Includes>     <Include index="1" url="http://myserver.mydomain/mySAPUILandscape.xml"/></Includes>

This works similarly to how the NwbcRemoteOptions.xml file worked in NWBC 4 for system connections, allowing you to maintain the list of systems centrally and have them automagically update on the NWBC client.

Well I hope that’s been helpful to you. If it has please let me know and if you have any questions or comments or can add anything to this please do below. Thanks.