sap r/3 archiving solution -...

SAP R/3 Archiving Solution

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Manuales

•Archiving concepts• What is SAP Archiving?• What is Document Imaging ?• What data is selected ?• How is it selected ?• Storage of archived data

• ArchiveLink (iXOS)• HSM

• Why do we need archiving ?

Agenda

•Archiving Project• Archiving Solution

• Objective• Considerations• Approach• Time Line

•Overall benefits

Data Archiving refers to the process of removing data that is no longer needed in the system, but which must remain accessible either for businessor legal reasons. This data may be stored in archived files which can be moved from the system’s primary storage media. This process relies on application-specific archiving programs supplied by SAP.

The SAP-provided tool used is the Archiving Development Kit (ADK).

An Archiving Object comprises of a series of database tables which are structured around SAP Business Application Functions (i.e., FI_DOCUMNT identifies all SAP DB tables associated with financial accounting documents, which comprises of the document header, company code dependent postings, change documents, SAP-script texts and other elements). The archiving object determines what is to be archived and how.

ArchiveLink is the communication interface supplied by SAP that links applications to third-party optical archive systems (i.e., FileNet, iXOS, etc.)

What is Archiving?

What is Archiving?

R/3 DB

Documents Archiving object Archiveflat files

Storage

e.g. SD_VBAK

WORMTapeCD

Sapgui ADK

Archivingprogram

Deleteprogram

Reloadprogram

Analyzeprogram

ArchiveLink

Third-party tool

Data Flow

What is Archiving?

R/3 DB

Documents Archiving object Archiveflat files

Storage

e.g. SD_VBAK

WORMTapeCD

Sapgui ADK

Archivingprogram

Deleteprogram

Reloadprogram

Analyzeprogram

ArchiveLink

1.- Customize data2.- Customize Archiving Object3.- Run the archiving process4.- Run the delete process5.- Store Flat Files

5

4

3

2

1

Third-party tool

Process Flow

What is Imaging?

Document Imaging refers to imaging of SAP produced documents that are required to be stored for business or legal reasons. A snapshot of these documents may be imaged to a third party optical archive system.

Documents are stored after printing for three primary reasons: •to meet business requirements•to meet legal requirements•to meet customer service requirements

Document imaging can be extended to the storage of input documents to SAP.

R/3 DB

Documents Print SpoolImagefiles

View Image

Document Imaging session

Storage

ArchiveLink

Imagefiles

Third-party tool

WORM CD

R/3

Printer

1. At the moment of print, SAP documents are sent to the print spool. If the print command to the defined printer is successful, document information is sent to and processed by the ArchiveLink.

2. The third-party document imaging tool communicates with SAP through the ArchiveLink to receive the image information. The third-party tool is responsible for the storage and retrieval of the image (although the retrieve may be executed through the SAP client.)

1

2

What is Imaging?

What data is selected ?

• Dependencies :• Technical : provided by SAP• Functional : depend on client specific

implementation of business processes.

• Master data• Selected and purged based on delete indicators

• Transactional data• Selected and purge based on residence time

How is it selected ?

Customization

• General• Application specific : criteria for archivability or

deletability of application data (residence time)• Archive link : customization of the ArchiveLink

interface• Platform independent file names

• Archiving Object specific• Logical file name for the archiving object• Archive file size• Delete program settings : when, commit counter,

etc.

Storage of archive data

For archiving R/3 data SAP recommends two techniques:

(1) ArchiveLinkA communications interface between an R/3 system and an archive system which is typically an optical archive system. The archive system is supplied by third party vendors like iXOS, FileNet, etc. ArchiveLink is not the same as data archiving but it can be used to store archive files created by R/3 archiving.

(2) HSM (Hierarchical Storage Management).HSM is a software which manages a pool of storage consisting of disk cache, optical disks and tapes. Depending on the characters of data, e.g. how frequently the data is accessed, HSM stores the data on the suitable storage media. For the R/3 system the HSM solution is transparent. Once the archive files are generated by ADK they are moved and reloaded by HSM on request. After moving the archive files, stub files are saved on the local disk. For the R/3 system it looks like all the archive files are stored on the local machine. That is also the reason why no certification is needed.

The difference between ArchiveLink and HSM archiving solutions is mainly the integration of document management features which can be a part of the archiving solutions using ArchiveLink. That allows users to scan incoming documents and integrate them in the business processes.

R/3 Application Server

R/3 database

R/3 Applications

R/3 GatewayArchiveLink

R/3 Client

SAPGUI

Viewer/LIB

Archive Server

Document ServiceMonitorServer

AdminServer

Write Read

Disk Buffer Cache

HardDisk

ArchiveDatabase

CDWORM

Optical Jukebox

Logical Archive

To R/3 Clientor R/3 Application Server

WriteDisk Buffer Read

Cache

WORM / CDPools

WORMPartitions assigned to a Pool

From R/3 Application Server

Printer

4

65

3

2

1

8

7

83

65

1. Archive files (data) are sent to archive server via ArchiveLink2. If outgoing documents are printed successfully, image file is sent to

archive server via ArchiveLink.3. New archive files (data and image) are stored in write disk buffer4. Write disk buffer writes archive files to WORM/CD pool5. Pools are assigned to buffers and WORM/CD partitions, so by writing

to pool the information is written to the WORM/CD partition.6. Archive files are also retrieved from WORM/CD to pool.7. Pool is also assigned to Read Cache, retrieved archive file is stored in

read cache.8. Archive image file is retrieved from read cache to viewer and archive

data file is moved back to operating system level to be viewed by Analyze program.

2

Archiving Using iXOS

Archiving using HSM

CPUCacheCPU

Cache

RAMRAM

Disk (DASD)Disk (DASD)

Optical Disk, Digital Linear Tape and Helical Scan Tape

Optical Disk, Digital Linear Tape and Helical Scan Tape

Optical Disk, Optical Tape, Digital Linear Tape and Helical Scan Tape




Relative Capacity

Acce

ss S

peed

/ Fr

eque

ncy

of U

se

Volatile Memory

Online

Nearline

Offline

Archive

Aging data is migratedto successively slower, butlarger capacity (and lowercost) media. Data isreplaced by pointersallowing access to dataas if online, only withlonger retrievaltimes.

Aging data is migratedAging data is migratedto successively slower, butto successively slower, butlarger capacity (and lowerlarger capacity (and lowercost) media. Data iscost) media. Data isreplaced by pointersreplaced by pointersallowing access to dataallowing access to dataas if online, only withas if online, only withlonger retrievallonger retrievaltimes.times.

$3.00 - $30.00 / MB

$0.05 - $1.50 / MB

$0.02 - $0.10 / MB

Source: Adapted from “How HSM Works” by Peter Varhol, IT/IS Back Office, October 1996, page 86

HSM : Hierarchical Storage Management

Why do we need Archiving?

•Performance•Users response time (on line and batch)•IT Department performance (Back up, restore and database administration)

•Disk Space•Stabilizes database growth

•Archiving concepts• What is SAP Archiving?• What is Document Imaging ?• What data is selected ?• How is it selected ?• Storage of archived data

• ArchiveLink (iXOS)• HSM

• Why do we need archiving ?

Agenda

•Archiving Project• Archiving Solution

• Objective• Considerations• Approach• Time Line

•Overall benefits

The overall objective of an archiving project is to design and implement an archiving solution for SAP R/3 system. This solution must meet all business needs and statutory requirements given the functional and technical dependencies and constraints.

Archiving Solution Objective

Archiving objectives

– Provide a quick relief to database growth to ensure that no additional hardware will be needed in the short term.

– Reduce database size and growth rate to the lowest extent possible supporting efficiently business and statutory requirements for access to SAP documents.

– Implement the most cost effective solution for storage/retrieval of archived data.

– Satisfy business and statutory retention requirements.– Integrate the data archiving with a proper document imaging solution.

Archiving Solution Considerations

• Involvement of Functional Teams and Users is critical to project success.• Standard SAP functionality should be used to the maximum extent possible,

specifically, in retrieval and viewing SAP data. • Implement archiving before having a problem with database growth.• Proactively plan your archiving strategy• Start archiving work in FI - then expand into other modules• Archiving process should be scheduled, not ad-hoc

• The more frequent, the better• Function modules (increasing order of difficulty)

• FI : most robust archiving architecture (large tables)• CO : fairly good archiving architecture• SD: difficult to implement archiving due to interdependencies of data• MM : difficult to implement archiving due to interdependencies of data

(large tables)

• As the SAP archiving product is relatively new, SAP is continuously making improvements to enhance archiving and retrieval of data. These enhancements are usually in the form of OSS notes.

• R/3 Archiving-Related Products- ADK - data archiving development tool for archiving objects and delete

programs- SARA - execution tool for scheduling archive runs of ADK objects- ArchiveLink - generic R/3 interface (presentation layer & application layer)

to an archiving sub-system.- DART - data extraction tool for financial purposes, does not purge data

from database (SAP’s solution for audit requirements)- AIS (new) - tool for reloading selected archive data back into separate R/3

tables

Archiving Solution Considerations

Phase I - Requirements Phase

• Create Requirements Matrix• Develop SAP Archiving Data Model• Document SAP Archiving Approach/Strategy• Third Party Vendor Selection (if reqd.)• Estimations for Phase II

Archiving Solution Approach

Phase II - Delivery Phase

• Design, Configure, Component Test objects• Hardware & Software Procurement (if reqd.)• Technology Architecture Design and Build• Assembly Test• Product Test• Integration Test• Stress Test and Operations Readiness Test• Training

The following time line is based on a phased approach for approximately 15/20 archiving objects.

Archiving Solution Timeline

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Months

Requirements

Delivery

Phas

e

Phase I - Requirements Phase •Requirements Gathering/ Matrix •SAP Archiving Data Model •SAP Archiving Approach/ Strategy

Phase II - Delivery Phase•Design, Configure, Component Test •Third-party Vendor Selection•Hardware & Software Procurement•Technology Architecture Design & Build•Assembly Test•Product Test•Stress Test & Operations Readiness Test•Integration Test•Training and Transition

• Core Team with deep SAP Archiving/Imaging skills

• Dedicated Solution Center resources

ProcessProcess

TechnologyTechnology

PeoplePeople

• Working with SAP/iXOS to enhance the archiving/imaging solution

• Developing templates for fast deployment

• Over 10 SAP Archiving projects underway

• Methodology for fast design, build and run

StrategyStrategy

• Performing in-depth SAP archiving technical evaluations

What experience/capabilities does AC have with SAP Archiving?

Credentials

Overall Benefits

• Knowledge of tool selection process.• Requirements from past projects.• Deliverables from past projects.• Experienced Team.• Knowledge Capital.• Solution Center Benefits

– Core group of skilled SAP archiving resources.– Ready access to SAP archiving knowledge.– Ability to shift resources to other projects during any downtime