Ask the BW Expert: Why Do My DeltaUpdates from CO-PA to BW Fail?by Frank Bulacher, Manager of SAP CH, Alstom SwitzerlandJanuary 1, 2003

SAPexperts/BIThe key to a successful delta update is the propercreation of the CO-PA DataSource. Here's how it's done.

Dear BW Expert,We recently uploaded all our CO-PA data to SAP's BWwithout a hitch. Delta updates, however, have been aproblem. The job always terminates, and a message sayswe have an error in the source system. This is confusingsince it worked for full updates. We are on 4.6C in R/3 andhave BW version 2.1C. Please help.

Barbara Kreider, Cumberland Swan

Dear Barbara:

I've seen this problem before, and I believe you haveencountered a known bug that happens occasionally in BW2.0 and 2.1. OSS Note 363885 describes it in detail.Unfortunately, the only solution is to delete the DataSource inR/3, create a new one with the same name, and then replicateit into BW. With this method, you do not have to changeanything in BW, so the problem is solved quite quickly.

Creating a CO-PA DataSource for BW presents more of achallenge than doing so for some other R/3 modules. TheProfitability Analysis (PA) submodule of R/3's Controlling (CO)module is customized to the needs and standards of eachcompany. Therefore, SAP has no standard DataSource inBusiness Content for CO-PA, so you must create your own.

It might help other BW Expert readers to know how to create acustom DataSource for uploading CO-PA data to BW. SAPdocumentation on the topic is sparse, and the training classesdo not provide enough detail. I will explain the completeprocess step by step and give you the background you need tounderstand it. I used BW 3.0B to capture the screenprints forthis article, but they should be sufficiently similar to BW 2.xscreens.

Creating a CO-PA DataSource forUploading to BW

On the R/3 side, you are able to use a template that allowsyou to easily and quickly create a DataSource in R/3 for BW.Most importantly, it allows you to use the delta mechanism.The delta reduces the amount of data that has to be loadeddaily into BW, speeding up the data-loading process.Normally, you would not have the delta mechanism when you

Figure 1

First Screen for creating a CO-PADataSource.

create your own DataSource, called a generic DataSource.The template creates a DataSource for the tables that arecustomized for your business (CE1XXXX to CE4XXXX) andallows you to load a delta. In BW 3.0B, delta loading ispossible for any generic DataSource.

To create a CO-PA DataSource, use transaction code SBIW,or IMG menu path Business Information Warehouse>Settings for Application-Specific DataSources>ProfitabilityAnalysis>Create DataSource. If you only want to create aCO-PA DataSource, you may also use transaction codeKEB0. SBIW allows you to do more, like maintain theDataSource.

Tip! If your source system is not R/3, you load a file or (if youhave BW 3.0B) link the database to BW and load theselected fields directly into BW.

You may enter any name, but the template requires that thefirst seven characters are 1_CO_PA. If you do not have yourown naming convention, the system will automatically place%CL by the client and &ERK by the operating concern. Lookat Figure 1. To create a new DataSource, flag the Createoption, enter the operating concern for which you want tocreate the DataSource, and flag whether the DataSource isCosting-based or Account-based. After that, click on theprocess button or press the F8 key.

You should now see the screen shown in Figure 2. Here youselect all the CO-PA fields that you want to load into BW. Thesystem is taking most of the fields from the customized CO-PA module in R/3. You also have to fill in a description forShort text, Medium length text, and Long text.

Figure 2

Choose the fields to be loaded into BW

After choosing the relevant fields, go back one step by clickingon the green arrow and save the DataSource. The system willthen create the DataSource, which you can now upload toBW.

Loading the DataSource into BW

You must perform the following steps to load the DataSourceinto BW:

1. Create an InfoSource.2. Link the DataSource to that InfoSource.3. Define an InfoPackage.4. Initialize the delta process with the InfoPackage.

1. Create an InfoSourceGo to the Administrator Workbench in BW and right-click onInfoSources. Enter the name in the InfoSource field and fillout the Long Description field at the next screen (Figure 3).Click on the green checkmark to save the InfoSource, whichwill appear in the Application Area. Note that for release2.0B, the screen will look slightly different.

Figure 3

Input the InfoSource name and description

Figure 4

Assign a DataSource to the InfoSource

2. Assign a DataSource to theInfoSourceAfter creating the InfoSource, you need to assign aDataSource to it by right-clicking on the InfoSource as shownin Figure 4. After assigning the DataSource, move all theInfoObjects listed in the ISource fields window to theCommunication Structure window. (See Figure 5.) You maynow activate the InfoSource.

Figure 5

Move all InfoObjects from the InfoSourcefields to the Communications Structure

3. Create an InfoPackageTo create an InfoPackage, right-click on the Source Systemof the InfoSource and then select the Update folder. (Figure6). All information necessary to load data out of the sourcesystem has to be defined in the InfoPackage. You definecertain dataloading procedures in the InfoPackage (e.g., whichdata target to choose; full or delta upload process; selectioncriteria for certain fields; and batch jobs for automatic dataloadat certain times). The data loading from the source system intoBW is then done automatically.

Figure 6

Create an InfoPackage

4. Initialize the Delta ProcessBefore you can use the delta update, you must initialize thedelta process in the Update folder of the MaintainInfoPackage screen. This is possible with or withoutperforming a data transfer. It takes longer with a data transfer,because all the data is loaded from the CO-PA sourcesystem. Flag the Initialize Delta Process option and thencheck the Initialize Without Data Transfer option, as shown

below.1

After you initialize the delta process, choose Delta update thenext time you run the dataload (Figure 7). In the case thatyour first delta upload failed, you have to initialize the dataloading again. Therefore, you first have to delete the old datafrom the data targets and the old requests from the PSA(Persistent Staging Area). You can reach the PSA through the

Figure 7

Choose Delta update when you run thedataload after initializing the delta process

Figure 8

Initialization packages for an InfoPackage

menu path Administrator Workbench>Modeling>PSA. Therequests are stored under the InfoSource name for which youloaded the data. For more information on the delta update,see the sidebar “Delta Control in R/3.”

Now go back to the InfoPackage. Go to the menu of theInfoPackage via the menu path Scheduler>Initializationoptions for SourceSystem. You will see the initializationpackages as shown in Figure 8. Mark the initializationpackage and click on the rubbish bin. After that, you caninitialize the new data upload.

If you have a large amount of data, do an initialization withoutdata loading to lower your time for initialization. Initializationcan be done at any time without missing any documents, asthere is a 30-minute delay in R/3 before documents areavailable for a delta load to BW.

You now have the entire procedure for creating a CO-PADataSource. Thank you for your question; I'm sure that otherreaders will learn from your experience.

More About Delta Updates

The delta update is used to load smaller amounts of data atonce and accelerate the loading process. This is especiallyimportant if a lot of data is in the source system. If only asmall amount of data is in the source system, a full uploadmight be better, as it could take longer to load a delta.When you start a delta upload, the system creates atimestamp in the source system to indicate when the datawas last loaded. To see if there is any new delta data in theR/3 system, you can use transaction code RSA7 in the R/3system. (Note that delta update is only available for R/3DataSources.)

If the leftmost column on the screen shown on the left isgreen, the DataSource has no error. The Total column onthe right indicates if there is any new delta that has to beloaded into BW.

1 In BW 2.0B, after you initialize the delta the first time, theupdate folder will give you the option for delta processing