Scope of the SAP system copy
The system copy
Until now, there has been no functional tool for System i to automate and optimize this task. The enormous resource requirements that arise during a refresh of the SAP QA system really cry out for an optimizing software tool. System Copy from Libelle (LSC) reduces the effort required for these work steps. Although a one-time effort is still required, the system landscape is examined so well that the system copy and any subsequent ones are performed literally at the push of a button. The work that is automated by LSC is in the preparation and post-processing of the files as well as the actual system copy.
The guideline that integrated job logic is preferable to customizing has also proven its worth. The key point here is that each step of a copy job knows the overall context, including the steps that preceded and follow it.
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SAP SYSTEM COPY - in a nutshell
SAP software plays a central role in the IT landscape of Rehau, a provider of polymer-based solutions for construction, automotive and industry. Currently, the IT department provides over 120 SAP systems centrally in the sense of "shared service hosting". The IT team must regularly copy the SAP productive environment in order to be able to carry out testing and development work on the "real" system without manipulating the productive systems. Rehau recently opted for the 'Automated System Copy for SAP' solution. The tool from Automic, a specialist in business automation, allows SAP system copies to be created almost fully automatically.
The different types of SAP environments must meet different requirements. Training courses, for example, can only be held expediently if the working conditions largely correspond to those on the production system. Companies can simulate real-life situations for testing purposes on the basis of consistent and realistic data alone. Users should also test their own developments and modifications with consistent data that is close to production. A test environment that is as identical as possible to the production system is suitable for testing patches and release upgrades. In development and training systems in particular, it is fundamentally important to anonymize sensitive data in order to comply with data protection rules.
With "Shortcut for SAP Systems" any tables can be saved and restored. This is especially useful in the context of an SAP system copy - quite a few tables are system-specific and must exist unchanged in the system after a system copy.Shortcut for SAP Systems uses R3trans - a utility from SAP that is essentially used in the Transport Management System (TMS) environment. With "Shortcut for SAP Systems" it is now also available outside the TMS and enables completely new and diverse application possibilities. Among others in the environment of a system copy. R3trans works database independent. I.e. even in the case of a system refresh from an SAP system with an Oracle DB to a system with HANA, the backup and restore process works!
Development and test work then takes place on a QA system that does not correspond to the production system.
On www.sap-corner.de you will also find useful information about SAP basis.
An SAP system copy is not done in an hour.