Maintain Distribution Model and Distribute Views (SAP Library

Maintain Distribution Model and Distribute Views

The applications that communicate with each other within an ALE business process are specified when you model the message flow.

You can define the message flow in the distribution model.

The distribution model consists of separate model views in which all the associated, cross-system message flows in your organization can be defined. These views must be distributed to the receiving systems.

In the individual message flows you can define filters to determine which data is to be transferred to which receiving systems. The distribution model controls this distribution.

You can model ALE business processes using or not using templates for the model views. Templates contain the description of a business process in the form of message types/BAPIs and filters.

If you do not want to use templates, choose Edit -> Model view -> Create.

If you do want to use templates, choose Edit -> Model view -> Create using templates.

Templates can be created by SAP or by customers. If you want to create your own templates, use the template editor.

If you use a template, the basic model view entries are generated. You can find out whether a template is available for a particular business process from the documentation.

With these entries you can run the ALE business process.

You can edit the generated entries by maintaining the model manually.

Equally you can define the model without using a template at all.

Each model view is defined in a central system and distributed from here to the other systems.

You can transfer model views to other environments. If you use different names for logical systems in different environments, you have to create a local copy (Edit -> model view -> copy) and change the names of the logical systems so that they match those in the target environment. Then you can transfer the copy of the model view to the target environment.

You can use the following ways to distribute data:

BAPIs

Message types

To find out more about BAPIs and message types, see the section
Modelling and Implementing ALE Business Processes -> Predefined ALE Business Processes.

See the notes at the end of this section.

Example

In a 'master data' model view you can specify that material master data is sent from system PRODUCTION to system SALES. Using a filter you can also specify the material types to be sent.

Requirement

To set up the distribution model, you must have already specified the logical systems. Refer to:
Sending and Receiving Systems -> Logical Systems

Recommendation

One system should be defined as the central maintenance system for all the model views.

Activities

Execute the function and select the processing mode.

Maintaining, Distributing and Transporting Model Views

You can create, change and delete model views. You can work with or without templates.

You can enter a short text describing both the valid time period for the message flows and the maintenance system of this view.

When you create a new model view, the system in which the view is created is automatically entered as the maintenance system. The names of the model views must be unique to the whole distributed environment in your organization.

Position the cursor on the model view.

Choose 'Edit -> Model view', then choose the action you want to carry out.

Creating a Model View With a Template
If you are working with templates, the BAPIs/message types and possibly predefined filters are created in your model view.

Creating a Model View Without a Template
If you do not want to use a template, you have to add the BAPIs and/or message types yourself.

Changing or Deleting a Model View
You can change or delete entries for an existing model view. Position the cursor on the model view and select the required function.
You can add or delete BAPIs/message views for a receiving system of a
model view and you can define filter object values for the data or receiver filtering, if filters are available.

Note that model views that have already been distributed and that you now want to delete, are not automatically deleted in the receiving systems. Before you delete a model view, take a note of the receiving systems and then delete it (Edit -> Delete). Now you have to distribute the model view to the receiving systems. Place the cursor on the root node, select the logical systems (receiving systems) of the deleted model view and then choose Edit -> Model view -> Distribute. The entries will be deleted in the receiving systems.

Distributing and Transporting Model Views
Model views are distributed between systems on the same level (development systems, test systems, productive systems) via the Change and Transport System. You have to create a transport request for the model view. Choose Edit -> Model view -> Distribute.

Adding BAPIs

To model a BAPI call, enter the method to be called in the distribution model. You must specify the model view in which the entry is to be made, the sending and receiving systems, the SAP business object and the method of this object to be called.

If you place the cursor within the distribution model list before you add the method, default values will be suggested in accordance to the position of the cursor.

To add a BAPI to the model, place the cursor on the model view or on the receiving system, select Add BAPI and enter the required values.

To remove a BAPI from the model, position the cursor on the model view and select 'delete'.

Adding Message Types

To model a message flow without using BAPIs (IDoc communication), add the message type to the distribution model. You have to specify the model view in which the message flow is to be entered, the sending and receiving systems and the message type to be used.

If you place the cursor within the distribution model list before you add the message type, default values will be suggested.

To add the message type to the model, select Add message type and enter the required values.

To remove a message type from the model, place the cursor on it and select 'delete'.

Defining Filters for Datasets and Receivers of Message Types
You can use filters to define conditions for the datasets to be transferred and for the message receivers.

Filters are conditions that BAPIs have to satisfy so that they can be distributed by ALE outbound processing.

The BAPIs and message types in a model view that are filtered contain a relevant sub-entry.

In the change mode you can define filter groups and values by selecting

Edit -> Display/edit details.

The following types of filtering are possible:

Data Filtering with BAPIs

Prerequisite:
You have defined the filter objects for a specific BAPI and assigned them to the BAPI. For more information see the ALE Programming Guide under Filtering Data.

There are two types of filtering to choose from:

Interface Reduction:
Here optional BAPI parameters and/or BAPI fields are switched off.
You can choose the options:
- Reduce by fields
- Fully reduced
For example, the BAPI RetailMaterial.Clone is called with parameters containing basic data, production data, sales and distribution data, plant data, etc.
If the BAPI is called by a material reference system in a sales and distribution system, only the parameters containing basic data and sales and distribution data have to be transferred.

Content-Dependent Filtering
The rows of the BAPI table parameters which do not satisfy the distribution conditions are filtered out.
Developers can also use field references to define hierarchy relationships between table parameters. Such hierarchies are maintained in the ALE Development menu under BAPI -> Maintain hierarchy for BAPI table parameters.
You can also distribute data using classes. For more information see the section Master Data Distribution.

Receiver Determination for BAPIs

For BAPIs that allow receiver determination you can create filter groups and define values for each object type within a filter group. To do this select Display details.
The receiver determination checks whether a BAPI is to be called at all.

Data Filtering for Message Types

IDoc Segment Filtering
With message types the filter object type corresponds to a field name of an IDoc segment. When the data is filtered any IDoc segments and sub-segments that do not satisfy the conditions are not sent.
If a mandatory segment of an IDoc is not sent, neither is its parent segment of the IDoc structure.
If this parent segment happens to be the header segment of the IDoc, the whole IDoc is not sent.
To get to segment filtering choose:
Master Data Distribution
Scope of Data for Distribution
Filter IDoc Segments.

Distribution Using Classes
Message types can also be distribed using classes. For
more information see Distribution Using Object Classes.

The following sections describe how you create and combine filters.

Creating Filters

The BAPIs and message types of a model view that can be filtered contain a sub-entry.
You can define filter groups and values by choosing Edit -> Display/edit details.
Message types and BAPIs are always filtered using filter object types.
To define filters:

Create a filter in a new filter group:

Place the cursor on the required method/message type and choose Edit -> Display details . If there are several filtering options for one BAPI or message type, then choose the relevant option (e.g. receiver determination). Define thefilter object by assigning a value to the selected fitler object type in Display details (e.g. filter object type "material type", value "PROD").

For some filter object types you can only select Distribution using classes and no object value.

For some filter object types you can select one or more predefined dependencies.
If such a dependency exists in the ALE distribution model, the data and receiver are filtered in the referenced interface.
Dependencies describe the following relationships:
- between message types
- between a BAPI method and a message type
- between BAPI methods
If a dependency exists between BAPI methods in the distribution model, the data filtering and receiver filtering is carried out via the referenced interface.

Adding filters to an existing filter group
To add a fitler to an existing filter group, place the cursor on the filter group and proceed as above.
Adding further filters to an existing filter object type
To add another filter to a filter object tpye already used, you can place the cursor directly on the filter object type.

Combining Filters

Individual filters can be linked with logical operators. Filter groups are used for this purpose. An 'OR' operator links filters in different filter groups.

Each filter group is evaluated independently of other filter groups.

Within a filter group the filter object types (for example, material type and plant) are linked by an 'AND' operator. On the other hand, if there are several filter object types in one filter group (for example, Plant 0001 and 0002), they are linked by an 'OR'.

If no filter has been specified for a method or for a message type, the appropriate link operator for all possible objects is used.

Further Notes

You cannot maintain a message type or a method between the same sender and receiver in more than one model view. The message type CONDA2 used for cross-system synchronization of Customizing data is the only exception.

If you want to change the maintenance system of a model view, position the cursor on the model view and choose Edit -> Display detail. This change must also be distributed to all the other systems known to the model. This can be done in the Change and Transport System.