Object Relationship Service

Use

The object relationship service offers you the possibility to also relate documents with similar contents over application and system boundaries. Thus, navigation between the different documents in a business process is possible.

You can relate objects using multiple steps and create whole relationship networks. Access to the relationship records is possible from every object involved. You can call these functions using the interface, without the need to implement a separate application logic. The relationship service provides a browser for the end user.

The relationships can also be created with documents from various SAP Systems and non-SAP Systems. Navigation to the objects outside an SAP System is also possible.

Integration

The object relationship service is a component of the SAP Web Application Server that transfers creation, reading and changing of relationships. The relationships are modeled by application developers and are transferred to the object service using an interface.

Application developers who have used the relationships for an earlier release can continue to use the predecessor. However, the new object relationship service also provides tools for migration. If you want to model new object relationships in your application, SAP recommends that you use the new service.

Application developers can find more information in Connecting to the Object Relationship Service.

Features

The object relationship framework provides the following functions:

  • Maintenance of role-based relationship models

  • Logging of those responsible for the relationship and last changers

  • Creation, change and deletion of binary relationships

  • Connection to the update using the persistence and transaction services of object services

  • Support for cross-system relationships

  • Support for application attributes to relationship records

  • Reads the relationships of an object

  • Existence check of relationships

  • Archive connection

  • Tools for the transfer of model data from the old relationship service

In comparison to its predecessor, the new object relationship service offers new functions in the following areas:

  • Model data maintenance:

    • Logging of the last changer of a relationship or role

    • Logging of a responsible developer for a relationship or role

    • Warnings if roles are used again or if incompatible changes are made to the model data

    • Checks on the validity of database tables and object types

  • Application attributes:

    • More flexible table structure

    • Key: Relationship GUID, attribute name

    • No restriction to 250 CHAR for application part

    • Access to attributes possible using View

    • Support when creating, deleting and changing attributes