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Function documentationProduct Catalog Staging

 

You can use this function to create, validate, and activate a product catalog for productive use. You can verify whether the product catalog is correct before it is released for general availability in the Web shop.

Prerequisites

  • You have defined the RFC destinations for the initial- or delta indexing of the product catalog in Customizing under Start of the navigation path Customer Relationship Management Next navigation step Master Data Next navigation step Product Catalog Next navigation step Maintain IMS Server for Catalog Indexing End of the navigation path.

  • You have defined how the product catalog data is indexed on the Index Management Service (IMS) server and how the new indexes are handled in Customizing under Start of the navigation path Customer Relationship Management Next navigation step Master Data Next navigation step Product Catalog Next navigation step Define Catalog Variant Indexing End of the navigation path.

  • In Extended Configuration Management (XCM) for productive Web shops, you have specified application configurations that always use active catalog variant versions. Additionally, you have defined application configurations that allow selection of active, inactive, or obsolete versions of a catalog variant for a preview in the Web shop.

Features

Product catalog staging makes use of a versioning of catalog variants including indexes. That means that a new indexing does not overwrite existing indexes. Instead, a new version of a catalog variant creates a new set of indexes. These new indexes are created in an inactive status and are not immediately used in the productive Web shop. Instead, existing active indexes are still used until the new set of indexes is activated. As a result, there is no downtime of the productive Web shop while the indexing process is running. Versioning also allows the use of the master/slave principle on the TREX server, which ensures that the product catalog is permanently up to date and available in the Web shop.

Programming Interface SAP TREX API

The programming interface SAP TREX API has been introduced to product catalog management. This new programming interface replaces the SRET API interface that was used previously. SAP TREX API supports UNICODE, which allows all characters to be displayed in the product catalog of the Web shop.

SAP TREX API enables indexing to be performed with the new catalog staging, which guarantees consistent catalog browsing with no Web shop downtime. However, you can also use this programming interface to perform indexing without catalog staging.

Catalog Variant Versioning

To manage catalog variant versions and make them available in the productive Web shop, the following four version states have been introduced:

  1. The active status can be applied to exactly one version of a catalog variant.

    The active status is to be applied to a catalog variant version to be used by standard users in the productive Web shop.

  2. The inactive status can be applied to several versions of a catalog variant.

    When a catalog variant is indexed, a new catalog variant version is created on the TREX server. The new catalog variant version is initially always inactive. The inactive status allows internal users (external users have no access) first to check completeness and correctness of the catalog variant version before the catalog variant version is released and thus used by customers in the productive Web shop. To check completeness and correctness, internal users can call the Web shop by using the inactive catalog variant version. This allows internal users to see a realistic preview of the catalog variant version as the customer would see the catalog variant version in the Web shop when it is activated. For this preview, current and future Internet Pricing and Configurator (IPC) information can be used.

    After the version has been checked, it can be activated. That means that the status of an existing active version of the same catalog variant automatically changes to obsolete.

    For users of the productive Web shop, activation has two effects:

    • Users who call the Web shop after the inactive catalog variant version has been activated directly access the new active catalog variant version.

    • Users who have already called the Web shop before the inactive catalog variant version has been activated stay connected to the old active and now obsolete version of the catalog variant. This guarantees consistent catalog browsing with no Web shop downtime.

  3. The obsolete status can be applied to several versions of a catalog variant.

    Obsolete catalog variant versions may be former active catalog variant versions that enable consistent catalog browsing. These catalog variant versions can be removed manually from the TREX server. Removal can also be performed automatically by a batch program after a predefined period of time (Transaction SE38 and report COM_PCAT_STG_INDEX_CLEANUP). For more information, see the report documentation.

  4. The erroneous status is only applied if errors occur during indexing.

Caution Caution

  • Versioning of images is not possible. Images are always used in different variant versions. When you change an image, the old image is overwritten and the new image is published under the same name. This means that the new image is used in the 'old' variant version.

  • When new variant versions are created on the TREX server, new memory space is required. Therefore, you need to check the memory space on the TREX server regularly.

  • When you change the data of a catalog variant, for example, the language or the currency, you need to start an initial indexing process.

  • When you delete catalog variants in the backend system, the indexes are not automatically deleted on the TREX server. You need to delete these indexes manually. Additionally, you need to assign the status 'Obsolete' to the variant versions in the CRM WebClient UI. There you select a catalog variant under Start of the navigation path Catalog Management Next navigation step Indexed Catalog Variants End of the navigation path. Click Change Status and assign the status Obsolete.

  • For collaborative views and partner catalogs catalog staging is not supported.

End of the caution.

Recommendation Recommendation

We recommend that you do not activate the product catalog staging in Customizing after you have performed the indexing. However, if you activate the product catalog staging after the indexing, you need to perform an initial indexing again.

End of the recommendation.
Replication Status

Replication means that the index is distributed from the TREX master server to the TREX slave servers. The following replication statuses are available in the CRM WebClient UI:

Replication Status

Description

Completed

The indexes were distributed from the TREX master server to the connected TREX slave servers

Replicating

The process of copying the indexes from the TREX master server to the connected TREX slave servers has been started

Failed

The process of copying the indexes from the TREX master server to the connected TREX slave servers has been completed with errors

Not Yet Started

The process of copying the indexes has not yet been started. The index is only available on the TREX master server. When the catalog variant version gets the status 'Active' assigned and is therefore generally available in the productive Web shop, a high load of catalog requests are handled by the TREX master server because all inquiries go to this server. Therefore, you need to verify, before the index is assigned the status 'Active', that this index has been distributed from the TREX master server to the TREX slave servers.

No Replication Possible

Only the TREX master server is available, but no TREX slave servers

No Information Available

No information about the system landscape is available

Activities

If you have selected the option 'Use catalog staging' in Customizing to index the product catalog, the process is as follows:

  1. You select an existing catalog variant in the CRM WebClient UI under Start of the navigation path Catalog Management Next navigation step Product Catalogs End of the navigation path and make your changes.

  2. You click Change Status to assign the status Active to the catalog variant.

    You need to activate your product catalog, catalog variants, areas, and items, otherwise indexing to the TREX server does not work.

  3. You start the indexing process of the catalog variant in the CRM WebClient UI.

    • If you choose Initial Indexing, you perform an initial indexing, which means that the whole content of the selected catalog variant is indexed to the TREX server.

    • If you choose Delta Indexing, you perform a delta indexing, which means that only the changes that you have made in the selected catalog are indexed to the TREX server.

  4. A new set of indexes (A-index, P-index, and S-indexes) is created on the TREX server. This set is used as an equivalent for a new version of the catalog variant.

    The indexes on the TREX server have the initial status 'Inactive'. These indexes are not visible for the customer in the productive Web shop.

  5. You specify an application configuration in Extended Configuration Management (XCM) that allows you to use an inactive version of a catalog variant in the B2B Web shop for preview.

  6. You open the B2B Web shop with the application configuration defined before. You select the inactive catalog variant version for the B2B Web shop and test it.

  7. After the tests are finished, you select the inactive version of the catalog variant in the CRM WebClient UI under Start of the navigation path Catalog Management Next navigation step Indexed Catalog Variants End of the navigation path.

    Note Note

    The product catalog staging is role-dependent which means that you need to make the necessary Customizing in the CRM E-Commerce Manager business role.

    End of the note.
  8. You assign the status 'Active' to the catalog variant version.

    • The status of the former active version of the catalog variant is automatically switched to the status 'Obsolete'.

    • Customers who start the product catalog in the productive Web shop after the status of the new catalog variant version has been changed to active access the new active version of the catalog variant.

    • Customers who have already started the product catalog in the productive Web shop before the status of the new catalog variant version has been changed to active are still connected to the old active– and now obsolete version of the catalog variant to guarantee a consistent catalog browsing.

  9. If necessary, you can switch a catalog variant version from status 'Active' back to status 'Inactive' (via status 'Obsolete'). Before you can do so, you need to activate another inactive catalog variant version, otherwise there is no active version available for the users of the Web shop.