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You can assign reference objects to your change transaction or message. A reference object is a product or an installation for which a service or change is requested. You can specify several reference objects per transaction.

Prerequisites

You have performed the following activities in SAP Solution Manager Configuration:

  •   Basic Configuration   Maintain Systems in IBase   Create Hierarchy for Material Products  

  •   Basic Configuration   Maintain Systems in IBase   Maintain Number Range for Material  

  •   Basic Configuration   Configure Automatically   Schedule Solution Mgr Background Job  

    You have scheduled the following jobs:

    • AI_CRM_AIDIAGNOTIF_CREATE: This job should be scheduled daily. It copies changes from the LMDB or the CMDB to the iBase.

    • A manual load of specific objects or an initial load of all LMDB or CMDB objects can be performed with the following reports:

      • For LMDB objects: Transaction IB_GEN

        You can also use this transaction for a manual load of specific systems.

      • For CMDB objects: Report AI_CRM_IBASE_CMDB_GENERATE_71

        This report is used to load initially from the CMDB, manually.

  • You have implemented SAP Note 1741109.

  • If you are using reference objects in the Service Provider scenario, you have scheduled report REFRESH_ADMIN_DATA_FROM_SUPPORT.

Features

  • You can specify the following types of reference objects in change transactions and messages:

    • Configuration item

      Entity or system which is identified and changed in Change Request Management. Configuration items are objects in the Landscape Management Database (LMDB) or Configuration Management Database (CMDB). They vary in complexity and size from a single module or small component, to an entire system. Configuration items can, for example, contain the following:

      • Hardware (technical systems, databases, and hosts)

      • Software

      • Services

      • Documentation

    • Component

      Components of a customer installation to which business processes can refer.

  • If you enter a value in one of the Component or Configuration Item fields, the other is filled automatically, if the value is known in the system. For example, if a configuration item is created in the iBase but not installed, the Component field remains empty.

  • When you search for a configuration item or a component, the result list shows only those objects that belong to the project, that is, the system landscape, that has been assigned to the request for change or to the change document. Depending on the transaction type, the following systems are displayed:

    • Normal change, urgent change, defect correction: only productive systems of the project system landscape

    • Administrative change: all systems of the project system landscape

    • General change: all possible configuration items

    Note Note

    The system only filters the search results if a project has been assigned to the change transaction.

    End of the note.

  • You can enter and process reference objects in the following assignment blocks:

    • Requests for change: Scope assignment block

      You can also enter the product ID. This is the configuration item.

    • Change documents: Details assignment block

      The system fills the Reference Objects fields automatically with the data from the Scope assignment block in the associated approved change request.

    • Messages: Assignment blocks Details and Reference Objects

      Note Note

      You can edit the reference objects, depending on the transaction type and status of the transaction. For example, you can no longer change the reference object of a normal change which is already being implemented.

      End of the note.

  • You can use the reference object as a criterion to search for change transactions or messages.

  • You can authorize the user in authorization object SM_SDK_IBA to work with configuration items as follows:

    • Configuration items that are assigned to the business partner of the reporter and where the reporter is the employee responsible

    • Configuration items that are assigned to organizations to which the user is directly assigned using the organization model and business partner relations such as sold-to party, employee responsible, and external identifications

    • No restrictions, that is, the user can use all available configuration items