Connecting LMDB to System Landscape Directory (SLD)

LMDB should receive as much system information as possible from an SLD, where systems register themselves automatically.

For most technical systems there are data suppliers, which — once configured — automatically register the systems in the SLD.

The LMDB receives SLD changes automatically when a change occurs, using polling by LMDB, or active change notifications by the SLD. If possible, register technical system information in SLD and do not create it in the LMDB manually.

Ideally, all technical system information is collected by one SLD. If this is not possible, the LMDB must be synchronized with several SLDs. Because the LMDB content depends on the sequence of changes in the various SLDs, any overlap between system data in multiple source SLDs risks inconsistencies in the LMDB. For more information, see Integration of System Landscape Management and SAP Note 1669649.

Once synchronization has been configured, and the initial data transferred (full synchronization) from the SLD to the LMDB, incremental synchronization between SLD and LMDB starts automatically. The LMDB queries, or 'polls', the SLD for changes every ten minutes. As of SLD 7.1, you can configure the SLD to send change notifications up to once per minute, to synchronize changes with the LMDB more frequently.

The incremental synchronization propagates changes, not complete system data. If you want to remove a system from the LMDB, delete it in SLD (if it exists there), not in the LMDB. The deletion in the SLD is propagated to the LMDB like all other changes. If you deleted the system description in the LMDB, only the updated fragments of system information would be restored by the full, automatic synchronization, which is not the desired result.

Prerequisites

Required SAP NetWeaver Version for the SLD

Whether an SLD is compatible with the LMDB depends on the SAP NetWeaver version and Support Package of the SLD. For SAP HANA, there are separate version requirements.

SAP NetWeaver Release of SLD System	Supported Support Package Stack Level	Supported Support Package Stack Level for SAP HANA
SAP NetWeaver 6.40	not supported	not supported
SAP NetWeaver 7.0	not supported	not supported
EHP1 for SAP NetWeaver 7.0	not supported	not supported
EHP2 for SAP NetWeaver 7.0	SP13	SP13
SAP NetWeaver 7.1	SP09	SP15
EHP1 for SAP NetWeaver 7.1	all SPs	SP10
SAP NetWeaver 7.2	all SPs	SP08
SAP NetWeaver 7.3	all SPs	SP08
EHP1 SAP NetWeaver 7.3	all SPs	SP03

Use a separate SLD to synchronize with an LMDB, with version 7.3 or higher, to have the latest SLD functional scope. (The local SLD in SAP Solution Manager has only version 7.02). If your central SLD does not have the required status, you can use another SLD which does satisfy the minimum requirements (for example the local SLD in SAP Solution Manager), and synchronize it with your central SLD, using SLD bridge forwarding or full, automatic synchronization.

Required CIM Model and SAP Software Catalog Version

These are the requirements for the CIM model and for the SAP Software Catalog (SAP CR content) delivered by the SLD connected to the LMDB:

CIM model: 1.6.36 or higher. For more information, see SAP Note 1701770.
SAP CR content: 9.0 or higher. For more information, see SAP Note 669669.

CIM model and SAP CR content should not be more than three months older than the latest version in the SAP Service Marketplace. SLD content updates are published every four to six weeks. A new major version of the SAP CR content is created every year.

If SAP CR content is inconsistent in the SLD or LMDB, you can repair it. For more information, see the following notes:

SAP Note 1939864 (Check if SAP CR Content is corrupt in LMDB or SLD)
SAP Note 1891566 (Repair of LMDB CR Content)
SAP Note 1093168 (Repair of SLD CR Content)

Required Versions for Polling and Change Notifications

Polling and change notifications trigger incremental synchronization from SLD to LMDB. The remote communication uses HTTP(S).

All supported SLD versions support polling of system information: The LMDB queries the SLD for changes every ten minutes.

As of SLD 7.1, you can configure active change notifications from the SLD to the LMDB, to trigger processing of changes more frequently. This requires a higher version of the SLD.

SAP NetWeaver Version of SLD System	Supported Support Package Stack Level
SAP NetWeaver 7.1	SP12
EHP1 for SAP NetWeaver 7.1	SP07
SAP NetWeaver 7.2	SP05
SAP NetWeaver 7.3	SP03

For more information, see SAP Note 1546079.

To configure the LMDB for Synchronization with an SLD, the following prerequisites must be fulfilled:

You have performed all previous system preparation steps in SAP Solution Manager Configuration (transaction SOLMAN_SETUP).
The SLD is running.
User and authorizations:
- For SAP Solution Manager, users need administration authorization.
- For an SLD as of release SAP NetWeaver 7.1, users need the role SAP_SLD_CONTENT_SYNC.
  For an SLD on EHP2 on SAP NetWeaver 7.0, users need at least the role SAP_SLD_GUEST.

Procedure

To use the LMDB, configure it in the SAP Solution Manager setup, during the configuration of SAP Solution Manager, after installation or upgrade:

Start transaction SOLMAN_SETUP and choose System Preparation Prepare Landscape Description Set Up LMDB .
Choose Edit.
In the Synchronization Connections between SLD and LMDB area, choose Add. A window opens. To create a new synchronization connection, make the following entries:
1. Description: Enter a free text to describe the new SLD connection.
2. The input help offers all SLD connections that you defined in the previous setup step (Select SLD).
3. User: Enter or change the SLD user.
  In the SLD, check the user password you have entered, and check the prerequisite user roles above. Using a separate user for each connection makes the configuration more robust.
4. Source Namespace: Select the CIM namespace of the source (SLD). The default namespace is sld/active.
5. Rank of Source Namespace: A ranking is defined between SLD and LMDB to determine which status ‘wins’ in case of conflicts. A conflict occurs if the status of an object in the target (LMDB) differs from that expected by the source (SLD). This can happen, for example, if you have changed the system information (originally from the SLD) with the LMDB technical system editor. The LMDB must always have priority; this prevents changes in SLD from overwriting changes made manually in the LMDB, in the technical system editor. For more information, see SAP NetWeaver System Landscape Directory: Conflicts & Ranks in Full, Automatic Synchronization in SAP Community Network at http://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-8516.
  The rank is a positive whole number which specifies the priorities of system descriptions in the synchronization landscape: the higher the number, the higher the rank.
  
  A previously selected rank number is displayed when you select the namespace. If no assignment has yet been made, -1 is displayed, and you have to assign a rank.
  
  Example: To be flexible for subsequent changes in your synchronization landscape, use a rank of 1000 for the source (SLD) and 2000 for the target (LMDB).
  
  Note
  If the source namespace already has a rank, do not change it since it is the rank of the namespace in the SLD. Changing the source rank can affect other content synchronizations. If you must change it, keep the relative position (higher or lower), relative to the rank of all other existing synchronization connections. For this, you need to know all SLD and LMDB rank settings in the system landscape.
  
  End of the note.
6. Target Namespace: For the LMDB in SAP Solution Manager 7.1, only the target namespace active is supported.
7. Rank of Target Namespace: Enter rank of the target (LMDB). Choose a number higher than that of the source (SLD).
  Example: If a rank has already been assigned to SLD, add 1000 to it, so there is enough flexibility for subsequent ranking changes in your synchronization landscape.
8. Choose Check.
  If you want to save your settings and activate them later, confirm with Save. To start the full, automatic content synchronization immediately, choose Save and Activate.
9. If the source SLD supports change notifications, an additional popup appears in which you can enter the target LMDB connection. Enter connection parameters that the SLD can use to notify the LMDB about changes. The data you enter here will be written to the destination store of the AS Java of the SLD. It will be visible in the SLD under Administration Content Synchronization Sync Notifications .
If you have problems when you try to save, see SAP Note 1699142.
You can change some connection parameters later. In the list of synchronization connections, choose Advanced to specify, for example, whether you want to use change notifications (see Prerequisites).
If you add more than one SLD, set the Is CR Source indicator for the SLD that provides the SAP Software Catalog (SAP CR content). This should be the first synchronization connection you activate.
Choose Activate for each SLD connection, if you have not already done so.
The initial, full synchronization with the SLD can take several hours, depending, for example, on the number of systems in the SLD.
If the job is aborted, it automatically restarts after ten minutes (according to the polling interval) and resumes at the point where it was canceled.
After the full synchronization, the system carries out an incremental synchronization every ten minutes (standard) to propagate changes to the LMDB.

Monitoring the Synchronization

To monitor synchronization, you have the following options:

In SAP Solution Manager, you can view information about the synchronization job. Start transaction SOLMAN_SETUP and choose System Preparation Prepare Landscape Set Up LMDB .
Select a synchronization connection and choose Advanced.
Transaction SM37 (Simple Job Selection) displays jobs and logs. Search for jobs starting with SAP_LMDB_LDB_* and leave the User name field empty. (Jobs usually run under the SOLMAN_BTC system user. The name of the synchronization job for the target namespace is SAP_LMDB_LDB_<number of LMDB target namespace> e.g. SAP_LMDB_LDB_0000000001.)
The job log for the initial, full synchronization contains information like the following:

Number of relevant source instances: 654321.

From this, you can extrapolate job duration: A job should write about 10 objects per second into the LMDB. For more information about performance, see SAP Note 1594654.
Transaction SLG1 (Analyze Application Log) display logs.
All relevant information is stored in the job log. Transaction SLG1 is only required for low-level analysis.

Under Object, enter AI_LMDB to find the application logs related to the LMDB.

To increase the detail level of SLG1 logs, start transaction SM30 and maintain the V_LMDB_LOG_CONF view. The log level can be set per user and sub-object in the LMDB. Several log levels are supported, for example:
- Error (default)
- No logging
- Error and Warning
- Error, Warning and Info
Transaction SM12 (Select Lock Entries) displays locks.
Under Table name, enter LMDB*. During content synchronization, a change in the LMDB can be blocked by another user. If so, the active sync job is cancelled because changes must be processed in the order in which they occurred in the source system. The next scheduled synchronization job will continue at the same point, later. Locks will usually have been released in the meantime, and pending changes can be processed. If a lock persists, check the lock entries.

For performance issues with the full synchronization job, see SAP note 1555955.

Result

You have connected the LMDB to a central SLD, which provides changes in system descriptions by incremental synchronization, so all SAP Solution Manager applications use the latest system information, for example to monitor and update the systems.

You can check this in the editor for technical systems in transaction LMDB. On the overview screen of a technical system, choose the More link for detailed status information. Here, you can see if the required data suppliers are working. To check the data supplier status of several systems, start transaction LMDB and choose Landscape Reporting. The report SAP: Technical Systems – Data Supplier Completeness lists the status of all selected technical systems. For more information, see SAP Note 1842956 and 1869701.

More Information

For information on how to use automatic data suppliers, see the following sources of information:

SAP Community Network, at http://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-8516
SAP Solution Manager Setup Wiki at http://wiki.sdn.sap.com/wiki/x/yoEtCg