Release Cycle
A release cycle is a type of change cycle that is used within release management for phase-driven changes that depend on the release plan.
Note
The release planning function in SAP Solution Manager is used to plan major and minor releases, specify go-live dates, and assign the release planning data to branches. Release cycles can be created directly from the release planning function. For more information, see Release Planning.
The standard change transaction type used for release cycles is SMRE.
You can use release cycles to create normal, urgent, administrative, and general changes, as well as defect corrections.
You can create release cycles directly from a release. If no release cycle has been defined for a change control landscape, you must create the first cycle manually.
Note
For a selected change control landscape, at least one release cycle must be available. It is used as a copy template for the cycle to be created. The go-live dates and other data of the release cycle are automatically adjusted by the system.
Structure
By default, the following phases are available for a release cycle:
Created
Scope
Build
Test
Deploy
Hypercare
Operate
Retired
Canceled
Note
Release management uses a predecessor – successor relationship. A successor release can be imported into the production system only after the predecessor release has been imported. This means that a successor release cycle can be shifted to the “Test” phase only after the “Deploy” phase of the predecessor release cycle is finished.