Web Transaction API (SAP Library - Web Transaction API)

Web Transaction API

Purpose

The Web Transaction API is a set of ABAP macros and function modules for programming Web transactions that are known to users as Internet Application Components (IACs) based on the Web Transactions implementation model.

You can use these macros and function modules in ABAP programs to import data from, and export data to, a Web browser via the Internet Transaction Server (ITS).

Implementation Considerations

Web transactions based on the Web Transactions implementation model are Internet-enabled R/3 transactions that are initially developed as ABAP dialog programs in the R/3 System, using the development tools of the ABAP Workbench.

When an Internet user runs a Web transaction from a Web browser, the ITS merges screen field contents returned by R/3 into a corresponding HTML template and sends the expanded HTML source code to the Web browser, where it is displayed as an HTML page.

The dialog programming model used to develop R/3 transactions is well established in the R/3 System kernel, but lacks certain features required to transfer data between R/3 and the Internet. To handle these features, you can use the Web Transaction API.

The Web Transaction API is especially suitable for:

Transferring unpredictable volumes of data
Transferring unpredictable numbers of screen fields
Transferring binary data
Controlling the Web browser from an R/3 transaction

This applies, for example, if you want to redirect the Web browser to a specific URL

Features

The Web Transaction API supports the transfer of context fields and Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) data between transactions in the R/3 System and their Internet-enabled versions displayed in a Web browser.

The Web Transaction API allows you to:

Export context fields from R/3

For example, you can display long descriptions of materials or other application objects.

Export arbitrary MIME types from R/3

For example, you can display Excel spreadsheets taken from the SAP database.

Import context fields from the ITS

For example, you can retrieve data from the ITS and store it in an ABAP internal table for further processing.

Import arbitrary MIME types from a Web browser

For example, you can upload files from the workstation on which the Web browser is running to the SAP database.

Import all context fields posted to the ITS from a Web browser

This function is useful if there is a large number of input fields, but it would not be practical to display them all on the screen.

Redirect the Web browser to a URL, or post data to a URL

These functions are useful for integrating external product catalogs.

To use the macros and function modules of the Web Transaction API, you must explicitly enable them in the ABAP program, as described in Enabling the Web Transaction API.

For further information about the available macros and function modules, see:

Context Field Handling

MIME Data Handling

Web Browser Handling

Utility Functions