Document Relationship Browser (DRB) in Accounting (SAP Library

Document Relationship Browser (DRB) in Accounting

Purpose

The Document Relationship Browser (DRB) enables you to display in accounting links to numerous different document types. You can display linked documents from various business processes. The DRB can be used for the following object types of the applications Financial Accounting (FI), Controlling (CO) and Profit Center Accounting (EC-PCA):

Accounting Documents (FI)

Direct Input Accounting Documents (FI)

Electronic Bank Statement (FI-BL)

FI-SL Documents (FI-SL)

Cost Accounting Documents (CO)

Settlement Documents (CO)

Costing-Based Profitability Analysis (CO-PA)

Profit Center Accounting (EC-PCA)

Implementation Considerations

The DRB can find and display these documents if they have already been archived. Therefore, you must normally make settings in the Archive Information System prior to archiving.

To be able optimize the DRB functions for archived data, you are recommended to proceed as follows:

Create an archive information structure for one of the field catalogs matching the desired object type. You can find additional information in the documentation for the object type concerned.
To call up the DRB there are application-specific functions and programs which also read from the archive. The following is necessary to enable then to read from the archive as well:

Check which fields are used to select this object type and include them in the archive information structure. The documentation for the respective object type will tell you which fields are involved.

Recommendation

If, for access via archived objects, you do not want to select only using the respective assignment object key (the document number), you are recommended to create secondary indexes for the archive information structure. For additional information see SAP Note 164704.

Activate the archive information structure and construct it for the desired archive.

Integration

The basic DRB functions and how they operate are dealt with in the section Introduction to the DRB . In the section Document Relationship Browser (DRB) in Logistics you can gain an understanding of how you can display linked Logistics documents with the DRB.

Features

Calling the DRB

Depending on the object type, you usually have the option of calling up the DRB either by transactions or by programs. These application-specific transactions are contained in the role Document Relationship Browser (SAP_DRB). For more information, see the object-specific documentation.

Displaying the Documents

You can find more information under Displaying Linked Objects.

Links

It is possible that object types are mentioned in the DRB overview which do not appear in this documentation. This is usually because generic functions are used that are independent of the DRB, particularly for accounting documents not yet archived. The link to the source document still functions, for example, even if the source document object type is not explicitly linked to the DRB. You can find additional information under Determine Link from Accounting Document to Source Document.

Example

Example: When billing, an accounting document and a cost accounting document can be created in addition to the billing document. The source document in this case is the billing document (even though it is not an accounting document). When you call up the DRB via the billing document both the accounting document and the cost accounting document appear as linked. When you do so via the accounting document or the cost accounting document only the billing document appears at first. Nevertheless, you can always use this to access either of the other documents (by double-clicking).

For accounting documents (or for the links) the following applies:

If the document itself is the source document of the relevant business transaction, then all accounting documents for this business transaction are regarded as linked to it.

If the document itself is not the source document of the relevant business transaction, then only the source document for this business transaction is linked to this document.