Functions of the Automatic Synchronization 

Use

When you restart the SAP instance using the command startsap, program sapstart is called. This program automatically calls Program sapcpe. Program sapcpe ensures the automatic synchronization of executables and copies them from the central directory to the local directory.

sapcpe calls are managed by the instance profiles. The following instance parameters are normally set in the profile:

●      DIR_CT_RUN         

Name of the central directory for executables.

●      DIR_EXECUTABLE

Name of the local directory for executables.

At all subsequent start-ups, sapcpe checks that the local executables are still current and copies all new or changed executables from the central directory.

Features

Log file

If sapcpe is called from sapstart, it writes all actions to the log file in the local directory
For example: UNIX:/usr/sap/<SAPSID>/<INSTANCE NAME>/work/sapcpe.log.

Compressed Executables Under UNIX

sapcpe can work with compressed executable files (<file name>.Z) in the central directory.

If you have a large number of distributed SAP instances (more than 5), we recommend that you store executables in compressed form in the central directory.

Compressed files reduce the network load caused by copying executables by approximately 50%.

Program sapcpe detects changes in compressed files using the time stamp. If the compressed file is newer than the local copy, sapcpe copies the compressed file from the central directory to the local directory and decompresses it.

Access Authorizations and Ownership Under UNIX

No special access authorizations are required for sapcpe. You therefore need to take the following security measures:

Do not set the “set user ID bit” (UNIX systems) for the sapcpe authorization.

Since sapcpe is executed as user <SID>adm, certain programs cannot be updated. These include programs that belong to root or to another super user, as well as programs that are active when sapcpe updates a local system. If sapcpe encounters authorization problems, it records the problems in the log file. You must then update the relevant executables manually, or correct the problem and restart the instance.

Usually only programs saposcol (SAP operating system monitor) and icmbnd are affected by this.

Program saposcol is started when the SAP system is started.
If an saposcol (or icmbnd ) error message appears in the sapcpe log, saposcol must be updated.

In this case you have to stop the program, and copy the executable manually from the central executable directory into the local executable directory.

Do not update saposcol by running the program from the central executables directory. The program may terminate abnormally if paging over the network is so slow that it produces time-outs.