SAP Netweaver Mobile 7.1 is the new platform for the development of business applications that run on mobile devices. It leverages the open integration and application platform offered by SAP Netweaver to integrate business applications on mobile devices. From a design time perspective, it provides an infrastructure that allows mobilizing your existing or new business process, and from a run time perspective, it enables users of mobile devices to carry out their tasks with out a permanent connection to the backend system.
Here, I would like to share with you a few key points that should help one in architecting solutions in SAP Netweaver Mobile 7.1. Designing an SAP Netweaver Mobile Solution involves 3 broad phases:
- Designing the Backend Components
- Designing the Middleware components
- Designing the User Interface
It is likely that one might go ahead with the design of the Backend components to start with followed by Middleware Components and User Interface. However, considering few aspects of all the 3 phases together at an early period of the project should help one in a smooth journey all through. I would prefer considering the following aspects while architecting Netweaver Mobile solutions.
- List out the Business Objects involved in the entire process including the ones for custom developments as well. That is, if you wanted to develop a solution where you want to account the sales representative for meeting the targets not only do you need to list the Sales Order, but also design the target tracking module.
- Ensure that all information that needs to be available in the Mobile device have been addressed in the SAP ERP.
- Check on the volume of data that will be passed on to the Middleware. A GetList Wrapper returns the header for all the object instances. This results in enormous memory load as well as performance load since the DOE has to wait until the GetList returns. To improve this situation, by making it controlled through the backend package size configuration, would be to model the GetList as bulk enabled. Similarly, GetDetail can be made GetBulkDetail which can return a set of business object instances from backend system by taking multiple keys as input. Thus, the semantics of the BAPI Wrappers can be defined with more accuracy.
- Decide, if, you want your backend adapter to be a push adapter (Backend triggered) or a pull adapter (DOE triggered). It is recommended to have pull adapters for master data where as a push adapter is invaluable for transactional data.
- Identify at what level you need to set the filters. Providing filter conditions in the logic of the wrappers would mean that the data does not flow to the middleware. On the other hand, if you would like the data to be available in the middleware but not in the actual mobile device, then you need control it in the distribution logic. It could even be that you want this in the device but not in the users display. In such cases, filters need to be set while modeling the service components or at the UI implementation logic.
- Identify if there needs to be a distribution dependency by imposing referential integrity across data objects. Analyzing the possibility of distribution dependency very early in your design will help in designing the backend structures effectively which invariably determine the structure of the Nodes of the Data Objects.
- One of the most important points is the choice of device you are going to use for running the desired business process, typically a PDA or a laptop. SAP provides us with two different solutions for PDA and laptops. I would thus recommend that you choose the handheld solution only if the number of views in the intended application is limited. If you have a larger application, better go for Laptop solutions. This will not only improve the performance of the application but also ensure that a user with a PDA will have lesser screens to traverse and minimum amount of data on the device. Also, if the requirement is to have automatic sync the solution ought to be a Laptop Solution.
Initiating your design by investigating the above mentioned points should help you design your solutions rapidly efficiently and without much re-work.
