ABAP Feature Set Backport 7.X to 7.02 – Overview
Now that Enhancement Pack 2 is available (Release 7.02), it is time to bluster about the things that have changed in ABAP and its environment. This blog and its follow ups are based on a talk (TechEd and SAP-internal) that I had prepared for the rollout of this features not less than 5 years ago …
Introduction
Up to Release 7.0, SAP followed a release policy that was strictly linear: One Release followed the other. AS ABAP, Release 7.0 followed 6.40, which followed 6.20, which followed 4.6 and so on. This policy has changed in the meanwhile. Since an upgrade of one release to a higher one always came with high efforts regarding time and costs, SAP promised its customers to keep the current releases (which are based on AS ABAP 7.0) stable for a long time. All functional enhancements delivered by SAP do not require an upgrade any more but come as Enhancement Packages (EhP) based on a strictly downward compatible basis. Therefore, we have Release 7.0 now, with optional EhPs 7.01 and 7.02. In ABAP there were no changes in 7.01 compared to 7.0.
So far so good. But of course, the ABAP group did not stop developing. In a parallel release track (7.1 -> 7.2/7.3), many new features where built in into ABAP that were demanded for a long time, as e.g. a multi-pass ABAP compiler, secondary keys for internal tables, decimal floating point numbers, improved expression handling, and so on. Good for the happy few that could work on that track. But what about the rest of us, stuck in the 7.0 world?
The good news is: Almost all new ABAP features developed up to Release 7.2/7.3 where downported to 7.02 and are available to the broad public now. All you have to do is to enhance your 7.0 system with EhP2. The only exceptions are the operational package concept and the support of class based exceptions in RFC. Both are not downward compatible. All the other developments are strictly downward compatible. The backport is based on the fact that the 7.20 kernel is a downward compatible kernel (DCK). This kernel is used for 7.02 (and is also running under 7.3 -> regarding ABAP 7.3 is the same as 7.2).
Downported features
If you enhance your 7.0 system to 7.02 you will get the 7.2 kernel and with it the following enhancements:
- Transparent Infrastructure Improvements (Multi-Pass Compiler)
Application development benefits without further action
- New Facets of Existing Features (Pragmas, Boxed Components, 12h Time Format, Shared Objects Extensions, Data Declaration Extensions, basXML, UUIDs)
Require only moderate efforts by application if to be used
- New Features (Decimal Floating Point Numbers, Extended Expressions, Internal Table Extensions, String Processing Extensions, Database Access Extensions, Exceptions Extensions, Splitter Control, ABAP Call from ST)
Require an active part of application development if to be used
- Tool Improvements (Class Builder, ABAP Editor, ABAP Keyword Documentation, ABAP Debugger, ABAP Runtime Analysis, Test Tools)
Improved productivity at application side
Outlook
This blog introduces a series of blogs that will present the new features listed above.
Reference information about these features can be found here:
http://help.sap.com/abapdocu_702/en/index.htm?url=abennews-71.htm
what do you mean by above quoted statement? As far as I can remember NW7.02 goes rampup together with ERP6.0 EhP5 at end of December? Is this schedule still up to date? Is there already a planned release date?
Thanks in advance and best regards,
Alej
- NW 7.02 is already available for standalone Netweaver stack (and BI, EP, etc).
- For SAP Business Suite systems (e.g. SAP ERP, SAP CRM, etc.) you have to wait until general availability.
You can find some more info under
http://service.sap.com/swdc
Installations and Upgrades -> SAP NETWEAVER" -> SAP EHP2 FOR SAP NETWEAVER 7.0
Peter
Yo can download a trial version already:
ABAP Trial Version 7.02 available in SCN!
Best
Horst
it's 'just' a trial and not something viable for productive use, right? In my opinion it's a little bit daring to call this 'available'.
Best regards,
Alej
For standalone systems it has already the general availability.
Check this page:
SAP Enhancement Package 2 for SAP NetWeaver 7.0
"With the unrestricted shipment of SAP enhancement package 2 for SAP NetWeaver 7.0 (minimum Support Package Stack 06), only implementations within standalone installations of SAP enhancement package 1 for SAP NetWeaver 7.0 (or previous versions) are supported (e.g. for BI, EP, etc.). "
Peter
Is there a matrix available, which summarizes which ABAP feature is available in which release?
For example I have access to a 7.10 system, where most of the 7.02 features are available, but some of them not. Also the new package check concept is available there, which is not part of the 7.02.
Such a matrix would be useful to have an overview.
Thanks,
Peter
PS: Actually based on ABAP help "Changes in Release 7.1" I can figure out the info I need 🙂
I'm sorry but no, I don't have such a matrix readily available. The Problem with your 7.1 is, that many new features were built in 7.1, EhP1 (that is 7.11). There you find the most things that are newly available in 7.02 compared with 7.01. Some more changes were introduced in 7.2. The backport then took place from 7.2 to 7.02 except the two well known exceptions. Sounds complicated, and yes, it is.
>"Sounds complicated, and yes, it is."
This part made my day :))))
Peter
Many thanks.
I guess the difference is the guarantee, that when enhancing from 7.0 to 7.02 you don't have to adjust any programs. Everything should run exactly as before but you can profit from the enhancements.
Best
Horst
but when I installed EHP4 for ERP, I have to adjust a lot of programs, or am I wrong?
Br Karel
At least from the ABAP perspective, this is not necessary.
E.g. secondary keys for internal tables: The possibility is there but as long as you do not want to use them you don't have to (and your programs stay slow :-). This is the reason why those secondary keys have to be declared and used explicitly. There is no implicit selection of a secondary key even if someone introduces it (say in a dictionary table type) because an implicit selection would in fact change the semantics of your programs (say the LOOP order).
During my clicking-around session I found these options under Development coordination.
Although F4 help doesn't seem to work, I found CheckAsp CODE_COVERAGE_ABAP and Check Config STANDARD. Unfortunately I couldn't find any info about the purpose of these object and I couldn't really figure out by my own either based on the found examples:(
Do you have some info you can share about these objects?
Thanks in advance,
Peter
Can we please please please pretty please with a boolean on top have a native boolean type in ABAP with true and false keywords without the whole 'X' / abap_true silliness please.
Thanks,
Nigel