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Former Member
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Often a SAP workflow includes specific business data. This data is needed at the decision moments within the workflow to make an informed decision. And thus also needed within the SharePoint context if the workflow decision step is exposed there via Duet Enterprise workflow handling.

As the default Duet Enterprise workflow handling is a generic set-up, it is evident that it cannot provide direct support for all imaginable and variant occurences of specific business data. Instead there are hooks in the workflow pipeline in which you can plug-in custom extensions for exchanging workflow specific/contextual data from SAP backend to SharePoint frontend. You need to build a custom workflow outbound handler to transfer the contextual SAP business data from SAP workflow to SharePoint via Duet Enterprise workflow feature. Herein you have 2 options.

Expose business data in the format of static HTML or XML content

In this approach the additional workflow information is added to the SAP workitem-details (SOSP_TT_WF_RUNTIME_INFO). The Duet Enterprise system dataflow is as follows:

               
 

SAP ERP

 
 

Outbound handler

 
 

Extend or replace the workitem details   that are propagated via Duet Enterprise workflow capability, with   pre-formatted business content (XML or HTML)

 
 

SCL

 
 

No action

 
 

SharePoint

 
 

Taskform

 
 

IF HTML: simple display

 

IF XML: Xslt-transformation, preceeding   display

 

 

Expose business data in the format of XML payload

In this approach the additional workflow information is passed via the XPROP key-value structure delivered with Duet Enterprise workflow handling at the SAP side. The Duet Enterprise system dataflow is as follows: 

                       
 

SAP ERP

 
 

Outbound handler

 
 

Populate the Duet Enterprise key-value   XPROP structure with the required business properties (name => value; eg ‘CustomerId’ => ‘02345’)

 

The business property values are   retrieved from the SAP workflow container

 
 

SCL

 
 

Configuration

 
 

Register EACH individual XPROP business   property at the associated workflow template

 
 

SharePoint

 
 

Config

 
 

Register EACH individual XPROP business   property as external/extended business property at the task definition in the   Duet Enterprise workflow subsite

 
 

SharePoint

 
 

Workflow

 
 

Extend the ‘Approval task screen’ to   render the additional business data properties [extend standard taskform via   SharePoint Designer or via InfoPath]

Decide between the 2 approaches

Both options are viable to expose specific SAP business data to Microsoft SharePoint and Outlook context. Which is most appropriate depends on the characteristics of both the data, and what will be done with it within the Microsoft front-end. If it will only be displayed, it may be best to use the approach to expose it as single set of XML or HTML content; and then directly or via Xslt render within the UI. If the data is also needed within the front-end for additional processing, it is properly better to expose the data properties individual.

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