POWL different Topics with my learning will be updated……………..
Personal Worklist As a End User
POWL is an SAP innovation that provides users with a general overview of their work environment and all the related business objects that they would be interested to work on. It enables them to manage their work by bringing together object assignments from different systems, which themselves are not a part of the workflow (including alerts, knowledge management (KM) notifications, and collaboration tasks). It’s used as the central access point to object-related tasks
Characteristics of a POWL
To describe a POWL more process and business wise it is worth to list up its characteristics. Hence, the following features shall help to get an understanding. A POWL …
- is embedded in a web-based environment
- can run in SAP Portal or in SAP NetWeaver Business Client (or even stand-alone, called via a URL)
- is mostly grouped along other POWL´s forming a “Business Role” such as the “Buyer” or the “Internal Sales Representative”
- – if embedded in a role – it is hence personalized to a specific target group
- lists specific business objects (sales orders, purchase requisitions, etc.)
- provides a homogenous user-interface and finally
- simplifies business processes.
POWL and Universal Worklist (UWL)
In SAP a lot abbreviations are used and sometimes it’s quite confusing. Hence also the abbreviation “UWL” shall be explained in this context.
The term “Universal Work list (UWL)” also occurs in the context of POWL´s or portal roles in general. However, the distinction between both can be seen in the intention of the lists. A UWL is a generic work list tool and here the user “… is shown those objects he is obliged to process or to notice …” – so UWL´s display are used to display workflow items and alerts.
Both – UWL´s as well as POWL´s – can (and should) be used to tailor the system in a way that all relevant sub-processes of a specific role is comprised in one common framework.
Definition
Worklist that is created automatically for a user.
The user gets a list of tasks for a specific work area; this task list forms the worklist.
● Each list contains specific business objects from your department. For Sales and Distribution, for example, there are worklists for sales orders. The content of the worklists is specifically defined according to each work area. For example, you can get a list with incomplete sales orders or one with sales orders that are blocked for delivery.
● The worklist also contains the specific functions with which the user can process the business objects.
The personal worklist is also referred to as follows in the Implementation Guide (IMG) and other documents:
POWL (Personal Object Worklist)
POWER List (Personal Object Work Entity Repository List)
Use
Process Business Objects
Each worklist of business objects provides special functions you can use to process the selected business objects and integrate them into subsequent business processes. For example, you can change incomplete sales documents to add missing pricing data.
Structure
The worklist is structured like a table:
● The rows contain the individual business objects that you select for further processing (such as orders)
● The columns contain the business data on a business object (such as sales document, sold-to party, net price)
You can adjust the data scope to suit your current task.
Integration
Query
The content of a worklist is defined by a query. Its definition is based on a worklist type that is set up in Customizing.
The worklist type refers to a specific business object and defines the business data that you can use as search criteria.
● To use selected business data as search criteria, you personalize the query.
● Additional settings for the view and layout of the worklists and reports support your personal method of working.
You can use the following specifications to tailor the business data selection to fit your current task.
Data |
Use |
View with Settings |
You can change the view by editing the settings. |
Filter |
The filter settings restrict the worklist data to certain areas such as a period. Therefore, you can activate the filter separately and display the filter settings in the first row, or delete all filter settings. |
Different transactions for POWL
You must execute the following activities for a standard POWL:
1. Process personalization application ID ———— Tx —-> fpb_maintain_hier
You define the business context in which you want to use the personal worklist, for example, to process sales documents or for inventory management. The application ID is used in several subsequent substeps to process data for the personal worklists.
2. Create / Edit / Delete POWL Type ————Tx ——> POWL_TYPE
You can register your new POWL feeder classes (Implementation of Interface for POWL Feeder). The system determines the content and processing functions for a worklist on the basis of the feeder class.
For each POWL type, you can later define several queries that differ in how their selection criteria are valuated.
3. Register POWL Type (Role-Based / User-Based) ——–> POWL_TYPER and POWL_TYPEU
The Registration Type function (Register POWL Type) starts a processing step in which you can define an application ID to identify the POWL type and enter a language-dependent description. You can identify your personal worklist using the application ID.
Registration takes place on a user basis or role basis.
○ Assign the POWL type either a role (View: Type – Role Assignment) or an individual user (View: Type – User Assignment).
○ If you want to assign an iView to a POWL type, register the type in the processing step (View: Type – Role Assignment) and do not make an entry in the Role field. The system determines the POWL type for an iView based on the application ID.
4. Register POWL Query (Role-Based / User-Based) POWL_QUERY, POWL_QUERYU, POWL_QUERYR, POWL_CAT
The Registration Query function (Register Query) starts a processing step in which you register a query for a role, user, or entire application, thus making the personal worklist visible in the portal.
Depending on your system settings, several substeps are required before you can register a query:
○ You use the Maintain Query function to define a query by specifying the POWL type that determines the content, for example.
○ You use the Registration Category function to register categories so that your sales representatives can group multiple queries for clearer display in the portal. These categories are part of the personalization settings and can be used by sales representatives to sort queries as required. The name of the category isused as the header for a group of queries.
Registration takes place on a user basis or role basis.
○ Assign the query either a role (View: Query – Role Assignment) or an individual user (View: Query – User Assignment).
○ If you use multiple queries for an application, you should define a category sequence for better transparency.
Using POWL in your WD component and using its Plug Parameters
- Create a WD ABAP component
- Double click on the name of your created component -> Choose tab ‘Used Components’.
- Enter a name for the component usage (column ‘Component Use’) and ‘POWL_UI_COMP’ for the component (column ‘Component’).
- Create an outbound plug (must contain the parameters which are provided by ‘POWL_MASTER’ window)
- Embed view ‘POWL_MASTER’ in your window and connect the default inbound plug provided by this view with your created outbound plug.
- Fire the outbound plug in the desired method.
Reports for Personal Worklists
POWL developers and administrators can execute various reports for personal worklists (Personal Object Worklist, POWL). These reports help in updating the cache data, query information etc.
The details of reports are given below
We have quite few links a for POWL Reference’s.
Portal with POWL
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_04/helpdata/en/44/451e7582190a64e10000000a422035/content.htm
POWL
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_srm70/helpdata/en/80/c8cbf89a394eaaa59767d0faf958d3/content.htm
POWL Technical Information
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_04/helpdata/en/42/dcb7608d23162fe10000000a1553f7/frameset.htm
POWL CONFIGURATIONS
http://wiki.sdn.sap.com/wiki/display/WDABAP/POWL+CONFIGURATIONS
Reports for Personal Worklists
http://wiki.sdn.sap.com/wiki/display/WDABAP/POWL
Client Side Eventing – Refresh From Client Window
http://wiki.sdn.sap.com/wiki/display/WDABAP/Client+Side+Eventing+-+Refresh+From+Client+Window
POWL EASY
http://wiki.sdn.sap.com/wiki/display/WDABAP/POWL+EASY
POWL Customizing – Default queries
http://forums.sdn.sap.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1519753
Blogs:
Introduction into POWER Lists
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/15180
Technical aspects of POWL´s
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/15322
Structure of POWL´s
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/15181
Navigation from POWL to WDA without Object Based Navigation
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/25336
Adding a Custom Button and Custom Functionality in PO Worklist screen of Supply Network Collaboration
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/24050
The Power of Where-Used list
http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/4695