ABAP for the Modern Age…
Latest ABAP Enhancements in SAP NetWeaver 7.5, how to work with ABAP and Fiori, and CDS views.
ABAP custom code adaptation for SAP HANA – The efficient way
It is often mentioned that SAP HANA uses an „insert only“ approach. What does this mean for you as ABAP
developer?
HANA column store backgrounds (INSERT ONLY)
Performance Guidelines for ABAP Development on the SAP HANA Database
If we move to S/4HANA, what happens to user exits and modifications?
The recommendation is to analyze your custom code and optimize for SAP HANA processes.
1912445 - ABAP custom code migration for SAP HANA - recommendations and Code Inspector variants for SAP HANA migration
Best Practice Guide - Considerations for Custom ABAP Code During a Migration to SAP HANA
ABAP on HANA - from analysis to optimization | SCN
Optimizing Custom ABAP Code for SAP HANA: The new ABAP SQL Monitor Guide | SCN
White paperTransitioning Custom ABAP Code to SAP HANA - Best Practices and Recommendations
ABAP Code Pushdown through SAP HANA | SAP TechEd Online
Performance Guidelines for ABAP development on SAP HANA database - PDF
https://websmp104.sap-ag.de/~sapidb/011000358700000365292013E.pdf
ABAPers: HCP and You
Background on how ABAP developers can use the HCP HANA cloud Platform
How does ABAP help to leverage the benefits of in-memory database technology?
1. AS ABAP running on a traditional RDBMS can access SAP HANA by means of a secondary database connection
2. With SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP 7.3, the SAP HANA database can be used as primary persistence for SAP NetWeaver BW for mainly OLAP use cases.
3. With Suite on HANA, SAP HANA can also used as the underlying database for transactional use cases by facilitating a deeper integration of ABAP developments with SAP HANA and thus ease leveraging the strengths of SAP HANA within the application logic.
With regards to SAP Business Suite on HANA, not the side car scenario:
If a new custom table is developed/defined in the ABAP DDIC / data dictionary, what is the correct process to make the DDIC information available in the SAP HANA studio, and if a definition changes in the DDIC, how is this synchronized with the SAP HANA Studio?
With SAP Business Suite on Hana (not in a sidecar scenario), the DDIC objects are immediately visible in the SAP HANA Studio
How can we call stored procedures developed through the SAP HANA studio in the SAP HANA DB in ABAP using “call database procedure”?
The procedure should be created first in HANA studio. Then from the ABAP, the procedure definition to generate the call database procedure proxy, can be read.
How can we debug?
In the near future HANA release, the plan is that you can debug directly from ABAP into the procedure by setting a breakpoint in the procedure via the studio.
How can we handle the correction and transport for stored procedures? Can we transport the code (application code and the stored procedure) all in one package?
From future HANA releases the plan is that you can debug directly from ABAP into the procedure by setting a breakpoint in the procedure via the studio.
Answers courtesy of Thomas Jung. Please see his blogs on SCN for more details.
How can a customer analyze the impact of a SAP HANA database migration for custom ABAP code?
The transaction “Code Inspector” will analyze custom ABAP code after a migration to the SAP HANA database. Please note, that not all lines of code marked by the Code Inspector might require action. The code analysis is static and will show slow code, even if the data set used in the ABAP is very small, and therefore the performance impact could be neglected and code tuning would not be required.
Additional testing can determine for which programs to actually apply the identified changes, and where significant performance gains could be accomplished. These testing efforts are usually in the 5 days range for the customers who used the Code Inspector in the past
It is planned to make the Code Inspector also available to SAP customers prior to a HANA database migration.
Please see the link to the Statement of Direction for ABAP for SAP HANA.
https://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-29357
Please visit this SCN space ABAP for SAP HANA for details:
http://scn.sap.com/community/abap-for-hana
http://scn.sap.com/community/abap-for-hana/blog/2012/10/29/new-scn-space-abap-for-sap-hana
For the integration of the ABAP ADT Development tool with HANA development in SAP HANA studio:
http://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-29297
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXg7xXrEAUw
For the "Road to HANA for Software developers":
http://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-31723
I am an ABAP developer. Can I still use my ABAP skills with HANA or do I need to use SQL/SQL Script?
ABAP runs in NetWeaver and NetWeaver runs on many traditional databases. SAP HANA is new database that is added to the list of supported databases of the NetWeaver stack. In the future ABAP will remain a very important language as most SAP solutions are written in ABAP, independent of the underlying database.
However, in order to take full advantage of the in-memory capabilities of HANA in the future much more code will be written and executed directly in the database.
Please see the link to sapinsider article for a three step approach to optimize ABAP code for SAP HANA.
Here are some excerpts from an interview with Thomas:
http://scn.sap.com/community/distinguished-engineers/blog/2012/12/18/the-unofficial-uncensored-thoma...
How did the journey from ABAP programmer to HANA programmer feel?
At first it feels a bit foreign because you have to immerse yourself in the database - the database for an ABAP programmer is like a black hole where data goes into and comes out of, and we don't understand it - and we don't care. It's just a big storage space. So we have to begin to care, write more complex SQL like SELECT SUM, Subquery and ORDER BY - all the things we got used to doing at the application server layer. Once you get past this learning curve, moving things to the database that you used the application server for before....
Once you're up to HANA SP05, and using SAPUI5 and Server Side Javascript, it's not all that different to ABAP. Syntax is different but developers pick that up fast. Rich Heilman and I started to feel that things were falling into place, we're creating reusable libraries in JavaSCript and we're doing things we did in ABAP, like creating message class processing like we did in ABAP. Once you've got utilities, it starts to feel really familiar. The workflow for the development process itself is very familiar.
What advice you would give to someone wanting to program in HANA?
Learn some SQL. Get an Advanced SQL book like O'Reilly's Learning SQL. Immerse yourself in that lower-level SQL. Particularly ABAP developers have ignored this for a number of years. Once you're better versed on SQL - just get out and use it. Use the HANA on the Cloud, - there are some really low cost options for getting access to HANA and educate yourself. Create something, build something, write SQL - or do something more advanced like creating Analytics Views, SQLScript and eventually HANA Application Services development. That's where traditional ABAP and Java programmers will feel most comfortable.
Please also see this link from Tobias Trapp for advice:
http://scn.sap.com/community/abap-for-hana/blog/2012/10/01/first-experience-with-abap-on-hana-evolut...
Where can I get support if I want to develop on the SAP HANA platform?
There is a HANA developer website, please see attached link.
What is the SAP Collaboration website for customers and developers?
The saphana website is the central place to share information specifically for HANA. In addition there is also a chapter on the SAP Developer Network for HANA.
http://www.saphana.com/welcome
Where can I find specific information for developing in ABAP on BW on HANA?
https://scn.sap.com/docs/DOC-59800
