Component Based Test Automation (CBTA) in SAP Solution Manager 7.1

[sonalkumar]

After receiving lot of requests seeking information around Component Based Test Automation (CBTA), I had decided to write a blog post series. This is the first one!

CBTA is a test automation tool present in SAP Solution Manager (SAP SolMan), and the usage right is available for all enterprise support customers. The tool helps in creation of modular test cases which are made of components. The user can record a transaction or a SAP web application as a normal business user, subsequently, CBTA would create a modular test in SAP Solution Manager.

So, what’s big deal? – The CBTA generated tests are made of default and screen components. The default components typically signify user actions e.g. pressing of enter key, navigation to menu item, etc while the screen components represent a screen or sub-screen which does the input for application under test. The screen components are easier to repair or recreate if the application under test changes, which leads to much easier maintenance.

Many default components are pre-shipped by SAP, and it’s available in SAP Solution Manager, while the screen components are created automatically, when a particular screen is accessed while doing the recording. It’s also interesting to note that the screen components are created by accessing the DDIC from the System Under Test, and also the input fields are automatically parameterized. The process of the screen component creation is called Inspection.

The CBTA generated tests would have the following:

1. The script is made of components e.g. default and screen components
2. Screen components are generated automatically by reading information from DDIC of System Under Test
3. The data entered at the time of recording an application, is captured as a default data

The CBTA generated test scripts can be seen in an environment called Test Composition Environment (TCE). TCE provides powerful environment not only to trigger test script creation, but makes edit of the test script easier in the following manner:

1. New default or screen components can be easily inserted
2. Sequence of the components can changed easily
3. Screen component can generated
4. Usage of parameters can be changed
5. Test Data Container assignment, etc.

CBTA was launched in 2012 in SAP SolMan 7.1 SP07, and it was supporting following UI technologies:

1. SAP GUI
2. CRM Web Client (Sales, Service and Marketing)

With SAP SolMan 7.1 SP10, CBTA started supporting automation of the following UI technologies over and above the ones already mentioned before:

1. WebDynPro ABAP (WD-ABAP)
2. WebDynPro JAVA (WD-JAVA)
3. SAP NetWeaver Portal (SAP NW Portal)
4. SAP GUI for HTML
5. Business Server Pages (HTML B controls)

With SAP SolMan 7.1 SP12, CBTA also started supporting automation of SAP UI5.  CBTA generated test for SAP UI 5 application is currently using only default components.

The above mentioned information can be simply put in the following table:

The component used by CBTA has following parameters which are classified in the following:

1. Import parameter
2. Export parameter

The parameters are also classified on the basis of usage:

1. Exposed: The parameter can accept value from TDC
2. Fixed: As the name suggests,the value does not change.
3. Local: The parameter is used with in the script to send or receive values
4. Blank: not used at all e.g. many default components has parameter name: Option, which is reserved for future use, and not currently used by CBTA.

Generally, a suitable Export parameter is exposed, so that end-to-end test can be created.

In the next post, I will explain several of ways of executing a single CBTA test and passing of multiple data iterations via a Test Data Container.

Other relevant Blogs:

1. How to use String function in CBTA

2. Test automation challenges

3. Date handling using CBTA