Application Enhancement Tool Study

What is AET?

 

1. A comprehensive tool that helps in modifying till the database level changes without any coding effort required. In SAP CRM 7.0, a new WEB UI based development tool has been introduced by SAP called the Application Enhancement Tool (AET) for creation of fields for
   business objects. This tool is integrated with the UI Configuration Tool. It is an enhanced version of the older EEWB (Easy Enhancement Workbench) tool. It also supports Mobile, BI, Advanced Search, Search Result List, Drop Downs and F4 helps to be incorporated with the field from the UI itself.
2. AET has many advantages over EEWB. AET is very easy to use and not much technical knowledge is required to create fields using AET as compared to EEWB. AET is also considered less risky as compared to EEWB as deletion of the extension fields is very easy. In AET a new separate append is created for each of the new field created. So it is more flexible as compared to EEWB.
3. The modifications can be done using Web UI.

Things that
can be done using Web UI AET:-

  

1. Create custom fields in specific tables
   defined as a Business Object
2. Create tables
3. Modify existing fields in the table
4. Enhance views

  

Basic settings

  

1. Go to AXTSYS t code
2. Enter a package name. Preferably a test
   package to start off with the changes
3. Then enter a Namespace preferably Z.
   This will enable the transfer through B Docs.
4. Then select a Generation Prefix
   probably ‘A’.
5. Save the settings.

  Create a custom field through AET

  

Goto a Role wherein you can personalize setting to enable config mode to access AET.

  

Click on Personalize Settings.

Then you get the below page

After saving select any one account of any customer. You can see an option on the Top Right which says Configure Page.

Now, in order to create new fields, on the main page click on Configurable Areas

Now select the area where you want to add the field.

You would be directed to the above page.

Display enhancements can be used to display the current enhancements.

After clicking on Display enhancements, an object window will pop-up.

Click on Create Field as shown below.

Next
a pop-up opens up showing different objects. Select one object for which you would be adding the fields. Here I’m adding a custom flag to BUT000 table in CRM. So I’m selecting Account.

Another
window opens up where you need to enter the package name and the table name is
automatically populated.

After selecting a package, another window pops up where you need to enter the field label, field type and Length as mandatory and check table, search help as optional.

After saving the details, the field is shown in the list of other fields.

  

Then click on Save and Generate.

Then it asks for an Access Key for creation of the field.

After entering the key the field is created. Now if I check in the BUT000 table the field can be seen.

Hence custom fields can be created in this way using AET without any code knowledge.

Modifying the available fields

The current fields that you can see on the screen can be edited using the Show Field Properties and Show Technical Properties .

Once you click the Field properties the properties pertaining to that field open up wherein you can edit these fields (Make them hidden, mandatory, grayed out, change the label, change the width, etc.)

So these can be done to the available fields.

Create New Table

   

Even new tables can be created by clicking on New option Beside Tables. They will be created as a part of any of the central tables present.(eg BUT000)

But a new component needs to be created in AXTSYS and then that component should be visible as table enhancements.

         

Displaying Enhancements

Display enhancements can be used to display the current enhancements. After clicking on Display enhancements, an object window will pop-up.

The current enhancement can be displayed.

Select an existing enhancement and the details can be seen.

Enable Expert Mode helps to change the properties of the field along with inserting values and also changing the field label.

Thus different properties of the field are to be set automatically using data element definition in data dictionary.

Checking Assignment Blocks

 

You would be shown the list of available assignment blocks that already are present and the on the other side the list of displayed assignment blocks that are not added. You can select and add any of the blocks from left to right.

All the displayed assignment blocks which are in Direct state (Addresses) and Lazy(Address Types) can be seen. But the hidden ones cannot be seen as shown above.