BI-JAVA, BEx Web and EP: the real connection …

Last Changed: 19th of January 2022

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A recap …

Since the NetWeaver Release 7.0 the SAP JAVA or J2EE stack is a component within the SAP BW Reporting Architecture, and was building the foundation for the BW Integrated Planning (BW-IP) as well. I also quite some time, creating documents and giving the main input for the BI-JAVA CTC template which is described for 7.0x here – SAP NetWeaver 7.0 – Setting up BEx Web – Short

Then, not really recognized by the Audience (not even me … 😉 an unspectacular SAP Note was released – Note 1562004 – Option: Issuing assertion tickets without logon tickets

Note 2575534 – SAP GUI HTML Control: Requesting security session in exchange to a provided re-entrance ticket
Note 2578923 – Collective corrections for ICF service /sap/public/myssocntl
Note 2593926 – Incompatible ICM / SAP Web Dispatcher Parameter Changes in 773 – Deprecated, Obsolete and Changed Parameters
Note 2643319 – Downport of function module ENABLE_REMOTE_SECURITY_SESSION
Note 2643542 – HTML Viewer: method ENABLE_REMOTE_SECURITY_SESSION
Note 2694092 – HTTP error 500 from myssocntl service
Note 2822156 – New implementation for Reentrance Tickets
Note 3030085 – Obsolete ENQ parameters in SAP Basis 755 & 756

which introduced and extension to the parameter login/create_sso2_ticket – See also the SAP Help Background for that Topic.

btw: the activation for SSL together with the SAPHostAgent can be found in this SFG Document – SAP First Guidance – SAP-NLS Solution with SAP IQ

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After understanding the impact, I have updated the Document – SAP NetWeaver BW Installation/Configuration (also on HANA) and didn’t give them much attention. The mayor difference in my active Implementation for SAP BW 7.3x and 7.40 and SAP Solution Manager 7.1 was: No SSO error at all, no connection problems between ABAP and JAVA stack anymore.
Archive – Fresh Install SAP BI-JAVA 7.3x

• Blog – SAP MacGyver – Installing SAP SolMan 7.2

Unfortunately countless SAP Notes, SAP online help and SAP tools still referring to the old value – login/create_sso2_ticket = 2 but since 7.40 the “correct” value is now a system default:
login/create_sso2_ticket = 3

btw: did you know, that the parameter is dynamically changeable in tx. RZ11? This allows you to switch the parameter during the usage of the BI-JAVA CTC template and continue the configuration successfully.

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Finding out the BI-JAVA system status

the easiest way is to call the SAP NetWeaver Administrator http://server.domain.ext:<5<nr>00>/nwa and proceed to the “System Information” page

Details of the Line “Version”:

Note 1961111- BW ABAP/JAVA SPS dependencies for different NetWeaver release and BI JAVA patch updating relevant
Note 1512355 – SAP NW 7.30/7.31/7.40 : Schedule for BI Java Patch Delivery

Corrections are available via the usage of the standalone LVM tool at this time.
Note 2212081 – Fixes for post copy java automation

Use the standalone LVM tool as described here – SAP First Guidance – BW Housekeeping and BW-PCA

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Running the BI-JAVA CTC template

Call the wizard directly with the following URL – http://server.domain.ext:<5<nr>00>/nwa/cfg-wizard

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Checking the result of the CTC Template execution

Now, that this hurdle is taken we have to check the BI-JAVA configuration with the BI diagnostic tool or directly in the System Landscape of the EP.

And the Result in the BI Diagnostic tool (version 0.428)
Note 805344 – Function of automatic generation of URLs in BW ABAP Web Runtime (3.X)
Note 937697 – Usage of SAP NetWeaver BI Diagnostics & Support Desk Tool
Note 1903392 – Error: First RFC call failed, config not loaded
Note 2113395 – Supportdesk Tool RED signal checking trouble shooting guide

To get to this final state, you have to additionally check/correct the following settings in the NetWeaver Administrator for evaluate_assertion_ticket and ticket according SAP Note 945055. (The Note is not updated since 2007)

[trustedsys1=HBW, 000]
[trusteddn1=CN=HBW, OU=SSL Server, O=SAP-AG, C=DE]
[trustediss1=EMAIL=xyz, CN=SAPNetCA, OU=SAPNet, O=SAP-AG, C=DE
[trustedsys2=HBW, 001]
[trusteddn2=CN=HBW, OU=SSL Server, O=SAP-AG, C=DE]
[trustediss2=EMAIL=xyz, CN=SAPNetCA, OU=SAPNet, O=SAP-AG, C=DE]

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Updating the Expired Certificates in BI-JAVA

When you encounter broken SSL trust because of expired trusted CA certificates in the SAP AS Java ‘TrustedCAs’ view of the keystore service, you have to update then accordingly. See the following SAP Notes for Details.
Note 1487183 – Update of issuer certificates in the TrustedCAs keystore
Note 1507996 – Update of Expired Trusted CA Certificates

As we are now using assertion tickets instead of logon tickets, the RFC connection from ABAP to JAVA looks a bit different:

crosscheck as well with the entry for the default Portal in the ABAP Backend (tx. SM30 => RSPOR_T_PORTAL)
Note 2164596 – BEx Web 7.x: Field “Default Font” missing in RSPOR_T_PORTAL table maintenance dialog
Note 2508778 – Executing BEx Broadcaster, nothing happens

Note 1981917 – BEx Web 7.3x: Support for multiple BI/BW master systems (ABAP)

Checking additional settings in the BI-JAVA configuration via the findings from this SAP Note (even it is SolMan related at this time). The following Note deals about the missing P4/P4S entries in the configuration
Note 2013578 – SMDAgent cannot connect to the SolMan using certificate based method – SolMan 7.10 SP11/SP12/SP13
Note 2012760 – Ports in Solution Manager for Diagnostics Agent registration
Note 1898685 – Connect the Diagnostics Agent to Solution Manager using SSL

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Activating the BEx Web templates

Checking additional settings in the BI-JAVA configuration via the findings from this SAP Note (even it is SolMan related at this time). The following Note deals about the missing P4/P4S entries in the configuration

Now you can call with tx. SE38
the Report RS_TEMPLATE_MAINTAIN_70 and choose as Template ID 0ANALYSIS_PATTERN

Note 1706282 – Error while loading Web template “0ANALYSIS_PATTERN” (return value “4”)
Note 1922024 – Error loading template 0

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Running BEx Web from RSRT

Ok. This only approves that the BEx Web Template can be called directly. But what happens when you call the web template or any query from tx. RSRT/RSRT2? you will encounter (as well I did) that this is a complete different story. Tx. RSRT has three different options to show the result of a query in a web based format, and we are interested in the “Java Web” based output

The recently added “WD Grid” output is nice to use together with the new BW-MT and BW-aDSO capabilities with SAP BW 7.40 on HANA.

But what we see is this:

Hmm? We checked the BI-JAVA connection and the standard BEx Web Template and still there is an error? Is there a problem with RSRT? Is the parameter wrong?

No. Recently (again not really recognized by the Audience again) another SAP Note was released which also has an impact to SAP EP 7.3x/7.40:
Note 2021994 – Malfunctioning of Portal due to omission of post parameters

In this context the following SAP Note is also important to consider:
Note 2151385 – connection with proxy
Note 2194634 – No theme displayed for Web Dynpro ABAP (in case of a fallback)

After applying the necessary Corrections to the SAP BI-JAVA EP Instance, also the tx. RSRT finally shows the correct output:

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If you encounter the following error:

“DATAPROVIDER” of type “QUERY_VIEW_DATA_PROVIDER” could not be generated

Cannot load query “MEDAL_FLAG_QUERY” (data provider “DP_1”: {2})

This is solved by the SAP Note (to apply in the ABAP Backend) –

Note 2153270 – Setup Selection Object with different handl id

If the following error (“classic RSBOLAP018“) occurs, this can have different reasons, e.g. outdated BI-JAVA SCA’s, user or connectivity problem.

“RSBOLAP018 java system error An unknown error occurred during the portal communication”

Some of them can directly be solved with the following SAP Notes below. Best easiest way is to re-run the BI-JAVA wizard again with enough Authorization rights in the ABAP Backend (e.g. maintain table RSPOR_T_PORTAL).

Note 1573365 – Sporadic communication error in BEx Web 7.X
Note 1899396 – Patch Level 0 for BI Java Installation – Detailed Information
Note 2002823 – User-Specific Broadcaster setting cancels with SSO error.
Note 2065418 – Errors in SupportDeskTool
Note 2014068 – Common issues with Web Application Designer
Note 2151258 – RSADMIN parameters which resolves the problems occurring in BEx Java web side
Note 2217051 – Error while executing function module: BICS_PROV_GET_RESULT_SET

Blog – Changes after Upgrade to SAP NetWeaver BW 7.3x

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Finally …

On this Journey finding the real connection, I found also some helpful KBA which I added to the existing SCN Document – Changes after Upgrade to SAP NetWeaver BW 7.3x in the 7.3x JAVA section. The good news here is: at the end the documents are very nice for background knowledge and where not needed almost at all, if you stick to the automated configuration.

So, of course the BI-JAVA – EP configuration is a hell of a beast, but you can tame it … 😉

I hope this brings a bit of a light into the successful BI-JAVA configuration

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Roland Kramer, SAP Platform Architect for Intelligent Data & Analytics
@RolandKramer

“I have no special talent, I am only passionately curious.”