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liz_cawley
Advisor
Advisor
  1. Part 1 | Introduction / High Level Overview
  2. Part 2 | End-to-End 12 implementation Steps [This blog]
  3. Part 3 | Simple hands-on exercise [Connecting to ES4 system]


Typically, in a customer project you can expect to see 2 primary roles for implementation and configuration: the System Admin and the App Consultant. These two roles cover end-to-end implementation steps and work together. In the following blog I will detail the steps in order of what needs to be done to connect your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days) to an on-premise back-end system.


High Level Overview of Steps Broken Down by Role [System Admin (S#) & App Consultant (A#)]

*Note: This blog focuses on connecting your SAP Fiori, extended demo account (free for 90 days) to an on-premise back-end system. While the steps would be very similar for a productive environment there are certain important steps not required here that would be required productively, for example authentication. If you're setting up your landscape productively with an SAP Fiori, cloud edition license then you should follow the official help documentation and on-boarding kit provided to you first and then you can use this blog as as secondary reference. Also note, that SAP is not providing standard support for connecting your demo account to a back-end system. Please leverage the community should you run into any issues or have additional questions.

App Consultant Task

The App Consultant works with the business to understand requirements and determine the best Fiori apps for implementation. For this blog series we're going to use the My Inbox and My Timesheet Fiori apps as examples. The Fiori Apps Library provides information about back-end versions and SPS that all Fiori apps need to be compatible. The App Consultant takes this information and compares it to the on-premise back-end system. If additional installations of software components are required they would compile this information and send it to the System Admin. In the Fiori Apps Library multiple apps can be selected and shown on one page, providing a holistic view of the implementation and configuration steps required by selecting all apps and choosing the Aggregate button. The information can then be easily shared by selecting the Share option, which will generate an email with a link to the aggregated filter.

Reference:


System Admin Tasks

The System Admin starts the project by first determining which landscape to use. As discussed in the previous blog, there are 3 landscape options available with SAP Fiori, cloud edition and we are going to focus on the second option, which is the cloud (hosting the UI) and an embedded back-end maintained by the customer on-premise.


*Note: Though some configuration steps will be relevant regardless which landscape option is selected this blog post will not cover details specific to option 1  (cloud + Hub) or option 3 (Cloud + ERP).

*HCP ODP is not a full replacement for a Gateway hub installation. It provides the required functionality for use with Fiori apps. Check SAP Note 1830712 for details on restrictions. HCP ODP is now included as a service in your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days), if you're interested in testing this option please refer to this blog How to Consume SAP HANA Cloud Platform, OData Provisioning Services

The system admin needs to ensure the HCP account is in place. For the purposes of this blog, we are focusing on the SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days) so if you haven't done so already you can sign up for an account here.

*Note: If you sign up for a license with SAP Fiori, cloud edition an SAP HCP account fully provisioned with the required SAP Fiori, cloud edition components will be provided to you.


The system admin will then add the app consultants user ID as a member in the HCP Cockpit.

Reference:

SAP recommends using the SAP HANA Cloud Connector as the secure tunnel between HCP and your on-premise system [HCC Download | Installation Guide] . Initial Configuration in HCC is to create a handshake with HCP that attempts to establish a secure connection to the server hosting your on demand Fiori apps [SAP Help HCC Configuration Steps ].

*Note: When you login to HCC for the first time write down the password you choose. There is no forgot password option and you may have to uninstall and reinstall the cloud connector if you forget your password.

Reference:


*Note: If you have an HCP trial account for developers with SAP make sure you are entering the HCP account for your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days)! These are two separate trials and Fiori apps are not included in the HCP trial account for developers. To be sure, you can login to your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days) > Manage Site from your name drop down > Useful Links > SAP HANA Cockpit.

Next, you need to define a destination in HCP. This destination will be used for the outbound communication of your Fiori, cloud edition apps to a remote system. Login to your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account and access the HCP Cockpit > Choose Destinations from the left navigation pane > New Destination. Enter the system name, the URL of the virtual host and port you defined in the HANA Cloud Connector. Specify proxy type and authentication details > Enter relevant additional properties, for example WebIDE Usage if you intend to develop or customize Fiori apps > Save your entries.

Confirm the connection by selecting Connectivity from the left navigation pane.

The App Consultant has shared the aggregated Fiori Apps Library link from Step 1 with the System Admin. The System Admin will make sure to install all required back-end components and apply notes. Using the apps in our example, we can see that My Timesheet requires software component GBX01HR 600 and there are no additional components needed for My Inbox. The System Admin should use Solution Manager to install the components.

Additionally, sometimes components require SAP notes to be installed. Required notes are detailed in the Fiori Apps Library however, you should also search SAP Notes in http://support.sap.com/notes > enter search term and Restrictions > apply relevant notes.

Reference:

SAP Fiori uses OData as protocol for back-end communication. OData is a RESTful protocol leveraging HTTP GET/POST/PUT methods. The OData services are provided by the Gateway server. It is imperative that anyone implementing/configuring SAP Fiori understand OData services and how to troubleshoot.


To find the OData Service name open the Aggregated Configuration Requirements section in the Fiori Apps Library > Scroll down to the OData Services section > Note the OData service(s) and version(s) you'll need.

The OData services need to be registered in the Gateway system

  • Transaction: /IWFND/MAINT_SERVICE
  • Choose Get Services or filter for the specific service > highlight row > Add Selected Services
  • On the Activate and Maintain Services page confirm your services have been added to the list of services

  • Test: Select one of the OData services > choose SAP Gateway Client > Execute > Check the response & Test one of the collections

SAP provides back-end authorization roles for OData services. The System Admin needs to assign each specific role to users

  1. Find role information: Fiori Apps Library > Aggregated Configuration Information > Back-End Authorization Roles (PFCG)
  2. Access SAP GUI: Transaction: PFCG > Enter role name > Single Role
    *Note: For My Inbox /IWPGW/TASKPROCESING is an authorization template and not a role, for the apps in this blog we only need to assign a role to My Timesheet
  3. Assign user to role: User tab > enter User ID > Save


App Consultant Tasks

To save time troubleshooting later, the App Consultant will test the back-end scenarios to ensure you have data. Confirming data at this step can provide you ~90% certainty that if you encounter issues later on that the problem is probably with the system connection instead of an app specific problem.

  • For My Inbox check transaction SBWP to make sure there are workflows in your Inbox
  • For My Timesheet check transaction CAT2 to make sure there is data

SAP delivers the standard Fiori apps to your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days). If the standard Fiori apps cover your business requirements, you can skip this step. If the app needs to be extended, you can extend the app using SAP Web IDE.

*Note: an extension project is not copying the standard code. Your extended code and the standard code are merged at runtime and you get the added benefit of new functions and bug fixes from the standard code with updates.


Login to your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days) > choose My Inbox > gear icon > Develop Apps > Launch SAP Web IDE.

For detailed steps, refer to SAP Web IDE - Advanced


After you've completed your extensions you need to deploy the app to HCP by selecting the parent folder of the app in Web IDE > right-click > deploy > deploy to SAP HANA Cloud Platform.


Reference:

Some of the Fiori apps need a small set of configuration in the back-end. Reference the back-end configuration section in the Fiori Apps Library.


Reference:

Now that the app is deployed to HCP we can configure it in the Fiori Configuration Cockpit (FCC).

Note: If you're using the standard app delivered by SAP you have the option to configure a tile or use the one provided by SAP.

  • From your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days) launchpad choose the drop down next to your name > Manage Site to access FCC
  • Choose Apps (left side pane) > + sign (bottom of master pane) > browse apps icon (at the end of App Name field) > find the app you just deployed
  • All fields will be pre-populated for you, make any necessary changes > Navigation tab > Design your tile >Save

Reference:

By default all apps in your SAP Fiori, cloud edition extended demo account (free for 90 days), even ones you extend and deploy to HCP will be mapped to an SAP demo back-end system. However, since we configured our own on-premise system with the aforementioned steps we want to change the default connection to represent our system and not the default SAP one. Ask the System Admin to switch the back-end system:

  • Login to the HCP Cockpit
    • From FCC > Useful Links > SAP HANA Cockpit
    • From Web IDE > Tools > SAP HANA Cloud Platform Cockpit
  • If you're using an app out of the box from SAP, choose Subscriptions > crossfndfioriinbox or hcmmytimesheet from the application column > scroll down to the Required Destinations table > Edit > Select the drop down arrow in the Mapped Account column > choose your back-end destination > Save
  • If you extended an app, choose HTML5 Apps from the left pane > Select the app you deployed > scroll down to the Required Destinations table > Edit > Select the drop down arrow in the Mapped Account column > choose your back-end destination > Save

  • Return to your launchpad and choose refresh > navigate to the group you assigned the app to and see your back-end data

If you don't have an available back-end system of your own to test this scenario on read the next blog for details on how to use the SAP ES4 demo system.

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