HowTo use SUM to check source system prior to System Conversion

Update on Dec 17th 2020:
Please read the blog post on the new Prerequisite Check Extended instead:
https://blogs.sap.com/2020/12/17/sum-prerequisite-check-extended-prepare-for-the-real-conversion-run/

My impression is that the following feature of Software Update Manager (SUM) is not yet well known, although useful for the preparation of a System Conversion from SAP ERP to SAP S/4HANA.

Scenario

You plan for a System Conversion to SAP S/4HANA. Apart from the checks provided by other tools (like Maintenance Planner, SI checks, … see https://blogs.sap.com/2016/11/02/sap-s4hana-system-conversion-at-a-glance/), you want to have a quick check if your source system fulfills the SUM expectations.

Solution

You use SUM 2.0 as a check tool for a quick and non-invasive check. It allows to see if your source system fulfills the requirements on Source OS version, Source database version, and SPAM patch level. Note that the check option is only available with SUM 2.0, not with SUM 1.0 – only SUM 2.0 is used for a system conversion (see https://blogs.sap.com/2017/08/10/sum-in-the-family-way/).

Starting the check tool

You start the tool by adapting the URL to the SL UI from sumabap to chktool:

http://<host>:<port>/lmsl/chktool/DMS/doc/sluigui

Yes: once you register SUM for the SAP Host Agent (using ./SUMSTART confighostagent), the console will provide this URL as well, among the others. And the Conversion Guide explains the option and the URL as well – sure you read the guides, don’t you? See section 5.10 Checking the Prerequisites for the Conversion with SUM, in the conversion guide. https://help.sap.com/viewer/c4ebc2b5d928446180d9ad2667f11faa/1.0/en-US/6ce1b4a6de244606bdddcfb101e55f75.html

What is required

Apart from the usual stuff (source system is running, SUM was extracted and registered at SAP Host Agent), you need the stack.xml for the conversion. Otherwise, the SUM can’t be specific for the target product version.

What’s the outcome?

The roadmap is narrowed down to only one roadmap step called Prerequisite Check.

The check takes 10 to 15 minutes, and as a result, the CHECKS.TXT log provides the result.

See below for example entries in CHECKS.TXT.

#!------------------------------------------

#!--- Converted 7 entries from CHECKS.LOG

===  Type: info  ===  Source: CHKTOOL/READCVERS_DUMP_CHKTL  ===

INFO: Your system was determined as product type "ERP".

===  Type: info  ===  Source: CHKTOOL/CONFCHK_IMP_CHKTL  ===  Title: Operating System and Database Version Check  ===

INFO: A higher version of the operating system is not required. If you plan to upgrade the operating system, do not upgrade it while the S/4HANA conversion of the SAP system is running. If there are any exceptions, you can find them in the operating-system-specific SAP Notes for this S/4HANA conversion.

INFO: A higher version of the database system is not required. If you plan to
upgrade the database system, do not upgrade it while the S/4HANA conversion of the SAP system is running. If there are any exceptions, you can find them in the database-specific SAP Notes for this S/4HANA conversion.

*INFO:* Please note that this check may be preliminary since the tool has not
yet collected enough information about the target. So the requested version might eventually be higher.

Determined system information:

Type of local host operating system: Linux X86_64

Version of local host operating system: 2.11.3

Type of database: DB6

Version of database: 10.05.0007

Type of operating system on database host: Linux

===  Type: info  ===  Source: CHKTOOL/ADDON_INFO_CHKTL  ===

INFO: The upgrade strategy for the addon FI-CA is described in note 632429.

...

===  Type: info  ===  Source: CHKTOOL/REQ_DB02_CHKTL  ===  Title: DB-DDIC-Consistency Check  ===

Execute DB-DDIC-Consistency check in transaction db02 and check for missing 
objects.

===  Type: info  ===  Source: CHKTOOL/REQ_PRECHECK2_CHKTL  ===  Title: Pre-Checks  ===

Execute the pre-checks as described in *SAP Note 2399707* .

Boris Rubarth, SAP SE

Product Manager for SUM