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Author's profile photo Peter Spielvogel

Fiori Elements Floorplans for OData v4 – Coming Soon!

What is OData

OData (Open Data Protocol) is a REST-based protocol to query and update data based on existing standard web technologies like HTTP, XML and JSON. It is even sometimes referred to as “SQL for the Web” as it allows you to define complex queries on relational structures to easily access and traverse data in your SAP databases. SAP Fiori elements uses OData to create apps that follow several common floorplans.

In contrast to using plain RESTful APIs, OData provides metadata to describe the structures and datatypes you are accessing, and enriches the data itself with additional machine-readable metadata for best consumption through generic tools and frontend clients. This leaves the developer to focus on the business logic, rather than bothering with the details of the backend access.

The first OData version was published by Microsoft in 2007. But, the next version 2 became the first widely adopted mainstream release. It was followed by an almost unnoticed version 3 and then replaced by the latest version 4, which incorporated many improvements based on the learnings from version 2 and 3. It had a generally slow start and took some time to really take off, but, in contrast to version 2 (that was only a Microsoft Open Specification Promise, OSP), OData v4 is now an approved standard by OASIS and ISO and, as such, can be expected to gain much more traction in the professional developer community and business world.

OData v4 comes with a variety of benefits over version 2, among them:

  • Better condensed metadata, saving 10-60% data volume after compression
  • Better control of the required data by more sophisticated query, sorting and filter mechanisms, multi-level expands etc., and so avoiding unnecessary roundtrips and reducing number of calls and data volume to transfer
  • Adding advanced analytical capabilities to the set of possible queries
  • Allowing the client to easily access multiple services at the same time in order to tear down service barriers. Lazy loading of metadata will prevent unnecessary access of unneeded metadata
  • Improved data types to better fit the needs of business applications

Why it’s important for SAP

SAP uses OData as a standard remote protocol for new client applications, especially web browser-based UIs and native mobile apps, to access the highly structured data of the databases our customers typically use. Highly tailored OData services provide efficient access to the exact data an application needs for a given purpose.

Using OData v4 will allow us to improve the efficiency of business applications, both by reducing the amount of data that needs to be transferred in overall fewer calls, and by leveraging the new analytical capabilities. This will make applications respond faster and allow them to do more complex tasks with less programming.

SAP Fiori Elements

SAP Fiori elements uses OData to derive a complete application just from the semantic description of the service and from additional information added to the metadata and data of the service, so called annotations. In most cases, no additional frontend development will be required, resulting in a timeless software architecture that keeps all applications consistent across the board and automatically inherits the latest UX bells and whistles, as they become available. In cases where you need to incorporate special functionality not covered by the standard (yet), the Flexible Programming Model will give you the freedom to allow for that.

Today, you can already use SAP Fiori elements to create applications based on OData v2 services with a variety of typical SAP Fiori floorplans, such as List Report/Object Page, Analytical List Page or Overview Page. Later in 2020, we plan to release a first version of Fiori elements using the latest OData v4 protocol. It is planned to feature the List Report/Object Page floorplan so you can create applications on the basis of this widely-used standard pattern. The Flexible Programming Model will allow you to extend it to your specific needs where required.

OData Services

To expose your data via the OData protocol, you need to create an OData service that connects your client application to the database (or, in fact, any data source). While SAP leveraged OData v2 in the on-premise world, SAP Cloud technology is now preferred when moving forward with OData v4. For Java and Node.js developers, the Cloud Application Programming Model (CAP) is the natural choice to start with. If ABAP is your favorite direction of development, you can move to the Cloud using the ABAP Environment for SAP Cloud Platform, leveraging the RESTful ABAP Programming Model (RAP), planned to be available starting next year.

Beta program starting soon!

We plan to conduct a Guided Beta program for SAP Fiori elements floorplans for OData v4 starting Q3/2020. Please contact Peter Spielvogel to add your name to the notification list. Email your name and company using the standard firstname dot lastname at sap.com format.

Thanks to Hans-Juergen- Richstein and Marita Kruempelmann, for their contributions to this blog.

For the SAP UX Engineering team, Peter Spielvogel.

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      15 Comments
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      Author's profile photo Andrew Barnard
      Andrew Barnard

      Looking forward to it. Thanks for the update.

      Author's profile photo Paul Hardy
      Paul Hardy

      I am also looking forward to this.

      Ever since ODataV4 was created

      https://www.odata.org/blog/odata-v4-0-approved-as-a-new-oasis-standard/

      I have been wondering when we could use it inside SAP.

      It looks like this year or early next year that day will finally dawn.

      All we will need then in SAP world to round things off is ABAP SQL to be expanded to fully cover the 1992 SQL International Standard.

      Cheersy Cheers

      Paul

       

       

      Author's profile photo Jhodel Cailan
      Jhodel Cailan

      Hi Paul Hardy

      I have the same thinking about this becoming a reality, but I couldn't express it any better like the way you do! 😀

      Cheers!

      Jhodel

      Author's profile photo Venu Ravipati
      Venu Ravipati

      Good news. Looking forward to work with Fiori elements floor plans with OData V4 and CAPM.

      Thank you for sharing the details,

      - Venu

      Author's profile photo Vladislav Volodin
      Vladislav Volodin

      Hm… In October, 2020 this feature is not available.

      Home / SAPUI5: UI Development Toolkit for HTML5 / Essentials/Model View Controller (MVC) / Models / OData V4 Model

      Due to the limited feature scope of this version of the SAPUI5 OData V4 model, check that all required features are in place before developing applications … This also applies to SmartControls (sap.ui.comp) and Fiori Elements which do not support the SAPUI5 OData V4 model in general as well as to controls like TreeTable and AnalyticalTable which are not supported in conjunction with the SAPUI5 OData V4 model. The interface for applications has been changed for easier and more efficient use of the model.

      WebIDE doesn’t like it as well:

      But somehow this thing works, maybe with unexpected errors: Exercise 09 – Introducing an app at the UI layer

      ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

      Author's profile photo Peter Spielvogel
      Peter Spielvogel
      Blog Post Author

      Hi Vladislav,

      We are just about to finalize the release of the SAP Fiori elements floorplans for OData V4 and we will publish a blog shortly providing more details about what is supported in this initial version. It is planned to be part of SAPUI5 1.83.

      Regards,
      Peter

      Author's profile photo Jason Scott
      Jason Scott

      Hi Peter,

      This is great news. What I’m wondering is how the various cap samples seem to use fiori elements with odata v4 using the list report page from the sap.fe library already? Is this unreleased functionality that the cap samples/demos are using that we probably shouldn’t be using for production apps?

       

      Hopefully the OData v4 capabilities will make their way into the fiori-tools yeoman generator as well.

      Author's profile photo Peter Spielvogel
      Peter Spielvogel
      Blog Post Author

      Hi Jason,

      Sometimes, development teams inside SAP have access to functionality before we release products externally.

      We are working on extending how we use OData V4 capabilities.

      Regards,
      Peter

      Author's profile photo Jason Scott
      Jason Scott

      Thats interesting. So we should not be using these v4 FE methods with CAP then?

      Author's profile photo Peter Spielvogel
      Peter Spielvogel
      Blog Post Author

      SAP Fiori elements floorplans for OData V4  have not yet been released and hence should not be used for developing productive apps. You might have noticed that there is no documentation available yet. They were supposed to be release with SAPUI5 1.83, which unfortunately had to be skipped due to new legal regulations (see note 2979657). They are planned to be part of the next SAPUI5 version.
      SAP Fiori tools (and thus also the application generator) will then also support the new floorplans for OData V4

      Regards,
      Peter

      Author's profile photo Benjamin Krencker
      Benjamin Krencker

      Hi Peter

      What is the release date of SAPUI5 1.84 or is this release skipped as well?

      Regards,

      Ben

      Author's profile photo Peter Spielvogel
      Peter Spielvogel
      Blog Post Author

      Hi Ben,

      The best answer I can provide is that we plan to deliver this release by the end of 2020.

      Regards,
      Peter

      Author's profile photo Jason Scott
      Jason Scott

      Thanks Peter. That’s what we needed to know. Looking forward to the official v4 support. Thankyou!

      Author's profile photo Former Member
      Former Member

      Are the oData V4 Floorplan still coming for the WebIDE?

       

      I am using version 1.96

      Author's profile photo Jhodel Cailan
      Jhodel Cailan

      If you need support for OData V4 then you should consider moving to SAP BAS instead since SAP already stopped innovations in SAP WebIDE.