Technical Articles

Vladimír Balko

Posted on September 11, 2020 2 minute read

Add My inbox app to the SCP CF Portal

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Updates:

21.3.2021: There is better way how to add My Inbox into SAP Launchpad so I wrote a new blog post. This procedure is mostly deprecated, but it can still be useful in some special cases.

Why?

Recently I implemented Workflow solution for the customer who started using SAP Cloud Platform. My Inbox application is standard and preferred way how to handle user tasks in the workflow and therefore I had to provide a way how will approvers (customers/users) access that application.

Options

At first, let me inform you that this blog post is about Portal site on Cloud Foundry. I don`t consider here other options like Portal on Neo platform or on premise My Inbox.

So considering Portal on Cloud Foundry there are at least three different ways how to access My Inbox.

Directly by the link through application router
Through portal page implemented inside MTAR application using the portal service as a resource
On the portal site of the Portal SaaS

First two options are more or less just for development and testing purposes or for special purposes. Normal use case usually delivered to the customer is the 3rd option, where you can work with roles and educated users from the customer company can maintain the solution by themselves.

Solution

So how to add My inbox application to the Portal service?

The trick is to create destination which will route all the communication to you app router (deployed as a MTA application), which has prepared routing for the SCP workflow.

<<<link to blog describing creating that app router >>>

Then create tile using that destination.

On the first tab page – attributes you have to provide Title, Description and option whether to open app in place or in a new tab.

Although more important are data on the right side of the screen.

There you have to choose system (or destination) where the application is stored. Choose that destination you have created a moment ago.

Then choose type of link to SAPUI5 and provide component name of application.

My Inbox has component name

cross.fnd.fiori.inbox

On the navigation tab fill semantic object

WorkflowTask

and Action

DisplayMyInbox

Here is also the important detail. By default, My Inbox application call service TASKPROCESSING. In our SCP scenario, no such service is present. Therefore it is necessary to reroute that call to the service /bpmworkflowruntime/v1/tcm/ which provides data instead.

So add parameter to the navigation configuration

Name: tcmURL 
Default Value: /bpmworkflowruntime/v1/tcm/

Also don`t forget to check the option for additional parameters.

I also wrote blog post which describes that problem in more detail. You can find it here.

The end

Now you know which options are available for accessing My Inbox application, how to add that application to the Portal site on the cloud foundry platform and also how to solve problem with TASKPROCESSING service call.

You can off course use generalized version of that process to add any other SAPUI5 application to the portal – all you need is just destination, component name and semantic data. And sometimes some special bit of information like that tcmURL parameter.

Disclaimer:

You can find this blog post also on my personal blog following the link: https://vbalko.blogspot.com/2020/09/add-my-inbox-app-to-scp-cf-portal.html

All pictures used in that blog post are taken by myself.

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23 Comments

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deepika monga

October 6, 2020 at 7:57 am

Hi ,

Your blo g is really helpful. Can you please provide me link to blog describing creating that app router

Regards,

Deepika Monga
- Like(0)
- Vladimír Balko Post author
  
  October 6, 2020 at 8:44 am
  
  Hello deepika monga,
  
  not exactly blog dedicated to creating just app router but you can find all necessary info there.
  
  You just need to create and deploy approuter and add workflow service as a dependency there. Then use that approuter in destination.
  
  I hope it will help you. But I should probably create small blog post just to cover that topic.
  - Like(0)
  - deepika monga
    
    October 7, 2020 at 11:07 am
    
    Sure Thanx. It would be great if you can create the blog post for the same. Will be really helpful
    Like(0)
Kaavya Nagarajan

November 19, 2020 at 3:35 am

Hi Vladimír Balko ,

Very useful information! Would you know whether the 'My Inbox' tile can have multiple sources ?

One for the SCP CP workflow services and one for S/4 backend work items.

Thanks.
- Like(0)
- Vladimír Balko Post author
  
  November 19, 2020 at 7:57 am
  
  Hello Kaavya Nagarajan,
  
  For federating content from different sources - eg. S4 backend systems - there is planned product called SAP One Inbox. But it is kind of mystery product - I cannot find roadmap for it, neither any detail information.
  
  According to info from Christian Loos in that discussion, it is planned on Q4/2020 - in fact right now. But nothing can be found about it - maybe Christian Loos himself can provide us more info about the current status.
  - Like(0)
  - Kaavya Nagarajan
    
    November 19, 2020 at 8:26 am
    
    Thanks for responding Vladimír Balko .
    
    Yes, I've been trying to find information about SAP One Inbox as well. But since I'm unable to find any I'm trying to find alternatives in the mean time.
    
    If Christian Loos can point me in the right direction then that'd be great!
    Like(0)
    - Christian Loos
      
      November 19, 2020 at 11:11 am
      
      Yes, we are indeed working on a central workflow inbox to bring together tasks from multiple sources.
      
      See the respective TechEd session from last year: https://events.sap.com/teched/en/session/48432
      
      However, it is a quite complex effort and taking longer than expected. Therefore also the release plan has changed and there won’t be a release this year.
      
      Like(0)
      - Daniel Weicht
        
        March 22, 2021 at 10:05 am
        
        Hello Christian,
        
        Are there any updates regarding the release date of SAP Central Inbox/One Inbox?
        
        Thank you and BR
        
        Daniel
        
        Like(0)
Alessandro Valfrè

February 18, 2021 at 12:12 am

Hello,

We migrated from Neo to Cloud Foundry one custom app extended from my-inbox . From BAS the app is working fine after some correction, however is not working from portal service. we also applied the step indicated in the SAP note 2932895 .

Do you suggest some blogs?

Thanks
- Like(0)
Max Schnürle

February 20, 2021 at 9:53 am

Hi Vladimír Balko ,

thank you very much for posting this blog. I am wondering if it is always necessary to add a whole launchpad module to call the myInbox from portal entry site. isn't there another easier way? this approach does not work for me: https://developers.sap.com/group.cp-workflow-cf.html

I would be very grateful for an answer.
Best Regards
Max
- Like(0)
Raffaele Ungaro

February 26, 2021 at 10:38 am

Hi Vladimír Balko ,

we made the steps suggested by you. The app is working fine in the portal. We have just a problem on the scenario ID. Basically in the scenarioID on backend side we have a task.

However in the task definition the information is coming as TASK+WORKFLOWID+ NODE. For this reason the tile counter is showing different from zero. However in the app is showing zero item. We tried with the OSS note 2504045 but it's not working.

Thanks
- Like(0)
- Vladimír Balko Post author
  
  March 2, 2021 at 8:52 pm
  
  Sorry, but I cant understand what is problem. You want to make scenario specific My Inbox? Are you working on BTP Launchpad as a service?
  - Like(1)
  - Raffaele Ungaro
    
    March 2, 2021 at 10:10 pm
    
    Hi Vladimír Balko
    
    we are working on BTP portal service. In any case we solved the issue. Basically instead of to use the scenarioID as parameter for a specific task id it's necessary to use taskDefinitions.
    
    Thanks
    Like(1)
Santiago Cajal

March 3, 2021 at 2:17 pm

Hi,

Do you know if we can deploy de MyInbox app using the SAP Router? We are unable to get it to work.

Thanks,
- Like(0)
- Vladimír Balko Post author
  
  March 3, 2021 at 2:26 pm
  
  Sorry Santiago, I probably dont understand what do you want to achieve or what is the problem.
  
  You wrote that you want to deploy My Inbox using SAP router, but I cant think of the connection. SAP Router is component which allows you to connect to the on premise system and this blog is about My Inbox on cloud platform.
  
  Can you please specific more about what you need?
  
  Vlado
  - Like(0)
  - Santiago Cajal
    
    March 3, 2021 at 2:43 pm
    
    Hi Vladimir, thanks for you response.
    
    In this example you are deploying MyInbox using a standalone app router, am I right?
    
    In my case, I want to deploy it using the option "Managed by SAP Router", that BAStudio gives you when you create a new project from a template.
    
    Does this help you?
    
    Thanks!
    Like(0)
    - Vladimír Balko Post author
      
      March 3, 2021 at 4:24 pm
      
      Hi Santiago,
      
      in case, that you want to add My Inbox from SaaS approuter, you can use one from Workflow Management service as described here
      
      If you want to access My Inbox defined in launchpad defined as a module in MTAR, then you have to acces that resources through serverless approuter - as described in this blog post by Marius Obert. Specifically chapter Make your web apps “serverless”
      
      Like(0)
      - Santiago Cajal
        
        March 3, 2021 at 5:44 pm
        
        Wow, the SaaS approuter worked perfectly. But i've got another question, how can I specify in that standard app the odata service I need to consume (in this case, TASKPROCESSING), or a destination pointing to my service?
        
        I mean, how can I redirect the tcmUrl parameter to a destination defined in my subaccount? Is that possible?
        
        Thanks!
        
        Like(0)
      - Vladimír Balko Post author
        
        March 4, 2021 at 8:05 am
        
        And why do you need this? My Inbox from Worfkflow Management is configured to make requests to taskprocessing by default. You dont need to define your own tcmUrl parameter.
        
        Like(0)
      - Santiago Cajal
        
        March 4, 2021 at 2:12 pm
        
        Actually I need this app connected to a S4/HANA backend, that has that service exposed through SCC. I mean, when i deploy the standard app, it gives errors regarding the tcmurl parameter because it doesn't find any endpoint of taskprocessing.
        
        Like(0)
      - Santiago Cajal
        
        March 9, 2021 at 5:48 pm
        
        Hi Vladimir, I could setup this correctly. Do you know if I can activate the Approve Purchase Contracts app in the same way I did with MyInbox? Thanks!
        
        Like(0)
      - Vladimír Balko Post author
        
        March 21, 2021 at 12:13 am
        
        Sorry Santiago Cajal ,
        
        but I doubt, that it is possible in BTP Launchpad. At least in a simple way.
        
        Approve PO extension to My Inbox on premise are standard application, which is delivered by SAP in a on premise component and therefore it was easy to just activate it and it was ready to use.
        
        But right now you are on BTP - so on cloud - different environment.
        
        What came to my mind is to federate My Inbox 2.0 from backend system if you have S4 on premise
        
        Or the hard way - reimplement that functionality by yourself and use it in cloud.
        
        Like(0)
      - Santiago Cajal
        
        March 22, 2021 at 11:27 am
        
        Hi Vladimir,
        
        I finally exported the app from a Neo environment and imported it in CF as a MTA application.
        
        Thanks for your help.
        
        Like(0)