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SAP ABAP: Hands-On Test Projects with Business Scenarios

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Chapter 1: ERP and SAP Overview

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Chapter 3: ABAP Dictionary/Data Dictionary/DDIC
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CHAPTER2

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ABAPDictionary,datadictionary,dictionary,andDDICaresynonymous
terms.DDICacontractionofdatadictionarywillbeusedthroughout
thisbook.TheDDICisamultifacetedfacilitythatisasubstantialfeature
oftheABAPDevelopmentWorkbenchenvironment.

AnydevelopmentalactivityinvariablyusesDDICobjects.Thischapter

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andthenextonelistandidentifyDDICobjectsthatwillbecoveredin
subsequentchapters.Thischapteralsodescribesthemajorattributesof
theDDIC,introducestheDDICDataTypes,andteachesthereaderto

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createDomains,DataElements,andTransparentTablesthroughhands
onexercisesframedinasimplebusinessscenario.

NoteThewordobjectisusedinthisbookinitsnaturallanguage
meaningofthing.ObjectwillnotbeusedinthecontextofOOPunless
explicitlystated.

ABAPDictionary:InitialScreen
TonavigatetothescreenformaintainingandviewingDDICobjects

fromtheSAPEasyAccessscreen,enterthetransactioncodeSE11inthe
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commandfield.Alternatively,youcanalwaysnavigatefromtheSAP
EasyAccessmenutree.AscreenshotoftheABAPDictionary:Initial
ScreenisshowninFigure21.(ThetermABAPDictionaryisusedhereto
matchthewindowtitleinFigure21.Throughoutthisbook,theterm
DDICwillbeusedbydefault).

Figure21.ABAPDictionary:Initialscreen

AcompletelistofDDICobjectsfollows.Thenonstruckitemsinthelist
arecoveredinthischapterandthenextone.Thestruckoutitemsinthe
listwillbecoveredinsubsequentchaptersasdetailedbelow,afterthe
readerhasacquiredprerequisiteknowledge.

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ViewTableStructureDefinitionsoftheSAPDeliveredVBRKand
VBRPTables
YouwillbeusingtheVBRKandVBRPtablesfrequentlyinthehandson
programmingexercises,soletsviewthestructureofthesetable
definitionsasafirstexposuretotheDDICobjectdatabasetable.Toview
theVBRKstructuredefinitions,clickontheDatabaseTableradiobutton,
enterthetablenameVBRK,andclickonthe

Displaybuttonor

functionkeyF7.ThestructuredefinitionsoftheVBRKdatabasetableare
displayedasshowninFigure22.

Figure22.StructuredefinitionsoftheVBRKdatabasetable

TheVBRKtableconsistsof97fields.TheVBRPtableconsistsof190
fields.YoucanlocateafieldbyitsnamebyusingtheFindbutton.
FunctionalmoduletablesintheSAPenvironmenttypicallyconsistof
morethan100fields.
Thesetablesstoredataofcustomerbills.Asinglebillmightconsistof1or
nnumberofitems.Thebill(calledBillingDocumentinSAPparlance)
informationislocatedintwotables.Onetable,designatedtheheader
table,containstheheaderinformationofthebill,withonerowforeach
bill.Thesecondtable,designatedtheitemtable,containstheitem
informationofthebill,withasmanyrowsasthenumberofitemsineach
bill.
DDICAttributes
TheprimeattributesoftheDDICaredescribedinthefollowingsections.
Metadata
TheDDICcanbeviewedasmetadata(dataaboutdata)thatresidesinthe
SAPdatabasealongwiththemetadatamaintainedbythedatabase
(Figure23).

Figure23.ThetwodistinctsetsofmetadataintheSAPdatabase:
DatabasemetadataandDDICmetadata

StandardizationandUniformity
SAPECCERPVersion6.0hasmorethan70,000tablesinitsdatabase.
Initially,SAPR/2versionshadmanyfewertablesintheirdatabase
typicallyonlyafewthousand.Yetwheneverthenumberoftablesina
databaserunsintothousands,twoissuesneedtobeaddressedinthe
designandmaintenanceofthedatabase:standardizationand
uniformity.
Standardization:Whenadatabasehasthousandsoftables,afield
suchascustomercodemightoccurinmultipletables.Andinthis
manner,manymorefieldswouldbeoccurringinmultipletables.Any
fieldoccurringintwoormoretablesmusthaveidenticaltypeandlength
inallitstableoccurrences.Thisenforcementofstandardizationonfields
occurringinmultipletablesisimplementedthroughtheDDICobject
Domain,graphicallyrepresentedinFigure24.

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Figure24.Afieldoccurringintwotablesshouldhaveidentical
datatypeandlengthinboth

Uniformity:Thenameofafieldinatableisthetechnicalnameforit
usedbytechnicalpersonnelanddevelopers.Itisnotexpectedtomake
sensetoanenduser.Whenafieldappearsonascreen,however,itmust
carryafieldlabelthatwillmakesensetotheenduser.
Anexample:ThefieldnameofacustomercodeintheSAPdatabasetable
KNA1isKUNNR,whichwouldmeannothingtoendusers.Forauser
loggedinEnglish,thefieldKUNNRshouldappearonthescreenwitha
labelsuchasCustomerCodeandsimilarlyforuserswhoareloggedin
inotherlanguages.Whenagivenfieldappearsonmultiplescreens,care
mustbetakentoensurethatthelabelisuniformacrossscreensfora
givenloginlanguage.Theserequirementsareimplementedthroughthe
DDICobjectDataElement(Figure25).

Figure25.Fieldnamesshouldappearidenticallyacrossdifferent
screens

OpenSQLandtheDataDefinitionLanguage
SAPsupportsthefollowingdatabases,amongothers:Oracle,Microsoft
SQLServer,Informix,ADABAS,IBMDB/2,andSybaseASE.Inthe
ABAPprograms,SQLcommandsarecommonlywritteninSAPOpen
SQLratherthanintherespectivedatabasesSQLlanguages.As
mentionedintheClientCodePerspectivessectionofChapter1,Open
SQLenablesportability.OpenSQLusestheDDICasaninterfaceand
reference.ForOpenSQLtooperateonatable,atablestructure
definitionmustexistintheDDIC.Ifatableexistsinthedatabaseas
databasemetadatabutnodefinitionexistsintheDDICasDDIC
metadata,thetableisnonexistenttoOpenSQL.IntheABAP
Workbench,tabledefinitionsarenotcreatedusingtheSQLscriptofthe
respectivedatabase,suchasCREATETABLE.TheDDICprovidesan
interfacetocreateanddefinedatabasetables.WhenaDDICtable
structuredefinitionisactivatedforthefirsttime,theobjectscreatedin
theABAPWorkbenchenvironmentareactivatedsuchthatadatabase
tabledefinitionisautomaticallycreatedatthebackenddatabase,
resultingintwodefinitionsforthegiventableonerelatedtotheDDIC
andtheothertothebackenddatabasesownmetadata.Likewise,views
(includingdatabaseviewsandprojectionviews)donothavetobecreated
withSQLscriptbecauseinterfacesexistintheDDICenvironmentto
createthem.TheDDICalsohasinterfacetocreatesecondaryindexes.
Allthesetasksarehandledinatypicaldatabaseenvironmentsuchas
Oraclethroughthedatadefinitionlanguage(DDL).Inthiscontext,one
mightviewtheDDICasservingthefunctionoftheDDL.
DDICObjectReferencesinABAPPrograms
VariousobjectsintheDDICenvironmentcanbereferencedinABAP
programs.TheDDICiscalledtheglobalarea.TheobjectsintheDDIC
areglobaltoallABAPprograms.DatainABAPprogramscanbedeclared
byreferencetoDDICglobalobjects.ThedeclareddatainABAP
programsreferringtoDDICobjectsinherittheattributesoftheseDDIC
objects.DDICobjectsthatcanbereferencedinABAPprogramsto
declaredataare(1)tables,(2)views,(3)structures,(4)
table/view/structurefields,(5)tabletypes,(6)typegroups,and(7)data
elements.TheuseofDDICobjectstodeclaredatainABAPprogramswill
bedemonstratedinthecodingofABAPprogramsbeginninginChapter
4.
DataControlLanguage
IntheSAPenvironment,anentityandtransactiondataresidein
multipletables.Suppose,forinstance,thatcustomerinformationresides
in20tables.Ifauserisoperatingonacustomerbyinsertionorupdate,
therowscorrespondingtothiscustomerinallthe20tablesneedtobe
lockedtousersotherthantheonewhoinitiatedtheinsertorupdate
operation.Anydatabasesupportsonlylockingorunlockingattable
levelautomaticlockingorunlockingatanentitylevelwheredata
residesinmultipletablesisnotsupported.Toaccommodatethe
automaticlockingorunlockingofrowsinmultipletables,SAPoffersits
ownlockingorunlockingmechanismthroughtheDDICobject:Lock
Object.TheDDICtherebyservesasadatacontrollanguage(DCL).
SearchHelps/PopupSelectionLists
IntheSAPenvironmentpopuplistsareavailableatappropriatescreen

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fieldsfortheusertomakeaselectionfromthelistinsteadofmanually
enteringfielddata.ThesepopupselectionlistscanbecreatedasSearch
HelpobjectsintheDDIC.Otherwisethesepopupselectionlistswould
havetobeprovidedthroughprogramcode.Alsothepopupselectionlists
orSearchHelpscreatedintheDDICenvironmentcanbeusedonfields
ofmultiplescreens.TheDDICcircumventsthenecessityofwriting
programcodeandenablesthereusabilityofSearchHelpobjects(Figure
26).

Figure26.SearchHelppopuplist

DataTypesintheDDIC
ThepredefinedDDICdatatypesavailablearelistedinTable21.
Table21.DDICDataTypes

DataType

Description

Initial
Value

ACCP

Accountpostingperiod

ASCII

(YYYYMM,fixedlength6

zeroes

bytes)

CHAR

Characterstring,canstore1

Spaces

character/byteinnon
Unicodeand1character/two
bytesin16bit
Unicode(lengthcanvary1
255)

CLNT

CUKY

Clientcode(3digitnumberin

ASCII

3bytes)

zeroes

Currencycode/key,

Spaces

referencedbytypeCURR
fields(fixedlength5)

CURR

Currencyfield,internal

Binary

storage&outputsameastype

zeroes

DEC

DATS

DEC

FLTP

Datefield(YYYYMMDD,

ASCII

fixedlength8bytes)

zeroes

Numericfieldwithcomma,

Binary

decimal,andsigninoutput.

zeroes

Floatingpoint,maximum

Binary

accuracyupto16digits

zeroes

Exponentrange.From10
+307

308

to10

Fixedlengthof

8bytes

INT1

1byteinteger,unsigned

Binary

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INT2

number(value0255)

zeroes

2byteinteger,tobeused

Binary

onlyforlengthfieldbefore

zeroes

fieldsoftypesLCHR&
LRAW

INT4

4byteinteger,integer

Binary

numberwithsign.Canstore

zeroes

numbersbetween
2177483647to2177483648

LANG

Languagecode/key(1byte)

Spaces

LCHR

Longcharacterstring,

Cannotbe

requiresaprecedingINT2

set

typefield

LRAW

NUMC

Longbytestring,requiresa

Cannotbe

precedingINT2typefield

set

Characterstringwithonly

ASCII

digits09(lengthcanvary1

zeroesfor

255bytes)

length<
33.Length

Normallyshouldbeusedfor

>32,

codes(employeecodeetc.)

cannotbe
set

PREC

QUAN

PrecisionofaQUANtype

Binary

field

zeroes

Quantityfield,internal

Binary

storage&outputsameastype

zeroes

DEC

RAW

RAWSTRING

Uninterpretedsequenceof

Cannotbe

bytes

set

ByteStringofVariable

N/A

Length

SSTRING

ShortCharacterStringof

N/A

VariableLength

STRING

CharacterStringofVariable

N/A

Length

TIMS

VARC

Timefield(HHMMSS),

ASCII

(Fixedlengthof6bytes)

zeroes

Longcharacterstring,not

N/A

supportedfromRel.3.0
onwards

UNIT

Unitkeyreferencedby

Spaces

QUANfields(length3)

AlltheDataTypeslistedinTable21withthedescriptionsareself
explanatory.DataTypesDEC,CURR,andQUANarefurtherelaborated

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uponbelow.
TheInitialValuecolumnindicateswhatisstored,ifnovalueisassigned
toafield.
DataTypeDEC
Twodecimaldigitsarestoredinonebyte.(Likemaximum99ina
byte)
Halfabyteisreservedforstorageofsign.
Amaximumof31decimaldigits(digitsbefore+afterdecimal)are
supported.
Thelengthcanvarybetween116bytes.
Thenumberofdigitsafterdecimalcanbespecified,bydefaultis0.
Amaximumof16digitsafterdecimalisallowed.
Decimal(.)isnotstoredseparately,butwillappearduringoutput.
Thousandseparators(i.e.,commasafterthousand,millionand
billion)willappearbydefaultduringoutputlikeforothernumeric
types(i.e.,CURR,FLTP,INT4,andQUAN).Commasaremadeto
appearwithnumericDataTypestoenablethemtobediscerned
easily.Considerthenumber1000000visvis1,000,000with
million,thousandseparator,.Thelatterisvisuallyeasierto
discern.
DataTypesCURR,QUAN
FieldswithDDICDataTypeCURRareusedtostorecurrencyamounts.
TheinternalstorageofDataTypeCURRisidenticaltoDataTypeDEC.
Thecurrencyamountsareincompleteinformation.Whethertheamount
orfigureisU.S.Dollars,Euros,GreatBritainPounds,etc.,istobe
includedtomaketheinformationcomplete.(Whatcurrency?)Inthe
DDICDataTypeCUKYthecurrencykeyorcodecanbestored.SoDDIC
DataTypesCURR,CUKYgoestogether.IfaDDICstructuredefinition
containsafieldofDataTypeCURR,thisfieldmustpointtothe
correspondingCUKYfield(calledreferencefieldinDDICenvironment).
HowDataTypesCURR,CUKYgotogetherissimplifiedbelow:
Amount(DataTypeCURR)10000Currency(DataTypeCUKY)
USD
InternalstorageofDDICDataTypeQUANisidenticaltoDataType
DEC.OnsimilarandparallellinesofDDICDataTypesCURR&CUKY,
theDDICDataTypesQUANandUNITwillexisttogether.Inventory
quantitiesarestoredinDataTypeQUANfields.Thequantitiesbeing
incompleteinformation,whetherthequantitiesarenumbers,dozens,
kilograms,tons,etc.(unitofmeasureorUOMforshort)willhavetobe
incorporatedtomaketheinformationcomplete.Theunitofmeasure
information(unitcode)iscontainedinafieldDataTypeUNIT.IfaDDIC
structuredefinitioncontainsDataTypeQUAN,thisfieldmustpointtothe
correspondingUNITfield.Asimplificationisgivenbelow:
Quantity(DataTypeQUAN)100UOM(DataTypeUNIT)TON
ToseeanexampleoftheCURR,CUKY&QUAN,UNITfieldsinthe
DDICenvironment,youcannavigatetothetablestructuresofSAP
functionalmoduletablesVBRK(billingdocumentheader)andVBRP.
(Billingdocumentitems).
VBRKTable
TheheadertableVBRKcontainsthedocumentsheaderinformation
(documentNo.,documentdate,documenttype,customercode,NetValue
inDocumentCurrency(DataTypeCURRfield),documentcurrency
(DataTypeCUKYfield),etc.Inthetablestructure,selectthetab
Currency/QuantityFields.
InthetableVBRK,theNetValueinDocumentCurrencyfield(DataType
CURR)isNETWR.ThecolumnsReferenceTable,ReferenceFieldof
thisfieldcontainVBRKandWAERKrespectively.Itmeansthatthe
correspondingCUKYfieldisinthetableVBRKandthefieldnameis
WAERK.ThetablenamewhereDDICDataTypeCUKYfieldislocatedis
containedinReferenceTable,andfieldnameiscontainedinReference
Field.
VBRPTable
TheitemtableVBRPcontainsthedocumentsitemsinformation
(materialcode,salequantity(DataTypeQUAN),salesunitofmeasure
(DataTypeUNIT),amountfortheitem(DataTypeCURRfield),etc.
InthetableVBRP,theitemamountfield(DataTypeCURR)isNETWR
thisistheamountforeachitem,whereasthefieldNETWRinthetable
VBRKisthetotalamountforallitemsinthedocument.Thecolumns
ReferenceTable,ReferenceFieldofthisfieldcontainVBRKand
WAERKrespectively.ItmeansthattheCUKYfieldforDataTypeCURR
fieldNETWR(intableVBRP)isinthetableVBRKandthefieldnameis
WAERK.

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InthetableVBRP,thesalesquantityfieldisFKIMG(DataTypeQUAN).
ThecolumnsReferenceTable,ReferenceFieldofthisfieldcontain
VBRPandVRKMErespectively.ItmeansthatthecorrespondingUNIT
fieldisinthetableVBRPandthefieldnameisVRKME.
ThecoverageeachoftheDDICobjects:domain,dataelement,and
transparenttablefollow.
DDICObjectDomain
Domainsareforenforcementofstandardizationonfieldsoccurringin
multipletables.Theoretically,anytwoormoretablefieldshavingsame
DataTypeandlengthcanshareorbeassignedthesamedomain.(Ensure
fieldsoccurringinmultipletableshavingsameDataType&length).
VieworExamineanSAPDeliveredDomain
ThepredefineddomainselectedforviewingisECN_COLOR.Onthe
SE11screen,clicktheDomainradiobutton,enterthename
ECN_COLORandclickthedisplaybutton.
ThescreenshotfordomainwiththethreetabsProperties,Definition,
ValueRangeisshown:

Figure27.DomaintabProperties

Therearehundredsofthousandsofpredefineddomainsbeingusedin
SAPdeliveredtablesintheDDIC.
TheShortDescriptionistobemandatorilyenteredforanyobjectcreated
inABAPWorkbench.ThePropertiestabfieldsarecontrolledand
insertedbythesystemexceptforthePackage,whichisassignedbythe
usercreatingtheobject.

Figure28.DomaintabDefinition

UndertheDefinitiontab,intheFormatarea,thefollowingare
assigned:
1. DataType:DDICDataType,(refertoTable21underDDICData
Types)
2. No.Characters:Length(lengthisinpositions/digitsandnotin
bytes)
3. Numberofdecimals.(ApplicabletoDataTypesCURR,QUAN,
DEC,FLTP,only.ForDataTypeFLTPthenumberofdecimalsis
fixed:i.e.,16)
UndertheDefinitiontab,inOutputCharacteristicsarea,thefollowing
canbeassigned:
1. OutputLength:Isassignedbythesystem,itcanbemodifiedif
needed.
2. Convers.Routine:Canbespecified.TheConversionRoutineis
coveredinChapter7entitledModularization.Sign:Fornumeric
fieldsonly.(ApplicabletoDataTypes:CURR,DEC,FLTP,INT4,
QUAN)Bydefault,theseDataTypeswillnotsupportnegative
numbers.Thischeckboxistobeenabledforstoringnegative
numbers.
3. LowerCase:Bydefault,thereisnocasesensitivityforcharacter
storage.DataTypesCHAR,CUKY,LANG,LCHR,STRING,
SSTRINGandUNIT)Ifcasesensitivityisrequired,thischeckbox
istobeenabled.

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Figure29.DomaintabValueRange

IntheValueRangetab,underSinglevals,youcanentervalues(fixed
Values&Shorttext)asisshownfortheSAPprovideddomain
ECN_COLOR.Ideally,valuesshouldbeenteredherewhen(a)thereare
fewentries(lessthan32),and(b)thesevaluesdonotchangeorchange
veryinfrequently.
Theimplicationofenteringvalueshereisasfollows:whenthisdomainis
assignedtoadataelement,thisdataelementisassignedtoatablefield,
afieldappearingonascreenisreferringtothistablefieldautomatically,
andapopuplistfacilityisavailableforthisscreenfieldtotheuser.The
popuplistwilldisplaythevaluesenteredherewhenausermakesa
selection,theFixedValueselectedwillbeassignedtothescreenfield.
UndertheValueRangetab,inIntervals,youcanentervalidvaluesand
validrangesofvalues.Whenthisdomainisassignedtoadataelement,
thisdataelementisassignedtoatablefieldafieldappearingona
screenisreferringtothistablefield,thevalueswhichcanbeenteredfor
thefieldwillhavetobeintherangeofvaluesenteredhere.
DDICObjectDataElement
(Ensurefieldappearingonmultiplescreenshasthesamefieldlabel).
Dataelementsareforenforcementofuniformity,ensuringthatafield
occurringonmultiplescreenshasthesamelabel.
VieworExamineanSAPDeliveredDataElement
Youwillviewapredefineddataelement:ECN_COLOR.
OntheSE11screen,clicktheDatatyperadiobutton,enterthename
ECN_COLOR,andclickthedisplaybutton.
ThescreenshotfordataelementwiththefourtabsAttributes,DataType,
FurtherCharacteristics,andFieldlabelisshown:

Figure210.DataelementtabAttributes

ThisisthedisplayofSAPprovidedDataelementECN_COLOR.

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Figure211.DataelementtabDataType

IntheDataTypetab,thefollowingareassigned:
1. ThedefaultfirstmainradiobuttonisElementaryType.Underthis
mainradiobuttontherearetworadiobuttonoptions:
1. DomainAdomaincanbeassignedtodataelements.The
physicalcharacteristics,DataType,andlengthareinherited
fromtheassigneddomain.ThedomainECN_COLORhas
beenassignedtothedataelementECN_COLOR.Apopup
selectionlistisavailable.Onecanenterthepattern(ECN*in
thepresentcontext),andallthedomainsfittingthepattern
willbelistedforselection.
2. PredefinedTypeThisisjustlikeindomain.ADDICData
Typecanbeassignedhere(refertoTable21underDDIC
DataTypes).Thisisequivalenttoshortcircuitingthe
domain,notusingthedomainfacility,andassigningDDIC
DataTypetothedataelement.Thisoptionisrarelyused.

2. ThesecondmainradiobuttonisReferenceType.Underthisthere
aretworadiobuttonoptions:
1. NameofRefTypeAbuiltinclass,interfacecanbe
assignedhere
2. ReferencetoPredefinedTypeAgainaDDICDataTypecan
beassignedhere.(RefertoTable21underDDICData
Types.)

Figure212.DataelementtabFieldLabel

Fieldlabelsortextcanbemaintainedhereinmultiplelanguages.Four
typesoflabelscanbeentered:Short,Medium,Long,andHeading.
Thesetextswillappearaslabelswhenthetablefieldassociatedwiththis
dataelementappearsonscreen.Bydefaultalabelenteredinthefield
Mediumwillappearbutcanbeoverridden.Thelabelinthefield
Headingwillappearwhenthetablefieldassociatedwiththisdata
elementappearsinalistorreport.
InthisDataElementECN_COLOR,thesametextColorhasbeen
enteredinallthefourfields(i.e.,Short,Medium,Long,andHeading).
ThesamescreenloggedintheGermanlanguageDEisshownin
Figure213.

Figure213.DataelementtabFieldLabel[loggedinlanguage
DE]

InFigure213,alllabelsareappearinginGerman,demonstratingthe
multiplelanguagesupportofSAP.Thelabelinthekurz,mittal,lang,and
berschrift(GermanequivalentsofShort,Medium,Long,andHeading)
isFarbe,theGermanequivalentofColor.
DomainandDataElementRelationship
Anexample(demonstrativebutsomewhatcontrived)tobringoutthe
relationshipbetweendomainsanddataelements:Letitbeassumedthat
anenterprisewantstostandardizeinthepayrollapplicationtheamounts
relatedtoallowances.(Variousallowancespaidtoemployeessuchas
houseallowance,conveyanceallowance,etc.)Supposetheyfixthetype
andlengthofallowanceamountsasDDICDataTypeDECandlength5,
2.(Fivedigitsbeforedecimalsandtwodigitsafterdecimalsandatotal
lengthof7digitsor4bytes.)SoadomaincanbecreatedwithDDICData
TypeDECandlength5,2.Thissamedomaincanserveforhouse
allowance,conveyanceallowance,etc.Inthecontextofdataelements,
separatelabelsarerequiredsuchasHouseAllowance,Conveyance

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Allowance,etc.,forhouseallowanceandconveyanceallowance
respectively.Henceasmanydataelementsneedtobecreatedasthe
numberofallowances.Allthesedataelementswouldbeassignedthe
samedomaincreatedwithDDICDataTypeDEClength5,2.Soadomain
canbeassignedtooneormoredataelements.Therelationshipisshown
herediagrammatically:

Figure214.Domain,DataElementrelationship

DDICObjectTable
TherearethreetypesoftablessupportedintheDDICenvironment:the
transparenttable,thepooledtable,andtheclusteredtable.Forthe
present,ourdetailedcoverageisconfinedtothetransparenttables.The
pooledandclusteredtablesarementionedinpassing.
Forapooledtable,manyrandomtabledefinitionsintheDDICwillgoas
onedefinitioninthedatabasemetadata.Apoolconsistingofmany
pooledtableswillgoasonetabledefinitioninthedatabasemetadata.
Theclusteredtablesprincipleissimilartothatofpooledtable(many
tables)exceptthatthemanyclusteredtabledefinitionsresidingina
clusterarenotonarandombasis.Foralltheclusteredtablestoresidein
onecluster,theclusteredtablesmusthavepartoftheirprimarykey
field/sincommon.
Forthepooledandclusteredtables,thespecialmodeofstorageand
retrievaltechnologyisSAPsproprietytechnology.WithOpenSQL,
pooledandclusteredtablescanbeusedinthesamewayastransparent
tablesSELECT..,INSERT,UPDATE,DELETEwithsome
constraints.
Atablepoolortableclusterisusedexclusivelyforstoringinternal
controlinformation(screensequences,programparameters,temporary
data,andcontinuoustextssuchasdocumentation).All
business/commercialdataarestoredexclusivelyintransparenttables.
Foratransparenttable,foreverytabledefinitionintheDDIC,therewill
beexactlyonecorrespondingtabledefinitionintheinstalleddatabase
metadata.
TransparentTables
ThetablestructuresaredefinedorcreatedintheDDIC.WhenaDDIC
tablestructuredefinitionisactivatedforthefirsttime,atabledefinition
isautomaticallycreatedintherespectivedatabaseinstalledonthe
databaseserver(Oracle,MSSQLServeretal.).Therearetwodefinitions
ofanytableinaSAPdatabase:onecorrespondingtotheDDICandthe
othercorrespondingtotherespectiveinstalleddatabase.Theadditional
definitionofatableaccruesbenefitsandadvantages.Onebenefithas
alreadybeenmentioned:OpenSQLaffordingportabilityofABAP
programs.OpenSQLusesDDICasareferenceandinterface.Thetable
structuresdefinedinDDICofferextrafeaturessuchasCURRCUKY&
QUANUNITfieldscheck,tablebuffering,SearchHelpattachment,
deliveryclass,etc.Thestandardization,uniformity(domain&data
element)isalsoimplementedthroughtheDDICtablemetadata.Inthe
followingtext,transparenttableswillbereferredastables(transparent
isimplicit).
Domain,DataElement,andTableRelationship
Therelationshipofadomaindataelementhasbeenexplainedearlier.
Whentablefieldsarespecifiedduringatabledefinition,adataelement
istobeassignedtoeverytablefield.Inthisway,afieldoccurringin
multipletableswouldbeassignedthesamedataelement,thusensuring
thesamelabelforthefieldonmultiplescreens.Also,sinceadomainis
assignedtoadataelement,afieldoccurringinmultipletableswouldbe
assignedthesamedomainensuringDataTypeandlengthtobethe
same.TherelationshipisshownherediagrammaticallyinFigure215.

Figure215.Domain,DataElement,andTablerelationship

View,ExamineanSAPDeliveredTable
SAPdelivereddomainsanddataelementswereexaminedandviewed.
YouwillviewanSAPdeliveredtable:T005T.Itstoresthetextsof
differentcountries.ThetextsofthecountriesarestoredinalltheSAP

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supportednaturallanguages.
DisplayTablethetabs
OntheSE11screen,clicktheDatabasetableradiobutton,enterthename
T005T,andclickthedisplaybutton.Thescreenshotforatablewiththe
fivetabsAttributes,DeliveryandMaintenance,Fields,Entry
help/check,andCurrency/QuantityFieldareshowninFigures216and
217.

Figure216.TabletabAttributes

Figure217.TabletabDeliveryandMaintenance

IntheDeliveryandMaintenancetab,thefollowingareassigned:
1. DeliveryClass:Thiscontrolsthetransportoftabledataduring
installation,upgrade,clientcopy,andtransportationbetween
customersystems.Itisalsousedintheextendedtable
maintenance.
2. DataBrowser/TableViewMaint.:Threeoptionsareavailable:
1. Display/MaintenanceAllowedwithRestrictions:Whenthis
optionisoperative,newentries/rowscannotbecreatedin
thetable,existingentriescannotbeeditedordeleted
throughthetablemaintenancedialogormaintenanceview.
Thetablemaintenancedialogisautomaticallygenerated
whenthetableisactivated.
2. Display/MaintenanceAllowed:Whenthisoptionis
operative,newrowscanbecreatedthroughthetable
maintenancedialogormaintenanceview.Existingentries
canbeedited,viewed,anddeletedthroughthetable
maintenancedialogormaintenanceview.
3. Display/MaintenanceNotAllowed:Whenthisoptionis
operative,thetablemaintenancedialogisnotgenerated
whenthetableisactivated.Newentriescannotbecreated,
andexistingentriescannotbeviewed.

Inthistab,thetablestructurefieldscanbeentered.
1. Field:Fieldnamesstartwithanalphabetletternormallyandthe
restofthecharacterscanbealphanumericwithembedded
underscores(_),andthemaximumlengthofafieldnamecanbe16
characters.
2. CheckboxKey:Theprimarykeyfield/softhetablemusthavethis
checkboxenabled.Allthefieldsconstitutingtheprimarykeymust
occurinthetablestructureinthebeginningandinthesequence
required.
3. InitialValues:Findanelaborateexplanationwhenyoucreate
customtables.
4. Dataelement:Inthiscolumn,thedataelementtobeassignedto
thefieldistobeentered.Apopupselectionlistisavailable.One
canenterthepatternandallthedataelementsfittingthepattern
willbelistedfortheselection.Whenafieldisassignedadata
element,thecolumnsDataType,Length,Decimals,andShort
Descriptionareautomaticallyfilledfromtheselecteddata
element.
OnthetoprightsideofFigure218,underthetabsthereisabuttonwith
thelegendPredefinedType.Thisisatogglebutton.Whenitispressed
(thebuttonpressingchangesitslegendtoDataElement),youcanassign
directlytheDDICDataTypetoatablefieldinsteadofassigningadata

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element.Inthiscase,youareshortcircuitingthedataelementand
domain.Youarenotusingthefeaturesofthedomainanddataelement
however,thisisnotadvisable.

Figure218.TabletabFields

Figure219.TabletabEntryhelp/check

Allthecolumnsunderthistabareenteredandcontrolledbythesystem.
1. ForeignKeys(checkbox):Thischeckbox,wheninenabledstate,
indicatesthefieldtobeaforeignkeyorpartofforeignkey(fields
canbedeclaredasforeignkeyorpartofforeignkey).
2. Checktable:Ifthefieldisaforeignkeyorpartofforeignkey,then
thecheckorprimarytablenameisautomaticallyenteredbythe
systeminthiscolumn(i.e.,Checktable).Checktableandprimary
tablearesynonymous.YouwillusethetermChecktable.
3. Originoftheinputhelp:Thisreferstotheoriginofapopuplistfor
thisfieldwhenthisfieldisappearingonthescreen.Thiswillbe
coveredwithintheDDICtopicSearchHelpinthenextchapter.
4. SrchHelp:Thecolumnentrylikeallcolumnsunderthistabis
controlledbythesystemthenameofthesearchhelpifassigned
appearshere.ItwillbecoveredintheDDICtopicSearchHelpin
thenextchapter.
5. Defaults:Checkboxthatindicateswhetherthesetofvaluesofa
domainisrestrictedthroughentryoffixedvalues.
6. Domain:Thenameofthedomainderivedfromthedataelement
assignedtothefieldisenteredbythesystem.

Figure220.TabletabCurrency/QuantityFields

ReferenceTableandRef.field:Thistabwithitstwocolumnsisrelevant
forfieldsofDataTypeCURRandQUANonly.Thesecolumnsareina
disabledstateforfieldtypesotherthanCURRandQUAN.Asdescribedin
thischapter,thesetypesstorethecurrencyamountorquantitynumbers
respectively.
WheneverthereisafieldoftypeCURRinatablestructureorstructure
definition,thecolumnReferencetableforatypeCURRfieldwillhaveto
befilledupwiththenameofthetablestructureorstructurewherethe
typeCUKYfieldisoccurring.AndthecolumnRef.fieldwillhavetobe
filledwiththenameofthetypeCUKYfield.
Similarly,thecolumnReferencetableforatypeQUANfieldwillhaveto
befilledupwiththenameofthetablestructureorstructurewherethe
typeUNITfieldisoccurring.AndthecolumnRef.fieldwillhavetobe
filledwiththenameofthetypeUNITfield.
DisplayTableTechnicalSettings

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Thisispartofatabledefinition.Yougettothescreenbyclickingthe
applicationtoolbarbuttonTechnicalSettings.Thetechnicalsettings
screenlookslikeFigure221.

Figure221.TableTechnicalSettings

IntheLogicalstorageparametersareaofFigure221:
Dataclass:ThedataclasshasrelevanceonlyforORACLE
andINFORMIXdatabasesystems.Itdefinesthephysical
areaofdatabaseinwhichthetableislogicallystored.
Typicalvaluestobeassignedwhenyouarecreatingatable
inY/ZnamespaceareUSER,USER1,USER6,andUSER7.
SizeCategory:Theassignedsizecategorywilldeterminethe
initialprobablespacerequirementforatableinthe
database.
Bufferingarea:Buffering(selectivediskdataismaintainedin
RAM)isavailablewithOpenSQLtoimproveperformance.An
idealtableforbufferingwouldbesmallsized(afewKB),very
frequentlyaccessed,andrarelyupdated.Notalldatabasebrands
deliverperformanceimprovementwithbuffering.
TherearethreeoptionsunderBuffering:(1)Bufferingnotallowed,
specifyingnobufferingforthetable.(2)Bufferingallowedbutswitched
offthebufferingisswitchedoffbecausetheparticulardatabaseinstalled
doesnotdeliverperformancewithbuffering.(3)Bufferingswitchedon
thebufferingisonbecausetheparticulardatabaseinstalleddelivers
performancewithbuffering.
Bufferingtypearea:Therearethreeoptionsinbufferingtype:
Singlerecordbuff,GenericAreaBuffered,andFullyBuffered.
WithSinglerecordbuff.option,whenarowisfetchedfromadatabase
table,itisretainedinRAM(bufferedarea).Iftheimmediatenext
fetchingofarowfromthesametablereferstothesamerowfetched
earlier,thennodiskoperationtakesplace,anddataistransferredfrom
thebufferedareaofRAM.
GenericAreaBuffered:Partialcontentsofthetableareloadedintothe
buffer.Thebasisonwhichpartialdataisselectedtobeloadedintothe
bufferisexplained.Thedataselectionwillbeelaboratedinthecontextof
anSAPprovidedtableT005T.Thistablestoresallthetexts/namesofall
thecountriesforalltheclientsinstalledandinallthenaturallanguages
installed.ThetablefieldsareasshowninFigure222.

Figure222.FieldsinTableT005T

Thetableisclientdependent.Theprimarykeyinthetableisconsisting
ofthefirstthreefields(MANDT,SPRAS,andLAND1markedasPK).
Whenthisbufferingoptionisoptedfor,youneedtoenteranumberin
thefieldNo.ofkeyfields.Thisnumbercanhaveaminimumvalueof1
andamaximumvalueequaltothenumberoffieldsconstitutingthe
primarykey(inthepresentcontext,3).Ifthisnumberis1,itmeansthe
firstprimarykeyfieldifthenumberis2,itmeansthefirst,second
primarykeyfieldsandsoon.Thenumberindicatestothesystem,for
oneuniquevalueofhowmanyprimarykeyfields,thebufferingdata
shouldbeloaded.Thenumberexistinginthisfieldforthechosentable
(T005T)is2(Figure221).Inthiscontext,itmeanstoloadthebufferwith
aspecifiedvalueoffieldMANDT(firstfield)andaspecifiedvalueoffield
SPRAS(secondfield).Ifyouareloggedintoclient800andlanguageE,

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thebufferwillbeloadedwithrowsbelongingtoclient800,andlanguage
E,thoughthetableiscontainingrowsbelongingtoclients000,001(one
oftheseorbothdependingontheinstallationoption),810,811,812,and
languagecodesA,B,C,D,andsoon.Thetotalnumberofrowsinthis
table(forallclientcodes,alllanguagecodes)onoursystemis22,608.
Thenumberofrowsinthistableforclient=800andlanguagecode=E
onoursystemis248.Allthisisbasedontheassumptionofworkingona
typicalIDESserver.
WiththeFullyBufferedoption,alltherowsofthetable(fulltable)are
fetchedintothebufferedarea.Allsubsequentretrievalofrow/swillbe
fromthebufferedarea.
Thebuffersareloadedontheapplicationserver/s.
Logdatachangescheckbox:Ifenabled,changestothedatarowsof
thistablearelogged.
WriteaccessonlywithJAVAcheckbox:Ifenabled,contentsofthe
tablecanbechangedfromwithinJavaonly.
Maintainastransparenttablecheckbox:Thisflagindicatesthata
tableshouldbetransparentandthatthisattributeshouldbekept
evenafterachangeofreleaseoranupgrade.
DisplayTableSettingupForeignKeyRelationships
FromtheTechnicalSettingsscreen,navigatebacktothenormaltable
maintenancescreenbyclickingthestandardtoolbar

buttonor

alternativelypressingfunctionkeyF3.
Forallthetablefield/sthatareforeignkeys(thesefieldsareprimarykey
fieldsinthechecktables),theforeignkeyrelationshipsareestablished.
Theforeignkeyrelationshipsofatablefieldcanbeestablishedorviewed
bypositioningthecursoronthatfieldandclickingonthe

button

(underthetabs).(SeeFigure223).

Figure223.TableProceedtoForeignKeyRelationship

FortheselectedtableT005T,youcanviewtheforeignkeyrelationship
forthefieldSPRAS(languagecode).
ThescreenwouldlooklikethatinFigure224.

Figure224.TableForeignKeyRelationship

ThechecktableforthefieldSPRASisT002.WhentheCheckrequired
checkboxisenabled,valuesenteredinthisfieldinthesecondarytable
willbecheckedforexistenceinthechecktable.Valuesnotexistinginthe
checktablewilltriggeranerrorcondition.
TheCardinalityentriesoperateasfollows:
Thecardinality(n:m)describestheforeignkeyrelationshipasregards
thenumberofpossibledependentrowsinvolved(rowsoftheforeignkey
table)visvisreferredrows(rowsofthechecktable).
1. Fortheleftsideofthecardinalitysignifyingthechecktable:
1. Ifn=1then,foreachdependentrowthereisexactlyonerow
inthechecktable.
2. Ifn=Cthen,therecanberowsintheforeignkeytablethat
donotreferenceanyrowofthechecktable(orphan
dependentrowscanexist).

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2. Fortherightsideofthecardinalitysignifyingtheforeignkeytable:
1. Ifm=1,foreachrowinthechecktablethereisexactlyone
dependentrow.
2. Ifm=Cthen,foreachrowinthechecktablethereis,atmost,
onedependentrow.
3. Ifm=Nthen,foreachrowofthechecktablethereisatleast
onedependentrow.
4. Ifm=CNthen,foreachrowofthechecktablethereareany
numberofdependentrows.

YouhaveexaminedandviewedexistingDDICobjectsdomain,data
element,andtransparenttable.TheDDICmetadataismuchmore
complexthandatabasemetadata.Butthen,DDICtabledefinitionis
addressingissuesofstandardization(domain)uniformity,(dataelement)
providingfacilitiessuchasOPENSQLportability,tablebuffering,search
helpattachment,andcheckforCURR&CUKYQUAN&UNITfields,etc.
ScenarioforHandsonExerciseonDomain,DataElement,and
Table
WhenSAPisinstalled,thedatabasetablesandotherobjectsthatget
createdaspartoftheinstallationarecalledSAPdeliveredtablesor
objects.Postinstallation,furtherdatabasetablesorobjectscreatedby
developersarecalledcustomtablesorobjects.
YouwillcreateyourownorcustomDDICobjects:domains,data
elements,andtransparenttables.Thepossibility,inareallifesituation
forcreationofcustomtablesisrare,unlessoneisdevelopinganew
applicationonanABAPplatformordoingalargeenhancement
entailingcreationofnewtables.
Theobjectiveofcreatingcustomtableshereisforbetterunderstanding
oftheSAPtabledefinitions,becomingfamiliarwiththeDDICtable
definitions,andbeingabletorelatetoSAPdeliveredtables.
Lettherebeabusinessscenarioforcreatingcustomtables.Asimple
everydayscenario:Probablyeveryoneofyouhaswalkedintoacasual
restaurant.Andyouhavereceivedandpaidthebillattheendofyour
meal.
AroughformatofatypicalrestaurantbillispresentedinFigure225.

Figure225.Atypicalrestaurantbill

Mapthisbill(businessdocument)anditsrelatedinformationinto
RDBMStables,andthefieldsinthetables.Thisisbeingdonehereinan
intuitive,manualway.Inareallifesituation,withcomplexand
involvedscenarios(manydatabasetablesandmanyfields),youwilluse
somedatadesignerordatamodelertool.
Youwillcallthisstorageofrestaurantbillsanditsrelatedinformationa
restaurantbillingsystem.
TableandTableFields
First,therestaurantbilldatawillhavetoresideintwodatabasetables:

ThetwodatabasetableswillberelatedthroughBillNo.andBillNo.will
beaforeignkeyinthedatabasetableBillsItems.
Youwillhavetwomoredatabasetablesstoringinformationconnectedto
therestaurantbilling:ItemMasterstoringIteminformationandWaiter
MasterstoringWaiterinformation.

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WaiterNowillbeaforeignkeyindatabasetableBillsHeader.Item
CodewillbeaforeignkeyindatabasetableBillsItems.
EntityRelationshipDiagramRestaurantBillingSystem

Figure226.FourtableERdiagram.PKPrimaryKey.FK
ForeignKey

AssigningDDICDataTypesandLengthstoTableFields
AssigningDDICDataTypesandlengthstothesefieldsisthenextstep.
YouareassigningDataTypeDECtotheamountandquantityfields.A
restaurantdoesnotraisebillsinmultiplecurrencies,sothecurrencycan
beimplicit.Thisrestaurantisservinganddeliveringonlyinnumbers
(i.e.,anumberofpizzasandburgers,etc.).Sotheunitofmeasureforthe
quantityisalsoimplicit.ThetablesandfieldswithDataTypeandlengths
areshowninTables22,23,24,and25:

Thenotation6,2forDataTypeDECis6digitsbeforethedecimalpoint
and2digitsafterthedecimal(atotallengthof8digitsor5bytes).Thisis
notstandardnotationthisiscustomnotation.
TheDataTypesandlengthshavebeenassignedtofieldsbyexperience.
SummaryofDataTypes,Lengths,andListofTablesEntitiesand
Attributes
AsummaryofDataTypesandlengthsinthefourtables(withthefields):

Tocreatetabledefinitionsforthefourtables,youneedtocreatea
minimumof10domains.RecallthatdomainisrelatedtoDataTypeand
length.TwoormorefieldshavingthesameDataTypeandlengthmayor
maynotbeassignedthesamedomain.Inthefourtablescenario,twoor
morefieldssharingsameDataTypeandlengthare:

LetthesamedomainbeassignedforfieldsofthesameDataTypeand
length.(Thisisanarbitrarydecision).

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Asummarylistofallfieldsinthefourtablescenario(entities&
attributes):

Aseachofthesefieldsmusthavealabelwhenappearingonthescreen,
youneedtocreate17dataelements,1foreachofthesefields.
Youhavetocreate10domains,17dataelements,and4tablesforthe
restaurantbillingsystem.
CreationofDomains,DataElements,andTables
ObjectsNamingConvention,ListingofObjects
BeforeyoucommencethecreationofcustomDDICobjects,letanaming
conventionbeadoptedfortheobjectstobecreatedintheABAP
Workbench.MostoftheobjectscreatedintheABAPWorkbench
environment(notSAPdelivered)havetostartwiththelettersYorZ.In
theDDICenvironment,exceptforlockobjects,allothercustomobject
namesstartwithYorZ.Hence,theobjectsyouareplanningtocreate
(domains,dataelements,tables,andothers)willhavethestartingletter
asYorZ.ThispracticeofstartingtheobjectnameswithlettersYorZisa
basicproceduretoensureseparationofSAPdeliveredobjectsthatexist
justafterSAPinstallationandtheobjectscreatedbySAPcustomersor
otherusersoftheSAPdevelopmentplatform.Itensuresthereisno
conflictofobjectnames,andtheseparationensuresthattheobjects
createdbySAPcustomers(oryou)remainintactduringaversion
upgrade.YouwillbecreatingallobjectsintheABAPWorkbench
environmentstartingwithprefixYCL.Nextyouwillidentifyanobject
withatwodigitchapternumbersuchasCH01,CH02Nextyougive
somemeaningfulsuffixforexample,whenyouarecreatingadomain
ofDataTypeNUMCandlength4,youwouldgiveitaname
YCL_CH02_NUMC4.Youwillnamecustomobjectsinthismanner.
TheDDICobjectsyoucreateshouldstartwithY/Ztherestofthe
charactersinthenamescanbeanycombinationofalphanumeric
characters(AZ&09)withembeddedunderscores(_).Thenamesare
caseinsensitive.ThisissowithalloftheobjectsintheABAPWorkbench.
Normally,adeveloperafterloggingintoSAPsettheCapsLockkeyon.
Thenamespace(maximumcharactersallowedintheobjectname)varies
fromobjecttoobject.Fortablesitis16fordomainsanddataelementsit
is30.
Alistofthe10domainsastheywouldbenamedasperthenaming
conventionisgiveninTable26:
Table26.DomainsList

Alistofdataelementsastheywouldbenamedasperthenaming
conventionisgiveninTable27:
Table27.DataElementsList

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Alistofthetableswithfields,DataTypes&lengths,dataelementsand
domainsisshowninTables28,29,210,and211.AlltheDDICobjects
havebeengivennamesasyouwouldintheABAPWorkbench
environment.
1. DatabaseTableDescription:BillsHeaderName:
YCL_CH02_BILLH
Table28.

2. DatabaseTableDescription:BillsItemsName:
YCL_CH02_BILLI
Table29.

3. DatabaseTableDescription:WaiterMasterName:
YCL_CH02_WAITM
Table210.

4. DatabaseTableDescription:ItemMasterName:
YCL_CH02_ITEMM
Table211.

StartcreatingtheDDICobjects:10domains,17dataelements,and4
tables.Youhavetocreatedomains,dataelements,andtablesinthat
order.
CreateDomains
FromSAPEasyAccess,gettotheDDICmaintenancescreenSE11,etc.
Selecttheradiobuttonfordomain(fifthradiobuttonfromthetop).
Enterthenameoffirstdomain(i.e.,YCL_CH02_NUMC4).Theinitial
screenwilllookliketheoneshowninFigure227.

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Figure227.CreateDomainInitialSE11Screen

AfterclickingontheCreatebuttonorpressingthefunctionkeyF5,the
screenwiththeDefinitiontabenabledisopened.
Theenteredfieldsare(1)ShortDescriptionwithDataTypeNUMC,LEN
4,(2)DataTypewithNUMC,and(3)No.Characterswith4.Donotenter
anyvalueinthefieldOutputLengthitwillbegeneratedbythesystem.
Otherfieldsonthisscreenarenotapplicable.
FieldDataTypehasbeenassignedvaluethroughthepopupselectionlist
appearingbypressingfunctionkeyF4orpressingthe

buttonon

thefield.Thepopupselectionlistisappearingontherightsidewithall
ofthe24DDICDataTypes.Whereverpopupselectionlistsare
available,itisgoodpracticetoassignvaluethroughaselectionlistrather
thanmanuallyenteringdata.Tomakeaselectioneitherdoubleclickon
theselectedroworchoosetherowbysingleclick(chosenrowappearsin
yellow,orangecolor),thenclickonthe

button.

ThisisshowninFigure228.

Figure228.CreateDomaintabDefinitionwithfieldsentered

ClicktheValueRangetab.Youareenteringasinglevaluerangeher,
(i.e.,00015000)undertheIntervalsareaofthescreen(bottomareaof
thescreen,seeFigure229).Whenafieldassociatedwiththisdomain
willappearonscreen,itautomaticallycheckstheenteredvalue,and
valuesoutsidetherangewilltriggeranerrorcondition.Youhave
enteredonlyonerangeforthepurposeofillustratingthefeaturerather
thanapracticalnecessity.Inareallifesituation,multiplerangesof
valuesinthisareacanbeenteredaswarrantedbyascenario
requirement.
DonotenteranythinginthisIntervalsareaforotherdomains.
UndertheIntervalsarea,thereisafieldValueTableasshowninFigure
229.YoucanenteraDDICtablenamehere.Whenyouassignthis
domaintoadataelement,assignthisdataelementtoatablefield,and
thistablefieldistobemadeintoaforeignkeyfieldthroughaforeignkey
relationshipthenthesystemwillproposethistableasthedefaultcheck
table.

Figure229.CreateDomainSavedmessageonthestatusbar

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ABriefonPackages
Afterenteringthesinglerange,pressthesavebutton.Whenthisisdone,
apopupmodalwindowappearspromptingforthepackagetobeassigned
tothisdomainobject.AnyobjectcreatedintheABAPWorkbench
environmenthastobeassignedapackage.Thepackageconceptexisted
fromtheveryinceptionoftheABAPplatform.Thepackageislikeclient
code:asegregatingparameterfortheobjectscreatedandmaintainedin
theABAPWorkbenchenvironments.IntheSAPimplementation
process,developerswillcreatetheirowncustompackages.Packagescan
bemaintainedandviewedintransactioncodeSE21.Thepackageisa
complexconcept,beyondthescopeofthisbook.Thecoreofthepackageis
thetransportlayerthatspecifiesthepaththeobjectwilltravel
(developmentenvironmenttoquality/testing,etc.).Thetransportlayer
ashasbeenmentionedinthesectionentitledImplementation
EnvironmentsisthepurviewofaBasisAdministrator.WhenSAPstarted
supportingJava,theABAPWorkbenchpackageincorporatedtheJAVA
aspectsasapackage.
Since,mostofyouwilloperateinasinglesystemenvironment,likeSAP
IDESinstalledonalaptopordesktop,andforasubscriptiontoaSAP
IDESserver,theimplementationenvironmentswillnotexist.Thereare
nothree/twosystemlandscapes.Yourobjectswillnotmoveorbe
transportedfromoneimplementationenvironmenttoanotherbecause
nootherimplementationenvironmentsexistfortheobjectstobe
transportedto.Eventhoughyourobjectswillnotundergotransport,they
needtobeassignedapackage.Inthislearningphase,youcanusethe
SAPdeliveredpackage$TMP.IfyouassignthispackagetoanABAP
Workbenchobject,youcannottransportthisobject.ThisSAPdelivered
package$TMPisdesignatedasapackagetobeassignedtolocalobjects
(i.e.,theobjectsarelocaltotheenvironmentwheretheyarecreatedand
cannotbetransportedtootherenvironments).
DomainCreationContinued
Onthemodaldialogboxpromptingforthepackage,clickonthe
button.ThesystemwillassigntheSAP
deliveredpackage$TMPtothedomain.Thescreenshotappearsasin
Figure230.

Figure230.CreateDomainEnterValueRangeIntervals,
assignpackage$TMP

AnABAPWorkbenchobjectwheneveritiscreatedandifsubsequently
changedoreditedwillbecheckedforinconsistencies.Youcandothisby
clickingthe

buttonontheapplicationtoolbaroralternatively

pressing<Ctrl>+<F2>keys(combinationofCtrl&F2keys,+indicating
combination).Ifinconsistenciesexistintheobject,thiswillthrowan
errormessageonthestatusbar.Thisshouldbeinvestigatedandfixed.
ForinstanceifyouhadenteredanumberinthedomainfieldDecimal
Places,itwouldhavedisplayedanerrormessage.Decimalsplacesare
notapplicabletotheDDICDataTypeNUMC.
Afterasuccessfulcheckforobjectconsistency,thesystemwilldisplaya
messageonthestatusbarasappearinginFigure231.

Figure231.CreateDomainSuccessfulcheckforconsistency,
messageonstatusbar

Onceanobjecthaspassedtheconsistencycheck,itneedstobeactivated.
Theactivationofanobjectgeneratesaruntimeversion.Anobjecthasto

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beinanactivatedstatetobeusable.Inthepresentcontext,ifthe
domainsarenotactive,theycannotbeassignedtodataelements.

Theactivationisdonebypressingthe

buttonoralternatively

pressing<Ctrl>+<F3>keys.Thescreenafterobjectactivationwill
appearasinFigure232.

Figure232.CreateDomainActivation

Inasimilarmanner,youcancreatethenineotherdomainsofa
restaurantbillingsystem.
WhencreatingdomainsofDDICDataTypeDEC,rememberforDEC6,
2,therewillatotalof8digits:6digitsbeforedecimalpositionand2
digitsafterdecimalposition.Sointhefieldsonthedomainscreen:No.
Characters8shouldbeenteredDecimalPlaces2shouldbeentered.
FordomainsofDDICDataTypeCHAR,ifcasesensitivityisdesired(i.e.,
storageofbothupper,lowercaseofalphabets),clickonthecheckboxwith
labelLowerCaseonthedomainscreen.
ForthefieldTITLE,inthecorrespondingdomain,youwillusetheSingle
ValsAreaoftheValueRangetab.Therestaurantbillingsystemis
makingprovisionforwaitersaswellaswaitresses.Whenthedatafor
themisstored,theTITLEfieldcancontainvaluessuchasMR.,MS.,
MRS.,etc.,youwillenterthesepossiblevaluesinSingleValsareaofthe
ValueRangetabofdomain.WhentheTITLEfieldappearsonthescreen,
theuserhasthefacilityofapopupselectionlist.Thispopupselectionlist
willdisplayallthevaluesenteredinthisSingleValsareaofValueRange
tab.Ideallyyoushouldentervaluesinthisareawhenthenumberof
entriesarefew(lessthan32)andtheentriesdonotchangeovertimeor
changerarely.Inthepresentcontext,thetitlesbywhichpeopleare
addressedinEnglishlanguagearenotgoingtochangeinforeseeable
future.AscreenshotoftheValueRangetabforthedomain
YCL_CH02_CHAR10(domainforfieldTITLE)isshowninFigure233.

Figure233.CreateDomainSingleVals

YouwillbemakingmultiplerowentriesinmanysituationsofABAP
Workbenchobjectsmaintenance.Inallthesesituations,youwillhave
thefacilityofthisuserinterfacethatenablesyoumakeoneormorerow/s
selection,copy,cut,paste,anddeletewiththebuttonsshowninthe
Figure234.Youcaninsertrowsaswellarowwillbeinsertedwhere
yourcursorispositioned.

Figure234.MultipleRowManipulation

Ifyouhavecreatedall10domainsandactivatedthem,youwouldliketo
viewtheseasalistwithjustthenamesofdomainsappearinginthelist.
Forthis,gototheABAPDictionaryInitialScreenSE11.Selectthe

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domainradiobutton.Enterthepatternofyourdomainnames(i.e.,
YCL_CH02_*indomainfieldoftheSE11screenandpressthefunction
keyF4).ThisisappearinginFigure235.Youareindicatingtothe
systemtofilteroutalldomainswhosenamesstartwithYCL_CH02_and
produceapopupselectionlist.Youshouldseeascreenliketheone
appearinginFigure236.

Figure235.CreateDomainGetoverviewofdomainscreated

Figure236.CreateDomainOverviewofdomainscreated

Thelistappearswithanameandshortdescription.Iftheshort
descriptionisappearingasblank,thecorrespondingdomainisinan
inactivestate.TheListappearsinalphabeticascendingorder.
Editing/Changingdomains
Ifyouneedtoperformanychangestodomains,youcandosoby
selectingtheDomainradiobuttonandenteringthenameofthedomain
youwanttochangeintheDomainfield.(Alternatively,youcangetthe
listofdomainsyoucreatedbyenteringthepatternintheDomainfield,
pressingfunctionkeyF4,andmakingaselectionfromthelist).Clickon
theChangebuttonorpressfunctionkeyF6.Performthechanges,save,
andreactivatethedomain.Aftereditinganyobject,thechangedversion
oftheobjectisinaninactivemode.Thechangedversionneedstobe
activatedtoenableitsusage.Takecaretodothis.
CreateDataElements
OntheSE11ABAPDictionary:InitialScreen,selecttheradiobuttonData
type(thirdradiobuttonfromthetop).Enterthenameofthefirstdata
elementtobecreated(i.e.,YCL_CH02_BILL_NO.).(Table27isalistof
dataelementstobecreatedwiththerespectivelabelsandassigned
domains.)PresstheCreatebuttonorfunctionkeyF5.Thefollowing
screenwillappear:

Figure237.CreateDataElementsOpeningScreen

YoucancreateoneofthethreeDDICobjectslistedhere:Dataelement,
Structure,andTabletype.Fornow,youwanttocreateaDataelement,
whichisthedefaultoption.Sopressthe<Enter>keyandyouwillbe
presentedwiththedataelementscreen,withtheDataTypetab,see
Figure238.Youwillentertheshortdescription(likeforallobjectsinthe
ABAPWorkbenchenvironment).Nextyouneedtoassigntheappropriate
domain(YCL_CH02_NUMC4)tothisdataelement.Assignthisthrough

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thepopupselectionlist.Afilteredlistofthedomainsyoucreatedcanbe
madetoappearbyenteringthepatternYCL_CH02*inthedomainfield
andpressingthefunctionkeyF4.ThisisshowninFigure238.

Figure238.CreateDataElementTab:DataType

Havingassignedthedomain,clickontheFieldLabeltab.(Youareby
passingtheFurtherCharacteristicstab.)
IntheFieldLabeltab,youneedtoenterthescreenlabelsforthefieldto
whichthisdataelementwillbeassignedinthetablessubsequentlywhen
youcreatetables.Thereisaprovisionforfourlabels(i.e.,Short,
Medium,Long,andHeading.Youmustmakeadistinctionbetweenthe
firstthreeandthelast.Thefirstthreewill
BillNo.:1234
IncaseofHeadingFieldvaluewillappearunderfieldlabel.The
Headingservesascolumnorfieldheadingwhenthisfieldisoutputon
screenorprinterlike
BillNo.
1234
Inthiscontext,whenthedatalengthisverysmall(likeinthecaseof
WaiterNo.orTableNo.oflength2),thelabelintheheadingshouldnot
betoolong.Thereshouldbeanattempttomakethelabelforheading
cryptic.
Formostpart(evenintheSAPdelivereddataelements),thesamelabel
isenteredinallthethree(i.e.,Short,Medium,andLong).Letthesame
labelbeenteredinthesethreefields:Short,Medium,andLongaswell
astheheading.
ThescreenshotwithenteredlabelsisshowninFigure239.

Figure239.CreateDataElementtabFieldLabel

Therearetwosetoffields:LengthandFieldLabel.Donotenterany
valuesintheLengthfield.Thesystemgeneratesthelengths
automaticallyafteryouenterthelabelsandsavethem.Subsequently,if
youwanttochangealabelresultinginanincreaseinlabellength,then
youhavetomanuallyadjusttheLengthfield(notveryuserfriendly).
Youcancreatelabelsinotherlanguagesbyclickingonmenubaroption
GotoandsuboptionTranslation.
Whenyouarefinishedwiththelabelentry,clickthesavebutton.The
systemwillpromptforpackageassignment.AssigntheSAPdelivered
package$TMPorclickontheLocalObjectbutton.

Performaconsistencycheckbyclickingonthe

buttonorpress

<Ctrl>+<F2>keys.Iftheconsistencycheckiswithouterrors,activatethe
dataelementbyclickingthe

buttonorpressingthekeys<Ctrl>+

<F3>keys.
AscreenshotofactivateddataelementYCL_CH02_BILL_NOisshown
inFigure240.

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Figure240.CreateDataElementActivatedDataElement

Inasimilarmanner,create,check(consistency),andactivatethe
remaining16dataelements.Havingcreatedallthe17dataelements,
youcanhaveareviewlistofthem.IntheSE11openingscreen,ABAP
Dictionary:InitialScreen,enabletheDatatyperadiobutton(thirdfrom
thetop)enterthepatternYCL_CH02_*intheDatatypefieldandpress
thefunctionkeyF4.AscreenliketheshowninFigure241willappear,
promptingforaspecifiedDatatype.ClickonthebuttonSearchforData
Elements.

Figure241.CreateDataElementPromptforselectionofData
typeoflist

AlistliketheoneinFigure242willappear.Thelistisappearingwith
nameandshortdescription.Iftheshortdescriptionisappearingblank,
thecorrespondingdataelementisinaninactivestate.TheListis
appearinginalphabeticascendingorder.

Figure242.CreateDataElementReviewList

EditingorChangingdataelements:Ifyouneedtoperformanychanges
todataelements,youcandosobyselectingtheDatatyperadiobutton
andenteringthenameofthedataelementyouwanttochangeinthe
Datatypefield.(Alternatively,youcangetthelistofdataelementsyou
createdbyenteringthepatternintheDatatypefield,pressingfunction
keyF4,andmakingaselectionfromthelist.)ClickontheChangebutton
orpressfunctionkeyF6.Performthechangessaveandreactivatethe
dataelement.Aftereditinganyobject,theeditedversionoftheobjectis
inaninactivemode.Theeditedversionneedstobeactivatedtoenable
itsusage.
CreateTables
Nowthatyouhavetherequireddomainsanddataelementscreatedand
activatedforthefourtables,youarereadytocreateyourcustomtables.
Youwillfirstcreatethetableswithouttheforeignkeys(i.e.Waiter
Master:YCL_CH02_WAITM,ItemMaster:YCL_CH02_ITEMM).You

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willthencreateBillsHeader:YCL_CH02_BILLHandBillsItems:
YCL_CH02_BILLI.
Tables28,29,210,and211canbereferredwhilecreatingthem.
IntheSE11openingscreenABAPDictionaryInitialScreen:clickon
theDatabasetableradiobutton.Enterthetablename
YCL_CH02_WAITM,pressbuttonCreateorfunctionkeyF5.The
DeliveryandMaintenancetabscreenwillappearasshowninFigure2
43.
InthefieldDeliveryClass,pressthefunctionkeyF4forapopup
selectionlist.SelectthevalueG,themostappropriateandprotected
againstSAPupgrade.TheassignedvalueGsignifiesanSAPcustomer
tablethatwillnotbeoverwrittenordisturbedwhentheSAPversion
upgradetakesplace.

Figure243.CreateTabletabDeliveryandMaintenance

InthefieldDataBrowser/TableViewMaint.,adropdownlistis
available.SelecttheoptionDisplayMaintenanceAllowed.Withthis
optionyoucancreate,edit,delete,andviewdatainthetablethroughan
automaticallygenerateddialogboxoramaintenanceview.(SAPDDIC
supportsfourtypesofviews.Oneofthemismaintenanceview.)Ifyou
lookupthisfieldofanySAPdeliveredtablesuchasVBRK,etc.,thisfield
isassignedthevalueDisplayMaintenanceAllowedwithRestrictions.
Thismeansthatthetabledatacanbeviewed,butcreation,editing,and
deletionoperationscannotbeperformedonthetabledatathroughthe
automaticallygenerateddialogboxoramaintenanceview.Forthe
customcreatedtables,youwouldliketobeabletocreate,edit,delete,
andviewdata.Hencetheoption:DisplayMaintenanceAllowed.
Next,ClickontheFieldstab.Hereyouneedtoenterthenameofthe
fieldsandassignthecorrespondingdataelements.ThefieldsDataType
andlengthsarederivedfromthecorrespondingdomainsassignedtothe
dataelements.RefertothesectionentitledDomain,DataElement,and
TableRelationship.
ThefieldsinatablearenotDDICobjects.Theyarepartoftheobjects.So
normallytheyneednotstartwiththelettersYorZ.Inaspecificcontext
theyshouldstartwiththelettersYorZ.Thisspecificcontextisnot
explicitlycoveredinthisbook.Thefieldnameshavetostartwithan
alphabet,subsequentpositionscanbeacombinationofalphanumeric
characterswithembeddedunderscores(_).Themaximumlengthofa
fieldnameis16characters.
Theprimarykeyfieldshavetoappearatthebeginning.Thecheckbox
underKeyistobeenabledtomakeafieldasaprimarykeyfield.
SofillinthefieldnamesstartingwithWAITER_NO.Enablethecheck
boxfieldKeytodesignatethisfieldWAIT_NOasaprimarykeyfield.
Whenyoupopulateatableanddonotenterdatainsomefields,the
systemautomaticallyincorporatesinitialvaluesinthesefields(i.e.,the
systemtakescareofthenullvalueissue).Theinitialvalueisdependent
ontheDDICDataTypeofthefield.RefertothelastcolumnofTable21.
Togiveexamples:ifoneofthefieldsisofDataTypeNUMCandnodata
isenteredinthisfield,ASCIIzeroes(ASCIIcodeforzerois01100100or
64)isstored.
Theinitialcheckboxforprimarykeyfieldsiscontrolledbythesystem.
Whetheryouenableitordisableit,itgetsenabledwhenyouactivatethe
table.Thissystemisallowingoneinitialvalueforprimarykeyfield/s.
ConsideringthecontextofthetableYCL_CH02_WAITM,youcanomit
enteringvaluesintheprimarykeyfieldsarowwillbecreatedwith
primarykeyfieldsequaltoinitialvalue/s.Inthetable
YCL_CH02_WAITM,thesystemwillallowcreationofonerowwithfield
WAIT_NOequalto00.
Theenablingordisablingoftheinitialcheckboxfornonprimarykey
fieldshasrelevanceinthecontextofmodificationofthetablestructure
subsequentlyoninsertionofnewfields.Ifthischeckboxisenabled,the
systemwillfillthefieldswithinitialvaluesorelsetheywillbenull
valuesinsuchfields.
AssignthedataelementYCL_CH02_WAIT_NO.Donotkeyinthese
dataelementsmanually.InsteadkeyinthepatternYCL_CH02*inthe
fieldDataelementandpressfunctionkeyF4foraselectionlist.Thisis
showninFigure244.

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Figure244.CreateTableAssigningDataElementtoaField
fromSelectionList

Inasimilarmanner,entertheotherfields,andassigndataelementsto
them.Afterallthefieldshavebeenenteredanddataelementsassigned
tothem,thescreenwillappearlikethatinFigure245.

Figure245.CreateTableFieldswithDataElementsassigned

Foreachfield,TheDataTypes,lengths,anddecimalsareappearing
automatically,derivedfromthedomainassignedtothecorresponding
dataelement.
SomeolderSAPversionsmightshowtheselengthstobezero.The
lengthswillappearonlyaftertableactivation.Atthisstage,savethe
object,assignthepackage$TMP,etc.
ThenexttabEntryhelpcheckismaintainedbythesystem.Ifafieldisa
foreignkeyfieldinthistable,theForeignKeycheckboxfieldwouldbe
enabledandthenameofthechecktablewillappearinthefieldCheck
table.Youwillseethisforthetablescontainingforeignkeyfields
(YCL_CH02_BILLHandYCL_CH02_BILLI).Inthecasefortablefield
TITLE,inputhelpwithfixedvaluesisappearinginthefieldOriginofthe
inputhelp.Ifasearchhelpisattachedtothetablefield,itsnamewill
appearinthefieldSrchHelp.(Searchhelpiscoveredinthenextchapter,
Chapter3)TheDefaultcheckboxfieldisenablediffixedvalueshave
beencreatedinthedomain.ThisissoforthetablefieldTITLE.Thelast
columnorfieldinthistab,Domaincontainsthenameofthedomain.The
EntryhelpchecktabscreenshotisshowninFigure246.

Figure246.CreateTabletabEntryhelpcheck

ThelasttabonthescreenCurrency/QuantityFieldsismeanttoassigna
referencetableandreferencefieldtotheDDICDataTypesCURRand
QUANfields.AsyoudonothaveanytablefieldsofDDICCURRand
QUANintherestaurantbillingsystem,youwillnotbeusingthistab.
TableTechnicalSettings:Youneedtoassigntechnicalsettingsnext.Click
ontheapplicationtoolbarbuttonTechnicalSettingorfromthemenubar
Goto,andselecttheoptionTechnicalSetting.TheTechnicalSetting
screenisshowninFigure247.

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Figure247.CreateTableTechnicalSettings

Youareassigningvaluestotwofields.TheDataclasssignifiesaphysical
areainthedatabase.PressthefunctionkeyF4andassignvaluesof
patternUSER*,andthephysicalareaforusersofSAP.
ThefieldSizecategoryisforinitialallocationofdiskspace.Assignthe
value0fromthepopupselectionlistavailable.Donotplantocreatetoo
manyentriesorrowsinthetables:thevalue0willsuffice.Savethe
TechnicalSettings.
EnhancementCategory
Youneedtoperformonemoretasksbeforeyoucanactivateyourtable
thisisspecifyingtheenhancementcategory.Itisnotadvisabletomodify
structuredefinitionsoftheSAPdeliveredtables.Fieldscanbeaddedto
SAPdeliveredtablesthroughtheconceptofEnhancements.Thisisan
advancedtopicnotcoveredinthisbook.Thefourtablesyouarecreating
arecustomtables.Youcanmodifytheirstructuredefinitionsasyouwant,
subjecttosomeconstraints.Soyouneednotprovideforfuture
enhancementofthetables.Thisistobeindicatedtothesystem.From
menubarExtras,selecttheoptionEnhancementCategory.An
informationmessagepopupwillappear,andthenpress<Enter>.Next,
apopupscreenwillappearliketheoneinFigure248.

Figure248.CreateTableAssignEnhancementCategory

SelectorclickontheradiobuttonCannotBeEnhanced(sinceyoudonot
wantaprovisionfortablesenhancement).ClickonthebuttonCopy.This
willassigntheEnhancementCategorytothetable.

Performtheconsistencycheckforthetable,andpressthe

buttonor

press<Ctrl>+<F2>keys.Iftheconsistencycheckiswithouterrors,
activatethetablebyclickingthe

buttonorpressingthekeys

<Ctrl>+<F3>keys.Iftheconsistencycheckresultsinerrors,investigate
theerrors,fixthem,andthenactivate.
DatabaseMetadata
WhenaDDICtabledefinitionisactivatedfortheveryfirsttime,the
systemwillcreatethetabledefinitioninthedatabase.Thetable
definitionthenisreadyforcreationorinsertionofdata.
InasimilarmannercreatethetablesYCL_CH02_ITEMM,
YCL_CH02_BILLH.
CreatingForeignKeyRelationshipTable:YCL_CH02_BILLH,Field
WAIT_NO
CreatethetableYCL_CH02_BILLH,fillinallthetabs,createTechnical
SettingsthenassignEnhancementCategoryandsave.
InthetableYCL_CH02_BILLH,thefieldWAIT_NOisaforeignkey
field,andforthisfield,thisistheforeignkeytable.Soyouneedto
establisharelationshipbetweenthetablesYCL_CH02_WAITMand
YCL_CH02_BILLH.
OntheFieldstab,positionthecursoronthefieldWAIT_NO(youwantto
establishtheforeignkeyrelationshipforthisfield)thenclickonthe
ForeignKeys

button(justabovethedataelementcolumn),anda

popupdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure249.

Figure249.CreateTableEstablishForeignKeyRelationshipfor
fieldWAIT_NO

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Fillinthefollowingfieldsinthispopupdialogbox:
Shorttextwithmeaningfultext.Foroncethisisoptional.Youare
leavingitblank.
IntheChecktablefield,pressfunctionkeyF4.Alistwillappear
withasingleentryYCL_CH02_WAITMandthenameofthecheck
tablewithwhichyouwanttoestablisharelationship.Thistable
YCL_CH02_WAITMisappearingonthebasisofthecommon
domainoffieldWAIT_NOinboththetablesYCL_CH02_WAITM
andYCL_CH02_BILLH(YCL_CH02_NUMC2).
AfterthefieldChecktableisfilledwiththevaluefromthesingle
entryoftheselectionlist,clickonthebuttonGenerateProposal.
ThiswillfillupthecolumnsChecktable,ChkTabFld,Forkey
table,andForeignKeyField(i.e.,whichfield/sinthechecktable
relatewithwhichfield/sintheforeignkeyorsecondarytable).
IntheScreencheckarea,enablethecheckboxCheckrequired.
Thiswillpreventthecreationofrow/sintheforeignkeytable
withoutacorrespondingrowinthechecktable.(Noorphanrows
areallowedintheforeignkeytable.)
Next,fillinthecardinality1:CN.Thismeansforeveryrowinthe
checktable,therecanbeanynumberofcorrespondingrows
(including0)intheforeignkeytable.

Clickon

buttonatthebottomofthedialogbox,

andtheforeignkeyrelationshipisestablished.

Doaconsistencycheck.(Click

buttonorkeys<Ctrl>+

<F2>)Activatethetable.(Click

buttonorkeys<Ctrl>+<F3>)

CreatingForeignKeyRelationshipsTable:YCL_CH02_BILLI,
FieldsBILL_NO&ITEM_CODE
CreatethetableYCL_CH02_BILLHI,fillinallthetabs,create
TechnicalSettingsassignEnhancementCategoryandsave.
InthetableYCL_CH02_BILLI,thefieldsBILL_NOandITEM_CODE
areforeignkeys,andforthesefieldsthisistheforeignkeytable.Soyou
needtoestablishrelationshipsbetweenthetablesYCL_CH02_BILLH,
YCL_CH02_BILLIandYCL_CH02_ITEMM,andYCL_CH02_BILLI.
First,letarelationshipbeestablishedbetweentables
YCL_CH02_BILLHandYCL_CH02_BILLI.Sopositionthecursoron
theforeignkeyfield(whichalsohappenstobeaprimarykeyfieldinthis
table),andclickontheForeignKeys

button.Thepopupdialogbox

CreateForeignKeyappears.PressfunctionkeyF4inthefieldCheck
tablefortheselectionlistofchecktable/s.Ascreenshotofthisisshown
inFigure250.

Figure250.CreateTableForeignKeyRelationshipforfield
BILL_NO,CheckTableList

Thesystemisproposingtwochecktables:YCL_CH02_BILLHand
YCL_CH02_ITEMM.Thisisobviouslyerroneous.
ThesystemisdoingsobecausethekeyfieldsofthesetablesBILL_NO
andITEM_CODEaresharingthesamedomain(i.e.,
YCL_CH02_NUMC4.Thishasbeendonedeliberatelytohighlightthis
issue.KeyfieldsthathavethesameDDICDataTypeandlengthshould
notsharethesamedomain.
Fornow,youknowthatyoushouldselectthetableYCL_CH02_BILLH
asthechecktable,astheforeignkeyfieldforwhichyouareestablishing
relationshipnowisBILL_NO.
AfterselectingthechecktableYCL_CH02_BILLH,clickonthebutton
GenerateProposal.
ThecolumnsunderForeignKeyFieldswillbefilledup.
EnsuretheCheckrequiredcheckboxisenabled(andtoensurenoorphan
rowsareintheforeignkeytable).

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Entercardinality1:CN.(Onerowinchecktablecanhave0tomanyrows
inforeignkeytable.
TheCreateForeignKeydialogboxforthefieldBILL_NOwiththe
requiredfieldsfilledupisshownintheFigure251.ClickingontheCopy
buttonwillestablishtheforeignkeyrelationshipforthefieldBILL_NO.

Figure251.CreateTableEstablishForeignKeyRelationshipfor
fieldBILL_NO

OnsimilarlinespositionthecursoronthefieldITEM_CODEandcarry
outthecreationofforeignkeyrelationshipforthefieldITEM_CODE.
ThefilledupdialogboxforforeignkeyrelationshipoffieldITEM_CODE
isshowninFigure252.

Clickingonthe

buttonwillestablishtheforeign

keyrelationshipforthefieldITEM_CODE.

Figure252.CreateTableEstablishForeignKeyRelationshipfor
fieldITEM_CODE

Ifafterestablishingforeignkeyrelationship,youwanttodeleteitfor
somereasonyoucandosobypositioningthecursoronforeignkeyfield,
clickingonthe

button,andclickingonthedelete

willappearbesidethe

buttonthat

buttononthepopupdialog

box.

Doaconsistencycheck.Click
Activatethetable.Click

buttonorkeys<Ctrl>+<F2>)
buttonorkeys<Ctrl>+<F3>

Youhavecreatedallfourtables.Youcanpopulatethetableswithdata.
Youwillfirstpopulatethetableswithouttheforeignkeys,sothatwhen
youcreateentriesinthetableswithforeignkeys,dataisavailableinthe
checktables.
CreateDatainTables
DatainTableYCL_CH02_WAITM
LetthedataentrybestartedwiththetableYCL_CH02_WAITM.Inthe
ABAPDictionaryInitialScreen,selecttheDatabasetableradiobutton.
Enterthetablename(i.e.,YCL_CH02_WAITM).ClickontheDisplay
button.TheDictionary:MaintainTablescreenappears.Fromthemenu
barUtilities,selectTableContents>CreateEntriespath.
AscreenshotofdatacreationforthetableYCL_CH02_WAITMisshown
inFigure253.

Figure253.CreateDatainTableYCL_CH02_WAITM

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Noticethatthedataelementlabelsareappearingwiththefields.Ifthisis
nothappeningandyouaregettingtablefieldnameslikeWAIT_NO,
etc.,thenclickonthemenubarSettings

UserParameters.AUser

SpecificSettingsdialogboxpopsupasshowninFigure254.Ensurethat
theradiobuttonFieldLabelisenabled(attheverybottom).

Figure254.UserSpecificSettings

Enterdata.ThereisapopupselectionlistavailableforthefieldTITLE.
Thislistssourceofdataisthefixedvaluesofthedomainassociatedwith
thefieldTITLE.Youcantestthatthesystemwillnotacceptanyother
valuesthanthoseoftheselectionlist.
Afterenteringallfields,pressthesavebuttononthestandardtoolbar.
PresstheResetbuttonontheapplicationtoolbartoclearthefieldsfor
thenextrow.

Enterthree/fourwaitersdata.Youcanexitbypressingthe

button

(back/previousscreen)onthestandardtoolbarorbypressingfunction
keyF3.Thisbringsyoutothestructurescreen.Youcanseeorviewthe
tablecontentsbyclickingontheapplicationtoolbar
clickingtheexecute

button,then

buttononthenextscreenapplicationtoolbar.

ThecontentsofthetablewillappearasshownbyscreenshotinFigure2
55.

Figure255.ViewandManipulateDatainTable
YCL_CH02_WAITM

YoucanselectrowsbyclickingontheRowSelectionCheckBoxes.You
canthenviewtherowsonerowatatime:throughapplicationtoolbar
button,changecontentsonerowatatimethroughapplicationtool
bar

button,deleteselectedrowsbyclickingonthemenubarTable

EntryandusingDeleteoptions.Youcancreatenewrows(Waiters)by
clickingontheapplicationtoolbar

button.

Youcanselectallrowsthroughapplicationtoolbar
deselectallrowsthroughapplicationtoolbar

button.Youcan

button.

IfyouwanttonavigatetotheSE11openingscreen,thenpress
buttonthreetimes.
DatainTableYCL_CH02_ITEMM
ThesameprocedureistobeusedasfortableYCL_CH02_WAITM.For
thefieldITEM_CODE,withtheassigneddomainYCL_CH02_NUMC4
(throughdataelement)itwillacceptvaluesintherange00015000.
PressingfunctionkeyF4willshowtherangeofvaluesacceptableinthis
field.YouhadassignedthisrangeofvaluesintheIntervalsareaofthe
ValueRangtabofthedomain.Confirmthatthesystemistriggeringan
errorwhenyouentervaluesoutsidetherangeof00015000.After
enteringafewrows,youcanviewthetablecontentsbyclickingonthe
applicationtoolbar

buttoninthetablestructurescreenandthen

clickingtheexecute

buttononthenextscreenapplicationtoolbar.

Thecontentsofthetablewillappearasshownbythescreenshotin
Figure256.

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Figure256.ViewandManipulateDatainTable
YCL_CH02_ITEMM

Thescreenshowsthefourcreatedrows.Thisdatacanbemanipulated
throughthedisplay,change,create,etc.,buttonsontheapplication
toolbar.
DatainTableYCL_CH02_BILLH
Letthedatabecreatedinthistablebyadifferentprocedure.Ifanend
user(nondeveloper)wasenteringdataintoatable,hewouldnothave
accesstotheDDICobjectmaintenancescreens.Suchuserscanenter
dataintotablesthroughtransactioncodeSE16.Soenter/NSE16inthe
commandboxandpressthe<Enter>/

button.Thescreenshotof

SE16DataBrowser:InitialScreenisshowninFigure257.

Figure257.SE16/Databrowser:InitialScreenDatainTable
YCL_CH02_BILLH

Thescreenpromptsforthetablename.Thetablename
YCL_CH02_BILLHhasbeenentered.Presstheapplicationtoolbar
buttontocreateentries.Thescreenshotofthedataentryscreenis
showninFigure258.

Figure258.CreateDatainTableYCL_CH02_BILLH[SE16]

ThefieldBILL_NOwasassignedthedomainYCL_CH02_NUMC4.It
willacceptvaluesintherange00015000.ForthefieldBILL_DATE,
whichisDDICDataTypeDATS,pressingfunctionkeyF4popsupa
calendar,andyoucanassignadatefromthiscalendar.Yougetthis
facilityforDDICDataTypeDATS.ThisisshowninFigure259.

Figure259.CalendarforDateSelectionDDICDataType
DATS

IfyoupressfunctionkeyF4intheforeignkeyfieldWAIT_NO,apopup
listappearsdisplayingtheprimarykeyvaluesfromthecorresponding
checktable(YCL_CH02_WAITM).ThisisshowninFigure260.Youcan
makeaselectionfromthislist.Thisfacilityisavailableforanyforeign
keyfieldonthescreen.Thepopuplistwithprimarykeyvaluesisa
rudimentaryselectionlist.Youwouldhavepreferred,inthepresent
context,forthenameofthewaitertoappearintheselectionlist.This
willbepossiblethroughtheDDICobjectSearchHelp.Ifyouenteravalue
inthefieldWAIT_NOotherthanthevaluesinthepopuplist(valuesin
thechecktable),anerrorconditionistriggered.Thisissobecauseyou
hadenabledintheforeignkeydialogboxthecheckboxCheckrequired.

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Figure260.PopupListofPrimaryKeyValuesforForeignKey
Fields

Afterenteringdataintoallthefields,save.PresstheResetbuttonto
clearfields.Createafewrows.Whenyouarefinished,clickthe
button(back/previousscreen)onthestandardtoolbarorpressfunction
keyF3toreturntotheSE16openingscreen.

Clicktheapplicationtoolbar

buttontoreviewtheentereddata.A

screenshotoftheentereddataisshowninFigure261.

Figure261.ViewandManipulateDatainTable
YCL_CH02_BILLH

DatainTableYCL_CH02_BILLI
CreatedatainthistablethroughtransactioncodeSE16.
Thescreenpromptsforthetablename.Enterthetablename
YCL_CH02_BILLI.Pressapplicationtoolbar

buttontocreate

entries.ThescreenshotofdataentryscreenisshowninFigure262.

Figure262.CreateDatainTableYCL_CH02_BILLI[SE16]

Afterenteringdataintoallthefields,save.PresstheResetbuttonto
clearfields.IfyouenterBILL_NOandITEM_CODEintheforeignkey
fieldsavalueotherthanthevaluesinthepopuplist(valuesinthecheck
tables),anerrorconditionistriggered.Createafewrows.Whenyouare
finished,clickthe

button(back/previousscreen)onthestandard

toolbarorpressfunctionkeyF3toreturntotheSE16openingscreen.

Clicktheapplicationtoolbar

buttontoreviewtheentereddata.A

screenshotoftheentereddataisshowninFigure263.

Figure263.ViewandManipulateDatainTable
YCL_CH02_BILLI

TherearetwoforeignkeyfieldsinthetableYCL_CH02_BILLI(i.e.,
BILLI_NOandITEM_CODE.Ineachofthesefields,whenyoupress
functionkeyF4,apopuplistwillappear(rudimentaryselectionlist)
displayingtheprimarykeyfieldfromtherespectivechecktables.When
youmakeaselection,theprimarykeyvaluefromthelistisreturnedto

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theforeignkeyfieldonthescreen.
InthecaseofthefieldBILL_NO,itwouldbedesirabletohaveaselection
listthatdisplaysBILL_NO,BILL_DATE,WAIT_NO,orTABL_NO
insteadofjusttheBILL_NO.
AndinthecaseofthefieldITEM_CODE,itwoulddesirabletohavea
selectionlistthatnotonlydisplaysITEM_CODE,ITEM_DESC,and
RATE,butassignsthevalueofRATEfieldfromthelistoftheselected
ITEM_CODEtothescreenfield.Thiswillbeimplementedwhenthe
DDICobjectsearchhelpinthenextchapter(Chapter3)iscovered.
YouarenowenteringthedataforthetwotablesYCL_CH02_BILLHand
YCL_CH02_BILLiseparatelythroughseparatedialogboxes.Thetwo
tablescontaindataofthesamecategoryofdocument(i.e.,restaurant
bill).Inreallifescenarios,acomplexABAPprogramwouldbecreatedto
enterdataofbusinessdocumentsthatmaptotwoormoreRDBMStables.
ForeignKeyRelationshipDialogBoxAgain
Whenyouestablishafieldaspartofaforeignkey(multiplefields
constitutingtheforeignkey),youhavetheoptiontoomitfield/sfromthe
checkprocedure.YoucandothisbyenablingtheGenericcheckboxof
thisfieldintheForeignKeyFieldsareaundertheGenerateproposal
button.Theeffectofthisisthatwhenvaluesareenteredintheforeign
keyfields,acheckisperformedwhethertheenteredsetofforeignkey
valuesexistinthechecktablethisfieldisomittedinthecheck.
Similarly,youhavetheoptiontoenteraconstantvaluefortheforeign
keyfieldbyenteringtheconstantvalueinthefieldConstant,nexttothe
Genericcheckbox.Thisconstantvalueshouldbeavalidoneandmust
existinthechecktable
IntheForeignKeyrelationshipdialogboxSemanticattributesarea,(at
thebottom),therearethefourradiobuttons:
NotSpecified
Nonkeyfields/candidates(Theforeignkeyfieldsarenot
partoftheprimarykeyinthecurrenttable)
Keyfields/candidates(Theforeignkeyfieldsarepartofthe
primarykeyinthecurrenttable)
Keyfieldsofatexttable(Iftheprimarykeyofthecurrent
tablediffersfromtheprimarykeyoftheChecktableonlyin
termsofanadditionallanguagecodefield,thisradio
buttonneedstobeenabled)
Theenablingofoneoftheseradiobuttonsalongwiththecardinality
servesdocumentarypurposesonlyexceptintwocontexts:
1. Inatexttable,forthecodefield,theradiobuttonKeyfieldsofa
texttableshouldbeenabled.Thisisoneindicationtothesystem
thatthisisatexttableapartfromtheDDICDataTypeLANGfield
precedingthecodefieldandformingpartoftheprimarykey.
2. Incaseofthetablebeingusedinmaintenance,helpview,the
informationofcardinalityandthesemanticattributesisusedby
thesystem.
Atablewithagenerickeyfieldcouldbelocated.Atablewithaconstant
keyfieldwasnotabletobelocated.
Theabovedescriptionsareinthescreenshot(Figure264).

Figure264.Table:BUT000_TDwithGenericKeyField
CLIENT

TextTables
Shorttexts(textlength<=255characters)arerequiredtobemaintained
intheSAPfunctionalmodulestablesandrelatedtables.Somevery
commoninstances:textsofcurrencynames(tableTCURT),textsof
countrynames,(tableT005T),textsofstate/province/regionnames
(tableT005U),materialdescriptions(tableMAKT),andsoon.These
tablesstoringtextsarecalledtexttables.Thetextshavetobemaintained
inmultiplelanguages.Thusthelanguagecodehastobeapartofthe
primarykeyofthetexttables.Thelanguagecodefieldisassignedthe

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DDICDataTypeLANG.Mostofthetexttableshavethelanguagecode
fieldofDataTypeLANGnamedasSPRAS.Andmostofthetexttable
namesendwiththeletterT.
Thesetexttablesareforeignkeytablestotherespectivechecktables
wherethecodesarestored:currencycodes,countrycodes,
state/province/regioncodes,materialcodes,etc.Thesecodefieldsare
foreignkeyfieldsaswellaspartoftheprimarykeyinthetexttables.The
primarykeyfieldsinthetexttablesareintheorderMANDT,<language
codefield>,and<codefield1>[<codefield2>.].Therecanbemorethan
onecodefieldlikeintableT005U(LAND1&BLAND).Onlyclient
dependenttablesarebeingconsidered.
Youcanconfirmthiswiththetablesmentionedearlier:TCURT,T005T,
T005U,andMAKT.
Youcanconfirmoneotherthing.Whenyoubrowsethedataofthecheck
tableofthesetexttables:TCURC/T005/T005S/MARA(eitherinSE11or
SE16),thetextsordescriptionsappearintheloggedinlanguage
automatically.
YoucouldfaceaproblemwithtableT005.Thetextsmightnotappear.If
thisisso,intherestrictiveorfilterdialogboxprecedingthedatabrowser
window,enteravalue>=1000inthefieldWidthofOutputListabovethe
fieldMaximumNo.ofHits.Bydefaultthevaluesinthesetwofieldsis
250and200respectively.Bydefaultthewidthofoutputis250columns,
andthemaximumnumberofrowsoutputis200.Thenumberoffieldsin
thetableT005aremanyalso(65)fieldtitlesareverylong,henceyou
needtheoutputwidthtobe>=1000columns.
Recapitulation:Domains,DataElements,andTables
Youstartedwiththerestaurantbill.Youwantedtostoretherestaurant
billandrelateddataintheSAPsystem.Youidentifiedthefourtablesto
storetherestaurantbillandrelateddata.Youidentifiedfieldsineach
table.YouassignedtheDDICDataTypeandlengthtothesefields.You
identifiedtablerelationships.YoucreatedanERdiagram.
YoumadeasummarylistofDDICDataTypesandlengthsinthefour
tables.YouidentifiedthissummarylistofDDICDataTypesandlengths
asminimumnumberofdomainstobecreated.Youmappedthissummary
listtodomains.
Youmadeasummarylistofthefieldsinthefourtables.Thissummarylist
offields,youmappedtothedataelements.
YouadoptedanamingconventiontocreateDDICobjects.
First,youcreateddomainsnextyoucreateddataelementsandfinally
thetables.
Youcreatedafewentriesineachofthesetablesthroughthetable
maintenancedialogboxgeneratedforeachtableautomaticallywhenthe
tableisactivated.
Youreviewedthedatainthetables.
Thewholeelaborateexercisewasdonetogetafirsthandexposureto
thesethreeDDICobjects.InsteadofcreatingtheDDICobjectsina
randomandhypotheticalfashion,youadoptedasimplerealworld
scenarioandcreatedthesethreeDDICobjectsinthecontextofthe
scenario.
YouwillnowproceedtolearntheothertwoDDICobjectsinthenext
chapter:ViewsandSearchhelps.
_____________
1

ForadetailedtheoreticaltreatmentoftheDDIC,downloadBC

ABAPDictionaryfrom
http://help.sap.com/printdocu/core/print46c/en/data/pdf/bcdwbdic/bcdwbdic.pdf
(http://help.sap.com/printdocu/core/print46c/en/data/pdf/bcdwbdic/bcdwbdic.pdf).

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