This Detailed Tutorial Covers SAP GUI and SAP Navigation Along with Simple Tips and Tricks to Help the Users Navigate SAP System in a User-Friendly Manner:
We had an overview of ERP and SAP systems in our previous tutorial. In this tutorial, we will walk you through Basic Navigation of SAP GUI Software along with SAP Tips & Tricks.
Let’s start!!
Table of Contents:
Starting The SAP Application
A first time user of SAP has to configure the server details to which he/she wants to connect.
Follow the below steps to configure the server:
Click on SAP logon i.e. Start -> Programs -> SAP Logon or SAP Logon icon which you will find as a shortcut on your system desktop.
Server Configuration: Follow the below steps after SAP Logon, to configure a new Server Connection.
#1) Click on SAP Logon and the below SAP window will open. Click on the Connections ->New.
#2) Once the user clicks on New, the window shown below will appear. Here, the user has to provide the server details to which the user wants to connect and click OK.
#3) Server configuration is completed and the user will be able to see the server details under all the existing connections.
SAP Logon Screen: With a valid connection server, the user will navigate to the “security logon screen”.
Client: Enter the designated client that will perform your intended activities within. It is possible for multiple clients to exist i.e. SAP server-production client, Test client, Training clients, etc. Make sure you choose the right client for the activity that you will be conducting.
User/Password: The new user has to enter their first-time login credentials assigned by the security team of the SAP server. Later the user will be prompted to change the password.
Language: As SAP is an application with worldwide use, you can specify the language that you want to use while working with the system. ”EN” would signify the English language.
The user must press Enter once the user inputs the security Logon screen Information. SAP will validate your entries and will move you to the next screen.
Password Maintenance: As already mentioned, as soon as you log in with your initial login Credentials, SAP will prompt the user to change the password, where the user has to enter the “New Password” based on the standard password maintenance requirement. Press Enter or the green tick on the popup window and the password will be successfully changed.
SAP Screen Display And Screen Control
Status Bar: At the bottom of every SAP screen, the user will find the status bar that provides information about the user’s current SAP session. The largest portion of the bar is reserved for messaging. In addition to messages, the status bar also provides useful session statistics displayed at the rightmost portion of the bar.
The following list will brief you why these bits of information are so useful.
- System Number: This three-character element which is also referred to as the instance number, tells the user which particular SAP system the user is accessing. Here in the above screen “ALR” refers to the system number
- Session Number: This element tells the user which session the user is working on during their current login. In SAP, the user can operate multiple sessions from the same host logon. If this number is anything other than a 1, then the user will get to know that they are working on alternate sessions. Here “2” refers to the session number.
- Client Number: This is the client number that is specified when you are logged on. Here as per the above screen, 006 refers to the client number. It helps the user to confirm that the user has accessed the appropriate client.
- Server Name: The server name tells the user which server they are connected to for this SAP session.
- Screen Mode: Just, like the other applications, SAP also operates in an Overwrite (OVR) or Insert (INS) mode when data is being entered on the screen. If ever a user cannot find the information to enter in the SAP field, then check your screen mode.
Standard Toolbar: Standard toolbar helps a user to access the SAP Application more quickly using standard icons like “Save”, “Back”, “Exit”, “Cancel”, ”Print”, ”Find” ,”Find Next”, ”Page up”, “Page down”, “Help” etc.
Application Toolbar: The Application toolbar gives you the icons and buttons specific to the business transactions taking place within the screen.
Command Field: The little white window at the left side of the standard toolbar is the command field in SAP that will take you directly to the application Screen without using menu Navigation with the use of the Transaction code (t-code).
Some of the common commands that you will use in the command field are:
- /n tells SAP to leave the current transaction area where you are and start a new transaction. The t-code you enter tells SAP which new T code the user wants to execute and if the user does not specify the t-code, then SAP navigates the user to the SAP Main Screen.
- /o opens a new SAP session in the application area specified by the t code following the command. The application session the user had running continues exactly where it is. The /o command opens an additional SAP window for the user but still, it is associated with the user’s active server logon.
- /I is another way to close the SAP Session or logon. If you enter /I without any specified argument, then SAP will take you out of the application area where the user is and close the SAP session.
Command Line History List: When the user positions their mouse pointer in the command field, the user will see a down arrow towards the right of the field. Click on it. SAP will list all the commands that you have entered in all your sessions within your active logon.
If a user uses certain commands repeatedly during an active session, then just click on the down arrow, click on the command in the history list that you want to execute, and press Enter. SAP will take the user to the main screen associated with that t- code.
Alternate way to run the Transaction code: SAP provides an alternate way to run the t-code using “Application Test Utility” where the user can give the transaction code and SAP will navigate the user to the initial screen of the particular t-code. Put the t-code as “YYYY” in the command line of the “Application Test Utility” screen.
Put the t-code that you need to execute, and click on execute.
This alternate way of executing the t-code helps the user and sometimes while executing the t-code from the command line, the user gets an authorization error.
Application Messages: There are several types of messages that SAP throws to make the user aware and take corrective action according to the message.
Enlisted below are some of the standard types of SAP message that a user gets frequently:
- I (information): This type of message needs to be acknowledged by the user to make them aware. Just press “Enter” to move on.
- W (Warning): This type of message makes a user aware, that there is some info that needs to be updated. For Example, The billing date of the document is in the past. However it will not stop the user from processing, the user just needs to Press” Enter” to move on next.
- E (Error): This type of message stops a user from further processing until the corrective action is not taken by the user towards it.
- A (Abort): These system messages stop the system from further processing.
SAP Tips And Tricks
Adding the Transaction Code to Favorites: If a user is frequently using a t-code, then the user can add those t-codes to “Favorites”.
- Right-click on “Favorites” and click on Insert Transaction.
- Enter the t-code that the user wants to add to favorites and click “OK”.
Display of T-codes in SAP Menu: This will increase the navigation speed of a user, if they remember the transaction code (T-Code) for a particular transaction.
Follow the below steps for the system to enable t-codes in the menu tree:
- Menu Path: Extras -> Settings -> The below settings window will open.
- Enable “Display Technical Names”
- T-Code Displayed
Finding the T-code in the SAP Menu: If a user wants to find about the function module or area where a particular T-code falls under, then follow the below steps in the Menu Tree:
- Press Ctrl+F, and enter the t-code name. Enable both the “in text” checkbox and “In Technical Name” checkbox.
- Click “Find”.
Set Start Transaction: If a user wants to set their “SAP logon icon”, it navigates them directly to the particular t-code screen.
Follow Menu Path:
- Extras -> Set Start Transaction, Enter the T-code say FB02 in the dialog box and click “Enter”.
The user’s Start Transaction has been set up, next time whenever the user will log in to SAP, they will directly navigate to the initial screen of FB02 (Change Document).
Finding the Roles assigned to a Particular User: This is important when a new member wants similar roles in their profile just like the other existing members of the team.
T code to find the roles assigned to a particular user: SUIM
- Open transaction SUIM -> Roles -> Click on “By User Assignment”
- Input the User id and execute (F8).
- User roles will be displayed as shown below.
Conclusion
In this tutorial, we learned about SAP GUI and SAP navigation along with the short tricks of the SAP system that will help any user to better understand and explore the SAP system in a user-friendly manner.
Stay Tuned!!