SAP Business Information Warehouse

1. SAP Business Information Warehouse Business Explorer – Web Application (BEX_300)

2. Objective This course is intended to familiarize users with the SAP Business Information Warehouse (BW): Business Explorer-Web Application (BEx-Web) environment. After attending this class, you should be able to run, modify and save your BEx Reports. You will be tested at the end of class on these functions.

3. Business Information Warehouse(Overview) This is the Business Information Warehouse, also known as BW, which is like our current Data Warehouse in Oracle. Most of data we will be using is coming from R/3 (the SAP solution to replace our current mainframe environment) and imported into BW and placed either in an ODS (Operational Data Store); which is equivalent to a flat file, or an InfoCube; which is summarized data. We are coming in through the Enterprise Portal to get to Business Explorer (BEx) to produce reports from BW. There are other third party tools; like WebFOCUS, SAS, Crystal, … that can also be used to produce reports from the BW data… for an extra cost. The third-party tools, we know are being talked about, are WebFOCUS and SAS… at this time, we only have BEx going against the BW data.

4. Web browsers that support DOM level 2 (with dynamic generation of DOM objects), ECMA-262 script, HTML 4.0, and CSS 1.0. The reference Web browsers are the Microsoft Internet Explorer (MS IE) and the Netscape Navigator (NS) in the current Windows implementations (MS IE 6.x and NS 6.x). Instances of these Web browsers on other systems, for example, Apple Macintosh or Linux, may behave differently. An Active Directory Services Account (domain is ad or mc) from IT User Accounts that is used to log onto the Enterprise Portal to get to SAP. (This is the same account used with Outlook and Microsoft Exchange) What is Required to Access BEx-Web?

5. What Version of Internet Explorer is on your PC? • Start an Internet Explorer session • At the top of the window on the toolbar, click Help. • Select “About Internet Explorer” • The version number is displayed. If it is not equal to or greater than 6.0, contact your technical support person.

6. Activating Your Active Directory Services Account The following must be done the first time an Active Directory Services account is used: • From the UK Home page, click the Exchange Link and then Change Password • Put in your “Account” (userid), “Old password”, “New password”, “Confirm new password” (retype “New password”) • Click the “OK” button Your AD password expires 90 days after it has been changed

7. myUK • Log onto myUK, the Enterprise Portal(https://epsbx.iris.uky.edu/irj/portal) • Key in your Active Directory Services User Id and Password • Log on

8. Getting Through the Portal Your portal might look different, depending on your SAP access or Role. The portal is a work in progress… it will be changing. Click the Reporting Link under Sandbox

9. BEx Reporting Query Selection Here is where all your available queries/reports are located • Favorites – Nothing will be showing in Favorites from BEx-Web • Role Based Queries– Everyone that has your role/access will see the same queries in this area

10. Filters: Required Variables Required variables are those listed with an asterisk on the end of the name. The other variables help to limit your report to what you really need. The more variables you can put in the better the performance; in other words, your report comes back quicker.

11. Filters: Multiple Selections With Multiple Selections you have choices on how to select your criteria. • You can choose: the operator, equal, range, less than or equal to, greater than, greater than or equal to, less than, wildcard, and not equal to. • You can choose the variable from the Selection Button • You can choose to Include or Exclude the filter selection • You can choose to add selections for this variable by clicking on Insert Row

12. Filters: Range Selection A range selection has a “from” area and a “to” area, with a “Selection Button” for each. You can use this as a single selection if you have the same value in both boxes.

13. Filters: Single Selection With a single selection, you will be able to choose one entry from the selection list for this variable.

14. Filters: Selections Here are part of the available entries for the variable Fiscal Year/Period. Only “Part”, because of “The Next 25 Values” button. You have the choice to “Select All” of the values on this list OR just specific ones OR change your mind and “Deselect All” OR fine tune your selection options by doing a “Find”.

15. Filters: Selections • Click in the box next to “Find” and use the asterisk as a wildcard/place holder. • To find the valid entries for the fiscal year 2005 put in ‘*2005’ and click on “Find”. • You can now “Select All” or check the ones you want. • When you have what you want, click the “Transfer” button.

16. Filters: Personalization • Fill in the required filters • If you find yourself filling in the same criteria for a variable, across multiple queries – not just the current one, you can set a personalization on the variable so the variable will be set for every query that uses that variable.

17. Filters: Personalization • For example, if you fill in the range for Funds Center and always select “1058717100” to “1058735600” , as the group of Funds Centers you run reports for, right-click the “Personalization” icon and select personalize. The screen flickers and Funds Center disappears. • To see Funds Center again, click on “All” to see all the variables. The icon has changed and you can now change the variable for “this run”; otherwise it will stay the way you set it. To re-hide, click the new button at the bottom “Free”.

18. Filters: Check and Execute • The “Check” button is useful when you type in your filter and want to make sure your entries are valid before running your query. • To run the query, click the “Execute” button.

19. BEx-Web Report • Data Analysis • Graphical Display • Information

20. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis • Make note of the message “Validity of Data:”. This gives you a quick reference to know when the data was last updated. • If it is not up to date – as of late last night or earlier this morning, you can hit “refresh” to refresh the data generated by the query.

21. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis You have a list of what the Rows and Columns are and also Free Characteristics. Free Characteristics are fields that are available to use in your report that are not in the initial report. All of the fields in the list on the left can be used for drill-down, to drill-across and to apply a filter.

22. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Drill-downs Drill-downs create breakdown of data by rows If you want to see the data by GL Account, click on the icon with the down arrow.

23. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Drill-across Drill-across creates breakdown of data by columns If you want to see the data by “Value type in FM”, click on the icon with the arrow pointing to the right.

24. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Filters You can add additional filters to your report to get the data you are really looking for. If you want to see a particular “Funded Program” apply the filter and the report updates. Take a look at “Funded Program” in the Free Characteristics. It now reflects what you selected.

25. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Context Menus The Context Menu can be different depending on what you right-click on to bring up the menu. Rows, Columns, Free Characteristics, Characteristic Column headers, Characteristic value (Characteristics are not amounts), Key Figure headers and Key Figure values (Key Figures are amounts). So, Characteristics describe what the Key Figures are. There are two different types of Context Menus, Basic and Enhanced.

26. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Context Menus Rows Columns Basic Enhanced Basic Enhanced

27. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Context Menus Free Characteristics Basic Enhanced

28. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Context Menus Characteristic Header Characteristic Value Basic Enhanced Basic Enhanced

29. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Context Menus Key Figure Header Key Figure Value Basic Enhanced Basic Enhanced

30. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save View When you have your report the way you would like to see it on a regular basis, you can save the settings (not the data) with the “Save View” Button. Views are shared…. Everyone that has access to this same query can run your saved view, but they cannot change or overwrite your saved view. They will be able to modify their own version and save it with a new unique Technical Name.

31. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save View “Description”, max. number of characters are 60, make it as descriptive to you as possible. We are suggesting the following guideline for your description: your userid: description Example - BKMCC03: Budget & Actuals by FYR by G/L We would further suggest the ‘BY’ and ‘FOR’ principle, to apply after your userid: BUD/ACT BY FUND, FCTR FOR F/AREA 1000 - where BY indicates the drilled-down field, and FOR the filter.

32. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save View “Technical Name”, max. number of characters are 30, there is a naming convention for technical names for views, this is… • ‘Z’, your userid, then add an underscore, and finally the next available view number.

33. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save View • Put a “Z” in “Technical Name” box • Put in your Active Directory Services UserID (do not include ad\ or mc\) • At the end of your userid, put in an underscore • Put in the next available view number for this query, starting with 0001. Examples ZBKMCC03_0001 and Zdclaunch_0005 • Click “Save” button

34. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save View The purpose of the naming standard is to assist in identifying the views you have saved, using the suggested naming standard will quickly identify the person who saved the view and make it easier to find your next view number. Since technical names have to be unique in the SAP BW system, you will need to keep track of your next view number. There is a spreadsheet on the SAP BW link, https://reporting.uky.edu/BWReports/BWRptTracking.xls, which you can download to your desktop to assist in keeping track of your saved views. If you decide not to use the spreadsheet, you can still find your next view number by going to Open View.

35. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Open View To check existing views, click on “Open View”. By default on the “Choose a View” window, your Display: is “History”. Check each of the views by either moving your cursor over each one slowly (the technical name will appear) or click on each one (the technical name will display in the Selected Object: box.) You can use the drop-down on Display: and choose Roles, where you can see all the views saved by everyone who has the same access you do per role. You will need to expand each role and check for your views and note the view numbers until you can determine what the next available number is. Using the suggested view Description standard (detailed previously) will make this process much easier. Expand your role(s) by clicking on the small black arrows until you see the views that have been created.

36. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Open View In Roles, you will be able to see all the views created on each query. -- So you can share -- Maybe someone already created a view you can also use -- Find your views and run your mouse over slowly or click each view to determine which view number is available Click “Cancel” when you know what the next available number is.

37. BEx-Web ReportData Analysis: Save & Open View Once you save a view, it cannot be changed or overwritten by anyone (including yourself) – the only exception is the BW Support Staff. If you want to make a change to an existing saved view, you must re-save the view and give it a new technical name. If you no longer need a view, send email to the BW Support Staff, BWRequests@email.uky.edu, and specify what view you would like to have deleted. Make sure to include the ‘Technical Name’ of the view in your request. Deleting views no longer needed will help to keep the unwanted views from cluttering up the system. After the view is deleted, you can reuse the technical name, so you may also want to note the deletion in your spreadsheet. Click Open View again and take a look at the Roles. You will be able to see the new view you just saved in Roles and in History.

38. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Variable Screen The “Variable Screen” button takes you to the “Variables for Ad-hoc Report” screen so you can change the parameters for the initial view of the report. Click “Execute” when you have finished making changes.

39. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions & Conditions

40. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions Exceptions allows you to put on and take off the coloring of cells that meet specified criteria. You can Activate and Deactivate by clicking the red & green icon. There may be some Exceptions and Conditions supplied with the query… maybe not, but you can create your own.

41. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions To see what an existing Exception looks like, right-click the Exception and select display

42. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions To create your own “Exceptions”, click the “Create” button

43. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions • Put in a “Description” • Select which field is to be watched or color coded • Select how the data is to be compared; Greater Than, Less Than, Between, … • Fill in the next two boxes with the number or numbers that fit the comparison; Greater Than 100, Between 50 100, … • Select the problem level. Levels which tell you by color, how bad or good the field is. • Good 1, 2 and 3 • Critical 1, 2 and 3 • Bad 1, 2 and 3 • Click on Transfer

44. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Conditions Conditions allows you to change the report depending on specified criteria. For instance, if you want the top 10 “Actuals". • Text (name/description): Top 10 Actuals • At the bottom, Display all values... Check box • From drop-down select “Actuals” • From the next drop-down, select “Top Number” (you can see what the other possibilities are) • In the first box, put in “10” • Click “Transfer”

45. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Exceptions & Conditions Your newly created Exceptions and Conditions can be saved as a view and kept; otherwise, they will go away.

46. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Notes “Notes” are global documentation and specific to the initial query… they can be seen and changed by everyone who has the role where the query is located. This can come in handy to relay information about a particular query. Remember, if you save a view and add “Notes” to your view, you have also added it to the query in the role.

47. BEx-Web Report Data Analysis: Export to Excel & CSV You can export your report to an Excel Spreadsheet or a CSV (comma-delimited) file. This is handy if you want to use the data in Access, Crystal, Brio … .

48. BEx-Web Report Graphical Display The “Graphical Display” tab shows you what the current report from the “Data Analysis” tab looks like as a graph.

49. BEx-Web Report Graphical Display: Display as … You can choose how you would like to see your graph

50. BEx-Web Report Graphical Display: Swap Axes