keys to apo administration

SAPtips 2003 Klee Associates, Inc.

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Editor's Note: Getting the mostout of APO is not as simple ashiring a couple of talented func-tional experts. As APO consult-ant Shaun Snapp has seen first-hand, APO has its own technicaltools, such as LiveCache andCIF, that do not exist in otherR/3 products. These tools pres-ent unique opportunities forcompanies to leverage their APOinvestment, but they also createsome specific technical chal-lenges. In this excellent overviewof APO technical issues, Shaunexplains why the data flow inAPO is a bit different than inR/3, and he outlines the techni-cal tools that SAP has madeavailable to APO users in orderto optimize APO.

IntroductionOften APO projects

begin as an extension ofR/3 projects. Given thisheritage, APO projectsare often managed by thepreviously existing R/3consulting or client struc-ture. The resources of theexisting R/3 infrastruc-ture team are commonlydeemed to be sufficient tohandle any APO Basisand infrastructure issues,since it is consideredanother SAP permuta-tion. Therefore, most ofthe staffing focus shifts tolooking for DP, SNP,PP/DS, and gATP func-tional consultants.Having obtained theseresources, the projectmanager may think his or

her staffing is complete; in mostcases, this is not a correct assump-tion. This article will explain themultiple skills that are required toappropriately manage the admin-istration and infrastructure of anAPO implementation, and intro-duce some of the key transactionsas well. This should provide proj-ect managers new to APO a leg upin staffing and budgeting theirAPO project accordingly.

APO and DataManagement

SAP has put a great deal ofemphasis on making R/3 com-pletely integrated and having itsvarious databases automaticallyand continuously in synch withone another. R/3 is a transactionprocessing system, and therefore

the rules for consistency areinherent within the product. APOis different. I It is not the systemof record, and it follows a plan-ning paradigm in its data struc-ture and data management. Mostimportantly, the data leaves R/3entirely in order to be processedin APO. R/3 is only updated afterAPO has completed its processingand has made the necessary plan-ning decisions. This data flowcreates extra challenges that donot exist within the R/3 OLTPspace.

The APO system uses a varietyof data objects in order to produceits results. These objects can beadministered and viewed fromAdministrator Workbench, trans-action RSA1 (See Figure 1).

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Keys to APO Administration:The Technical Skills Your APO Project Needs

By Shaun Snapp, Supply Chain Consulting

Figure 1: Administrator Workbench, RSA1


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APO and R/3 SkillsWhile APO systems share

a similar Basis and ABAPinfrastructure with R/3,there are significant admin-istration components toAPO which are not used inR/3, and in which an R/3Basis resource would notnormally have experience.

This list includes the following:

1.LiveCache (APO is thefirst product to useLiveCache technology)

2. DBM GUI manager(the SAP open sourceAPO database admin-istration clientanoptional componentthat can add somegood productivity toadmin tasks)

3a. CIF (the standard integra-tion package for APO)

3b. CIF, R/3, and ExternalIntegration

4. APO DP Data Management

5. APO Optimizers

6. Landscape (e.g. APO hard-ware sizing and networkingbetween the various APOservers)

Let's take a closer look at eachof these new technical components.

1. LiveCache, and the APO DB One of the important distinc-

tions between APO and R/3, froman administration perspective, isLiveCache. LiveCache is a com-plex product that is made up of a

number of components includingSQL, Input-Output Cache, theOperations Management System(OMS), and part of the SAP DBtechnology1. Many of APO's capa-bilities in handling volume plan-ning loads stem from LiveCache's

sophisticated components.LiveCache moves the APO datainto a separate memory/databasearea distinct from the APO data-base. LiveCache also provides theoption of setting data checkpointsthat allow you to recover the stateof your APO system in the eventof a crash. This brings up theissue of the internal consistency,that is, the consistency betweenLiveCache and the APO database.

To maintain the internal consis-tency between LiveCache and theAPO DB, your first line of defensewill be LiveCache monitoringtools such as /SAPAPO/LC10(Figure 2), and /SAPAPO/OM17(Consistency Check, Figure 3).

Another tool that you will wantto investigate for data administra-tion, and that may not be in thetoolkit of your R/3 Basis adminis-trator, is the DBM GUI.

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One of the important

distinctions between

APO and R/3, from an

administration

perspective,

is LiveCache.

1 SAP APO System Administration, Liane Will, SAP Press, Germany, 2003.

Figure 2: LiveCache Monitor Screen (/SAPAPO/LC10)


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2. DBM GUIThe DBM GUI gives you display

and database administra-tion capability over theAPO DB and LiveCache ina more direct way thangoing through the SAPGUI.It is somewhat of a depar-ture philosophically forSAP from performing alladmin functions within theSAPGUI. In many cases,this tool can be a fast alter-native to the resident APOadmin tools, particularlywhen you receive a cleanbill of health on yourLiveCache ConsistencyCheck, yet you continue toreceive data error mes-sages. The DBM GUI isopen source (approved bySAP, however) and avail-able for download ath t t p : / / w w w. s a p d b . o r g /sap_db_downloads.htm.

These tools provide your projectwith internal data consistency

checking; and, in conjunc-tion with the CIF interface,external data consistencybetween R/3 and APO canbe achieved as well.

3a. CIF and R/3Integration

The CIF (CoreInterface) is another termthat will be new to an R/3Basis resource. The CIFdeals with the loadingand consistency betweenthe R/3 system and APO.The specific transactionfor this is /SAPAPO/CCR(see Figure 4).

The CIF works off of theestablished ALE technolo-gy, and is configured fromthe R/3 side (althoughmany monitoring toolsreside in APO). Those con-

sultants with significant ALEexperience will not have far to

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Figure 3: LiveCache Monitor Screen (/SAPAPO/OM17)

Figure 4: CIF Consistency /SAPAPO/CCR Screen


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come in adapting their skillsto both CIF queuing and theintegration model develop-ment. SAP recommends cre-ating a number of CIF inte-gration models in order tooptimize performance.These models must be cre-ated, deleted, and altered inorder to meet the perform-ance and functionalityrequirements of the project.You can define the integra-tion model you're planningto use with transaction(CFM1) (see Figure 5).

This process requiresmodel creation, deletion,and general model mainte-nance skills. The CIF has aseries of tables into whichdata is imported from R/3,via transaction SE80 (seeFigure 6).

There is also monitoring work tobe done in maintenance of the

queues (performed with the qRFCMonitor (Figure 7) and SCM QueueManager, among other tools).

3b. CIF, R/3, and ExternalIntegration

The CIF will not encompass allof your integration needs,even if R/3 is the only OLTPsystem that you are using.Some of the data that isrequired by APO will notreside in R/3, but is onlymaintained in APO.Although the CIF interfacetRFCs will carry the data tothe appropriate location inAPO, either a third partysystem will have to providedownloads, or externalmaster data will have to becreated manually. Either allof these fields must bemapped to pre-configuredBAPIs or logical data inte-gration data structures willhave to be created. TheLegacy System MigrationWorkbench (transactionLSMW) is a handy add-onto R/3 that will allow yourteam to perform logicalO

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Figure 5: Define the Integration Model (CFM1) (in R/3)

Figure 6: The CIF Tables Transaction SE80


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mapping without writing code.This is something your presentSAP infrastructure team shouldbe well versed in doing.

4. APO DP DataManagement

DP is the most data andadministrative intensive ofthe APO modules. In bothdata volumes and data com-plexity and archiving,Demand Planning has signifi-cant needs and capabilitiesnot seen in the other APOmodules. Every APO instancehas a complete instance of theBusiness Warehouse (BW),which is used specifically forAPO tasks. Historical data istransferred into APO throughthe extraction programs with-in this APO BW. While thebusiness uses of the DP mod-ule and the BW are different,the administration employs asimilar toolkit.

All of this means that in addi-tion to significant consultingresources on the business side of

Demand Planning, there isalso a considerable back-endadministration componentfor DP, which includes creat-ing and maintaining variousDP data structures, (updates,structure deletions, andarchiving). A skilled APOinfrastructure resource willbe able to select the optimaldata repositories (such asInfoCubes, Operational DataStructures, and so on) tofully support your DP busi-ness users.

5. APO OptimizersThe heart of APO is its opti-

mizers. A little known aspectof APO, these optimizers areactually produced by the well-respected operations researchfirm ILOG http://www.ilog.com/.These optimizers, which formthe "brains" of APO, are

SNP, CTM, PP/DS, ND, ModelMix and Vehicle Scheduling, andRouting and Sequencing. (DP

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Figure 7: qRFC Outbound Monitor /SAPAPO/CW

Figure 8: Checking RFC Connections SM59


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has no optimizer, as it isnot solving a constrainedproblem, but rather apply-ing formula to data series.)Your standard functionalAPO resource should beexpected to configure theparameters that feed theseoptimizers, but be awarethat APO is a very broadproduct. A resource willrarely understand all ofAPO's optimizers. Theoptimizers will typicallyrequire their own serverand thus require someback-end administration.In particular, the use of thePP/DS optimizer bringscertain network complexi-ties that are better handledby an experienced resourcein this area. Some usefultransactions include SM59(Figure 8) for checking the RFCconnections to the various opti-mizers, and /SAPAPO/COPT00(Figure 9) for checking the avail-ability of the optimizers.

6. Landscape (e.g. APO hard-ware sizing and networkingbetween the various APOservers)

Finally, deep expertise in themanagement of the APO systems

landscape is quite important to asuccessful project. Planning systemsuse premium hardware, solve com-plex problems, and have high datatransfer rates between the planningareas and the transactional OLTPsystems. APO will typically run onthree servers: a LiveCache server,an APO server, and one server forthe optimizers (if you use the opti-mizers in your planning, which isnot mandatory however). While allthe details regarding system land-scape for APO are available athttp://www.service.sap.com, there issomething to be said for direct proj-ect experience in this area.

ConclusionHopefully you have received

the accurate impression that theextra complexity associated withAPO at the administration levelmakes it is necessary to at leastbudget projects with dedicatedtime for the APO administrationrole. Also, for prospective hiresdealing with APO administration(either permanent or contract), it

is important to make sure theapplicants you are interviewinghave project experience in theareas listed above. Optimally,you will find an APO resourcefresh from a project where he orshe worked in the APO areasspecified above. However, if youcannot find one with these skillsI listed, an R/3 Basis resourcecan pick up these skills duringthe project. But you'll need tohave budgeted extra time toallow that person to pick up thetools and tricks of APOAdministration before you relyon that resource to support a pro-duction APO environment.

Shaun Snapp, Senior APOConsultant. Shaun has worked insystems consulting since 1997.Having worked on large advancedplanning projects for 6 years, Shaunhas focused on SAP's AdvancedPlanner and Optimizer (APO) since2001. Shaun can be reached [email protected].

Figure 9: Checking the Availability of the Optimizers. /SAPAPO/COPT00

Optimally, you will

find an APO resource

fresh from a project

where he or she

worked in the APO

areas specified above.


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