The Refresh
TM-TMS (Transport Manager)
The maturity and performance of automation tools for SAP system copying have evolved over a period of more than 15 years. The first tools for SAP system copy creation came from the mainframe environment.
In SAP, the admin must be happy to build new landscapes so that testing, development and enhancement can take place. In a system copy, the approaches are as colorful and varied as the philosophies of the administrators. The important thing is to think about the target system before building it. After all, after the database is removed and the system is rebuilt, there will be two identical systems on the network.
Types of SAP system copy
The task of a system copy created for updates is a carefully integrated system that takes on a specific role in an SAP system landscape. That is why customizing the SAP database of the target system differs significantly from customizing the database of the production system. In a system copy-based update, the database of the target system is completely overwritten with the contents of the production system. Therefore, all SAP-specific customization of the target system must be performed after the update with the system copy. The pre- and post-processing is often performed manually while the target system is running. Specific SAP transactions are used to customize the system. Execution can take a long time and is a source of human error. To automate most transactions, UC4 Automated System Copy for SAP can also be used. Before the update, UC4 Automated System Copy takes care of downloading the required content for the SAP customization from the target system and after the update is complete, uploading the content back to the system.
Database: For some databases (MS SQL Server) there is the possibility to copy the database files and reattach them on the target system. For the following SAP installation you only have to specify that no SAP loads should be used, but that the database is already there!
With "Shortcut for SAP Systems" any tables can be saved and restored. This is especially useful in the context of an SAP system copy - quite a few tables are system-specific and must exist unchanged in the system after a system copy.Shortcut for SAP Systems uses R3trans - a utility from SAP that is essentially used in the Transport Management System (TMS) environment. With "Shortcut for SAP Systems" it is now also available outside the TMS and enables completely new and diverse application possibilities. Among others in the environment of a system copy. R3trans works database independent. I.e. even in the case of a system refresh from an SAP system with an Oracle DB to a system with HANA, the backup and restore process works!
In addition to this area of activity, additional automation tools are also available, for example up to the creation of sandboxes, which provide valuable services.
To update the non-productive systems of an SAP landscape, the data must be cloned from the productive system.