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Following on from my previous blog post SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA – 3 simple use cases for Launchpad Content Aggregator, here are a few more you might find useful, particularly if you are upgrading to a higher SAP S/4HANA release.
This blog post is relevant for customers running SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition. For example customers running RISE with SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition, or SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition tailored option.
Hint: This blog post is also relevant for customers running the SAP S/4HANA product on other infrastructure such as on-premise server or hyperscaler.
IMPORTANT: These screenshots include some new features added in SAP S/4HANA 2023 and SAP S/4HANA 2023 FPS01, including new features added as explained in SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA - Composite Roles in launchpad content and layout tools.
In this blog post you will find:
- Hints on using the Launchpad Content Aggregator
- How to find the SAP Fiori apps and classic UIs assigned to a role
- Creating a consolidated list of your assigned SAP Fiori apps and classic UIs for the SAP Fiori Upgrade Impact Analysis
- Finding deprecated and obsolete apps and their successors
- Finding apps with errors and warnings
- Finding tile differences on upgrade between a source and target SAP S/4HANA release
- Comparing SAP Business Roles & SAP Business Catalogs to custom business roles & custom business catalogs
- Finding apps with OData V4 services
Hint: Classic UIs includes other content that is typically launched from the SAP Fiori launchpad - such as SAP GUI Transactions, ABAP Web Dynpro applications, and Web Client UIs.
Hint: The screenshots are taken from a SAP S/4HANA 2023 FPS01 Fully Activated trial system. Refer to SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA – Trial system options for Private Cloud and On-Premise
Hints on using the Launchpad Content Aggregator
These are a few hints to help you make the most of the Launchpad Content Aggregator.
You access the launchpad content aggregator using transaction /UI2/FLPCA. This transaction can be run from SAP GUI or launched from the SAP Fiori launchpad. You can include it in a custom business role if you wish.
The Launchpad Content Aggregator contains a lot of columns. You will usually want to adjust the displayed columns depending on your use case.
Select Change Layout to adjust the layout. You will find these in the
You can also use:
- Save Layout to save your layout
- Choose Layout to select a saved layout
- Manage Layouts to edit/delete your layouts you have saved
Within the Change Layout dialog there are 4 tabs: Displayed Columns, Sort Order, Filter, and Display.
In the Displayed Columns tab
- You can select all displayed columns or select individual columns
- You can use the move arrows between Displayed Columns and Column Set (i.e. all remaining columns) to adjust which columns are displayed. You can even use your usual keyboard shift key to select several columns and move them together.
- You can use the up/down/top/bottom arrow heads to move the displayed columns into the order you want
See an example below of the Change Layout dialog on the Displayed Columns tab.
In the Sort Order tab of the Change Layout dialog, you can sort the data by columns. You can choose whether a column uses an ascending or descending sort.
In the example below the data is sorted by:
- Role Ascending
- Title/Subtitle/Information Ascending
In the Filter tab of the Change Layout dialog, you can restrict what is shown by choosing the columns and then using Define Values to enter the values you want to see. An example of the filter tab of the Change Layout dialog is shown below.
You can Save your layout for future use, use Save As... in footer of the Change Layout dialog, or Save Layout... from the main menu tab.
In the example below the layout is saved with name AppsByRole and description Apps Per Role. Note that the / before the role name is required.
You can download your result data.
In this example you see how to download the results to spreadsheet using the Export menu button to choose your export file type.
App Types in the Launchpad Content Aggregator include:
- UI5 = SAP Fiori app
- WDA = Web Dynpro ABAP application
- WCF = Web Client UI
- GUI = SAP GUI Transaction (i.e. WebGUI)
- URL = URL Tile/Target Mapping
- URLT = URL Template-based Tile/Target Mapping
- <blank> = Tile only
How to find the SAP Fiori apps and classic UIs assigned to a role
You can run this at any time in your source or target release of your SAP S/4HANA system.
Procedure:
Open the launchpad content aggregator.
Select all your custom roles by adjusting the Role Filter and pressing Execute.
In the result list, set as Displayed Columns:
- Composite Role Name
- Single Role Name
- Title/Subtitle/Information
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
- Device Type Desktop
- Device Type Tablet
- Device Type Phone
The results list shows you the apps assigned by your roles.
You can optionally download these results. For example, you could use these results to work out:
- The number of apps per role
- Number of Fiori apps vs classic UIs per role (using the App Type)
- Confirm which apps of the role will be visible on different device types
- Check what keywords can be used to find apps in Search on Apps
Creating a consolidated list of your assigned SAP Fiori apps and classic UIs for the SAP Fiori Upgrade Impact Analysis
IMPORTANT: Your source SAP S/4HANA release must be on SAP S/4HANA 1909 SPS04 or SAP S/4HANA 2020 FPS01 or higher to access the Launchpad Content Aggregator.
Procedure:
In your source SAP S/4HANA release, execute the Launchpad Content Aggregator for your custom business roles.
Follow the same approach as for creating apps by role. Download the list of apps.
Remove all rows with App Type = blank (tile only) or URL or URLT.
Create a consolidated list of apps for the SAP Fiori Upgrade Impact Analysis, that is create a single column that contains:
- For SAP Fiori apps ( App Type = UI5 ) the SAP Fiori ID
- For SAP GUI transactions ( App Type = GUI ) the Transaction
- For Web Dynpro applications ( App Type = WDA ) the Application Resource
- For Web Client UI applications ( App Type = WCF ) the Application Resource
Convert the list to a comma separated file (suffix .CSV) which you upload to the SAP Fiori Upgrade Impact Analysis. Refer to SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA – Upgrade Impact Analysis
Finding deprecated and obsolete apps and their direct successors
This is useful to run in your target SAP S/4HANA release to find what content needs to be replaced by successors. If a direct successor is listed, it means you can use the quick fix feature to replace them. Refer to SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA – Upgrade Faster – Managing app lifecycle impacts on users
You will need to replace references to obsolete content with their successors prior to regenerating your custom business roles and other custom security roles. Obsolete content is no longer supported by SAP, and usually no longer exists, so it will cause errors if not removed.
You should add successors for deprecated apps prior to regenerating your custom business roles and other custom security roles. Deprecated content is still supported, but will be made obsolete in a future release. You should aim to transition to successors as soon as possible. To minimize upgrade effort, you should remove all references to deprecated content prior to your next upgrade.
IMPORTANT: You can add successors and remove obsolete/deprecated content using the Launchpad Content Manager Client-Specific – transaction /UI2/FLPCM_CUST. The column Transaction Status identifies obsolete and deprecated content in your Roles, Catalogs, Apps/UIs. The feature Show/Add Successors in the Catalog tab can be used to quickly add direct successors of deprecated and obsolete content.
Procedure:
In the Launchpad Content Aggregator, select your custom buisness roles. Select the option to Display Successor Transactions, i.e. direct successors. Then Execute.
Change the layout to include the following Displayed Columns:
- Composite Role Name
- Single Role Name
- Single Role Transaction Status
- Catalog ID
- Catalog Transaction Status
- Title/Subtitle/Information
- Application Type
- Application Resources
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
- Transaction Status
- Successor Transaction, i.e. direct successor
Hint: If you are using composite roles, also include Composite Role Transaction Status.
Example results below: You can see the Transaction Status column shows if the app is Deprecated or Obsolete, and the Successor Transaction column shows whether there is a direct successor.
To condense the list to only deprecated and obsolete content, you can use the Filter tab to filter on column Transaction Status. Using Define Values, select both the Deprecated and Obsolete values.
Hint: You should Save your layout for future use.
You can get a consolidated list and even download it for offline reference.
Finding apps with errors and warnings
Common errors you might encounter during a SAP S/4HANA release upgrade are:
- Reference Lost
- Reference Lost to Backend Catalog
- Configuration Error
The error “Reference Lost” indicates the referenced content no longer exists. It may have been deleted or moved. Checking for a duplicate navigation intent – i.e. Semantic Object and Action combination – can be useful in resolving moved content.
The error “Reference Lost to Backend Catalog” suggests you may need to replicate the backend catalog to resolve the error.
Configuration errors are rare. They indicate incomplete or misaligned configuration. So you will need to examine the tile and target mapping in the original technical catalog to resolve the problem.
For further advice on how to resolve these errors, refer to: SAP Note 3226560 - SAP Fiori Launchpad: Preventing and Mitigating Lost References after an Upgrade
Procedure:
Execute the Launchpad Content Aggregator in your target SAP S/4HANA release for your custom business roles.
Change the layout to display the following Displayed Columns:
- Status Text
- Composite Role Name
- Single Role Name
- Catalog ID
- Navigation Intent
- Title/Subtitle/Information
- Original Target Mapping Catalog ID
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
- Service Activation Status Text
Filter on column Status Text to filter on selected errors and warnings.
Example results below showing Lost Reference errors and Configuration erros.
Finding tile differences on upgrade between a source and target SAP S/4HANA release
You will run the launchpad content aggregator in both your source release and your target release.
It is helpful to include the Device Type as which device types are supported can change between releases. For example, due to improved capabilities to support smaller devices, or due to changes in the app that make it no longer suitable for use on smaller devices.
It is helpful to include the Catalog Title as the title is shown in the App Finder and Home navigation button, which can change how users find a particular app.
It can be useful to include Tile Keywords which can be used to find apps using the Search on Apps in the SAP Fiori launchpad shell bar, as this can help users find the correct tile even if the tile texts have changed.
Hint: There can also be changes in the icons used on tiles. However, since the icons are considered to be decorative these changes are not usually significant.
IMPORTANT: Prior to SAP S/4HANA 2023 FPS01 you can only select the single role in the displayed columns.
Procedure:
Start the launchpad content aggregator.
Select your custom business roles and execute.
Change the layout to display the following Displayed Columns:
- Single Role
- Catalog ID
- Catalog Title
- Title/Subtitle/Information
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
- Tile Keywords
- Device Type Desktop
- Device Type Tablet
- Device Type Phone
Sort the list by:
- Single Role Description
- Catalog Title
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
Example results: You can see the tile texts in Title/Subtitle/Information. Particularly watch out for "deprecated" or "obsolete: added to tile texts.
Download both lists and compare the source and target lists.
Comparing SAP Business Roles & SAP Business Catalogs to custom business roles & custom business catalogs
When you have refined your own custom business role or business catalog from a SAP Business Role or SAP Business Catalog, you may want to compare them to check for differences.
In the launchpad content aggregator, when selecting the roles use the multi-selection feature to select the roles you want to compare.
Below you can see the multi-selection feature at the end of the Role Filter row.
Select the roles you want to compare.
Change the Displayed Columns to those you want to compare
- Single Role Name
- Catalog ID
- Title/Subtitle/Information
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
To restrict the comparison to a catalog, use the Filter dialog to filter on column Catalog ID. Use Define Values to select the Catalog ID(s) you want to compare. You can use the multiple selection feature again for this.
Hint: Remember to include both the SAP business catalog id and the custom catalog id.
Change the Sort Order to make it easier to spot differences. Remember that not every entry in a catalog may have a tile – some may be reuse apps or other dependencies that are only held as target mappings.
For example, sort on:
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
- Catalog ID
Example results below show it is easy to compare the catalogs and spot differences. You can make this even easier by downloading the results to spreadsheet, then removing duplicates rows with the same combination of:
- Application Type
- Application Resource
- SAP Fiori ID
- Transaction
Finding apps using ODataV4 services
This can be useful as the configuration, activation and troubleshooting for apps using ODataV4 services is somewhat different to those apps using ODataV2 services.
Hint: For SAP Fiori apps, focus on OData services. The need for ICF services has been reduced in SAP S/4HANA 2023 as explained in SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA – OData V2 maintenance innovations with S/4HANA 2023.
You run this procedure in your target SAP S/4HANA release.
Procedure:
Start the launchpad content aggregator.
Select your custom business roles then choose the parameter Display OData V2 Services and Display OData V4 Services.
Displayed Columns are:
- Composite Role Name
- Single Role Name
- Catalog ID
- SAP Fiori ID
- OData V4 Service Group Name
- OData V4 Service Name
- OData V4 Service Version
- OData V4 Service Status
- OData V4 Additional Information
To minimize the results, as only SAP Fiori apps have ODataV4 services you can filter on:
- Application Type = UI5
- ODataV4 Service Name 0* to Z*
Example results: You can see which roles/catalogs/apps are assigned to which OData V4 service group.
Becoming a SAP Fiori for SAP S/4HANA guru
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