Getting started with SAP Mobile Cards

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Introduction

It is rightly said that "Data is the new oil". As years have passed, our dependence on data has increased. To benefit the most out of it, the right data should be available at the right time.  We have come a long way when it comes to technology and now we are able to access data using a wide variety of devices - mobiles, tablets, and desktops. Applications have been tweaked to make them accessible on all kinds of devices. Mobile technology is the best thing that we have come up with and because of it, we have our most important data at our fingertips. Mobile applications like Whatsapp, Twitter, Facebook, etc. have a very major impact on our lives and have always helped us to stay connected.

SAP has also been researching a lot about Mobile technologies and they have also added quite a number of things to give users a better experience. Imagine you need to check some very important organizational data and you are stuck in traffic. What if I say that you can just pull out your mobile phone and see them right away. Furthermore, all the data condensed and packaged for you in a very neat structured format in the form of a card. This technology provided by SAP is called "SAP Mobile Cards" and this has significant potential in changing the way we work and saving us a lot of time and take quick decisions.

Mobile cards on iOS and Android Mobile Devices

                                         Image Source: Overview - SAP Mobile Services Documentation

Architecture

SAP Mobile Services hosted on SAP Cloud Platform acts as a gateway between SAP Mobile Cards and the relevant application/data. This can either be data coming from on-premise/Fiori or cloud applications like Ariba, SuccessFactors, etc. In the case of on-premise systems, a secure connection to the on-premise data is provided by the SAP Cloud Connector.

SAP Mobile Cards Architecture

                    Image Source : https://developers.sap.com/topics/mobile-cards.html

Features of SAP Mobile Cards

• Provides offline support so that cards can be viewed anytime.


• Auto-refresh to ensure data present in the card is updated regularly.


• Notification features include push notifications, reminders, and geo-fenced alerts.


• Cards are integrated with your phone enabling calling, SMS, email, maps, and location.


• A group of cards is created to quickly organize cards by type.


• Manage card versions through development and production via Mobile Services cockpit, and create backup copies to either restore or change version.

User stories

SAP Mobile Cards has three key user stories:-

• Developer - Designs and builds the card using SAP Web IDE or SAP Business Application studio


• Administrator - Manages the card using SAP Mobile Services Cockpit


• End-user - Uses the card via the SAP Mobile Cards application on Android or iOS device by downloading the app from PlayStore ( for Android ) or App Store ( for iOS ) after registering the application using the details provided by the Administrator.

Creating mobile cards on SAP BTP using Boosters

Developers can create SAP mobile cards very easily using SAP Boosters on the SAP Business Technology Platform. SAP Boosters are wizards which enable us to create an object for a specific business purpose. Below are the steps in order to achieve this :

Step 1: Log in to SAP BTP Cockpit

Log in to your SAP BTP Cockpit. On the left pane, you can see the Boosters option.

SAP BTP Cockpit

Step 2: Select the Boosters option

SAP BTP Boosters

Step 3: Search for Mobile Cards

Build a Micro App for SAP Mobile Cards

Step 4: Click on the tile 'Build a Micro App for SAP Mobile Cards'

The below screen loads.

Boosters - Mobile Cards - Start Screen

Click on the Start button. The below screen appears.

Boosters - Mobile Cards - Check Prerequisites

Step 5: Check Prerequisites

Wait for some time for the status to turn to Done ( Green ). Click on the Next Button. Se

Boosters - Prerequisites

Step 6: Select Subaccount

Select relevant Subaccount details from the dropdown. The Mobile Card Kit status should be Available.

Boosters - Subaccount details

Sometimes when the Mobile Kit Status is Not Available, it is required to Initialise it.

When the Mobile Card Status becomes Available, click Next.

Step 7: Select Cards

There are many readily available card templates to choose from. Let's select the Welcome Card Template.  Click Next. 

Welcome Card

Step 8: Configure Cards

Configure Card

Step 9: Review

Review the information and click Finish.

Review Card

Step 10: Card created successfully

Once the card is created, we can see 2 QR codes corresponding to Android or iOS.

We can use the QR codes to start the registration of the card to our mobile device.

Accessing SAP Mobile Cards on a mobile device

Follow the below steps to access the card you created on your mobile device.

Step 1: Install SAP Mobile Cards application on your mobile device

Go to Play Store ( for Android ) or App Store ( for iOS ) and install the SAP Mobile Cards app.

SAP Mobile Cards

Step 2: SAP Mobile Cards Welcome Screen

Click Proceed to continue.

Welcome to SAP Mobile Cards

Step 3: Accept the End User License Agreement

Click on "I Agree".

License Agreement

Step 4: Scan QR Code to begin registration

Welcome Screen loads. Click on the "Scan QR Code" button.

Scan the QR Code that appears after performing all steps of Step 5.

Welcome Screen

Step 5: Mobile Service Cockpit

In order to access the Mobile Service Cockpit, go to your SAP BTP Cockpit and select Service Marketplace from the left pane.

Service Marketplace

Search for Mobile Services

 

Mobile Services

Click on Mobile Services Tile. From the right pane, click on Support button.

After login with the required credentials, the Mobile Services Cockpit Screen loads.

This is the administrative point to manage all SAP Mobile Cards and notifications. Further analytics options are also available.

Mobile Services Cockpit

From the left pane, select Mobile Applications => SAP Mobile Cards.

On the right pane, you can see the card details.

 

Click on the APIs Tab and scan the QR code that appears based on your device type - Android/iOS.

API Tab

Step 6: Enter your email ID and Password which you use to access SAP BTP.

After scanning QR Code

The below screen appears. Enter your credentials which you use to access SAP BTP and click on Log On.

Enter Credentials

Step 7: Set Passcode and Fingerprint Authentication

Enter a 8 character Passcode for authentication purpose. Confirm the same passcode in the subsequent screen and press Done.

Passcode

Place your finger on the fingerprint scanner to enable biometric authentication.

Fingerprint Authentication

Step 8: Enable Location Services for SAP Mobile Cards that use Geofence alerts

For the below screen, select Allow only when using the App.

Location Services

Step 9: View your SAP Mobile Card

After step 8, a message appears as "Downloading your cards".

Wait for a few minutes and you should be able to see your card.

In the below screen, you can see all your cards as well as search for cards.

My SAP Mobile Card

Once you click on the card, you can see the entire card content.

A card can have information on both sides, so you can click on the Flip button to see the other side of the card.

Card - Front side

Card - backside

References

Official SAP Documentation on SAP Mobile Cards: Overview - SAP Mobile Services Documentation

Conclusion

In this blog post, we have learned the important concepts about SAP Mobile Cards and how to create a Welcome Card using SAP BTP Boosters.

This is my first blog post so I would appreciate feedback from everyone.

Please stay tuned for my next blog post.

Thank you for reading my blog post.