How to Remove Wrongly Created Articles and Store/DC Master Data from SAP MDG-RFM & SAP S/4HANA-Retai

[Vinoth_Kannan]

Introduction

This blog is relevant for SAP MDG - Retail (RFM) and SAP S/4HANA Retail LoB users.

In a retail system, large volumes of data are generated consistently due to the extensive number of articles and stores. However, it’s common for customers to inadvertently create article and store/DC master data that are incorrect or no longer required. These wrongly created master data records often get distributed to subsystems, leading to unnecessary consumption of valuable HANA database memory.

Understanding the Article Lifecycle Process in SAP MDG-RFM and S/4HANA Retail

The SAP Standard Article Lifecycle outlines the predefined stages and processes that an article goes through within the system. These stages typically include creation, listing, and delisting. However, critical processes such as discontinuation, archiving, and deletion are often underutilized or not executed effectively.

By leveraging these standardized phases, businesses can ensure the systematic and efficient management of articles throughout their lifecycle in the SAP environment, reducing data redundancy and optimizing database performance.

Article Lifecycle process steps:

Article Discontinuation, Archiving & Deletion

Master data discontinuation, archiving, and deletion are often complex and global processes. As a result, many customers fail to remove wrongly created master data from the system in a timely manner.

The SAP Article Archiving solution provides a systematic approach to archiving article master records and their associated data within the SAP system. As an SAP MDG consultant, you can manage this process effectively by following the steps outlined below.

Article Discontinuation, Archiving & Deletion Process steps

Pros

1. No need for additional archiving-specific configurations.
2. You don’t need to be an archiving expert to execute these steps.

Cons

1. Archiving-specific roles must be assigned to your user for access and execution.

Client-Wide Article Discontinuation

In this phase, articles are discontinued at the client level, which involves setting a deletion flag at the article level. The Discontinuation Workbench plays a pivotal role in managing the discontinuation process.

• Transaction Code for Workbench: WRF_DIS_SEL
• Transaction Code for Worklist: WRF_DIS_MON

Client-wide article discontinuation is used to prepare articles for archiving and eventual removal from the database. This is achieved using the discontinuation program RWRF_DISCONT_SEL, which ensures that no dependent processes remain before proceeding with the discontinuation process.

Client-Wide Article Discontinuation Workbench

The program (RWRF_DISCONT_SEL) will discontinue the article on a client-level and updates the indicators in the following tables.

 Article Archiving and Deletion Process

When an article is discontinued, it undergoes a two-step process of archiving and deletion. This process is managed through the MM_MATNR archiving object. Archiving is the second phase of physically removing articles from the system, following their logical deletion.

The MM_MATNR object is responsible for archiving and deleting 154 master data records along with their relevant tables.

Data archiving is a standard SAP data management solution that helps remove obsolete data from the HANA database, ensuring system efficiency. Once an article is discontinued (indicated by MARA-LVORM=X and LIQDT=CD), it can be archived and eventually deleted from the system.

Article archiving Logic

The article master data objects in the SAP system are distributed across several database tables. Archiving objects (MM_MATNR) combine the tables that are logically linked by business objects. It ensures that all the information belonging to a business object is moved out of and then deleted from the database. The main reasons for data archiving are to keep data growth under control, keep down time as short as possible and maintain stable and efficient system performance. All these factors will generate cost savings for an organization.

Deletion Process Steps

In the archive phase, the system moves the article master data objects that can be archived from the operational system to archive files. In the delete phase, the system reads the data objects from the archive file and deletes their content from the operational system.

In this phase, the articles are physically deleted from the database tables. It is not possible to restore data that has been destroyed. The process described above is depicted in the following figure.

Archiving & Deletion Process steps

Removing/Deleting Incorrectly Created Store Records

In the SAP Retail environment, store creation is a routine task, but errors by end users are not uncommon. Deleting incorrectly created stores can be complex, as store data is a master data object and cannot be removed with a single action.

SAP does not offer a direct deletion method for such records. However, by following a structured approach, you can effectively remove wrongly created stores.

This method can also be applied to remove incorrectly created Business Partners (BPs), customers, and suppliers from a productive environment.

The following process diagram explain the end-to-end process steps at high-level (from creation to deletion of store).

Store Deactivation & Deletion Process Steps

Deletion of incorrectly created stores in the SAP Retail environment is possible through the SARA transaction. While SARA is typically used for data archiving, in this case, you can bypass any specific archiving configurations by skipping the 'store action' during the process. This approach avoids the need for archiving setup while still enabling the deletion of master data, including stores, Business Partners (BPs), customers, and suppliers, in a productive environment."

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