Up-To-Date Installation

[PritiDhingra]

Introduction

Maintenance planner supports planning of new installations on a chosen stack level. Maintenance Planner significantly simplifies the installation process by eliminating the steps of system registration and a separate system update planning during installation. With Maintenance Planner, you can generate a consolidated stack configuration file which allows you to install and later update your system at the chosen SPS level. Maintenance Planner allows you to select target software level and push archives to the download basket in a single step. Simplified process is offered for ABAP & Java systems.

This document explains up-to-date installation comparing the process without up-to-date installation planning with the new improved process.

Planning New System Installation with Maintenance Planner

Figure 1: New, improved process followed for a new installation and update.

Installation process with Maintenance Planner offers following advantages:

• A single place for the customer to define his target for installation.


• Simplified process allowing users to generate consolidated stack.xml for planned landscape changes without registering the system in SAP Solution Manager.

Process without up-to-date installation planning

The following graphic illustrates the process of an installation and update without without up-to-date installation planning

Figure 2: Process without up-to-date installation planning

Improved Process for New System Installation along with the Involved Tools

The following graphic shows the new improved process with Maintenance Planner:




Figure 3: Up-To-Date Installation

• In Maintenance Planner, the IT Administrator plans, validates and generates stack XML and media files are later consumed by Software Logistic tools, such as the Software Provisioning Manager (SWPM) and Software Update Manager (SUM) for accomplishing the planned landscape changes.


• Software Provisioning Manager consumes the generated stack XML.


• Standard post-installation activities need to be completed before you use SUM .


• SUM consumes the same stack.xml to update the system with the selected service packs (SPs) or add-ons.

Planning Installation with Maintenance Planner

Example: The IT administrator wants to install an EHP8 FOR SAP ERP 6.0 ABAP system on the latest Support Package stack, including an add-on Ariba Network Integration 1.0 for SAP Business Suite.

Perform the following steps:

• Go to the Product Availability Matrix  and search for the Product Version ‘Ariba Integration Suite’.


• Check the required Product Version for ARIBA INTEGRATION SUITE 1.0, which is EHP8 FOR SAP ERP 6.0.


• In Maintenance Planner, plan a new installation by selecting the current Product Version (EHP8 FOR SAP ERP 6.0) and then updating over an add-on.

In the home page of Maintenance Planner, click Plan a New System tile

Figure 4: Maintenance Planner home page

In the maintenance cycle screen, click Plan to start planning new system installation.

Figure 5: Planning new installation in Maintenance Planner

 

Follow the 4-step procedure, starting with Define target. Enter SID for the new system and select target software level details.

Figure 6: Target Software details selection in Maintenance Planner

Select Support Package stack and click confirm selection.

Figure 7: Product version and Support package stack selection

At this stage you can choose to install additional software or proceed to complete the planning process. The above steps can be repeated any number of times to install additional software. The stack.xml file generated at the end of the planning process contains the metadata of all the planned actions.

Select Install or Maintain Add-on to select Add-on to be installed.

Figure 8: Additional software selection

Select the Add-on, Support Package stack and click Confirm Selection.

Figure 9: Selection and confirmation of target software details

Click Next to move to the next stage of the installation planning process.

Figure 10: Confirmation of target software details

Select OS/DB dependent files to be added to the download basket and click Confirm Selection.

Figure 11: OS/DB dependent files selection

Select Stack Dependent and Independent files and click Next.

Figure 12: Stack dependent and independent files selection

Download the installation consolidate stack XML by clicking Download Stack XML, and Click Push to Download Basket to download the archives from SAP Service Marketplace.

Figure 13: Downloading stack XML 

You can find the link to the initial installation media towards the end of the maintenance plan. At this stage, you can complete the planning process by clicking Set to Complete.

Figure 14: Link from Maintenance Plan directed to SAP Service Market Place for the media download.

The link in Maintenance Plan would direct to SAP Service Marketplace to download the related media files.

Figure 15: Downloading installation media 

Consuming Generated stack XML and Media Files by Software Logistics Tools

• Download the related Software Provisioning Manager version out of the Download Basket, follow the recommendations of SAP Note 1680045.


• Follow the guide to install your system – especially consider the instructions for installations using a stack configuration file.


• Refer to the relevant installation guide for Software Provisioning Manager.
  
  
  
  • Start Software Provisioning Manager with the parameter SAPINST_STACK_XML=<absolute path>
  
  
  
  

Examples:

UNIX / IBM i:

 ./sapinst SAPINST_STACK_XML=/download/Stack_1000001234_20150423.xml

Microsoft Windows:

sapinst.exe SAPINST_STACK_XML=C:\tmp\Stack_1000001234_20150423.xml

• In the Welcome screen of Software Provisioning Manager, you will get installation options filtered according to your stack XML file:

Post-Installation Steps

After the successful completion of the installation, follow the instructions provided in Post-Installation section of the installation guide to complete the configuration. Based on the OS and DB requirements, choose the installation guide:

Executing Update Activities

Start Software Update Manager and provide the generated stack.xml file to complete the update activity.

Executing Post-Update Activities

Refer the guide for the product for which you have completed the update activity. Choose the Upgrade and Update Guide and select the stack applicable for the system. Follow the instructions provided in the guide to complete the update process.

More Information

• About Maintenance Planner


• About Software Provisioning Manager 


• New Installation of SAP S/4HANA 2020 FPS0 – Part 1 – Maintenance Planner


• New Installation of SAP S/4HANA 2020 FPS1 – Part 2 – Installation


• Planning Landscape Changes - A Best Practice Guide