Analyzing Performance Tools

The lowest levels from which the application reads data are the segment table and the segment level. These levels contain the data from the line item in a primary summarized form.

The segment table contains the profitability segments and their characteristic values.

The segment level contains the value fields for profitability segments and the time characteristics.

The segment level always contains the most recent data because the system updates it in real time with each transaction. The division of this information into two tables according to characteristics, segment table, value fields, and segment level reduces data volume by eliminating redundancy.

The advantages of the performance settings method are as follows:

• Saving historic data:

  If you do not need the original information for data from the previous periods, you can archive the line items and retain only the segment level.

• Realigning posted data:

  You can retroactively assign a customer to a different sales representative. This realignment only changes the segment table. The line items remain assigned in the same way as they were when you originally posted the documents. No change is required in the segment level because the change in the segment table implicitly affects the data for the periods in the segment level.

The realignment is available in Margin Analysis and in costing-based CO-PA. However the initial Characteristics values are still available for the "as posted view’’ of the document. In case of Margin Analysis these values are stored in the dedicated table ACDOCA_KENC. For Costing Based CO-PA these values are stored in table CE4****_KENC.

The data in CO-PA is stored at the individual document level. As a result, every item in a sales order is sent to the CO-PA database as a line item. This can lead to a huge amount of data within a short period of time. As a result, you may experience a runtime of several hours when you run a report. This report displays data summarized to a high degree but the system has to read the entire dataset. You cannot select the data online. To improve system performance, reduce the volume of data that is to be read online by creating summarized versions of the dataset.

How Performance Settings Work

In reports, you can display the following data:

• Only the data from the summarization level:

  This is the data available since you most recently updated that level.

• The current data:

  This is the data from the system reading the summarization level and then adding the line items that have been posted since the last update.

If no suitable summarization level exists, the system displays a warning.

Use the current data when you want to display the data from the current period. If you only want to display data after the period has ended and the data is not going to change, use the most recent summarized data.

If you choose to store the summarization data for a report, the system creates this data. The system does this by reading a summarization level (if one exists) or the database tables. If you use fewer characteristics in the report, the system has to read less data from the summarization level. As a result, it takes less time to display the report.

Performance Settings Key Points

Use the Freeze Report Data function to save the data selected for your report. When you choose this function, the system also saves any changes you have made to the report definition.

If you want to call the same dataset later, you can also use the Freeze Report Data function. You can use variants and variant groups to freeze report data at specified times in the background.

By freezing the report data, you can execute the report online later without the system needing to read any data from the database. This reduces runtime substantially.

If you define a report in Financial Analytics and a suitable summarization level is not found, one of the following actions occurs:

• The system continues with the execution

• The system issues a warning, which the user can override

• The system terminates the execution

Define whether a report should access the data from a summarization level alone or whether it should read current data. Reading current data requires the addition of data from any line items that have been posted since the level was last updated. Other CO-PA functions can automatically access the current data.

To use summarization levels, perform the following steps:

1. Define the summarization levels in configuration.

2. Fill the summarization levels with data from the segment level summary records on the user side.

3. Update the summarization levels periodically in the background on the user side.

From a physical point-of-view, every summarization level consists of the following two tables in the database:

• Key table

• Total records table

The relationship between these two tables is similar to the CE4 and CE3 tables in costing-based CO-PA.

You can evaluate statistics on the summarization levels in the configuration to check their efficiency. You can also determine the number of times they are being used by CO-PA functions and their relative size compared to the standard summary table.

Performing a realignment on CO-PA data automatically invalidates all of the data that was summarized earlier in the summarization levels. After a realignment has been performed, the summarization levels are refilled and rebuilt from scratch instead of being updated.

Summarization Level Proposals

For both, Margin Analysis and costing-based CO-PA, you can obtain the following information from the system:

• A record of user behavior in reporting

• Proposals for new summarization levels appropriate to user behavior

• The period to be used for analyzing user behavior

You can decide whether the system should take into account the existing summarization levels while generating proposals or creating new levels completely.

The system generates proposals in the background.

Each proposal displays an estimate of the time saved when the report is run using that particular summarization level. The suggested summarization levels are listed in order of the time saved, starting with the level that saves the most time.

After you accept a proposal and the system creates the corresponding levels, supply these levels with data using the RKETRERU report, or chooseTools→Summarization Levels→Update from the menu.

Summarization data signifies a set of summarized data for a combination of variables within a specific report.

When you execute a report that has existing summarization data, the system accesses the summarization data and updates it by adding the line items that have been posted since the report was last executed. The report output then displays the new summarization data.

Summarization data is efficient for a specific report if you execute that report frequently. For this reason, it is not recommended that you use summarization data for most or all CO-PA reports.

When you define a report, you can specify whether the report accesses summarization levels or uses summarization data. Within the same operating concern, you can define reports with summarization data and reports with summarization levels. For each report, you specify how the system is to react if no summarized data or summarization level can be found during report execution.

Frozen data signifies the data stored for a specific report and a specific set of variable values at a specific point in time. There can be only one set of frozen data for each combination of variables in a report.

Like the summarization data, the frozen data is only valid for one report. The difference is that the frozen data cannot be updated, because frozen data is reporting data that has been frozen at a particular point in time. It can be generated from the object level, summarization data, or summarization levels.

• CO-PA stores data at individual document level, leading to large data volumes.

• Segment table contains profitability segments and characteristic values.

• Archive line items to save historic data, retaining only segment level.

• Summarization levels consist of key and total records tables.