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Using Instance Refresh

Objectives

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

describe Instance Refresh tool enablement.
create an Instance Refresh request.

Instance Refresh Tool

The Instance Refresh tool helps you to create and monitor the status of a replication request of the SAP SuccessFactors HCM suite (comprised of Employee Central, Compensation, Performance & Goals, Succession & Development, and Recruiting and Management) from the source to target instance.

A refresh is the process of overwriting the data and configuration of an instance with the image of another instance. All content in the target instance is permanently replaced with the content of the source instance. The source instance is the instance from which data and configuration are copied to the target instance. The target instance is the instance that requires refresh to have an exact copy of the source instance. Essentially, admin must have logon access to both the source and target instances.

The Refresh of Source to Target System is displayed.

With the key features of the Instance Refresh Tool, you can:

Create a refresh request by choosing a target instance on any future preferred date of refresh. Log in to the source instance to launch the Instance Refresh tool through Admin Center. From there, you can initiate refresh on a desired target instance.
View the history of all refreshes initiated from the logged in source instance.
View and track the status of an already submitted refresh request that hasn't been completed yet.
Cancel the refresh request as long as the status of refresh request isn't reached the In Progress status.
Download the error log file as audit report for any refresh requests that haven't succeeded.
Receive e-mail notification alerts with instance refresh status with the next steps sent to the Admin, who initiates the request.

Different Environments and Guardrails

You can perform a refresh for instances that are in different environments.

However, there's an important guardrail to keep in mind. Instance refresh by using the self-service tool is no longer supported when the target is the productive instance.

The process flow of refreshing in different environments is displayed.

Things to Know Before Refreshing a Target Instance

Before you refresh any target instance, you must consider the impact of the following points on your target instance:

Once your target instance is refreshed with the Instance Refresh tool, it cannot be reverted by using the tool. To revert the refresh, contact SAP Cloud Support.
It's not recommended to access the target instance when the refresh is in the In Progress status until the status is Completed on the scheduled date.
All the jobs in the target instance remain untouched except the one-time jobs that are already executed. The jobs which are scheduled for execution after the date of refresh is executed as per the schedule. Jobs are not copied from the source instance to the target instance.
Audit logs are not be copied from the source to target instance post refresh, with the exception of the logs for Employee Central and Onboarding.
Instance Refresh is not supported from Production to Preview environment, as we observe a blackout period for Preview upgrade. The blackout period is the time during post Preview release until Production release.

Consent Form for Every New Instance Refresh Request

Users must review and accept a consent form before they can initiate a new instance refresh request. The consent form lists the clauses and important information related to initiating a new instance refresh request. The information displayed in the consent form makes the users fully aware of the terms and conditions before they proceed further to initiate the request.

Note

The following resources include the details and FAQs about Instance Refresh Tool: 2791468 - Instance Refresh Tool for HCM BizX & LMS | Must-Know Guide & FAQhttps://me.sap.com/notes/2791468/E

Known Technical Gaps of the Instance Refresh Toolhttps://help.sap.com/docs/SAP_SUCCESSFACTORS_PLATFORM/5644466b2c304e45b2e412ded198078b/e8bc9017ccfb4160bb96553349605152.html

Enablement of the Instance Refresh Tool

Prerequisites for the Instance Refresh Tool

Source and Target instances must be enabled with the following features from Provisioning → Company Settings.

Enable Instance Refresh — requires "Enable Generic Objects" and "Enable the Attachment Manager" . This setting enables the Instance Refresh Tool in your system. Additionally, there is a sub-option Enable Instance Refresh Tool for SAP SuccessFactors Learning that allows to refresh SAP SuccessFactors Learning standalone or together with SAP SuccessFactors HCM solution.
Enable Business Process Engine

Permissions

There are several permissions required to use the Instance Refresh Tool and create requests.

Instance Refresh Tool - RBP Permissions

Permission Category	Permission
Manage Instance Refresh	Manage Refresh. Allows to create a refresh request, view history, and track the request View Refresh Requests. Gives restricted access of the tool to the user. Users can view history and track the request, but they can't create a refresh request.
Metadata Framework	Admin access to MDF OData API
Manage Integration Tools	All permissions
Manage Business Process Engine	All permissions

Other considerations before creating a new Instance Refresh request include:

Both the source and target instances must be present in the same data center.
No ongoing implementation changes are being performed in your target instance by your own internal implementation teams, third-party partners, or SAP SuccessFactors Professional Services.

Create an Instance Refresh Request

Create a request for a new instance refresh from a source instance to a selected target instance.

Steps

Navigate to Instance Refresh Center by using Action search.
Result
The Instance Refresh Center Overview page appears.
Select Create New Request. A confirmation dialog displays to accept the Terms and Conditions.
Result
The Create Instance Refresh Request page appears. You can select the target company instance to do a clean-copy of data and configuration from source company instance.
Note
If the target instance details, on the following steps, are empty, you can select Add New Pair to create a new transport path.
In Step 6, if you aren't sure about the Company ID for the target instance, you can find it if you log in to the target instance, and on the User menu, select Show version information.
Select the data center of the target instance from the Target Datacenter dropdown list.
Select the environment of the target instance from the Target Environment dropdown list.
Select the company ID of the target instance from the Target Company ID dropdown list.
Select the products to be refreshed from Products to Refresh.
Schedule the instance refresh by selecting the date from Refresh Schedule Date.
Target instances can be refreshed from Monday through Thursday between 8pm to 8am in the timezone of the data center where these instances are located to avoid any service disruptions.
Enter an e-mail ID in the Mask Recruiting Candidates Email Address text box, to overwrite or mask the external candidates e-mail address in the target instance with the e-mail address of your choice.
Enter an e-mail ID in the Mask Employee Profile Email Address text box to overwrite or mask the employee profile e-mail address in the target instance with the e-mail address of your choice.
Select Submit.
Once you submit the request, it may take up to six hours to complete the refresh.
A pop-up message appears stating that the refresh has been successfully scheduled.

Result

The status of the instance refresh request appears in the Overview page.

Note

If the instance refresh request for SAP SuccessFactors HCM solution or SAP SuccessFactors Learning, or a combination of both the SAP SuccessFactors HCM solution and SAP SuccessFactors Learning products fails, the next refresh are blocked until the failed application is restored to its original state. Contact the Product Support to restore the failed application back to its original state, after which you can refresh your target instance by using the Instance Refresh Tool.

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