Explaining the SAP Product Availability

During this lesson, you will cover the following topics:

• SAP Product Availability Matrix (PAM) and its role in software maintenance
• SAP's recommended procedure for using the maintenance planner
• How to work with the PAM to Check Availability of a software release or support package

The SAP Product Availability Matrix (PAM) is a comprehensive database that provides information about the availability and supportability of all SAP products. Customers can utilize the PAM to understand their SAP solutions' lifecycle and support terms, including release and maintenance dates, patch and update availability, and information on technology platforms and databases supported by specific SAP products.

The PAM is located on the SAP Support Portal and can be accessed using SAP Support Portal by selecting Maintenance → Product Availability Matrix. Access requires an S-User ID and password.

Specifically, the PAM includes detailed documentation about the release and support dates, platforms, operating systems, databases, and additional components that are supported for each SAP product.

You can find General Information about a particular SAP product, along with Related Product Versions, Prerequisites, and Support Package information including:

• Details for each specific SAP product version
• Official product name and category
• Type of product version
• Release type
• Current status
• Product's release plan, including end of mainstream maintenance

When planning maintenance activities, customers must determine if their current software versions are compatible with the latest updates, patches, or upgrades SAP provides. As you discovered in the previous lesson, the maintenance planner helps customers plan these activities.

When using the maintenance planner, customers can access the PAM to ensure compatibility between the selected software versions and components. The maintenance planner is integrated with the PAM to validate the compatibility of the planned maintenance activities. This integration checks if the planned updates or upgrades comply with the supported combinations mentioned in the PAM. By integrating these two tools, SAP customers can ensure that their system maintenance activities are planned and executed according to the compatibility guidelines provided by SAP in the PAM, helping to avoid any potential issues or incompatibilities during system updates or upgrades.

1. Go to the SAP Support Portal.
2. Log in to your SAP account using your credentials. You may need to create one if you don't have an account.
3. When you are logged in, click on Maintenance in the navigation menu and select Product Availability Matrix, or search for "Product Availability Matrix" in the search bar.
4. On the Product Availability Matrix page, select Display All Product Versions. You will then see various options to search for product availability and supported platforms.
5. Search for your desired product and version, or select your product under My Company from the drop-down menu. Then, you can choose the specific SAP product or component you are looking for.
6. Next, choose the product version or release. The available options will depend on your selected product.
7. Select Related Product Versions for specific information regarding release upgrades, available add-on product versions, and required product version dependencies.
8. You can refine your search by selecting the relevant operating system, database, and browser version under Technical Release Information.
9. After selecting all the required options, click the Check Availability or Go button to initiate the search.
10. The system will display the results, providing information on the availability of the selected SAP product for the chosen combination of versions and platforms.
11. Review the provided information to ensure compatibility and availability with your preferred setup.

The PAM is typically updated quarterly. However, additional updates may occur throughout the year to address critical issues or new releases. It is important to regularly check the SAP Support Portal for the latest updates to ensure accurate and up-to-date information.

You should now be able to do the following:

• Describe the SAP Product Availability Matrix (PAM)
• Explain SAP’s recommended procedure for using the maintenance planner
• Work with the PAM to Check Availability of a software release or support package stack