Introducing the SAP GUI

The SAP Graphical User Interface, or SAP GUI, is a software tool used to interact with an SAP system. It can interact with applications running on NetWeaver AS ABAP and ABAP platform, such as Business Suite, BW, and S/4 HANA and can run on a variety of hardware platforms, either as a desktop program or in a web browser.

The SAP GUI implements the graphical user interface using the functions provided by the relevant presentation environment, such as buttons, icons, and windows that allow users to navigate through the system and perform various tasks. The SAP GUI is based on the Windows Style Guide and is available for several platforms, providing the same functions for each.

There are two main variants of the SAP GUI available for use in S/4HANA: the SAP GUI for Windows and the SAP GUI for HTML. Each variant offers a different user experience and can be utilized based on individual preferences and requirements. However, both variants provide access to the same functionality and features of the SAP system, allowing users to manage their business processes efficiently and effectively.

All ABAP Platform SAP solutions can be accessed using the SAP GUI. For the sake of simplicity, all further references to SAP GUI in this lesson will relate to the SAP GUI for the Microsoft Windows environment.

To access your SAP ABAP system with the SAP GUI, SAP provides SAP Logon.

SAP Logon is a tool that provides users with a single point of access to multiple SAP systems running on a single computer. The SAP Logon is based on a client-server model, with the clients being the various SAP systems and the server being the computer that hosts the SAP Logon software. It allows users to log on to these systems and easily switch between them without having to log off and log back on each time.

By selecting an SAP system to access, you are presented with the SAP Logon Screen for that system.

Here you must specify certain information in order to access the SAP System. This information includes the following:

• Client
• User ID
• Password (unless Single Sign-On has been activated)
• Logon Language

To learn more about SAP Logon and the process for accessing an SAP system using the SAP GUI, complete the following exercise.

The SAP GUI is a transaction-based user interface. The user moves to a particular transaction and performs the necessary operations. Each transaction calls a specific ABAP program or application, and the user then executes a series of dialog steps, often culminating in a completed logical unit of work as we discussed in the previous unit.

There are three basic ways to access SAP GUI transactions:

1. The SAP Menu: This menu is defined by SAP and delivered you're your SAP solution. A user can select any transaction that they have security access to. The menu is accessible from the SAP Easy Access screen.
2. The User Menu: This menu is defined by security roles granted to the user. It is also accessible from the SAP Easy Access Screen.
3. The Command field: Users enter the Transaction code, or T-code for a specific transaction. This field is available on each SAP screen.

The most common method of navigation for experienced users is the Command field. For every transaction there is a unique T-code. This allows users to move from any transaction to any other transaction.

There are many T-codes, and it is not necessary to know them all. However, experienced users will quickly learn which T-codes they use on a regular basis. The standard menu and the user menu also have a Favorites list, which allows users to maintain a list of commonly used T-codes.

Using the Command field, you can simply type in the T-code for the application you want to execute and press Enter. There are also several other commands that aid in navigation. These commands are as follows:

• /n Cancel the current transaction and return to the Easy Access menu.

• /nxxxx Cancel the current transaction and move to the indicated transaction (xxxx represents a new transaction code).

• /oxxxx Start a new session and execute the indicated transaction (xxxx represents a new transaction code).

• /o List all open sessions, or windows.

• /i End the session and return to a prior window.

• /nend End your session with a confirmation dialog box.

• /nex End your session without a confirmation dialog box.

The use of command /o allows the user to open multiple sessions while logged in to the server only once. If you are on a particular screen and have made any changes, it is important to save your work before you leave that screen. Using /n or logging off without saving will roll back your changes.

There are many T-codes, and it is not necessary to know them all. However, experienced users will quickly learn which T-codes they use on a regular basis. The standard menu and the user menu also have a Favorites list, which allows users to maintain a list of commonly used T-codes.

Originally, T-codes were 4 characters long: two alphabetic and two numeric characters. However, as SAP applications have expanded, the size of the T-codes has also. A T-code can be up to 20 characters in length.

The SAP system contains a wide variety of personalization options. For example, there are several possible appearances for the SAP GUI, depending on the display theme you choose. The theme controls the look and feel of the SAP GUI, including colors, menus, icons, and other display elements.

There are light and dark themes and various color combinations. Users can also change other display options, such as font, keyboard settings, accessibility options, and sounds. For our training, the SAP Signature Theme was selected.

Other options include management of field input history. In the standard toolbar, use the following button to adapt the local layout: Using SAP GUI settings and actions, you can manage the input history by choosing Options → Local Data.

When it is activated, the input history creates a small database on the front end containing the last n entries made in input fields in transactions. You can specify the value for "n" yourself. These entries display as input help for fields that are declared accordingly. There is a slight delay on the input history. To minimize this display, choose Options → Local Data → History → Immediate.

You can also set personal data default values by choosing System → User Profile → User Data. Here, you can choose between the Address, Defaults, and Parameters tab pages.

To learn more about SAP GUI navigation, and to gain an understanding of personalization options and the various screen elements involved, please complete the following exercise.

Continue now with the second part of the exercise.

With ABAP-based SAP systems, you can choose to communicate by either the SAP GUI or a web browser. For example, you can consult the

Product Availability Matrix

to find out which web browser types are supported.

Web browser navigation is used under a range of different conditions:

• You log on to the SAP system with the SAP GUI for HTML. SAP GUI for Windows is not required. Navigation takes place through the web browser, only.
• You use an SAP GUI for Windows with the SAP system, for example. Some transactions open in a web browser. In all SAP systems, the transaction PAL (Printing Assistant for Landscape) opens in a web browser. In an SAP Solution Manager system - for example, this is the case for transaction LMDB (Landscape Management Database).
• You call a web browser-based web service of an SAP system.

The HTML version of the SAP GUI can be accessed through the T-code WEBGUI, or directly through a URL. The HTML version of SAP GUI runs in any HTML5-compatible browser, on any operating system. It does not need any SAP software installed on the user's desktop.

The URL format is: https://<host>:<port>/sap/bc/gui/sap/its/webgui/

You can see that the URL starts with http(s)://<host name of application server :<Port ppnn>. pp is a number that can be defined by a profile parameter, for example 80 for http or 443 for https, nn is the instance number, for example 11. The URL could therefore begin with https://fsdhost.wdf.sap.corp:44311. In this example, the complete link might look something like the following:

https://<host>:<port>/sap/bc/gui/sap/its/webgui/

The HTML SAP GUI requires a user id/password or single sign-on method just like the desktop SAP GUI. However, the Command Field is not enabled by default. This can be changed under the menu by choosing Settings → Interaction → Design → Visualization and enable Show OK Code. When the Command Field button is enabled, navigation is the same as the desktop GUI.

You should now be able to:

• Describe the SAP GUI access variants
• Access the SAP System using SAP Logon and the SAP GUI
• Perform Basic Navigation and Personalization using the SAP GUI
• Use SAP GUI for HTML