Using SAP Fiori Launchpad

The SAP Fiori launchpad (FLP) offers a coherent user experience across different enterprise solutions by utilizing the capabilities of the user role to combine the decomposed apps in one surface. Each app represents one individual step for one specific role. Therefore, several apps combined represent a complete process covering different enterprise solutions and systems. This is a shift from monolithic solutions to activity-based apps and a role-based simplification of business processes.

SAP Fiori is continuously evolving and the evolution continues.

Watch the video to learn how SAP Fiori shifted the approach from monolithic solutions to activity-based apps and a role-based simplification of business processes.

With SAP S/4HANA Cloud 2208, SAP Fiori Horizon is available to customers. It is not (yet) a new version of SAP Fiori but a new theme including new features for the FLP. The theme itself is called Horizon and introduces signature design elements to provide a better focus on important parts on the screen.

A new feature is the My Home app that replaces the My Home space. It provides several sections with new options of what the user can see and start in the FLP.

• Tasks and situations are shown as To Dos.
• Pages can be accessed directly without opening the space first.
• Recently or frequently used Apps and favorites can be started directly.
• Users can define Insights into analytical data as tiles or cards.

All sections of the My Home app can be personalized by the user.

SAP Fiori launchpad provides several features such as User Actions Menu, notifications area, and SAP Conversational Artificial Intelligence (CAI) chat window.

SAP Fiori launchpad provides additional features such as context-sensitive user assistance, quick tour, and keyboard shortcut.

We will be exploring each feature in detail. To begin with, let's look at how SAP Fiori provides context-sensitive assistance to users.

SAP Fiori launchpad offers help functionality that includes a guided tour for an app. This context-sensitive user assistance can be started via the question mark in the upper right-hand corner or by pressing F1. A help panel consisting of help topics shows up to the right of the app as well as bubbles pointing out the key elements inside the app. By selecting a topic or a bubble, an information dialog box appears, offering more information about the functionality.

The help content for this user assistance is provided by the SAP Content Server hosted by SAP, an SAP Enable Now Manager hosted by the customer, or a mixture of both. This also includes access to learning material available in the Learning Center.

To help new users, the FLP provides the Quick Tour popup. The Quick Tour is part of the context-sensitive user assistance. Let's explore the Quick Tour.

The SAP Fiori launchpad can be fully operated via a keyboard.

There are three clients available to access SAP Fiori:

• Web Browser
• SAP Business Client
• SAP Mobile Start

You can also integrate SAP Fiori in other system areas to add additional values like logon features or increased distribution range. Details and benefits of these integration options are discussed later or considered in more depth in other trainings:

• SAP Build Work Zone
• SAP Enterprise Portal
• SAP Mobile Services

Now, let's explore each client in detail.

The original way to start an FLP is to enter the URL https://<host>:<port>/sap/bc/ui5_ui5/ui2/ushell/shells/abap/FioriLaunchpad.html in an HTML5-ready browser. This URL has been available since the beginning of SAP Fiori. Over time, SAP added additional options to start the launchpad.

Many customers access SAP software via a logon to an Application Server ABAP (AS ABAP). Therefore, the transaction /UI2/FLP is added. With this transaction, you can log on automatically with the credentials you used to log on to the AS ABAP. This approach is for users working in both worlds, ABAP transactions and SAP Fiori web apps, if no business client is available.

The current URL to start the FLP is https://<host>:<port>/sap/bc/ui2/flp. This URL is much shorter than the original one so it is easier to memorize. Even more important is the cache buster feature. This technique causes web browsers to load content from the server rather than from the browser cache if activated. The cache buster for SAP Fiori uses versioned URLs containing tokens to signal the browser that new resources are available on the server. Instead of forbidding caching or setting a lifetime for the resources, the system invalidates the cache only when resources are actually updated on the server.

SAP Business Client makes it possible to access SAP GUI and web applications in one client software. Therefore, in SAP Business Client 6.0, the ability to add system connections for FLP was introduced. The benefit is the end user only needs one tool to access all the functions of an AS ABAP. It is even possible to start ABAP transactions in the FLP, which opens a new SAP GUI tab in the SAP Business Client. SAP Logon is completely integrated in SAP Business Client.

SAP Mobile Start was introduced in August 2021. It is a mobile application for Apple iOS and Google Android integrated with SAP S/4HANA and further SAP solutions, leveraging the SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP). The SAP Build Work Zone, standard edition, Notification service, and Mobile Services of BTP work together to provide web sites and apps for mobile usage. SAP Mobile Start integrates with mobile operating system features like notifications, spotlight search, and widgets running on smartphones, watches, and tablets.