Friday, September 3, 2010

Enterprise Portal



Start here to understand how to implement the SAP portal.

The portal offers a single point of access to SAP and non-SAP information sources, enterprise applications, information repositories, databases and services in and outside your organization - all integrated into a single user experience. It provides you the tools to manage this knowledge, to analyze and interrelate it, and to share and collaborate on the basis of it.
For portal concepts and overview, see the introduction of the Portal Documentation.

 Portal Development

For EP development, you can start by accessing the following:

 Web Dynpro

Web Dynpro is a development environment for building user interfaces. Web Dynpro applications can be integrated and displayed in the portal. For more information, see the following:

 Useful Articles/Blogs


 Getting started - some content from YouTube — I thought I'd upload to YouTube a couple of videos of some introductory type tasks with the SAP NetWeaver Portal.

 Creating iViews — iViews are the fundamental building blocks for SAP NetWeaver Portal content. All the objects that will appear to the portal user will be iViews. SAP provides numerous iView templates and new templates can be constructed by customers. Here are some pages that discuss different types of iViews and how to create them.


Characteristics of Portal:

a) A Single point of access via web browser to applications, content and services
b) Secure access from anywhere
c) Simple maintenance based on an open and flexible system with no additional client software
d) A personalized, role -based user interface, customizable to individual needs.
e) SAP Enterprise Portal provides a complete portal infrastructure, with robust knowledge-management and collaboration functionality.
f) An enterprise portal provides enhanced meaning by organizing content in context and by supporting collaborative flows of information between communities of common interest. It helps convert raw data into information and then validates that information to produce knowledge
g) Content: Content includes every type of data and information source that is used within an organization. Messages in the form of e-mail, notes, forums, news and chats are a natural component of an Internet-based environment. content includes organized methods to present and deliver sets of material as a unit
h) Context: Context is the essence of information. A portal defines context by embedding, linking or packaging related content together and by ubiquitous meta data and reference data. Without this contextual information, you may have a harder time deciding where to begin your personal research on data warehousing.
i)  Connectivity: A portal cannot serve the needs of information consumers if it can't access specific content they are interested in. Built-in capabilities, wrappers, application programming interfaces or external functionality can all provide connectivity.
j) Channels: Channels are the means made available to information consumers to send and receive content or to interact with the portal. Our definition is based on a communications metaphor for how information is received or transmitted.
k) Collaboration: An enterprise portal must support collaboration to increase the value of the content. Collaboration comes in passive, active and autonomous forms. In all its forms, collaboration supports interaction between individuals to understand and interpret content.
l) Customization: The basic features of customization are the ability to manage the look and layout of your own home page in the portal. This includes the ability to select embeddable components
m) Control: Control functionality includes administrator and security features. A portal must support a wide range of control models - from highly centralized through distributed to fully decentralized administrationn)     
n) Correlation: implies a set of processes to help manage info- glut that helps the seeker find what is relevant. A sophisticated variant of correlation helps validate results, which is the means to the transition from information to knowledge.  
Key Capabilities of Portal:
The following are the key features of the Portal. 
-         Platform-independence: The portal runs on a wide range of operating systems, including Windows and UNIX.
-         Multi-language interface: The portal supports many languages to make a global deployment more efficient and usable.
-         High performance and availability: Clustering and caching mechanisms provide high performance and high availability.
-         Security: The portal allows businesses to expose their resources to partners, suppliers, and customers, while maintaining rigorous confidentiality for restricted business information. The security features of the portal include authentication, single sign-on, authorization, integrated user management, and secure communications.
-         Unification: Unification in the portal enables an enterprise to integrate the resources of its information systems and provide unified access to its structured data. It provides correlation-based technology that allows users to take information from one application and to use it to retrieve information from another application, and trigger an automated response.
-         Navigation: The portal offers a flexible and open navigation layout design that supports virtually every usage scenario.
-         Global portal scenarios: The portal supports global portal scenarios through the use of open standards, wide platform support, multi-language support, global deployment and scalability, and delegated administration.
User navigation: The portal offers a comprehensive role-based navigation environment for users to retrieve the business-specific information. Portal pages and iViews also display assorted links to associated information, enabling further investigation. Navigation in the portal is facilitated through top-level and detailed navigation, page navigation, dynamic navigation, object based navigation, Drag&Relate, and navigation by URL.
-         Personalization: Portal users can work in a customized environment; by personalizing the look and feel of their portal desktop, language settings, personal information, single sign-on logon credentials, and content displayed per portal page.
Portal Components:
iView:
It is a portlet. We can use to communicate with 'n' number of heterogeneous landscapes to fetch the data or to process the information. It is a base component.
Intergartion :
iViews are generally based on portal components, which are the pieces of code that provide the iView its functionality and ability to retrieve and display content.
Each iView comprises a set of properties, which are used at runtime to parameterize the portal component on which the iView is based.
Different iViews can implement the same application, or different applications.
For iView based on the same portal component, it is the properties that provide each iView its unique personalized behavior.
Types of iViews:
There are plenty types of iViews in Portal few of them are listed below.
SAP Webdynpro iview,SAP Transaction,SAP BSP,URL iView & KM iViews.
For more information on types of iViews, please check the following link:
Page:
It is a container which contains more than one iView. Basically we can say that Page is collection of iViews(need not be similar type of iViews, can be disimilar iViews).
Workset:
It is also a container which can contain pages as well as worksets. To maintain the folder hierarchy we can use worksets.
Role:
A Role is collection of activities and functions that describes a certain work area of an SAP application
Role is a final entity through which we can assign business activities to the user.
A portal role is a container for applications and information that can be assigned to a particular group of users.
Technically a role is a hierarchy of folders containing other content objects.
Types of Roles:
There are two types of roles
1) User Defined Roles
2) Standard Roles ( SAP Provided)
Few of the SAP provided roles are exaplined below:
Content Administrator: To design portal components like iView, Workset & role. Also used to make links between components.
User Administrator: Create users & assign roles to users & user mapping & locking the users.
System Administrator: Monitoring end users, create business packages & create system objects.
Super Administrator: It includes content administrator, user administrator and system administrator roles. 
Note:If we assign Super Administrator Role to the User, we have access to all the other roles.
Super Administrator is a group role which is combination of Content,System and User Administrator Roles. 
Portal on Web Application server:
The Portal on SAP Web Application Server 
The portal is deployed on the J2EE Engine, which is a component of the SAP Web Application server based on the Java 2 Enterprise Edition . The Portal Platform relies on the J2EE architecture implemented by the application server.
The portal is comprised of software that provides core functionalities, such as applications that are loaded at runtime, before other applications. Such applications provide central functionality to the Portal Platform, such as integration with the User Management Engine and the Portal Content Directory.
In addition to the runtime libraries, configuration files, core applications and so on, the portal sets up other services that interface with the J2EE Engine such as, PRTBridge: a service containing functionalities and services for inter-cluster communication. This facilitates the integration processes between the runtime environment of the portal and J2EE Engine. 
The following provide the interfaces between the portal and SAP Web Application Server:
         Portal Runtime Container
A container implemented for the runtime processes of the portal to manage:
        The deployment of Portal Applications: these consist of Java software that is programmed for the portal.
        The communication between Portal Applications and the J2EE application.
        The robust interaction and integration between Portal Applications and the J2EE Engine.
         PRTBridge Service
The PRTBridge is the link between the runtime process of the portal and the J2EE Engine cluster configuration. It is installed for the portal as a J2EE Engine service.
The PRTBridge allows communication among J2EE Engine cluster elements, including communication with the J2EE cluster groups. For example, the number of cluster servers, the name of each server, and so on. 

Portal Basics
 SAP's Portal Basics
 The portal offers a single point of access to SAP and non-SAP information sources, enterprise applications, information     repositories, databases and services in and outside your organization---all integrated into a single user experience. It provides you the tools to manage this knowledge, to analyze and interrelate it, and to share and collaborate on the basis of it.
 Portal: 
 For portal concepts and overview you can start with the link below:
 http://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw04/helpdata/en/a4/76bd3b57743b09e10000000a11402f/frameset.htm
 A. Portal Development:

 For EP development, you can start by accessing the online help for EP developers. This is a part of the portal documentation.
 http://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw04/helpdata/en/19/4554426dd13555e10000000a1550b0/content.htm
     Portal Developer Guide
     Portal Runtime:
     Portal Development Kit:
     Portal Content Directory (PCD):
     Theme Editor
 B. WebDynpro:
 Running a Web Dynpro Application in SAP Enterprise Portal 
      http://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw04/helpdata/en/fb/d0673f19299d51e10000000a114084/frameset.htm



 C. Portal - Knowledge Management and Collaboration 
SAP J2EE Engine-6.20 wizard plugins (eclipse plugins) for creating KM service template projects etc.
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_sm40/helpdata/en/c8/3e514268193830e10000000a155106/content.htm
 D. Visual Composer:
  Useful Blogs:
    Animated logo in masthead
   https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/sdn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/5125
  E.Trex:
 Trex 7.1 for EP7.0 
km trex overview
https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/sdn/go/portal/prtroot/docs/library/uuid/bef71357-0601-0010-e5b6-83137bcc064c



Creating a Sample Portal project:

This content is for beginners to start implementing a portal project. This will go as 3 different parts. First part will cover basics to create a JSPDynPage. Second Part will be for eventing and the third one for using bean to pass data between JspDynPage and JSP.
Creating a Portal project:
Open the developer studio.
1)      Create a New Project. File -> New  -> Project -> Portal Application.
2)      Select 'Create a Portal Application project' and click Next.
3)      Specify project name as 'MyFirstPortalProject' and project root folder can remain default as it is. Click Finish. The created project is displayed in Package Explorer.
4)      Right click the project and select New -> Other -> Portal Application. Choose 'Create a new Portal Application Object' on the right side. Click Next.
5)      Choose MyFirstPortalProject and click Next.
6)      In the next page, click the + sign near 'Portal Component' to expand. Select JSPDynPage and click Next.
7)      Specify name for JSPDynPage.
Name: FirstJSPDynPage
Location: Core
JSPDynPage class name:  FirstJSPDynPage
JSPDynPage package name: com.mysap.pages
JSP: firstjsp
Click Next.
8)      In the next page, choose 'Generate bean statements'
Bean name: myBean
Bean scope: application
       Choose 'Generate bean class' radio button.
Location: Core
Class name: UserBean
Package name: com.mysap.bean
       Click Finish.
You can see UserBean.java, FirstJSPDynPage.java and firstjsp.jsp created.
  • UserBean.java is the bean class - model
  • FirstJSPDynPage.java is the dynpage class - servlet
  • firstjsp.jsp is the jsp - view
Now we will first create UI in JSP, do some eventing and then use model to store and retrieve values.
Creating UI screen:
Open firstjsp.jsp. This has two tabs at the bottom. Click on Source tab. Since we are going to use htmlb tags for creating UI elements, we have to add taglib for htmlb in the jsp and its reference in portalapp.xml.
In JSP, add in the first line.
<%@ taglib uri= "tagLib" prefix="hbj" %>
Open portalapp.xml from MyFirstPortalProject -> dist -> PORTAL-INF. Go to Source tab. Replace <component-profile/> with this.
<component-profile>
  <property name="tagLib" value="/SERVICE/htmlb/taglib/htmlb.tld"/>
</component-profile>
Now open JSP and continue adding tags for creating a textview, input field and a button. Place them in grid layout for arranging them in the same row.iam not incuding the source code now 
Configure Enterprise Portal in NWDS:
Make sure Enterprise portal server is configured in studio. If not, go to Window Menu -> Preferences. Choose SAP Enterprise Portal. Click Add button.
Alias: ABC      
Host: pc014235
Port: 50000
Login: john
Description: ABC
Click Ok. Then choose checkbox on the left of this server as default server for deploying portal applications. Click Apply and Ok.
Host and port refer to host name of the server and port in which the portal server runs. Alias can be used to differentiate if there are more than one server instance on the same host. Description can be any text about server. Logon is the portal user id which is used to deploy portal applications to server.
Build Project:
You need to build project before deploying. Right click on the project -> Build project.
If any of the imports are missing, you can add them. Here, two jars may be required for htmlb classes if you get red marks (which means error for missing imports here) in FirstJSPDynPage class.
Right click project -> Properties -> Java Build Path -> 'Libraries' tab -> Click on 'Add External Jars' and add these two jars.
1) com.sap.portal.htmlb_api.jar - C:\Program Files\SAP\IDE\IDE70\eclipse\plugins\com.sap.ep.applicationDevelopment_7.00
2) htmlb.jar - C:\Program Files\SAP\IDE\IDE70\eclipse\plugins\com.sap.tc.ap_2.0.0\comp\SAP_JTECHS\DCs\sap.com\com.sapportals.htmlb_comp\gen\default\public\default\lib\java
Click Ok and rebuild the project.
Note: The path of the jars may change depending on the developer studio location and version.
Deploy Project:
We can now deploy the project to the portal server.
Right click project -> Export -> Par File -> MyFirstPortalProject.
PAR file will be coming automatically corresponding to this project.
Check the box for 'Deploy PAR'.
In the table below, click on password cell and enter the password. Click Finish.
The project is deployed to server.
Output:
To check the output, go to portalapp.xml -> Overview tab.
Click Run button near the DynPage component, which is 'FirstJSPDynPage' in our case. This will launch the browser for portal. Enter password for authentication. You can then view the output.

Getting started - some content from YouTube

How to... Ensure that EP x BI connectivity is correct

In case you have an issue in the Java WEB regarding a BW report or in case you are configuring a BW connection to your Enterprise Portal, it is recommended to following the information below so as to ensure that the portal and BW connectivity is correct.


To ensure that the BI Java is configured correctly and completely, please do the following:
1. Always use the CTC Template for BI Java for configuration (check SAP NetWeaver 2004s Masterguide available at  http://service.sap.com/instguides for details). Manual configuration    or configuration via report RSPOR_SETUP should not be done for SAP  NetWeaver 2004s.
2. To ensure a smooth configuration process, make sure that you have  deployed the very latest patch from SAP Service Marketplace at  http://service.sap.com/swdc for CTC Template for BI Java.
3. To avoid encountering already known issues within the area of BI Java itself, make sure to deploy the latest patches for SCAs  BI-BASE-S and BIWEBAPP.  For more information refer to note1163789  and BI Java Patch Delivery Process as of SPS 14
4. Read note 983156 ('BI configuration w. Template Installer') and  make sure the necessary prerequisites are given on the ABAP side.
5. After running the CTC Template for BI Java, run SAP NetWeaver BI  Diagnostics & Support Desk Tool as described in the latest version of  note 937697 to verify your installation. In the "Advanced mode" of the tool, go to the "Configuration checks" tab and check for potential red traffic lights. To resolve the issues shown there, check the  "Remedy" column and follow the instructions given there.
6. The overall process is described in more detail in note 917950 ('SAP NetWeaver 2004s: Setting up BEx Web'). Make sure to go through the note and also have a look at the document   WDEBU7_Setting_up_BEx_Web.zip attached to that note, showing the overall process in a set of slides with screenshots.  
Posted by SAP at 11:37 AM

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)