SAP® landscapes include quality assurance (QA), test and other staging systems in addition to the production systems. For appropriate and consistent testing and acceptance of changes in programmes and processes, SAP recommends a special procedure called "homogeneous system copy". This makes it possible to provide non-production systems with up-to-date data.
Typically, this procedure involves many manual activities that can take several hours to several days, depending on the structure and size of the systems. If there are also environments of multiple connected systems, these time frames can add up to really painful downtimes in the context of a landscape copy, for which there is never "the right" time.
In addition to the unavailability of the target systems for operating and project teams, system and landscape copies block other important and expensive resources: internal or external SAP Basis professionals.
The basic core of a homogeneous system copy consists of performing a large number of standardized pre- and post-processes in a specific sequence. Depending on the operating system and database management system, the steps to be performed may vary greatly.
Further complexity can be added if steps also need to be taken to account for interfaces and other connected systems. Thus, there is no generally applicable "step-by-step" guide that precisely defines the process and can be applied to all systems.
Given the large number of steps to be performed per system copy, there must be a clearly defined process. SAP Basis professionals can use this as a guide to ensure that no step is overlooked. It also makes it easier to keep to the correct sequence. At the same time, the complexity increases depending on the links between the systems.
This process takes time and ties up human resources. In addition to these factors, errors can occur in the process. In this case, an individual decision must be made as to whether the copy can be continued or whether it must be aborted here.
Each person decides differently in this situation, which means that the quality of a manually executed system copy can vary greatly. Subsequent errors are not always immediately obvious, but usually only appear in the course of the tests.
With an automated system copy, the manual steps can be optimized, e.g. through parallel execution and the saving of idle time between the individual steps. In addition, system copies can be executed completely without manual intervention. This minimizes the time required, which also means immense cost savings above a certain volume of system copies.
In addition, system administrators can concentrate on other, more critical activities in the SAP landscape.
With an automated system copy, the same sequence of steps is always performed, and the result is evaluated identically for each individual step. Thus, the expected result is always approximately the same. If there are differences, they are traceable due to the automated evaluation. This makes simple reporting possible.
A common mistake in a manual refresh is the release of production batch jobs on QAS. This often creates major escalations and simultaneously creates a resource crunch on target systems, since target systems are not resourced as completely as the production system.
Whether for a sole system copy, the combination of system and client copy, a single line or complex landscapes, Libelle AG offers an easy-to-use solution - Libelle SystemCopy. Find out more now and get your free whitepaper.