IBM BPM, V8.0.1, All platforms > Authoring services in Integration Designer > Services and service-related functions > Access external services with adapters > Configure and using adapters > IBM WebSphere Adapters > SAP Software > Reference > Business object information > Application-specific information

BAPI business object application-specific information

BAPI application-specific information (ASI) is metadata that specifies adapter-dependent information about how to process BAPI business objects for the WebSphere Adapter for SAP Software.


Business object-level metadata for BAPI

WebSphere Adapter for SAP Software uses application-specific information (ASI) to create queries for Create, Retrieve, Update, and Delete operations. ASI for BAPI is generated by the external service wizard at the following levels: the business-object level, the operation-level and the property-level.

The sections that follow describe the metadata elements for each level.

Business object-level metadata defines the top-level wrapper of the business object.

The following table lists and describes the business object-level metadata elements for a BAPI business object.

Metadata elements: Wrapper of a BAPI business object
Metadata element Description
Type The business object type.

  • For a simple BAPI, the value is BAPI.

  • For a BAPI work unit business object, this value is BAPITXN.

  • For a BAPI result set, this value is BAPIRS.

Operation

The valid operations include Create, Update, Delete, and Retrieve. The specified operation metadata is defined in the sapBAPIOperationTypeMetadata tag and contains the following:

  • MethodName: Name of the BAPI associated with the operation.
  • Name: Name of the operation.

This is applicable if the Generate BAPIs within Wrappers check box is selected.

If you do not select the Generate BAPIs within Wrappers check box, top-level business objects are automatically generated for each BAPI selected. The adapter internally assigns the Execute operation for each top-level business object generated.

The following illustration is an example of BAPI business object metadata:

Figure 1. Business-object metadata for SapCustomerWrapper

The following illustration is an example of BAPI work unit business object metadata:

Figure 2. Business-object metadata for SapCustomerCreateTxn

The following illustration is an example of BAPI result set business object metadata:

Figure 3. Business-object metadata for SapBapiCustomerGetdetail


Property-level metadata for BAPI business objects

Property-level metadata represents child objects or an array of child objects.

The following table describes the metadata elements of a complex property (child) or structure or table property (an array of child objects).

Property-level metadata elements: BAPI business object
Metadata element Description
FieldName The BAPI field name as represented in SAP.
FieldType The type of the property as it exists in SAP.
PrimaryKey An indication about whether this property is a primary key.
ParameterType The direction of the mapping.

  • If the value is IN, the property is mapped from the business object to the BAPI.

  • If the value is OUT, the property is mapped from the BAPI in the SAP system to the business object.

  • If the value is INOUT, the property is mapped both ways (BAPI to business object and business object to BAPI).

MaxLength The length of the field.
ForeignKey The foreign-key relationship. This element applies only to BAPI result sets.
DecimalPlaces For fields with a FieldType of Decimal, the value of the precision level. This value is extracted from metadata on the SAP server.
Description The description of the field. This value is extracted from metadata on the SAP server.

The following illustration is an example of property-level metadata for a BAPI business object:

Figure 4. Property-level metadata for MaximumNumberofCustomers

The following illustration is an example of property-level metadata for a BAPI result set business object:

Figure 5. Property-level metadata for QueryBO


Operation-level metadata for BAPI business objects

Operation-level metadata specifies the method name of the BAPI in the SAP system. This name is used by the adapter to determine the action to take on the BAPI.

The following table describes the operation-level metadata elements of a BAPI business object.

Operation-level metadata elements: BAPI business object
Metadata element Description
MethodName The name of the BAPI call (method) in the SAP system.
Name The name of the business object operation associated with the MethodName.

Operation-level metadata for a BAPI, a BAPI work unit, and a BAPI result set are shown in the figures in the Business object-level metadata for BAPI section. Notice that the BAPI work unit has three MethodName values listed–two for the BAPIs in the transaction and one for the COMMIT. The operations are listed in the sequence in which they are called.

Application-specific information