A new support package stack (SPS) has just been released for SAP Solution Manager. As with every SPS release, there are many quality of life changes and new features that improve the workflow for SAP Solution Manager. Here are all the changes that are announced by SAP, feel free to let us know if we missed any!

Mandatory Configuration

• Changed: As of end of 2019 connections to SAP, only RFC connection SAPOSS remains accessible. All other currently used RFC connections to the support backbone are substituted.
• Changed: SAP has provided further information about the steps that you need to take to ensure that your systems remain connected to the updated support backbone after January 2020.
• Changed: SAP Solution Manager is now based on SAP NetWeaver Application Server for Java version 7.50

Managed Systems Configuration

• Changed: The SAP Cloud Platform Integration offers now an authentication via OAuth.

Project Management

• New: In the dashboard Project Assets, a new tile for test management is available. It shows the number of test plans that are assigned to the project. You can drill down to the list of test plans, to get additional information like test classification, scope, person responsible, errors, and open defects.
• New: It is possible now to display assigned test plans on project header level. The assignment is done in test management. There is no edit or create function in project management, but it is possible to navigate to the assigned test plans in test management.

Process Management

• New: New report for the estimation of the index size for initial indexing, this new report calculates and displays the expected size of a full Embedded Search index in SAP Solution Manager based on the existing data.If there is a big amount of data stored in Solution Documentation, a full index run may take some time. In order to estimate the expected runtime, this report may be used to get an estimation on the number of expected entries to be built-up in a full index run.
• New: The binding of changed elements to change documents is now more flexible. Changed elements maybe re-assigned from one change document to another. The respective re-assignment option is smoothly integrated within the change list UI. The withdrawal of change documents now provides options to adapt the respective change lists accordingly in an integrated manner. Any assigned changes of a change document to be withdrawn may either be discarded or else moved to other change documents.

Test Suite

• New: The signature process for test documents (test notes, test plan attachments, test package attachments, and test results) has been connected with the framework for workflow modeling. You can use the API to create and integrate your own document signature workflows. The interface provides one method for displaying the document content and another for accessing the document overview application where the document can be digitally signed. Note that no predefined document signature workflow is delivered by SAP. You need to use the API to develop a custom workflow to suit your needs.
• New: You can now edit test documents directly online in the respective document management application or manual test case execution application. This means you no longer have to save a local copy of the document and reimport it after making changes. Note that for some document formats this feature is only supported in Internet Explorer.
• Changed: When there is a signature assigned to a test document within a test plan, the signature information will be also included in the test report. This is relevant for test cases and all test documents.
• Changed: In test notes and test results, you can choose the signature icon to access the signature directly. Choosing the signature icon will cause one of the following responses:
  • Show the signature history if the application is in display mode or if the current user cannot sign the document themselves, for example, because they have already signed it
  • Show the popup for signing the document if the current user is able to, or required to sign the document

Business Process Operations

• New: You can use Interface Search and Mass Maintenance to analyze and change interfaces that you have documented in the integration repository:
  • To find specific interfaces of a solution and branch, you can use interface parameters, such as the interface technology or attribute values, as search criteria.
  • To change details of several of interfaces at once, you can use a mass maintenance function.
• New: You can now use the report Job Monitoring – Apply Monitoring Object configuration to other system (AC_JOBMON_APPLY_SETTINGS) to configure monitoring identically for the same job in different systems
• New: You can now create more than one job monitoring object from a job document for the same system and client.
• Changed: We have improved the mass deletion of job documents with the Job Documentation Reorganization report AC_JOB_DEFINITION_REORG.
• Changed: Simple job request management has now been extended to cover job chains as well as jobs.
• New: The new report AC_EJR_MASS_VALIDATE_PROD_JDS is now available for you to validate multiple job documents at once.
• Changed: Mass maintenance of job documentation has been extended to cover job chains.
• Changed: You can now access a job document directly from the job details in the central job overview (identification is based on the job name)

IT Service Management

• Changed: Files uploaded as attachments to incidents on the SAP ONE Support Launchpad are no longer physically replicated in SAP Solution Manager. Instead they are stored in the Document Service of SAP Cloud Platform. By using the Document Service, it is now possible to exchange large sized attachments as well. A hyperlink (a URL) to the files in the Document Service is displayed under Information from SAP. Users with an S-User can access these attachments through the URL.
• New: SAP customers can set a flag in the SAP Support Portal to mark specific systems as requiring EU data protection. If an incident is assigned to a system that is flagged for EU data protection, this is visible on the UI and incident processors outside of the EU are not allowed to open a remote connection to the system. Files attached to the incident are also flagged as requiring EU data protection in the BCP. This means that they can be opened by incident processors in the BCP only if the incident processors confirm that they are located within the EU. Customers can remove the EU data protection flag from attached files in the BCP.
• New: You can adapt the e-mails to the incident reporters depending on the app that is used to create incidents:
  • Activate parameter FIORI_APP_USED and the system provides a link to the incident message in the SAP Fiori App.
  • Leave the parameter inactive and the system provides a link to the incident in the WebClient UI.
• Changed: The following reports for ITSM-specific background jobs have been changed:
  • Report AI_CRM_IM_UPDATE_FROM_SAP_WS replaces report AI_CRM_IM_UPDATE_FROM_SAP. This report is activated in SAP Solution Manager Configuration at IT Service Management Perform Prerequisites Configure Automatic Prerequisites Background Job for Communication with SAP.
  • Report AI_CRM_IM_UPD_FROM_SAP_ISV_WS replaces report AI_CRM_IM_UPDATE_FROM_SAP_ISV. This report is activated in SAP Solution Manager Configuration atIT Service Management Maintain SAP Partner Set Up Software Partner Schedule Job AI_CRM_IM_UPDATE_FROM_SAP_ISV.

Application Operations Data

• Changed: A Database Monitoring page has been added to the System Monitoring application. You can monitor the hosts directly from the page.
• Changed: When you schedule a work mode (such as a planned downtime) for an SAP HANA system database, the work mode is automatically propagated to the related SAP HANA tenant databases and, optionally, to the related application systems (ABAP/JAVA).
• Changed: The outage screen now shows the total outage duration. Total duration of confirmed and unconfirmed outages for each reporting period is shown.
• Changed: With the existing Ariba Network interface channel template you also get visibility on the document processing exceptions related to SAP Ariba Cloud Integration Gateway.
• Changed: With the existing SAP Integrated Business Planning interface channel template you also get visibility on exceptions in the SAP HANA SDI data integration.
• Changed:With the existing Ariba Network category you also get visibility on the document processing exceptions related to SAP Ariba Cloud Integration Gateway.
• Changed: With the existing SAP Integrated Business Planning category you also get visibility on exceptions in the SAP HANA SDI data integration.
• Changed:You can additionally filter on the error location flag and the message Id, and as well enable the Alerting for ABAP Gateway errors, while setting up exception management.

Source SAP: https://help.sap.com/viewer/10e6d9cb3bc740e6a4c41588d9fc07a3/7.2.09/en-US/8fca6bb58b684d859e5d885259c66eee.html

Whew, that was a whole list of changes! With this latest SPS, SAP has also encouraged users to upgrade if they are still on SAP Solution Manager 7.1. There are many reasons to upgrade if you are still on 7.1, but most importantly with SPS 09, you can implement the latest critical data protection and privacy measures and continue to maintain the integration with SAP Support Backbone. SAP’s Support Backbone is the central infrastructure located at SAP to provide technical support to our customers. The Support Backbone consists of several different systems for different purposes – for example, it provides the SAP Support Portal infrastructure, the Maintenance Planner, SAP EarlyWatch Alert Reports, and many more. On the customer side, SAP Solution Manager connect to the SAP Support Backbone to exchange data for various purposes: Support incidents, system data for Maintenance Planner, SAP EarlyWatch Alert data, and many more. While SAP Support Backbone has legacy infrastructure in place to allow a safe transition for customers, you need to switch the communication of SAP Solution Manager to the newly updated infrastructure before January 2020 to ensure continuous connectivity.  Reach out to us if you would like learn more about upgrading.