SAP XBP 3.0 exploitation

TWS Education + Training

XBP 2.0 and XBP 3.0 Certification readySAP introduced a certification catalog for the new XBP 3.0

interface. With Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications 8.6, we are now ready to run thru the certification test with SAP. The following certification test scenarios are subject of the certification:

BC-XBP 6.10 (V2.0)BC-XBP 7.00 (V3.0)

To fulfill the XBP 3.0 certification, Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications 8.6 was enhanced with the following capabilities:

SAP Criteria Manager Functions (Full interface coverage & UI support)

• Incl. new Picklist function for SAP EventsSAP Application Log & Application Return code (Full coverage)

• Incl. RCCONDSUCC return code mappingDownload spool list content on demand by users (Full coverage

& UI support)SAP Variant maintenance using simplified XBP 3.0 function

module

XBP 2.0 and XBP 3.0 Certification readySAP XBP 3.0 Interface improvements and corrections are opened by Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications 8.6 development team and assigned to SAP. Good partner relationship helped to improve the XBP 3.0 interface as follows:

Modify Job Header, Job Class missing (SAP Note 1447880)

Modify Job Header, Server Group update fails (SAP Ticket open, target within Sprint 4)

Modify SAP Variant, Variant Type missing (SAP Note 1461421)

Modify SAP Variant, Variant Attributes overwritten (SAP Note 1639210)

Criteria Manager The TDWC provides a web-interface to list, create, mantain and activate SAP Criteria Profiles

Criteria selection TWS connects to SAP server and shows the criteria profiles already created. A menu bar helps the user in maintaining objects.

Actions and Display on Criteria Profiles

User easily selects action on object and by clicking, the definition is displayed.

Edit Criterion

Event Interception and Relaunch CriteriaOn Interception Event type, a Job Relaunch Criteria is made available. This allows the user

to define the policy for release intercepted job, through TWS control.

Define Relaunch policyThe Job Relaunch Criteria allows the user to let TWS schedule the intercepted jobs,

extending to XBP3.0 the same TWS feature already available in XBP 2.0 configuration.

By scheduling this Job Collector,

TWS will release all the intercepted

SAP jobs that satisfy the Relaunch Criteria

given that profile ID.

Modeling TWS for SAP jobs on Z/OS from TDWC

TDWC allows now also TWS user for zOS to define and mantain TWS for SAP jobs: R/3 jobs, Process Chain and infoPackage, same as the Distributed capabilities.

Display a Process Chain

Restart a Process Chain

Four TWS actions are available

on a selected process chain.

Creating a SAP job from TDWCTDWC allows now the user to define a SAP connection and to start creating new SAP job

Within the TWS console.

SAP job modeling by selectionUser can design a SAP job in the same way it uses to do on SAP GUI. ABAP list selection,

External Command and External Program are supported.

Single-click TWS-SAP integrationOnce the new SAP job is created from TDWC, the user in a single click can link it to a new

TWS for SAP job definition.

List of Spool RequestsUp until Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications V8.5, the only

option you had to check the spool request of an R/3 job was through its job log

Performance degradation during job log retrieval for very huge spool request

Some difficulties to identify, navigate, analyze the spool request of a particular r3 job step

Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications V8.6 enables you to browse the spool request of a job more easily

A new Dynamic Workload Console action is provided for executed Standard R/3 Job in the “Monitor Jobs” task, a “Show Spool List” action has been added to the “More Actions” pull-down menu

A list of Spool Request details is shown for every step in the R/3 job Each Spool Request can be analyzed separately A set of pages is loaded when a Spool Request is analyzed You can navigate among a set of pages, go directly to the last or first set of

pages

List of Spool Requests cont.

List of Spool Requests cont.

Application Job LogIn the Job definition window the user can enables the retrieval and appending of the SAP application log to the Job log of Tivoli Workload Scheduler.

Application Job Log

Application Return CodeIn the Job definition window the user can enables or disables the mapping of the SAP application return

code to the Tivoli Workload Scheduler return code. If the SAP job contains several steps, it takes the

greater RC code from the step list

Application Return Code

Support SAP Secure Network Communication (SNC) SAP offers a software layer to integrate security products at

application level. With SNC, you can secure an RFC connection between communication partners like Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications access method and the SAP System.

Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications 8.6 was extended to read SNC configuration parameters and forward them to the SAP RFC communication layer used during logon to the SAP system.

Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications 8.6 does not provide or ship SNC software, it enables to use 3rd party SNC products to secure the RFC communication.

The following new options are added to the workstations options file:r3sncmode enable / disable SNC for RFCr3sncpartnername target SAP Systems SNC namer3snclib full path and filename to the 3rd party SNC

libraryr3sncqop quality of protectionr3sncmyname own (local) SNC name

FIPS Compliance

Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) is a U.S. government computer security standard used to accredit cryptographic modules.

FIPS 140-2 accreditation is required for for cryptographic modules produced by private sector vendors who seek to have their products certified for use in government departments and regulated industries.

- new parameter use_fips that enables r3batch to use FIPS compliant algorithm for password encryption

- enigma tool now is using FIPS compliant algorithms for password encryption

- network communication between r3evmon and TWS engine now supports encryption mechanism with OPENSSL and FIPS compliant libraries (gskit version 8)

Implementation

SAP PI Channel

TWS provides also a Job Executor Plugin to pilot SAP PI channel status.

TDWC Job Plugin PI Channel

The TWS Job log contains also

the job details about execution

and actual status.

SAP Temporary Variant

The temporary variant is created for the job and deleted once the job has finished

The temporary variant lifecycle is managed by SAP

Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications V8.6 and DWC V8.6 FP1 enable you to define/assign/modify a temporary variant through the dynamic R/3 job definition (task string)

SAP Temporary Variant cont. Examples

1. A temporary variant is created using the information indicated in the expression • The following example shows how you can create a temporary variant with the information

specified in the expression and assign it to step 2

-vpar2 <parameter_name>=<parameter_value> ... –vsel2 <selection_option_name> ... –vtemp2

2. Assign a temporary variant to the specified step number • The following example shows how you can assign a variant to step number 1.

The temporary variant must exist

-v1 <temporary_variant_name> -vtemp1

3. The value for a temporary variant that already exists is substituted with the value indicated in the expression • The following example shows how you can substitute the value of a temporary variant that must

already exist with a value specified in the expression and assign it to step 5. The temporary variant must exist, otherwise, the expression returns an error.

-v5 <temporary_variant_name> -vpar5 <parameter_name>=<parameter_value> ... –vsel5 <selection_option_name> ... –vtemp5

SAP Temporary Variant cont.

SAP Temporary Variant cont.

Improve r3batch performanceIntroduction of the rfc_interval keyword in the R/3

common options file to optimize performance:When operating through the DWC

• Browsing for and selecting SAP jobs from a list• Editing SAP jobs• Raising/managing SAP events• Managing SAP Criteria Profiles

During SAP job submission and tracking

Using the default value for the option, performance has been optimized by 50% for the above operations and for SAP jobs with a short duration.

Decreasing the value for the option, the performance could be higher but CPU consumption on the r3batch system is high. If you experience performance or CPU consumption issues, you may try to change the value accordingly

Keep SAP jobID synchronizedUsing the Dynamic Workload Console, you can define a Tivoli

Workload Scheduler job that runs a SAP job. The SAP job can already exist in the SAP System or can be created as new job using the DWC

In previous releases if the user edited the SAP job modifying either the Target Host, the job class or adding or deleting steps the JobID was automatically replaced forcing the user to manually update all jobstreams containg the modified SAP job

With the new Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications V8.6 release, for any SAP job modifications, the JobID remains unchanged maintaining the synchronization with the job in the SAP System

Keep SAP jobID synchronized

In the new Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications V8.6 release, for any

change the Job ID remains unchanged.

In this way the User is not forced to modify any jobstream after a SAP job

modifications