Trying to develop or use SAP's Business Application Programming Interfaces (BAPIs) without a solid understanding of what they are, how they are defined in the Business Object Repository (BOR), and what the difference between a BAPI and the ABAP Function Module underneath is, leads to errors and frustration. Beginners are often confounded as to how to approach the BAPIs. Even experienced developers do not always appreciate all relevant details of the BOR metadata. This article provides a solid foundation for any BAPI-related activity and is required reading for developers who use or create BAPIs, as well as their managers.
Thomas G. Schuessler
Thomas G. Schuessler is the founder of ARAsoft (www.arasoft.de), a company offering products, consulting, custom development, and training to a worldwide base of customers. The company specializes in integration between SAP and non-SAP components and applications. ARAsoft offers various products for BAPI-enabled programs on the Windows and Java platforms. These products facilitate the development of desktop and Internet applications that communicate with R/3. Thomas is the author of SAP’s BIT525 “Developing BAPI-enabled Web Applications with Visual Basic” and BIT526 “Developing BAPI-enabled Web Applications with Java” classes, which he teaches in Germany and in English-speaking countries. Thomas is a regularly featured speaker at SAP TechEd and SAPPHIRE conferences. Prior to founding ARAsoft in 1993, he worked with SAP AG and SAP America for seven years.
You may contact the author at thomas.schuessler@sap.com.
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