Efficient options for SAP system copies
Critical factor: Availability
Creating a consistent storage replica - splitting a clone or creating a snapshot on the disk array. Regardless of the storage size, this process takes only a few seconds.
Partial copies from SAP systems with the help of tools open up potential savings and in many cases make system copies and complete client copies superfluous. The ability to anonymize data reduces the effort required to comply with data protection regulations in training systems, for example. In addition, up-to-date, consistent test data improves the flexibility and quality of development and test environments. Users save money through reduced resource requirements.
Challenges with SAP system copies
Strategy as of NetWeaver 2007: Prerequisite: in the case of a Unicode conversion, conversion must be performed during export. If the target database can be built with unsorted unloaded data, all packages are automatically unloaded unsorted. R3load ensures that tables that must always be unloaded sorted are unloaded sorted.
So much information... how can you keep it so that you can find it again when you need it? Scribble Papers is a "note box" that makes this very easy.
For a heterogeneous system copy and for homogeneous system copies for which there is no special way for the database used, the source system must be exported. This is done with SAP tools (SUM). The export files are copied to the prepared target system and imported again during the SAP installation with SUM. A relatively comfortable way. But it can be even more comfortable.
For some time now, SAP customers have been supported in system copying by very powerful automation tools that can be used as needed, such as "Shortcut for SAP Systems". Nothing has to be installed in your SAP systems for this - no transport requests, no AddOns!
Additional backup: server profiles, RFC connection passwords.
This tool provides the ability to create a backup of the database, which can then be used to restore the system.