SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x (5.2.1 or higher)

The SAP Suite adapter for SAP enables you to integrate SAP Enterprise 4.7 and mySAP ERP Central Component (ECC) 5.0 and 6.0, deployed on SAP NetWeaver with non-SAP applications, to conduct e-business with trading partners.

The SAP Suite adapter enables Sterling B2B Integrator to support platform, data, process, and B2B integration for SAP by offering the following features:
  • SAP inbound and outbound communications processing (ALE (Application Linking and Enabling) and IDOC (Intermediate Documents) )
  • Synchronous Remote Function Calls (RFCs) and responses
  • Synchronous Business Application Programming Interface (BAPI) calls, including transaction handling
  • Load balancing for SAP clusters
  • Connection pooling and authentication

The following table provides an overview of the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x:

Table 1. Overview of SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x
Item Description
System name SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x
Graphical Process Modeler (GPM) categories All Services, Applications > ERP
Description The SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x allows integration with an SAP system through asynchronous SAP integration interfaces ALE and file based IDoc and RFC, and synchronous interfaces sRFC and BAPI. For ALE and file based IDocs, SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x supports status messages for translation success and failure. The SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x is backward compatible with the existing SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 2.x at a business process level.
Note: SAP JCo 3.x is not compatible with earlier versions of the SAP JCo 2.x libraries. The SAP Suite adapter for JCo 2.x will not function correctly if configured with the JCo 3.x libraries. However, if both the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 2.x and the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x are configured correctly with the appropriate JCo library versions, then they can exist on the same system and will function correctly.

The External JVM feature provided by SAP Suite 2.x is not supported for the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x. Instead, you should run the little-a part of the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x in an external JVM (a general feature of the adapter container node). However, the External JVM feature continues to be supported for the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 2.x.
Business usage Use the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x to:
  • send and receive messages in IDoc format to and from SAP. Supports standard or custom IDocs, versions 3 or 4, and IDoc status messages.
  • run BAPI methods of SAP Business Objects. Supports internal and external transaction handling.
  • run transactional and non-transactional RFC calls into SAP. Supports standard or custom Remote Function Modules (RFM).
  • receive transactional and non-transactional RFC calls from SAP. For synchronous (non-transactional) RFC calls, a response can be returned from Sterling B2B Integrator to SAP in the same session.
Usage example You can use the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x to exchange IDocs through file-based RFC or ALE or use BAPI or RFC calls to call methods or functions in SAP. For example, using the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x, you can translate the incoming EDI documents into IDoc format and send it to an SAP system.
Preconfigured? Adapter instances must be created separately after installing Sterling B2B Integrator
Requires third party files? Yes.
  • SAP Java Connector (JCo) Version 3.x must be obtained from SAP and installed into the Sterling B2B Integrator host system.
  • JCo libraries are available free for download from SAP Service Marketplace. You must have a valid SAP user account.

Select the correct library (Operating System version, Processor architecture, JDK bit-width) for the installation platform.
Platform availability All supported Sterling B2B Integrator platforms.
Related services SapTidCleaner Service
Application requirements An SAP account with a valid user ID and password is required for the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x to communicate with SAP. Supports IDoc versions 3 and 4. You can optionally register the Sterling B2B Integrator installation with SAP's System Landscape Directory using the SLD Registration Tool in Sterling B2B Integrator. For information on the SLD Registration Tool, see Registering Sterling B2B Integrator Installation with SAP System Landscape Directory.
Initiates business processes? A business process invokes the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x to perform SAP inbound processing.
Invocation The SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x can trigger an outbound business process by configuring the name of the business process.
Business process context considerations None
Returned status values Returned status values:
  • Success
  • Error – Review advanced status and process data content.

Also see Advanced Status Returned by the SAP Suite Adapter for JCo 3.x.
Restrictions To exchange IDocs in ALE mode and file-based triggered RFC with pre-built business processes, you must configure SAP Route and SAP Cross Reference information. Navigate to Deployment > Adapter Utilities > SAP Routes to configure the routing information.
Persistence level None. The persistence is determined by the persistence level of the business processes used for processing inbound and outbound requests. The new parameter, Document Storage Type, in the service configuration defines whether the file system, database, or system default is used to persist documents.
Testing considerations Enable parameter in the Debug Log level and the RFC/JCo trace to get additional debug information on the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x from library and RFC levels.

How the SAP Suite adapter for JCo 3.x Works

To enable a connection to SAP from Sterling B2B Integrator, SAP provides SAP Java™ Connector® (SAP JCo), a free software product for SAP customers, which supports connections for the following platforms:
  • IBM® AIX®
  • HP-UX11
  • Linux®
  • Oracle® Solaris
  • Microsoft® Windows®
  • IBM iSeries
Note: For many platforms, SAP offers 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the JCo libraries, depending on the operating system and the JVM (Java Virtual Machine). Ensure that you install the correct version. For a complete list of all the platforms supported by SAP JCo 3.x, see SAP Note 1077727 - SAP JCo 3.x release and support strategy.