SAP BW Certification: A Business Information Warehouse Information Study Guide

Catherine M. Roze, Naeem Hashmi9780471236344, 0-471-23634-9

A concise, comprehensive study guide to the core SAP BW certification examThe SAP Business Information Warehouse (SAP BW) is the data warehousing solution developed by SAP AG for SAP-centric data warehouses. Professionals seeking to become SAP BW application consultants need to pass the SAP BW certification exam in order to prove that they have a fundamental knowledge of this particular area of the SAP system, as well as to demonstrate that they are able to apply this knowledge within a project environment. SAP BW Certification: A Business Information Warehouse Study Guide provides candidates with the training and information they need in order to achieve certification.SAP BW Certification begins with critical background information on Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP), software packages that integrate the entire flow of information throughout an organization, of which SAP is the market leader. The book then covers how SAP BW relates to SAP as a whole and discusses fundamental SAP BW functions such as data modeling, reporting, and extraction. Features of this Study Guide include:* An introduction to the BW certification exam* An overview of the exam’s topics, including such features as “On the Exam,” * “Optimization Tips,” “Note,” “Restrictions,” “Unique to SAP,” and “New to SAP”* Exercises that can be performed with a small test-BW server* Practice test questions and answers that assess the reader’s knowledge of current exam topics* A complete simulated certification examSAP BW practitioners who are preparing for the SAP BW certification exam, or for the SAP BW delta (recertification) exam, will find SAP BW Certification the premier study guide on the market today.

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Table of contents :
Preface……Page 10
Foreword……Page 8
CHAPTER 1 Enterprise Resource Planning,
Business Intelligence, Data
Warehouses, and SAP BW……Page 18
SAP R/ 3……Page 19
Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence……Page 20
ERP Data Warehouses……Page 21
Limitations of ERP Data Warehouses……Page 22
SAP Business Information Warehouse ( SAP BW)……Page 23
SAP BW Drivers……Page 24
SAP BW Features and Functionality……Page 25
Limitations of SAP BW……Page 26
Future of SAP BW……Page 27
Published Resources……Page 28
Endnotes……Page 29
CHAPTER 2 Certification Exam……Page 30
Bene ts of Certi cation……Page 31
Preparing for the Exam……Page 32
The Exam……Page 33
Multiple Choice ( one or more answers)……Page 34
If More Than One Answer ( maximum of 5 points)……Page 35
SAP BW Certi cation Exam Content and Weighting……Page 36
Data Modeling ( + + )……Page 37
Administrator Workbench ( + )……Page 38
Business Explorer ( + + )……Page 39
Getting the Results……Page 40
Endnotes……Page 41
CHAPTER 3 Training……Page 42
SAP Solution Academy……Page 43
SAP BW Training Curriculum……Page 44
What Training Do You Really Need?……Page 46
Endnote……Page 48
CHAPTER 4 Data Modeling……Page 49
Data Marts……Page 50
Operational Data Store……Page 51
Comparison of the Traditional Data Model and the SAP BW Data Model……Page 54
Data Model……Page 55
Multidimensional Data Modeling and the Star Schema……Page 58
Facts and Key Figures……Page 61
Dimensions and Characteristics……Page 64
Master Data and Attributes……Page 68
SAP BW s Data Model ( Star Schema)……Page 70
InfoCubes……Page 72
SAP BW InfoObjects……Page 77
Hierarchy……Page 78
SAP BW Business Content……Page 79
IDs in SAP BW……Page 81
Pointers in SAP BW……Page 84
Suggested Exercises……Page 86
Practice Test……Page 87
Answers to Practice Test……Page 93
Endnotes……Page 94
CHAPTER 5 Building Blocks……Page 95
API ( Application Programming Interface)……Page 96
IDOC ( Intermediate Document)……Page 97
XML……Page 98
SAP BW Technical Architecture……Page 99
Source System ( A)……Page 101
Extract Structure ( 3)……Page 103
Server ( Target) ( B)……Page 104
PSA ( Persistent Staging Area) ( 8)……Page 105
InfoSource ( G)……Page 107
Application Component……Page 108
Update Rule ( 11)……Page 109
ODS ( Operational Data Store) ( 12)……Page 110
Master Data Tables ( 14)……Page 112
OLAP Processor ( 16)……Page 113
Warehouse Management……Page 114
Data Load Monitor……Page 116
Data Browsing……Page 117
InfoCube Compression……Page 119
Data Archiving……Page 120
Return Table……Page 121
Life Cycle……Page 122
CTO……Page 123
Suggested Exercises……Page 124
Practice Test……Page 125
Answers to Practice Test……Page 131
Endnotes……Page 132
CHAPTER 6 Reporting……Page 133
Reporting Architecture……Page 134
Metadata Repository……Page 135
Data Access/ End- User Layer……Page 136
BEx ( Business Explorer)……Page 137
Web Browser……Page 138
Query……Page 139
Workbook……Page 141
Query De nition……Page 142
Multidimensional Report……Page 143
Drill- Down……Page 144
RRI ( Report- to- Report Interface)……Page 145
InfoSet……Page 146
Favorites……Page 147
Query Design in BEx Analyzer……Page 148
BEx Analyzer ( Business Explorer Analyzer)……Page 149
Reporting Agent……Page 152
Variable……Page 153
Query Management Tools and Techniques……Page 154
Query Modes……Page 155
Aggregates……Page 156
SAP BW Statistics……Page 159
Authorizations/ Security……Page 160
Role……Page 161
Pro le……Page 162
Authorization Object……Page 163
Geocharacteristics……Page 164
Web Publisher Wizard……Page 165
ITS ( Internet Transaction Server)……Page 166
Suggested Exercises……Page 167
Practice Test……Page 169
Answers to Practice Test……Page 175
Other Resources……Page 176
CHAPTER 7 Extraction……Page 177
Non- SAP Source Systems……Page 178
Flat Files……Page 179
SAP R/ 3 Data Source Extraction……Page 180
SAP Products……Page 181
Methods of Data Load into SAP BW……Page 182
Objects and Tools for Data Extraction……Page 184
Communication Path……Page 185
SAP BW Extractors……Page 186
Delta Update……Page 187
Special Extraction Methods for SAP R/ 3……Page 188
CO/ PA……Page 189
V3 Update……Page 191
FI/ SL Data Extraction……Page 192
SAP R/ 3 Enhancements……Page 193
Enhancements to Business Content……Page 194
Suggested Exercises……Page 195
Practice Test……Page 196
Answers to Practice Test……Page 202
Endnotes……Page 203
CHAPTER 8 Getting Ready for Certification:Tips and Tricks……Page 204
What to Expect……Page 205
Material to Be Used during the Test……Page 206
Test Instructions……Page 207
Translation……Page 208
SAP BW Release Planning and Maintenance Strategy……Page 209
Changes in the SAP BW Certi cation Exam……Page 210
On- line Resources……Page 212
CHAPTER 9 Simulated Certification Exam……Page 213
If More Than One Answer ( maximum of 5 points)……Page 214
Assessing Your Exam Readiness……Page 215
Simulated Test……Page 216
Answers to Simulated Test……Page 228
Summary……Page 229
Data Warehousing On- Line Resources……Page 230
Data Warehousing Published Resources……Page 231
SAP R/ 3 and SAP BW On- line Resources……Page 233
SAP R/ 3 Published Resources……Page 234
SAP Solution Briefs ( public)……Page 238
SAP White Papers……Page 239
SAP BW Programs……Page 244
SAP R/ 3 Transaction Codes……Page 249
Commonly Used SAP R/ 3 Tables……Page 250
APPENDIX D SAP BW 3.0 New Features……Page 256
SAP BW200 Business Information Warehouse ( BW) Overview ( 2.0)……Page 305
SAP BW257 mySAP BW Reporting ( 2.0)……Page 307
SAP BW220 SAP BW Extraction ( 2.0)……Page 308
SAP D20BW Business Information Warehouse Delta, 1.2B 2.0B ( 2.0)……Page 309
SAP WNAPBW APO/ BW Integration Workshop ( 3.0)……Page 310
SAP D30BW BW DELTA 3.0……Page 311
SAP TABW10 Business Information Warehouse Con guration ( 2.0)……Page 312
SAP TABW20 SAP BW Presentation……Page 313
SAP TABW30 SAP BW Extraction……Page 314
SAP TTW090 SAP BW Technical Administration……Page 315
SAP TU3BW SAP BW Delta ( 3.0)……Page 316
APPENDIX F Roles and Skills for BW Projects……Page 318
BookmarkTitle:……Page 0
Time Commitment……Page 319
Key Tasks……Page 320
Description……Page 321
Key Tasks……Page 322
Time Commitment……Page 323
Key Tasks……Page 324
Time Commitment……Page 325
Key Tasks……Page 326
Don ts……Page 327
Contents……Page 328
The SAP BW 2.0B: Open Data Interfaces……Page 329
Certi ed Products for OLAP BAPI ( BW- OBI)……Page 330
Products to Load Data in SAP BW……Page 331
Summary……Page 332
Endnote……Page 333
Procurement……Page 334
Financials……Page 335
Human Resources……Page 337
Note to the Reader……Page 338