SAP SD Performance Tuning
- Xbox and the Need for Speed Christoph Schuler, Cindi McCutchen
SAP Application Support
Microsoft Corporation
Agenda
 SAP at Microsoft – Quick Facts
• Why Performance Tuning
• SAP Service Offerings
• Project Approach & Best Practices
• Tuning for Xbox
– Changes Implemented
– Summary of Results
– Lessons Learned
SAP at Microsoft
Quick Facts
• Modules implemented:
SD, MM, FI, CO, AM, HR, BW, APO
• 875 GB in a single, central Database;
6 GB/wk growth
• 2,000 named users; 50,000+ total users
• > 600 concurrent users; heavy EDI usage
• 0.5 - 2 sec response time globally
(incl. WAN connectivity)
• 99.9+% availability
• Platform: SQL Server 2000, Windows .NET
server
Why Performance Tuning ?
• Business need for data throughput
– Xbox Launch North America, Nov. ’01:
Peak volumes
Sales orders / day
Deliveries / day
Sales orders / hour *
Deliveries / hour *
* Each order & delivery
with 10 line items
Existing
~ 5,000
~ 5,000
~ 250
~ 1,000
Xbox
+ 7,600
+ 11,400
+ 2,500
+ 2,500
Change
+ 152 %
+ 228 %
+ 1,000 %
+ 250 %
Why Performance Tuning ?
• System availability & supportability
– Prevention of:
•
•
•
•
•
Cross-module increase in response time
Business disruptions
Penalties
End user frustration
Increased support costs
• System scalability
– Ability to handle future growth
SAP Service Offerings
Technical Solution Optimization (TSO)
Now: Solutions Management Optimization (SMO)
Interface
Management
Jun ‘00:
• EDI Interface
• GBI Interface
Business Process
Optimization
Sep ‘00:
• Sales Orders
• Backorder Resch.
• Deliveries
• Billing
Data Mgmt. &
Archiving
Oct ‘00:
• FI Archiving
 Focus on critical SD business processes
 50+ recommendations to improve performance
Project Approach
• Project team
–
–
–
–
–
Analysis
Functional
Basis/Technical
Development
Stress Test
Consulting (BUIT & SAP)
• Project timeline
– Driven by business need
• Repetitive cycle
– One item at a time
• Project metrics
– e.g. seconds/document
Test
Change
Test
Best Practices
Analysis
Test
• Have an original baseline test
• Automate tests and standardize your
data & configuration
• Include anticipated new functionality
(e.g. routing, allocations)
• Consider systems external to SAP
• Make test as realistic as possible !
Change
Analysis
Best Practices
Analysis
Test
• Define your metrics (e.g. sec/doc,
response time, etc..)
• Carefully document results and
improvements with each cycle
• Review results and plan for next
changes to be implemented and
tested
Change
Analysis
Analysis
Change
Useful Tools & Transactions
Test
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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Systemwide work process overview – SM66
Workload monitor – ST03
SQL trace - ST05
SQL trace interpreter - SQLR
Application analysis – ST14
Table access statistics – ST10
Memory configuration monitor – ST02
R/3 OS monitor – ST06
IDoc monitor – WE05
Gateway Monitor - SMGW
Windows PerfMon – CPU utilization
Analysis
Analysis
Process Overview - SM66
Test
• Quick overview of all work processes
• Look for:
–
–
–
–
Long-running processes
“Stopped” processes
Highly utilized servers
Processes accessing the same tables
Change
Analysis
Analysis
Database Trace - ST05
Test
• Important tool to analyze database
performance problems
• Look for:
– Most “expensive” database accesses
(Trace Summary)
– Repetitive database accesses
Change
Change
Analysis
Best Practices
• Changes may include:
– OSS notes
(> 2,600 performance notes for 4.5B)
– ABAP code optimization
– Configuration
– Technical settings
– Hardware
– Business process or logic
• Carefully document changes made
Change
Agenda
• Why Performance Tuning
• SAP Service Offerings
• Project Approach & Best Practices
 Tuning for Xbox
– Changes Implemented
– Summary of Results
– Lessons Learned
Tuning for Xbox
Retailer
1
Sales Order
(EDI 850)
Microsoft (SAP System)
Sales
Order
Distribution
Warehouse
Tuning for Xbox
1 – Sales Order Processing
•
Switch to parallel processing of inbound
IDocs
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


•
•
Partner profile change: ’Immediate’ to
‘Background’ (via WE20)
Server group configuration with resource
parameters (via RZ12) –OSS 384971
Schedule program RBDAPP01
Specify packet size and ‘Parallel’ posting option
Deactivate IDoc syntax check
Increase of program buffer
Tuning for Xbox
1 – Sales Order Processing
•
SD number range buffering
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

•
ABAP code improvements
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•
Table NRIV - Object RV_BELEG (via SNRO)
Local buffering by work process ID
Exclusion of sales orgs (OSS note 424486)
VA01 user exits
Elimination of repetitive table reads
Table buffering

Monitor access statistics (via ST10)
Tuning for Xbox
Retailer
1
Sales Order
(EDI 850)
Microsoft (SAP System)
Sales
Order
Rescheduling
2
Distribution
Warehouse
Tuning for Xbox
2 - Backorder Rescheduling
•
•
Cleanup of old orders
Program SDV03V02 by plant – daily

•
Modification (repair) of SDV03V02
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•
Evaluation of program SDV03V01
Due to SD number buffering
Take order creation date & time into account
Custom pre-processing program


Dynamic job builder and distribute workload over
several processes
Utilize standard SAP programs
Tuning for Xbox
Retailer
1
Sales Order
(EDI 850)
Microsoft (SAP System)
Sales
Order
Rescheduling
Delivery
2
3
Ship Order
(EDI 940)
Distribution
Warehouse
Tuning for Xbox
3 – Delivery (EDI Ship Order)
•
Custom pre-processing program:
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
•
•
Dynamic job builder and distribute workload over
several processes
Utilize standard SAP program (RV50SBT1)
Additional index on table VBBE
Separation of output from document
creation


Schedule RSNAST00 to process output
Schedule RSEOUT00 to process IDocs and
combine into files
Tuning for Xbox
3 – Delivery (EDI Ship Order)
•
•
•
Deactivate IDoc Syntax Check
SD number range buffering
Activate shared locking

•
For availability checking group level for ATP (via
OVZ2)
Evaluate program RVV50R1T (VL10)
instead of current DDL


Program was evaluated but not implemented
Server group functionality is available in SAP
version 4.6c
Tuning for Xbox
Retailer
1
Sales Order
(EDI 850)
Microsoft (SAP System)
Sales
Order
Rescheduling
Delivery
2
5
3
Ship Order
(EDI 940)
4
Shipment
Goods
Issue
Ship Confirm
(EDI 945)
Distribution
Warehouse
Tuning for Xbox
5 – Post Goods Issue (EDI Ship Confirm)
•
Switch to parallel processing of inbound
IDocs via RBDAPP01
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
•
Prevent plant locking
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•
Allow IDOC to be reprocessed (from a status 64)
instead of going into an error (status 51)
Activate ‘Late exclusive enqueue’

•
Same as sales order processing
Table Locking – MVER (OSS Note 318581)
For material movements via OMJI (OSS 192423)
Deactivate IDoc syntax check
Tuning for Xbox
Retailer
1
Invoice
(EDI 810)
Sales Order
(EDI 850)
6
Microsoft (SAP System)
Sales
Order
Rescheduling
Delivery
2
5
3
Ship Order
(EDI 940)
4
Shipment
Goods
Issue
Ship Confirm
(EDI 945)
Distribution
Warehouse
Billing
Tuning for Xbox
6- Billing
•
SD number range buffering
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•
Parallel processing of billing due list
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•
Exclude certain countries due to legal
requirements (OSS Note 23835, 363901)
Program RV60SBAT, specify ‘Number of jobs’
Separation of output from document
creation


Schedule RSNAST00 to process output
Schedule RSEOUT00 to process IDocs
Tuning for Xbox
Additional Changes Implemented
•
ATP server (Available to Promise)
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•
Tax solution (Vertex) upgrade
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•
Information in OSS note 99999
Installed on central instance
Use ‘Registered RFC mode’ (OSS 63930)
APO RFC calls (Advanced Planning
Optimizer)

RFC queue in R/3 spawning ARFC* jobs
Tuning for Xbox
Summary of Testing Results
•
SD Core Transactions:
Billing
2
4
PGI
12
7
Deliveries
1
Sales Orders
1
0
Before
After
4
20
5
10
15
20
Seconds / Document (10 lines)
25
Tuning for Xbox
Summary of Results
30,000
Xbox
Transaction
Volume
20,000
10,000
0
Oct-01
Xbox
Transaction
Performance
Orders
Deliveries
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
Nov-01
Dec-01
Jan-02
s/Order
s/Delivery
Tuning for Xbox
Summary of Lessons Learned
•
•
•
•
•
Utilize SAP/OSS resources
Assemble a project team with a wide
range of knowledge
Only test ONE change at a time
Be prepared to spend about 80% of your
time testing
And learn to hide from the Basis team 
References
•
“SAP R/3 Performance Optimization”

•
by Thomas Schneider, Sybex
“ALE, EDI & IDoc Technologies for SAP”

by Arvind Nagpal, Prima Tech
Questions??
• Cindi McCutchen & Christoph
Schuler
• Microsoft Corporation
• Email: cynmc@microsoft.com or
christos@microsoft.com