Understanding Reference and Template Characteristics in SAP BW

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Template InfoObject

3. Reference InfoObject

4. Related Content

1. Introduction

You can create an InfoObject from the scratch for your project requirement or can create it as a reference or template of existing InfoObject.All the technical properties like length, data type etc and master data attributes, compounding attributes etc are copied from the existing InfoObject. Which option you should select depends on your requirement. Below we will see how our newly created InfoObject behaves when created using template or reference characteristic.

2. Template InfoObject

When you are creating your InfoObject taking template of existing InfoObject then all the master data attributes, compounding attributes and technical properties are copied to new InfoObject. You can edit this new InfoObject. For example, you can change the attributes, data type, length etc. It will have its own master data table. Transformation can be created and data load and maintain of master data is possible for this new InfoObject.

When to use: When you are going to create an InfoObject whose most of the master data attributes and compounding attributes are same as some existing InfoObject. It will reduce your development effort.

3. Reference InfoObject

When an info-object uses any existing info-object as the reference it would not just have its technical properties but would use the data of the reference characteristic. In other words, you cannot change the length, data type, master data attributes, componding attributes etc of new characteristic that has been created using the reference of existing InfoObject  and it will have the same master data table (P, X, Q, Y etc) and text table.

Basic InfoObject

Reference Characteristic

Here InfoObject ZTEST_R has been created taking the reference of InfoObject ZTEST_M. Here we can see that InfoObject ZTEST_R do not have its own master data like /BIC/PZTEST_R, /BIC/TZTEST_R etc but its master data is same as master data of InfoObject ZTEST_M. e.g. /BIC/PZTEST_M, /BIC/TZTEST_M etc.

Below are some important points that we should know.

Point 1. You cannot load the data into reference characteristic

Explanation:- Reference characteristic will have the same master data attributes and compounding attributes, however you cannot load the data because system will not allow you to create the transformation for this infoobject.

Point 2. When you insert this characteristic as InfoProvider, system gives you message that it is not used as data target.

System Message

Point 3.You cannot maintain master data for this reference InfoObject and system will disable this option for reference characteristic. If you insert reference characteristic as Infoprovider and try to maintain master data, system will give you error message.

Point 4.You cannot change the master data attributes and compounding attributes of reference characteristic.

Point 5. In reference characteristic we only have display attributes so all the nav attributes of basic characteristic becomes display attribute in Reference characteristic. If you are using reference characteristic in InfoCube or in any other InfoProvider then attributes of reference characteristic  will not be available for drill-down in reports.