Creating RFC Destinations
RFC Destinations store the connection parameters that allow LiveCompare to connect to your SAP systems. In cases where a direct connection to an SAP system may not be made, RFC Destinations may also be used to store downloaded SAP performance history data. In this case, no RFC parameters need to be provided when creating the RFC Destination.
RFC Destinations are accessible from the Administration/RFC Destinations folder in the LiveCompare hierarchy. This folder may contain child RFC Destinations Folders which allow related RFC Destinations to be grouped together. LiveCompare supports connections to the following:
- Custom application servers
- Secure Network Communication (SNC) servers
- Load balanced SAP instances (by allowing a group of application servers to be specified)
If you have LiveCompare Administrator privileges, an RFC Destination may be created by carrying out the following steps. LiveCompare Editors may also create RFC Destinations if this has been permitted by your installation.
- Select the Administration/RFC Destinations folder in the LiveCompare hierarchy and choose ‘New RFC Destination…’ from the context menu.
- Complete the Add RFC Destination screen as follows:
Custom Application Servers and SNC Servers
To specify a custom Application Server:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name: | A unique name that will identify the RFC Destination. |
| Description: | A description for the RFC Destination. |
| Connection Type: | Select ‘Custom Application Server’. |
| Application Server: | The DNS name, domain name, or IP address of the SAP Application Server. If the connection requires an SAP router string, include the SAP router string in this field. The format is: /H/<SAP router string>/H/<hostname>. |
| Instance Number: | The application instance number of the SAP system to be used for the connection. |
| Client: | The SAP client number to be used for the connection. |
| Language: | The SAP code for the logon language (for example, EN for English). |
| UserID: | The SAP user ID to be used for the connection. |
| Password: | The SAP password for the user ID specified above. Passwords for SAP kernel releases earlier than 700 should be specified in upper case. |
For Secure Network Communication (SNC) connections, complete the following fields in the ‘SNC Parameters’ section.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| My Name: | Enter the LiveCompare domain account that has been used to authenticate an SNC connection to your SAP server, prefixed with p:, for example, p:CN=livecompare@domain.com. |
| Partner Name: | Enter the partner name to be used for the connection, prefixed with p:, for example, p:CN=SAPService<SID>@domain.com. |
| Qop: | Select the Quality of Protection level to be used for the connection. The default value is ‘8 - Apply Default Protection’. |
| X.509 Certificate (optional): | Paste in the contents of a certificate file created by the SAPGENPSE.EXE program. See the Creating Secure RFC Destinations help topic for details. Note that when the contents a certificate file are pasted into this field, the BEGIN CERTIFICATE and END CERTIFICATE lines are removed automatically. |
Secure network communication RFC Destinations encrypt the data passed between LiveCompare and the SAP server. The connection to SAP from a secure network communication RFC Destination is authenticated using a certificate.
Group or Server Selections
To specify a group of Application Servers:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name: | A unique name that will identify the RFC Destination. |
| Description: | A description for the RFC Destination. |
| Connection Type: | Select ‘Group/Server Selection’. |
| Message Server: | The DNS name, domain name, or IP address of the SAP Message Server. The Message Server provides a list of groups on the specified SAP system. If the connection requires an SAP router string, include the SAP router string in this field. The format is: /H/<SAP router string>/H/<hostname>. |
| Message Server Port: | The Message Server port to be used for the connection. |
| System ID: | The system ID of the SAP Message Server. |
| Group/Server: | A logon group defined on the SAP Message Server. |
| Instance Number: | The application instance number of the SAP system to be used for the connection. |
| Client: | The SAP client number to be used for the connection. |
| Language: | The SAP code for the logon language (for example, EN for English). |
| UserID: | The SAP user ID to be used for the connection. |
| Password: | The SAP password for the user ID specified above. Passwords for SAP kernel releases earlier than 700 should be specified in upper case. |
Performance History Data Only
To create an RFC Destination that uses performance history data uploaded to an External Data Source, complete the Add RFC Destination screen’s ‘Name’ and ‘Description’ fields only. When the RFC Destination has been created, use its ‘PHD tab’ to specify an External Data Source of type ‘Performance History Data’.
The Read Performance History Data action may be used to read application statistics from an RFC Destination which does not have any RFC connection parameters, but which does have an associated External Data Source.
- If LiveCompare is project-controlled, use the ‘Projects’ section to add the RFC Destination to one or more projects. Click ‘Select All’ to select all projects, or ‘Select None’ to select no projects. If you have LiveCompare Editor privileges, the RFC Destination is always added to the current project, so the current project may not be deselected.
- Click ‘Add RFC Destination’ to add the RFC Destination.
When an RFC Destination has been created, it appears in the LiveCompare hierarchy underneath the Administration/RFC Destinations folder. Select the Administration/RFC Destinations folder to display a list of RFC Destinations in the right-hand pane. Click the ‘Show SysInfo’ button to display the SAP system information associated with each connection.
To access an RFC Destination from a workflow, assign it to an RFC Destination parameter.