This diagram illustrates how classes and characteristics, crucial for categorizing and describing technical objects, are linked and managed within SAP. It highlights which tables store which type of data and how these tables relate to each other. This understanding is essential for extracting data properly, and especially useful for data migration efforts. The central themes are characteristics, classes, and the classification values of objects.
Key Tables for Characteristics and Classes
| Tables | Purpose and Scope | Key Points | Interactions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics and Their Descriptions (CABN, CABNT) | These tables hold the basic information about characteristics and their descriptions. Characteristics define specific attributes that can be assigned to SAP objects. | – CABN: Contains the main data on characteristics, including types and descriptions.
– CABNT: Holds language-specific descriptions of characteristics. |
Characteristics are assigned to classes and objects. These tables are linked to KSML where characteristics are assigned to classes (KSML-IMERK = CABN-ATINN). |
| Characteristic Values (CAWN, CAWNT) | Defines the allowed values for characteristics, providing constraints and options when assigning characteristics to objects. | – CAWN: Stores the allowed values. – CAWNT: Contains text values for those characteristics. |
Employed when characteristics are populated within applications to ensure consistency and correctness of input data. |
| Class Header and Assignments (KLAH, KLAT, KSML) | Classes group characteristics and make them assignable to SAP objects like equipment, functional locations, and materials. | – KLAH: Main class header data. – KLAT: Holds long text and extensive descriptions for classes. – KSML: Describes the allocation of characteristics to classes. |
Classes categorize characteristics, making them easily assignable to objects. KSSK helps in linking objects to classes. |
| Actual Characteristic Values (AUSP) | Contains actual values assigned to characteristics for specific business objects, essentially the data representing specifics for instances. | Values are identified by the business object key through AUSP-OBJEK. | Key is AUSP-OBJEK, which links characteristics to objects directly through INOB, facilitating the assignment of characteristic values to physical objects within SAP. |
| Link Between Internal Numbers and Objects (INOB) | Provides a bridge between internal characteristic numbers and their corresponding objects, enabling mapping and linking of data within reports and processes. | INOB-CUOBJ represents this linking; conversions might involve leading zero handling, especially for equipment and functional locations. | Used for aligning and connecting characteristic data across various tables, facilitating comprehensive data retrieval and reporting. |
| Objects to Classes and Combined Views (KSSK, KSSKAUSP) | Describe and coordinate the relationship between objects and their assigned classes; essential for managing complex data structures. | – KSSK: Links objects to their classes, ensuring proper categorization. – KSSKAUSP: A combined table view that simplifies the extraction of characteristic values assigned to SAP technical objects. |
KSSKAUSP provides a streamlined way to digest the complex associations between classes, characteristics, and objects for migration and reporting activities. |
How the Tables Link Together
The classification data model follows a simple chain: characteristics are defined (CABN), assigned to classes (KSML), and their values are stored per object (AUSP), with INOB and KSSK connecting those values to the technical objects. The key join fields are:
- CABN-ATINN (internal characteristic number) links to CAWN, CABNT, and AUSP (via ATINN), and to KSML-IMERK where the characteristic is assigned to a class.
- KLAH-CLINT (internal class number) links to KLAT, KSML, and KSSK, tying class header data to its characteristics and to the objects assigned to the class.
- INOB-CUOBJ (internal object number) links to AUSP-OBJEK and KSSK-OBJEK, so characteristic values and class assignments resolve back to the equipment, functional location, or material.
Use Cases in Data Migration and Reporting
- Configuration and Data Loading: When setting up SAP environments, this diagram aids in visualizing how characteristics and classes should be structured, helping configure migration templates.
- Data Validation: Ensures data integrity and accuracy as characteristics and values are assigned and linked to different objects.
- Reporting and Analysis: Serves as a foundational reference for creating reports that analyze characteristic usage across equipment and functional locations.
Why This Data Model Matters in SAP EAM (PM)
Overall, this diagram synthesizes the complex interactions between characteristics, classes, and SAP objects. It is a valuable tool for setting up, maintaining, and analyzing SAP systems, ensuring that all related data tables are properly leveraged in SAP EAM (PM). The information laid out helps ensure effective management of asset and maintenance data, which is crucial for optimizing operations within the SAP environment.
