Search Help in SAP Data Dictionary

Search Help in SAP Data Dictionary

SAP is a software system used by many organizations to manage their business operations, such as financial accounting, materials management, and human resources. One of the key features of SAP is its ability to provide users with search help, which are tools used to assist users in finding data quickly and easily.

A search helps provide a list of possible values for a specific field in a screen or report, making data entry more efficient and accurate. For example, if a user needs to enter a country name on a screen, a search help can provide a list of all the available country names to choose from, rather than requiring the user to type the name manually. 

There are three types of search helps in SAP:

1. Elementary search help: This type of search help provides a list of values for a single field in a screen or report. It is usually used for fields with a limited set of possible values, such as a list of countries or languages.
2. Collective search help: This type of search helps combine several elementary search helps to provide a list of values for multiple fields in a screen or report. It is usually used for fields that have a more complex set of possible values, such as a list of products with various attributes.
3. Hierarchical search help: This type of search help provides a tree structure of values for a field, with each value linked to one or more sub-values. It is usually used for fields that have a hierarchical structure, such as a list of organizational units or product categories.

To create an elementary search help in SAP, follow these steps:

1. Go to transaction code SE11 and select the “Data Dictionary” option. This will open the SAP Data Dictionary, which is used to create and manage data objects in SAP.
2. Create a new elementary search help by selecting the “Elementary Search Help” option in the “Dictionary” menu. This will open a dialog box where you can enter the search help name, description, and other parameters.
3. Define the search help parameters, such as the tables to use, the fields to display, and the selection criteria. This will determine how the search help values are retrieved and displayed. For example, you might define a search help that displays all customers from a customer master table.
4. Define the search help exit, which is a piece of custom code that determines how the search help values are retrieved and displayed. The search help exit is usually written in ABAP, the programming language used by SAP, and is responsible for retrieving the search help values from the tables and formatting them for display.
5. Assign the search help to a field in a screen or report by modifying the screen or report layout. This typically involves adding a new field to the screen or report and setting the field properties to use the search help.
6. Test the search help by entering values in the field and verifying that the search help provides the correct list of values. This can be done by running the screen or report and entering values in the search help field.

To create a collective search help in SAP, follow these steps:

1. Go to transaction code SE11 and select the “Data Dictionary” option. This will open the SAP Data Dictionary, which is used to create and manage data objects in SAP.
2. Create a new table or use an existing table to store the search help values. This table should have the fields that will be used in the search help, as well as any other fields that are needed to support the search help functionality.
3. Create the elementary search helps that will be used in the collective search help. This involves following the steps outlined in the previous answer for creating an elementary search help.
4. Create a new collective search help by selecting the “Search Help” option in the “Extras” menu. This will open a dialog box where you can enter the search help name, description, and other parameters.
5. Define the search help parameters, such as the tables to use, the fields to display, and the selection criteria. For a collective search help, you will need to define multiple tables and selection criteria, which will be used to generate the final list of values.
6. Define the search help exit, which is a piece of custom code that determines how the search help values are retrieved and displayed. The search help exit is usually written in ABAP, the programming language used by SAP, and is responsible for retrieving the search help values from the tables and formatting them for display.
7. Assign the search help to a field in a screen or report by modifying the screen or report layout. This typically involves adding a new field to the screen or report and setting the field properties to use the search help.
8. Test the search help by entering values in the field and verifying that the search help provides the correct list of values. This can be done by running the screen or report and entering values in the search help field.

To create a hierarchical search help in SAP, follow these steps:

1. Go to transaction code SE11 and select the “Data Dictionary” option. This will open the SAP Data Dictionary, which is used to create and manage data objects in SAP.
2. Create a new table to store the hierarchical data. This table should have a key field and a parent field, which will be used to define the hierarchy. For example, you might create a table that stores organizational units, where each unit has a unique ID and a parent unit ID.
3. Populate the table with the hierarchical data. This involves entering the key and parent values for each record, which will define the structure of the hierarchy. For example, you might enter the IDs of each organizational unit and the IDs of their parent units.
4. Create an elementary search help that will be used to display the values for the hierarchical search help. This involves following the steps outlined in the previous answer for creating an elementary search help.
5. Create a new hierarchical search help by selecting the “Search Help” option in the “Extras” menu. This will open a dialog box where you can enter the search help name, description, and other parameters.
6. Define the search help parameters, such as the tables to use, the fields to display, and the selection criteria. For a hierarchical search help, you will need to define the table that stores the hierarchical data and the key and parent fields that define the hierarchy.
7. Define the search help exit, which is a piece of custom code that determines how the search help values are retrieved and displayed. The search help exit is usually written in ABAP, the programming language used by SAP, and is responsible for retrieving the search help values from the tables and formatting them for display.
8. Assign the search help to a field in a screen or report by modifying the screen or report layout. This typically involves adding a new field to the screen or report and setting the field properties to use the search help.
9. Test the search help by entering values in the field and verifying that the search help provides the correct list of values. This can be done by running the screen or report and entering values in the search help field.

Difference Between Elementary, Collective and Hierarchical search help give me a table?

Here’s a table summarizing the main differences between elementary, collective, and hierarchical search helps in SAP:

In summary, an elementary search help is used to select a value from a single table, while a collective search help is used to search for values across multiple tables. A hierarchical search help is used to navigate a hierarchy or tree structure, using a single table with parent-child relationships. The retrieval method and selection criteria for all three types of search helps are similar, but the data structure and number of tables used are different.

Overall, creating a search help in SAP can be a complex process, but it is an important feature that can help users save time and increase accuracy when entering data. By following these steps, you can create a search help that meets your organization’s specific needs and improves the efficiency of your SAP system.