SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure 

The SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio provides access to the SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure (also named Development Infrastructure). It enhances the concept of an IDE by server-side services, which centrally provides the development teams with a consistent development environment and supports the software development during the entire life cycle of a product.

·        Design Time Repository (DTR): Versioning source code management. Distributed development of software in teams. Transport and replication of sources.

·        Component Build Service (CBS): Central build based on the component model.

·        Change Management Service (CMS): Central administration of the Java development landscape and the transports covering the entire software life cycle.

·        Software Deployment Manager(SDM): Manual and automatic deployment of archives in central runtime systems.

·        System Landscape Directory (SLD): Information on the system landscape.

¡        Name Service Central check instance for the uniqueness of names.

·        Java Dictionary: Supports the global definition of tables and data types

·        SAP Java Test Tools: Predefined static tests and runtime tests for the Java development

To configure the development environment, you use the development configuration. By importing a development configuration, the access paths for the used services are automatically set, for example, the URI of the used DTR.

You can develop in the development infrastructure either according to the component model or in Eclipse projects.

Whether you want to use the individual services for your development projects, and to which extent, depends on your development scenarios. 

Development Scenarios

The development infrastructure supports the following scenarios; scenario 2 is based on scenario 1.

Scenario 1: Team-Oriented Development

In this scenario, you use the SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio as the development environment and the Design Time Repository to store your source files in versions.

This scenario is suited to integrate existing Java or J2EE applications into the development infrastructure.

This scenario provides unlimited support only for plain Java and J2EE projects, but not for Web Dynpro

Tools for a migration into the component model are not offered. If you later decide to use the component model, this will require a lot of manual work. Therefore, it is important to decide right from the beginning, which scenario you want to use.

There is a tutorial for scenario 1: Tutorial for Scenario 1: Team-Oriented Development.

Scenario 2: Development with Components

In this scenario, you also use the SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio as the development environment and the Design Time Repository to store your source files in versions. However, using the component model allows developers to organize their projects right from the beginning in small, reusable and easy-to-maintain units. Components can use one another in a controlled manner, protect their inner objects and provide their functionality via well-defined interfaces, the “public parts”. In addition, this scenario introduces development components, which provide all developers with a defined entry point into a project.

We recommend this scenario only for demo scenarios, in which you want to test the development with the component model. SAP does not offer a spezial migration step in scenarios 2+ and 3. A migration into these scenarios at a later time must be done manually.

There is a tutorial for scenario 2: Tutorial for Scenario 2: Development with Components.

Scenario 2+: Development with a Track

You develop in the SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio in accordance with the component model. To administer the development landscape, you use the Change Management Service. For the central build process, you use the Component Build Service. The development is restricted to developing one software component.

This scenario is suited for customers who want to develop one single software component, but use the complete administration and build environment.

For a tutorial on scenario 2+ see Tutorial for Scenario 2+: Development with a Track.

Scenario 3: Layered Development

As far as the used services are concerned, this scenario is similar to scenario 2+. You use the entire SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure including CMS, DTR, CBS. Development configurations describe and select all required resources of the infrastructure, which a developer needs to work on a software product. However, you can develop several logically related software components in parallel.

This scenario is suited for customers who want to develop several software components in parallel that depend on one another.

For a tutorial on scenario 3 see Tutorial for Scenario 3: Layered Development.

Using SAP Components

In the Development-Configurations perspective in the SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio, you see the development components provided by SAP (software components SAP-JTECH and SAP-JEE).

You can use these components in your applications. However, beware that SAP can change or delete their interfaces in future releases without prior notice.

If an SAP development component provides a guaranteed interface, this will be documented explicitly.

If you are in doubt concerning a certain component, contact the SAP Support with a problem message.

Features

The development infrastructure combines the characteristics and advantages of local development environments, which are the rule in the Java environment, with a server-based development landscape, which is mainly used to centrally provide a consistent environment.

·        The development infrastructure supports developers by providing central services – the extent of the support depends on the selected development scenario. In all scenarios, source code is managed in the Design Time Repository (DTR).

·        Development configurations link the local development environment with the central infrastructure and provide all developers participating in a certain project with access to the same consistent environment.

·        The SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio supports the creation and local build of components. The locally built components can then, for example, be deployed for testing purposes in a local runtime system.

·        All development objects (sources, libraries) are stored in the local file system of the development environment; thus they are available to third-party tools that are not integrated in the Developer Studio.

·        A standing connection to the infrastructure is not necessary.

·        Distributed development and the development in teams are enabled by the central storage of source code in the Design Time Repository.

·        Developers can download the up-to-date state of the source code at any time.

·        All changes to the sources of a product are recorded and can be traced at any time.

·        The possibility of central backups protects against accidental loss of development work.

·        The Component Build Service offers a component-based build process on developer request.

·        The entire software life cycle is administered centrally in the Change Management Service.

·        For the local compilation of components, the same collection of compilers and generators is available as for the assigned Component Build Service. They are themselves components and as such they are provided by the Build Service just like any other component. Locally compiled components can then, for example, be deployed for testing purposes into a local runtime system.

·        Automated processes (workflow) for retrieving, distribution, quality assurance, test and assembly in the SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure are carried out by the Change Management Service and the Component Build Service.

·        The SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure allows you to contruct central test landscapes with an automatic deployment of changes.

 

SAP NetWeaver Java Development Infrastructure – Overview of the elements of the development infrastructure.