SAP Integrated Business Planning, add-in for Microsoft Excel

Feature Overview and End-User Guide

Based on the Excel Add-In Version 2308.2.0
Product Management, SAP
August, 2023

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About this document

The SAP Integrated Business Planning, add-in for Microsoft Excel (short: Excel add-in) is one of the
key access points to key figures and master data that is stored in the SAP IBP backend. It is one of
the main user interfaces for the end users of SAP Integrated Business Planning (SAP IBP).

The following slides aim to provide an overview of the key features and concepts of the Excel add-
in and are intended for end users. The presentation can be used, for example, for end user training
during an implementation project.

Please note that the screenshots and examples are based on test sample planning views and a test
data set. The planning view templates and planning views can look different in your case due to
custom formatting, branding, and additional VBA code that you have embedded, as well as
depending on the different versions of the Excel add-in.

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What’s New in 2308.2.0
• Resetting changes in your planning view (pages 182 – 184)
• All versions and all scenarios can be selected for alerts​ (pages 410 – 411)
• Enhancements for working offline (page 329)
• Changed handling of attribute-based filters
• Grouping of dimensions for setting up formatting rules (page 152)
• Type-Ahead Value Help for Subnetwork Selection
• Clearing the cache of Microsoft Edge WebView2 (page 18)
• Changed Behavior for Canceling Simulations

For more information, see SAP Help Portal at What’s New in 2308.

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 Agenda (1)
1) Introduction 6) Visualization of key figure editability

2) How to log on to SAP Integrated Business Planning using the Excel add-in 7) Time-based disaggregation of partially editable child nodes

3) How to create planning views 8) How to work with planning views

▪ Basic Settings ▪ Editing planning views
− Workbook settings
▪ Quick edit view & quick filter
− Time settings
▪ Changing key figure values interactively
− Attribute settings
− Key figure settings ▪ Simulation mode / interactive planning
− Defining the layout ▪ Versions
− Filter settings
▪ Scenarios
− Adding a new worksheet
− Working with multiple workbooks ▪ Ad-hoc drill down
− Refreshing the planning view ▪ Fixing key figure values
▪ Advanced Settings ▪ Planning notes
− Time-based totals and flexible time axis
▪ Adding own key figures (local members)
− Attribute-based totals & subtotals
− Attribute value “(None)”, strong, and light matches 9) How to save key figure data in a planning view
− Workbook filter ▪ Read and write permissions and rejection of changes
− Working with attribute-based filters
10) Change history views
− Sorting attribute values
− Sorting based on key figure values 11) Working offline with planning views
− Scrolling to current time period
12) Sharing planning views with non-SAP IBP users
4) Saving planning views as templates and favorites
13) Application jobs in the Excel add-in
5) SAP IBP Formatting Sheet
14) Master data maintenance
▪ Single master data maintenance

▪ Master data workbook

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 Agenda (2)
15) Planning object maintenance

16) Alert key figures and alert dashboard

17) Task management

18) Navigation to the Web UI

19) Help, user settings, and more in the About area

20) Logging off and troubleshooting disabled Excel add-ins

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1) Introduction
Planning in Microsoft Excel for professional planners

• Real-time access to your SAP IBP system and

data, directly in Microsoft Excel
• Create custom planning views easily
• Visualize, analyze, and adapt your master data
and time series data
• Run planning operators in simulation mode for
ad-hoc what-if analysis and create your own
scenarios
• Use local key figures to quickly use your
custom Excel formulas on SAP IBP data
• Use own VBA coding to further finetune
planning views and planner interaction

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Flexible planning view definition

Native Microsoft
Excel capabilities,
such as charts
and dropdowns,
including
VBA coding

Data from
SAP IBP database

Review and Define planning Save planning view Use formatting to

change data online view for the task at as template or indicate what actions
and offline hand favorite a user can take

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Some key facts about the Excel add-in

• The Excel add-in does not run in the SAP Cloud (which SAP Integrated Business Planning does), but needs to be
installed on the PCs of the individual users, or needs to be made available to the users in a Citrix environment at the
customer. The customer is responsible for upgrading the add-in versions for the individual users.
• The upgrade of the SAP IBP system to the newest version does not require that you install the new version of the Excel
add-in. You can decide to install it whenever you wish to start using its new features. However, if you do install the
newest version, please note that .NET 6 Desktop Runtime and Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime are required.
• New features, such as value-based sorting, are only available as of the respective Excel add-in version.
• The Excel add-in versions are upward compatible. This means that they can be used with higher releases of SAP IBP.
However, please note that if an SAP IBP system is still on version n-1, for example, 2211, and the newest Excel add-in
version n, for example, 2302.2.0 is used to log on to the system, some functions might not work as they did before. For
this reason, make sure that your SAP IBP productive system is upgraded before you start using the newest Excel add-in
version productively.​
• For more information about the supported versions of the Excel add-in, see SAP Note 2394311 (Version information for
the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel) at https://me.sap.com/#/notes/2394311.
• SAP IBP and the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel are released with certain known restrictions in functionality. For
more information, see the respective Release Restriction Note. You can find the relevant version of the note on the SAP
Help Portal at https://help.sap.com, under Use > Application Help for SAP IBP for Supply Chain > SAP Integrated
Business Planning for Supply Chain > Version.
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Prerequisites for working with the Excel add-in

• User must have the Excel add-in installed (or have access to it via Citrix).

• User’s PC must be connected to the Internet.

• User must have a user in the SAP IBP system.

• User must have at least basic authorization to view data in the Excel add-in.

• SAP IBP backend system must be up and running.

• Planning area must be configured and active.

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Downloading the Excel add-in

• Customers can download the Excel add-in in the software download area of the SAP Support Portal
at https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/softwarecenter. Please use the search term SAP IBP Excel
Add-On.
• The download requires an S-user with the necessary authorization. If the download is not possible,
please contact your company’s S-user administrator.
• If SAP delivers a fix for the Excel add-in between two SAP IBP releases (based on a customer ticket,
for example), a new add-in version is generated that needs to be installed on the customer’s side.

Your IT department usually provides you with the installation file, or even installation package, and
pushes these installations to your local PC. For more information, see the following SAP Notes:
• Silent installation/uninstallation
SAP Note 2135948 at https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/2135948
• How to distribute the add-in to user’s notebooks
SAP Note 2114654 at https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/2114654
• Add-in with proxy server
SAP Note 2092187 at https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/2092187

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Excel add-in on a MacBook and mobile devices

• The Excel add-in can run on a MacBook. The prerequisite is that a virtual machine (VM) is set-
up and that a Windows and Office environment is installed on the VM. Then you can install the
Excel add-in on that VM as usual.

• The Excel add-in can be installed on Microsoft Surface devices.

• You cannot install the Excel add-in on a smartphone or tablet.

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2) How to Log on to SAP IBP Using the
Excel Add-In
Logon
If the Excel add-in is installed correctly, you find a new entry in the Microsoft Excel ribbon, called SAP IBP.
As a first step, you need to log on to the SAP IBP backend by clicking Log On.

• The Log on to SAP IBP dialog appears. Usually, your

administrator distributes the relevant connection details
and you can directly select one of the connections and
click Log On.
• If no connection has been preset by your administrator,
follow the steps on the next pages to set up a connection
manually.
• You can save multiple connections to different systems
and planning areas.
• In the dropdown menu you’ll find the available connections.
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Setting up a connection (1)

Step 1: Open the Connection Manager

To set up a new connection

click to open the Connection Manager Then click Create Connection.

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Setting up a connection (2)
Step 3: Set the connection as default (optional)
Step 2: Enter the connection details
Select the Set as Default Connection checkbox if
Enter a free text name, the server URL (provided by you want to use the connection as your default
your administrator), and either enter the planning connection. The connection name and details are
area name directly or click the … (Select a planning displayed in bold letters in the Connection
area) button to get a list of planning areas available Manager dialog.
for this system.
Next time you click Log On, this connection will be
DEFAULT represents the default planning area that preselected from your list of connections.
you can define in the SAP Fiori launchpad under
Settings.

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Logging on to multiple planning areas or systems in parallel

It is possible to log on to multiple SAP IBP systems and planning areas in parallel. That can be useful, for example,
during implementation and testing phases.

Instead of opening a new Excel workbook, open a new Excel instance. The way to open a new instance depends on
the Microsoft Office version. If the following path does not work for you, please check the help on
https://support.microsoft.com.

1. Open your Microsoft Excel workbook (the first instance) as usual

(and optionally log on to SAP IBP).

2. Right-click the Microsoft Excel icon on the Windows desktop taskbar,

press the Alt key, and select Excel from the list.

3. Keep pressing the Alt key until a pop up appears that asks you
if you want to open a new instance. Click Yes.

You now have two separate Microsoft Excel instances open and can log on to different SAP IBP planning areas with
each of them.

If you use the Excel add-in version 2005 or higher, you can achieve the
same by double-clicking on the desktop item (if your administrator has enabled the desktop
shortcut during installation).
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Clearing the cache

When you select a connection in the Excel add-in and log on to that connection, relevant
information related to the planning area, such as attributes, key figures, time periods, and so on, Sample error message:
are downloaded to the Excel add-in and stored in a local cache. The information is marked with a
version number. The next time you log on to the same system and planning area, this version
information is compared with the current version on the server. If the versions don't match, the
data is downloaded again. If no changes have been made logging on is faster, as the data can be
directly taken from the cache, and doesn't need to be downloaded again.

Usually, there's no need to clear the cache. However, if you think the data stored in the cache in
the Excel add-in is not accurate, you can clear it. This forces all the planning area information to
be downloaded again. For example, if you know that a key figure name has been changed in
model configuration, but the changed name doesn't appear in the templates in the Excel add-in, try
clearing the cache.

As of version 2305.2.0 of the Excel add-in, you clear the cache for all connections that you
have in the Connection Manager, by clicking the Clear Cache button.

In versions older than 2305.2.0, you can clear the cache for each connection separately, by
selecting a connection in the Connection Manager, and clicking the Clear Metadata Cache button.

As of version 2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the Microsoft Edge WebView2 cache that is used for
logging into SAP IBP is also cleared when you click the Clear Cache button.

Please note: Master data attributes that are marked as personal data are not cached but are read
on the fly from the SAP IBP backend.

The same is true if the number of attributes exceeds a threshold set in configuration using the
global configuration parameter MAX_DIM_MEMBERS: the excess attributes are not cached and
only read on demand.

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3) How to Create Planning Views
Planning views in SAP IBP

Plain SAP IBP planning view (no formatting, no VBA code, …)

Data from SAP IBP database

VBA-based planning view template including formatting (example)

Native Microsoft Excel capabilities, such as

charts and drop downs, for example based
on VBA coding / macros (optional)

Data from SAP IBP database

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Creating a new planning view (1)

To open a predefined planning view (template or favorite) or create a planning view from scratch,
click New View in the SAP IBP ribbon. Then choose one of the following:
• From Template

• Without Template on Current Sheet, if you want to create a plain planning view from scratch.

This option will be explained in the following slides.

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Creating a new planning view (2)

A planning view in SAP IBP requires the

following settings:

1) Workbook settings

2) Time settings

3) Attributes

4) Key figures

5) Layout (optional)

6) Filter
(can be either optional or
mandatory, depending on your SAP
IBP system settings)

7) Alerts based on alert key figures

(optional)
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Basic Settings
Workbook Settings
Creating a new planning view – workbook settings

When you create a planning view, you must

specify which version the planning view includes.
If you include the base version in the planning
view, you can add any of the key figures available
in the planning area to the planning view. If you
include a version other than the base version, you
can add only those key figures that are marked as
version-specific key figures in the configuration of
the given version.

As of version 2302.2.0, the Workbook Settings

side panel is available. Among other things, you
can specify the version or versions you want to
use here.

To specify the versions, choose New View (or Edit

View). In the dialog that opens, expand the
Workbook Settings side panel, and choose the
Versions & Scenarios dropdown.

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Basic Settings
Time Settings
Creating a new planning view – time settings

Define the time intervals for which you want to

see data in the planning view.
• You can combine different time intervals.
• The time intervals can use different period
types (such as, Weekly or Monthly) that you
can select in the Time Period field.
• The period names, such as, Jan 2019 or CW1
2019, are defined by your administrator. Please note: The number of different period types that you can
use for your time intervals and total columns is defined by your
• By using Total for a time interval, you get a administrator using the global configuration parameter
MAX_TIME_LEVELS in the PLAN_VIEW parameter group. If the
total column that displays the aggregated key parameter is set to 2, you can, for example, only use two levels, for
figure value for this time interval. example Weekly and Monthly or Monthly and Yearly for your time
intervals/total columns in the planning view, but not Weekly,
• The order of the time intervals/total columns Monthly, and Yearly. The totals count as a level as well.
and period types does not need to be
chronological.
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On-the-fly aggregation of data across time periods

Data in SAP IBP is stored at the base level of the respective key figure. The base level defines the type
of periods in which the data is stored, for example, weeks or days. When displaying the data, it is
automatically aggregated up to the requested time period. Example: if key figure data is stored in days
and your planning view displays months, then the days are aggregated to months.

How the data is aggregated

is defined in the key figure configuration.
Example: Sum for quantity-based key figures,
Avg (average) for prices

Disaggregation
Aggregation
Your administrator can also define a more
complex aggregation and disaggregation
logic, dependent on the individual use case.

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Time period - what is a technical week?

Storing key figures at the technical week level

allows a consistent aggregation/disaggregation
between weeks and months.

A weighting factor is used as a proportional factor to split data during disaggregation:

Month June July August

Calendar CW CW CW CW CW CW CW CW CW CW CW CW
CW 27 CW 31
Week 23 24 25 26 28 29 30 32 33 34 35 36
Technical TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW TW
Week 23 24 25 26 27a 27b 28 29 30 31a 31b 32 33 34 35 36a
Factor 5 5 5 5 2 3 5 5 5 5 0 5 5 5 5 1
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Basic Settings
Attribute Settings
Creating a new planning view – Attribute settings

• Define the planning level at which you want to see the data
in the planning view.

• On-the-fly aggregation and disaggregation of the planning

data are one of the key strengths of SAP IBP. You can
freely choose from all available master data attributes
displayed.

• The All Attributes area on the left side of the screen

includes the attributes that are available to you. They are
sorted in alphabetical order.

• To select an attribute for your planning view, you can either

select the attribute‘s checkbox or drag and drop the
attribute to the Selected Attributes area. The selected
attributes are the ones that will be visible in your planning
view. Order in the planning view:

• The sequence in which the attributes are listed in the

Selected Attributes section determines the sequence of the
attributes in your planning view.
You can easily change the sequence by using the arrow
buttons or drag and drop.

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On-the-fly aggregation of data across planning levels

Data in SAP IBP is stored at the base planning level of the respective
key figure, for example, the product ID or a combination of multiple Example: LOC | PROD | CUST | WEEKLY
attributes. LOC = location ID
The data in the database is stored in these attribute combinations. PROD = product ID
If key figures are calculated based on other key figures, the CUST = customer ID
aggregation works similarly.

When the data is displayed, it is automatically aggregated up to the requested planning level.

Example: If key figure data is stored at the product ID level and you display the data at the brand level, then
the data stored for the product IDs is aggregated to the respective brands.

Example for Product Planning Levels Example for Location Planning Levels

Product Family A Region A

Brand A Brand B Country A Country B

Product A1 Product A2 Product B1 Product B2 LocationA1 LocationA2 LocationB1 LocationB2

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Basic Settings
Key Figure Settings
Creating a new planning view – key figure settings

• Define the key figures for which you want to see

data in the planning view

• You can freely choose the currency or unit of

measure (UoM) in which you want to see the data.
Note: Currency and UoM conversion factors must
have been loaded by the administrator beforehand.

• You need to select a conversion factor for key

figures for which a conversion has been defined by
the administrator.

• The sequence in which the selected key figures are

listed defines the sequence of the key figures in
your planning view.
You can easily change the sequence by using the
arrow buttons or drag and drop.

• You can also specify whether you want to show

planning notes in the planning view.
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Creating a new planning view – tooltip for key figures

The tooltip shows you all information on how a

key figure is defined. This can help decide if for
example, fixing or planning notes are allowed,
and in which horizon the key figure is editable.

To make the tooltip appear, hover over a key

figure's name for about two seconds.

With the pin button in the upper right corner,

you can keep the tooltip on the screen and
move it around.

The tooltip is also available for attributes,

planning levels, versions, time levels, and so
on. By clicking the entities in blue font, you
navigate to the specific tooltip.

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Creating a new planning view – extended tooltip for key figures

With the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel version 2205.2.0, the tooltip available for
attributes, key figures and further entities such as planning levels, and versions has
been enhanced within all dialogs.​

The main enhancements are the following:

• Smaller size, which is extendable​ by clicking Show more, if necessary

• Shortened text focusing on the main details​
• Improved handling of the dragging function​
• Showing the entity type in the header​
• Improved performance

As of the Excel add-in version 2211.2.0, we've added a copy function to the tooltip
available for attributes, key figures, planning levels, and versions.​ You can copy the
IDs, and technical details of these entities (such as member ID, for example) by
hovering your cursor over the text of the respective ID, and clicking the icon with the
quick info text Copy to clipboard that appears.

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Creating a new planning view – key figure groups

Key figure grouping allows the administrator to

group key figures for example, by business
processes, roles, or tasks. The grouping
depends on your individual use cases.
A key figure can belong to one, multiple, or no
groups at all.​
Example: you add groups per process such as
demand planning, supply planning, inventory
optimization.
The groups have to be maintained per planning
area in the Key Figure Groups app in the
WebUI.
The different groups make it easier to select the
key figures that are relevant for the specific task
or process.

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 Creating a new planning view – key figure groups
You can see the key figure groups in the Edit Planning View or New View window on the Key Figures tab.

In the beginning, the Key Figure

Groups section is collapsed. Click the arrow to open On the details screen, you can select individual groups or
the details. multiple groups. The key figures that are visible to you are
The system remembers whether the key figure group reacting to that selection so that you will only see the key figures
side panel was collapsed or expanded the last time that are part of the groups that you had selected.
you used it and sets it accordingly the next time you Also, when opening a template or favorite, relevant groups are
open the dialog. preselected if you have already added key figures to your
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selection that belong to a group. 37
Basic Settings
Defining the Layout
Creating a new planning view – defining the layout

Customize your planning view and how the

data is shown.

Examples:
• Should the time periods be shown as
columns or rows?
• What should be the sequence of the
attributes and the key figures?

Time periods in columns (default) Time periods in rows

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Basic Settings
Filter settings
Creating a new planning view – filter settings(1)

You can define filter criteria to:

• Reduce the amount of data shown in the planning view (also for performance reasons)
• Only show the data that is relevant for your current planning task.
There are two different types of filters for planning views in SAP IBP:

Attribute-based filters Value-based filters

These filters can filter the data on a These filters can filter the key figure data on a planning
planning view based on attribute values. view based on key figure values. Examples:

Examples: • Show only customers where the annual sales volume

• Customer region = USA AND of the last year was above 1,000,000 EUR
Product ID = 14589; 88874; 12558
• Identify products where the forecast quantity is below
• Resource type = assembly unit 1,000 pieces in the next 3 month

• Show only combinations where the key figure value is

not NULL (that is, empty or zero).
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Creating a new planning view – filter settings (2)

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Creating a new planning view – attribute-based filter

When specifying the attribute-based filter, you Selection with value help:
can either use the value help to see the
available attribute values or copy and paste
them directly in the entry field (a list of values
can also be copied).

Copy and paste System automatically

adds the separators (;)

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Creating a new planning view – value-based filter (1)
In the time settings of the value-based filter, you can decide for which time range the filter criteria
should be met.

Both the time period and the range can be different from the time settings of the planning view.

Example: In the planning view you could have weekly buckets from week 8 to week 20 in 2018,
while the value-based filter criteria should be met in monthly buckets for the last 6 months.

As for the time settings, you can set a rolling horizon using Rolling, Fixed, From Rolls and To Rolls.

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Creating a new planning view – value-based filter (2)
As a next step, you decide for which key figure the filter should be applied. You can only choose key
figures that are part of your planning view (including alert key figures).
You then decide on the operator type. The following operator types are available:
• Equal To
• Not Equal To
• Greater Than
• Less Than
• Between
• Not Empty
• Not Empty or Zero
• Is Empty
• Is Empty or Zero

After that, you need to set the threshold values according to your needs and decide where the filter
criteria should be met: in at least one period (for example, month) of the selected time range (March –
August 2018 in the example), in all periods, or in the total column for this time range.

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Creating a new planning view – value-based filter (3)

To remove any planning combinations where all key figure values are empty, or zero within the
defined time horizon, you set the value-based filter in the planning view to All Selected Key Figures.

This setting automatically switches the operators next to it, to Not Empty or Zero and In At Least
one Period.

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Creating a new planning view – value-based filter (4)

• A value-based filters cannot be shared with other users and is not visible to other users under
the name you had given it.

• Value-based filters are saved within templates, favorites and offline workbooks.

• When you share a template or a favorite with other users, they see the filter criteria only as an
Ad-Hoc Filter (that is, with a different neutral name).

• For value-based filters, there are no Template Admin options, such as Don’t copy, Copy as
suggestion or Copy as mandatory (which you have for the attribute-based filters).

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Creating a new planning view – value-based filter (5)
Before the value-based filter was applied:

The value-based filter is applied when you do the

following:
• When you click OK in the Edit Planning View window
• When you open a template or favorite with a value-based
filter included
• When you refresh the planning view

If an attribute combination or planning level does not

meet the value-based filter criteria, the entire
combination will be removed from the planning view.

After the value-based filter was applied:

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Creating a planning view – result
You have now created a planning view without a template.

It is a plain planning view (no EPM formatting, no VBA code, …).

We strongly recommend that you use the SAP IBP formatting sheet to apply formatting to increase the usability of the
planning views.

Please note that it is mandatory to use the SAP IBP formatting sheet if you want to use the following:
• Alerts in the planning view
• Fixing-enabled key figures

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Adding a new worksheet or copying a worksheet

• Your Excel workbook can have multiple Copy the settings to an existing target worksheet from the
worksheets that contain different planning Edit Planning View screen:
views.
• You can either set up each worksheet from
scratch or copy the settings from an existing
worksheet.
• You can freely name and rename the
worksheets.

Copy current worksheet

(system automatically adds new worksheet):
Create a new worksheet manually and start
from scratch with a new planning view:

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Multiple workbooks

You can have multiple Excel workbooks open with multiple worksheets containing planning views.

The maximum number of workbooks that can be opened is defined by your system administrator
using the global configuration parameter PV_COUNT_MAX in the PLAN_VIEW parameter group.

Limiting the number of open workbooks makes sense for the following reasons:

• Reduce the PC’s memory utilization, which grows with the number of open workbooks and
transactions. You should still be able to work in parallel with other applications.

• Reduce the SAP IBP backend load

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Refreshing data

The planning views in the Excel add-in show data from the SAP IBP backend at the point in time
when the data was last requested or refreshed.

The data does not refresh automatically when data is changed in the database.

To request the latest data, the planning view needs to be refreshed. Refreshing:

• Can be triggered manually by you by clicking Refresh in the SAP IBP ribbon

• Automatically happens when saving data

• Automatically happens when the planning view settings are edited

Note that data that you have changed and simulated but not saved yet is retained when you
change the planning view settings.

• Automatically happens when a template or favorite is opened

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Advanced Settings
Time-based totals and flexible time axis
Time-based totals

You can define on-the-fly aggregates when defining the time settings for your planning view.

Example: define a planning view that always shows the details and then the sum of the last 6 months

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Advanced time settings (1)

You can define how the data is displayed, as periods, summed up to a total, or both.

Custom labels for total columns, such as, Year to Date or Rest of Year:

Note that a certain time period must not be included in different time intervals that use the same
period type.
Example: You cannot define two time intervals with monthly periods that both include the month January 2019, such as
October 2018 to January 2019 and January 2019 to March 2019. It needs to be, for example, October 2018 to
December 2018 and January 2019 to March 2019.
However, the same time range (January 2019) can be included in different time intervals that use
different period types, such as Monthly (month January 2019) and Weekly (week 1/2019 to 4/2019).

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Advanced time settings (2)

You can also define whether the start and end of a time interval, that is, the first and the last period of
the time interval, are fixed or rolling. The following are your options:
• Rolling: Both the start and end period are rolling.
Example: The current month is January. For the time interval to be displayed, you have selected
January 2019 to March 2019 with monthly periods. When the current month changes to February
2019 as time is passing, also the time interval displayed rolls by a month and now shows data from
February 2019 to April 2019.
• Fixed: Both start and end period are fixed.
• From Rolls: Start period is rolling, end period fixed.
• To Rolls: Start period is fixed, end period is rolling.

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Advanced time settings – example
The planning view on the
left displays 8 different
time intervals and time-
based totals, as defined in
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 the time settings below.

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

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Advanced time settings – limitations (1)

Simulation capabilities are only supported within one

time level (period type). Simulations cannot be run for
different time levels in parallel.
So when you change values manually in different time
levels (for example, a weekly and a monthly value) in
the planning view and run a simulation job (such as,
Simulate (Basic) to recalculate the planning scenario,
you will receive a warning, and only one of the
changed values will be taken into consideration for
simulation. The other changed value will be ignored
and overwritten. You can change the other value
afterwards and then start a second simulation.

Time-base totals are read-only and the values cannot

be changed.

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Advanced time settings – limitations (2)

The determination of the value of the time-based total does not work for key figures which are
based on an L-code implementation or on a complex configuration and which have an aggregation
mode other than Sum, Max, Min, or Avg.

An example of a complex configuration is the determination of the key figure value for the last
period in a time period (for example, the last month of a quarter or the last month of a year), as
described in SAP Note 2286684.

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Advanced Settings
Attribute-based totals & subtotals
Attribute-based totals – overview

You can use attribute-based totals within the

planning view based on the selected attributes
of the planning level.

You can decide if you want to see:

• No Total: no aggregation (default)

• Total Before: Lines with totals are shown

before the normal attribute values.

• Total After: Lines with totals are shown after

the normal attribute values (see screenshot
on next slide).

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Attribute-based totals – visualization

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Processing changes to attribute-based totals (1)

Totals are calculated in the SAP IBP backend (not in the Excel add-in). Hence, when changing a
value on the planning view, the total will only be updated in the planning view after simulation or
save.

You can do a reverse calculation from the total to the individual key figures.
Example below: The value of the total consensus demand without promotions has been changed to
80000. When you run Simulation (Basic), the system updates the numbers of the total consensus
demand key figures for Europe and USA accordingly.

You can have changes at

one level only in one simulation run
(either key figure value or subtotal).

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Processing changes to attribute-based totals (2)

Note that you can only change subtotals, but not the total for the highest attribute of the planning
level (grand total)

Example: You can change the subtotals at the level of customer region/product group, but not the
value at the next level, the grand total (sum of all customer regions).

Subtotals for planning

level Customer Region /
Product Group

Grand total for planning

level Customer Region
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Advanced Settings
Attribute value “(None)”, strong and light
matches
Creating a new planning view – attribute value (None)

• In certain cases, you see the value (None)

for an attribute in the planning view.

• This value means that the chosen attribute

is not part of the key figure definition and is
therefore unknown to the system in this
combination.

• In the example on the right side, you can

see that all key figures have the Product ID
as a valid attribute, none of them has the
Promotion ID or Promotion Type, and only
the Confirmed Qty and Delivered Qty key
figures have the Sold To Party as a known
attribute in their definition.

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Creating a new planning view – attribute value (None)
Using Strong Match groups and Light Match groups

The Strong Match and Light Match groups can be used to help find attribute and key figure combinations that
hold data and represent meaningful information within the planning area. Based on your selection in the Time,
Attribute or Key Figure tabs, the Strong Match and Light Match groups are automatically updated.
Example
You select Month as the time period and the attributes Product
Group and Promotion ID. Moving to the Key Figures tab, you
can see the key figures listed in the Strong Match group,
where the base planning level is a complete match to the
attributes and time dimension selected.
In this example, the Promotion ID is only part of a few base
planning levels, so data for it can only be visualized for 3 key
figures in the Strong Match group.
The ones that have a partial coverage are listed under the
Light Match group and the remaining items, that don’t match
at all are listed at the bottom.

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Creating a new planning view – attribute value (None)
Strong Match group

The Strong Match group for attributes or key figures shows you which items (attributes, time periods, key
figures) would lead to a full coverage on the planning view, without showing any empty or (None) labeled
elements. This means that all selected attributes are part of the key figure calculation and the other way
around.

Please note, that empty or (None) labeled elements can still appear in case the attribute value itself is empty,
but the appearance is unlikely within this group.

Items listed in the Strong Match group will not show up in any other group.

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Creating a new planning view – attribute value (None)
Light Match Group

The Light Match group for attributes or key figures shows you which items (attributes, time periods, key
figures) would lead to a partial coverage on the planning view. This means that at least one selected attribute
is part of the key figure calculation and the other way around.

Items listed in the Light Match group will not show up in any other group.

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Advanced Settings
Workbook filter
 Workbook filter (1)
With Excel add-in version 2302.2.0, you can use the
new workbook filter that applies the attribute-based
filter to all worksheets of the workbook.

To define a workbook filter for your planning view,

choose New View or Edit View, expand the Workbook
Settings side panel and either choose one of your
predefined planning filters or add new ad-hoc filter
criteria in the Workbook Filter section.

You can select additional filter criteria for one specific

worksheet on the Filter tab.

Please note: Your saved attribute-based planning

filters can be used equally for the workbook filter and
the worksheet filter.

For more information, see SAP Help Portal at

Combination of Workbook Filter and Worksheet Filter.

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Workbook filter (2) - combination of workbook and worksheet filter

On the Filter tab of a selected worksheet, you

see which filter criteria are applied on
workbook level. Filter criteria for
the workbook filter are grayed out and can only
be adjusted in the Workbook Settings.

You can choose Add Attribute to add additional

filter criteria that are only applied to the specific
worksheet whose settings you're changing (in
this example the "Demand" worksheet).

The attribute-based filter criteria on worbook

and worksheet level are always merged.

For example, if you select "Product 1" as

criteria in the workbook filter and "Product 2" in
the worksheet filter, "Product 1" and "Product
2" are displayed in the planning view.

For more information, see SAP Help Portal

at Combination of Workbook Filter and
Worksheet Filter.

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Workbook filter (3) – exclude workbook filter

In versions before 2305.2.0, you could either

use the Workbook Filter for all worksheets or
specify a specific attribute-based filter for each
worksheet.

With version 2305.2.0 and newer, it is possible

to exclude the workbook filter from one specific
worksheet and keep the Workbook Filter for all
the other worksheets of your planning view
workbook.

To do so, you need to select the Exclude

Workbook Filter checkbox on the Filter tab of the
Edit Planning View dialog for the specific
worksheet.

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Workbook filter (4) – exclude workbook filter

You can use the workbook filter for worksheet Demand, exclude the workbook filter from
worksheet Capacity, and define a different filter instead.
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Workbook filter (5) – exclude workbook filter

The Exclude Workbook Filter checkbox is

also available in the Edit… function of the
Worksheet Filter in the Planning View group
of the SAP IBP ribbon.

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Workbook filter (6) – Drill down function

With 2305.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the Drill Down function in the
context menu can also be used if a workbook filter is applied to
the worksheet.

When you choose Drill Down > By Attribute, the selected attribute
is added to the planning view and the worksheet filter is
adjusted in the following way:

▪ Conditions of the workbook filter are merged with previously

selected worksheet conditions.

▪ Conditions that filter on the attributes included in the planning

view are replaced by the specific conditions for the planning
combination of the selected cell.

▪ The Exclude Workbook Filter checkbox is selected

automatically.

When you choose Back or Initial View, the previous planning view
is loaded again with the previously selected workbook filter and
worksheet filter.

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Workbook filter (7) – Alert Dashboard

With the upgrade to SAP IBP 2305, the

workbook filter is considered in the calculation of
the number of exceptions for alert key figures
in planning view favorites, which is shown in
the Alert Dashboard.

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Workbook filter (8) – cascading filter

As of version 2305.2.0, the

workbook filter conditions are
considered in the Cascading Filter
function.
If you have multiple attribute-
based filter conditions and you
want to add additional conditions,
you can use the cascading filter
function to check which filter
values are valid in combination
with the previously selected
conditions.
For more information, see SAP
Help Portal at Cascading Filter.

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Advanced Settings
Working with filters
Cascading filter

• You can use the cascading filter to filter

attributes based on other attributes.
• This is useful when you want to filter on
attributes that have a huge number of
values.
• For example, in your master data workbook
or when editing the planning view, you filter
on Product ID. Using the cascading filter,
you can set another filter criterion, such as
Brand Description. The system then displays
a list of Product IDs that are part of the
Brand that you specified.

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Apply cascading filter automatically

With version 2305.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the cascading

filter can be applied automatically. You can enable the
function by selecting the Apply Cascading Filter
Automatically checkbox in the Display Options section of
the User Settings dialog in the About group of the SAP
IBP ribbon.
When the function is enabled, the cascading filter is
automatically applied when you open the value help to select
attribute values for filter conditions. You don't need to choose
Apply manually.​

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Cascading filter for simple master data types

Example: Both attributes are part of the same simple master data type.
• Filter for attribute 1 (such as product ID) based on a cascading filter attribute 2 (such as brand
description) which is part of the same simple master data type as attribute 1.

description

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Saving your filter

You can save your filter settings to have them

available later on with just one click as a
planning filter.

The saved attribute-based filters are available

in multiple areas:
• Planning view definition
• Filter menu in the planning view
• Application jobs started from the Excel add-in
• Master data workbook, if the saved filter is
relevant for the respective master data
Planning filter
• Change history view
menu in the
• SAP Fiori app Planning Filters on the Web UI, SAP IBP ribbon:
where the saved filters can also be shared with
other users or user groups

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Updating and deleting planning filters

To update a previously saved filter, select the filter

from the dropdown, change the filter conditions,
and choose Update.

To delete a filter, select the filter from the

dropdown and choose Delete.

This works the same way for value-based filters.

Note that you can only delete filters that are not
used. For more information, see the next slide.

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Usage check for attribute-based filters

You cannot delete a filter if it is still used, for

example, by the following applications:
• Application jobs

• Application job templates

• Planning view favorites

• Master data workbook favorites

• Planning view templates

• Planning views in the Web-Based Planning app

• Alert definitions

• Analytics

• Dashboards

To see the applications that use the filter,

use the Planning Filters app. See next
slide.

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Saving, updating, and deleting value-based filter

This works the same way as for attribute-based filters.

In the filter dropdown menu, you can only see the filters that are based on key figures that are
included in your planning view.

Please note that value-based filters cannot be shared with other users.

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Updating and deleting attribute-based filters in the SAP IBP ribbon

As of Excel add-in version 2302.2.0, there

are two filter dropdowns in the Planning
View group of the SAP IBP ribbon; the
upper one for the workbook filter and the
lower one for the worksheet filter.
In the field labels, you can see which filter
is applied (Named Filter, Ad Hoc Filter or
(None)).
By using the dropdowns, you can change,
remove, and edit the workbook filter or
worksheet filter that is being used in your
planning view, or organize your attribute-
based filters.

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Where-used list for attribute-based planning filters

The Planning Filters app on the Web UI of SAP

IBP lists the objects and applications that use a
particular attribute-based planning filter.

Note that you can find master data workbook

favorites under Planning View Favorites. They
have the prefix [MD].

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Invalid values in attribute-based filters (1)

It can happen that attribute values are no longer available, for example, if they have been deleted
from the system.

Example:

• When you defined the filter, you included the products A, B, and C. Later on, the product C was
removed from the system, but is still included in the filter. This means that the filter now
contains an invalid value.

• It can even happen that none of the products defined in the filter exist any longer when you use
the filter in a planning view or for an application job at a later point in time. All the values in the
filter are now invalid.

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Invalid values in attribute-based filters (2)

What happens if an attribute-based filter contains invalid Warning in the planning view settings
values?

• If all values are missing in a filter, you get a warning

when you try to use the filter in the planning view
settings or in the application job settings. See the
screenshots on the right.

• The planning view only displays data for the valid

values.

• An application job runs successfully – even if all Warning in the application job settings
values in the filter are invalid - but you only get results
for the valid values. If there are no valid values, the
application log says No data found.

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Organizing filters in folders (1)

For better usability, you can use folders

to organize your attribute-based filters
and value-based filters.

You can assign a filter to a folder when

creating or updating it.

In the filter dropdown menu, you can see

your filters in folders.

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Organizing filters in folders (2)

When adding (or updating) a filter, you can

assign the filter to an existing folder or create a
new folder to which the filter should be
assigned.

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Organizing filters in folders (3) To reorganize your folders and the
assignment of filters to folders, choose
Organize.

Then you can do the following:

• Drag and drop a filter to a different folder

• Create a new folder and drag and drop

filters to this new folder

(Note that folders that do not contain any

filters are deleted automatically. )

• Rename filters and their folders (more

about this later)

• Share attribute-based filters with other

users (more about this later)

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Organizing attribute-based filters in folders in the SAP IBP ribbon

The folder structure you created for attribute-

based planning filters is also visible in the To reorganize the folders, choose
filter dropdown menu of the SAP IBP ribbon. Organize. Also see previous slide.

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Sharing attribute-based filters with other users
You can share attribute-based filters using the Organize dialog either
in the SAP IBP ribbon or in the Filters tab of the Edit Planning
View / New View window.

Select the filters that you want Select the users or user The filters now have a suffix in
to share with other users and groups. Your selection is saved the name stating that they are
user groups and click the share once you click OK. shared by you. Click OK to save
icon and confirm further changes that
Public you made in this dialog.​ 95
 Resharing attribute-based filters
If you want to extend the sharing to additional users for multiple filters, in some cases you
might find that the users with whom these filters were already shared might differ from filter to
filter.

Select the filters that you want If you selected some shared filters but You can add new users with whom all
to share with other users and not all filters that you selected were filters that you selected are shared, or
user groups and click the share shared with the same users, the you can also reselect the ones that you
icon. names of the users are shown in italic already saw initially to make sure all
and with a filled checkbox in the filters that you selected are shared with
dialog. them.
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Sharing of attribute-based filters​ – opting-out of shared filters

You can opt out of attribute-based filters

that were shared with you by other users.

Filters that you have opted out

of don’t appear in your attribute-based
filters list any longer.​

To opt out, drag and drop these filters to

the Opt Out folder.

To get the filters back, drag and drop the

filter back to the other area.​

You can also use the Move button to opt

out of one or multiple shared filters.
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Organizing attribute-based filters using the move dialog​

To assign or re-assign multiple attribute-

based filters to folders, you can use the Move
items dialog, as follows:

1. Select the filters that you want to move to

a different folder or new folder​

2. Click Move item

3. Select the folder to which the filters should

be moved or create a new folder

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Renaming attribute-based filters and their folders (1)

You can rename attribute-based planning filters and the respective folders via the Organize menu.

SAP IBP ribbon New Planning View / Edit Planning View

window
You find the Organize dialog in
the dropdown menu for attribute- For attribute-based planning filters, the Organize
based filters. dialog can be found in the New Planning View /
Edit Planning View window on the Filters tab.

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Renaming attribute-based filters and their folders (2)

▪ To rename a folder or planning filter via the Organize menu, you click the (pen) icon next to the name to activate edit
mode.
▪ To validate the new name and check that it is not already being used, you click the (checkmark) icon or press the Enter
key on your keyboard. You will see that the (pen) icon slightly changes for the item.
▪ When you choose OK, changes are validated and saved. Please note that all changes get saved, including the changed
items that are still in edit mode. If you choose Cancel, unsaved changes are discarded.

Switch to
Edit Mode

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Renaming attribute-based filters and their folders (3)

Please note that you cannot do the following:

▪ Rename favorites or attribute-based filters that are shared with you

▪ Apply a circular renaming in one step, such as A → B, B → C, C → A

▪ Create duplicate names

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Renaming attribute-based filters and their folders (4)

The following are also not allowed:

▪ Empty names

▪ Special characters
Allowed characters include the following: letters, numbers, currency symbols, - (dash), _ (underscore), and space

▪ Spaces at the beginning or the end of the name are trimmed automatically.

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Advanced Settings
Sorting attribute values
Sorting attribute values – introduction

Sorting attribute values helps you to structure your data in an efficient way for your daily work and
keep an overview of the most important aspects.

Besides sorting the attribute values in ascending or descending order, you can define
custom sorting rules. For example, if you want to have your top three customers always at the top
of the list, you can pin these three customers to the top of your planning view and move less
important customers to the bottom.

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Sorting logic in the Excel add-in

In the Excel add-in, sorting is based on

ASCII (decimal) character code.

For more information, see

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASCII.

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Assigning a sorting rule to an attribute

In the planning view settings, you can assign a

sorting rule to each attribute that you have
selected for the planning view.

In the dropdown menu next to the attribute,

you can choose between the following sorting
rules:

• A-Z, for sorting in ascending order For each attribute a

sorting rule can be
selected.
• Z-A, for sorting in descending order

• Custom sorting rules that you have defined

previously (see next slides)

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Defining a sorting rule for an attribute

1. Click the ellipsis button (…) next to the sorting

dropdown of the attribute.
2. On the right side of the Manage Sorting Rules
window, set up the sorting sequence for the
attribute values.
Example in the screenshot
The Selected Items section shows a list of attribute values.
This list is the sorting rule for the Product Desc attribute. With
this rule, the planning view will list monitors and phones in the
planning view in the following order:
1. CleverTele 42inch white
2. M-Phone 3D 640GB black&pink NEW
3. Others, that is, all other products visible on the left side of
the window in ascending order (A-Z) - except for,
4. CleverTele 48inch silver, which comes at the bottom
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Defining a sorting rule – “Others”

• Others is an SAP default category that

includes all attribute values from the left
side that you have not selected.
• You can decide whether these values get
sorted in ascending or descending order.
• To do so, use the A-Z and Z-A toggle
buttons next to the search field.

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Defining a sorting rule – selecting items and changing the sequence

• To select an item for the sorting rule, select

the respective checkbox on the left side or
drag and drop the item from the left side to
the right.
• To deselect an item: Do the same, just from
the right to the left.
Drag and Drop
• To change the sequence of the selected
items, move them up and down using drag
and drop. Or use the arrows in the top right
corner.

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 Sorting of Attribute Values by Description if ID-Description Linking is Used

Before 2111.2.0 As of 2111.2.0

If Description is
• With Excel add-in selected to be
version 2011.2.0 sorting displayed in the
of attribute values in a planning view, the
planning view was sorting rule applies to
introduced. the description values.
• It was not possible to You can change the
sort values based on selection in the
Description if ID- Manage Sorting Rules
Description linking was dialog.
used.

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Closing the rule creation

You can save the sorting rule that you have just
defined in the following ways:

• As a rule that is immediately applied to your

planning view, by choosing OK (ad hoc
sorting)

• As a custom rule with a specific name, by

choosing Add

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Saving a custom sorting rule

1. Choose Add.
2. Enter the rule name.
3. Choose Add again.

Your sorting rule is now available

in the sorting dropdowns.

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Updating and deleting a custom sorting rule

In the Manage Sorting Rules window, you can

also update or delete a sorting rule.

Please note that you cannot delete sorting rules

that are still being used by favorites and
templates. If you try to do so, you will get an
error message with the name of the favorite or
template in which the sorting rule is used.

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Sorting for attribute combinations

1 2 3 The sorting rules are applied to

each attribute from left to right.

Custom sorting
Example in the screenshot
rule XYZ
1. The customer countries are
sorted in ascending order,
using the standard sorting
Sorting Custom sorting rule A-Z.
rule Z-A rule XYZ
2. Within each customer
country, the product groups
are sorted in descending
Custom sorting order using the standard
rule XYZ sorting rule Z-A.

3. For each value combination

of customer country and
Sorting Sorting Custom sorting
product group, the products
rule A-Z rule Z-A rule XYZ
are sorted using the custom
sorting rule XYZ.

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Changing the sorting rule in the planning view

In the planning view, you can also change the

sorting rule for an attribute using the context
menu, as follows:

1. Right-click an attribute value.

2. Choose Sorting.

3. Select the sorting rule you want to apply:

• A-Z for ascending
• Z-A for descending
• A custom sorting rule saved previously

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Sorting rules in planning view templates and shared favorites

Please note: Planning view templates and planning view

favorites are explained in detail later on. This slide only
covers how these objects handle sorting rules.

The sorting rules for attributes are saved with a planning view template or a favorite. So, next time
you open the template or favorite, your choice of sorting rules is preset for the selected attributes.

If you share a favorite, the sorting rules are shared with the other users as well. Saved sorting rules,
however, will appear as (Ad Hoc Sorting) rules for other users. The same applies if you open a
template that was created by another user.

How you see your favorite: How your colleagues see it:

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Attribute-based sorting and member sorting

Please note: Local members are covered in greater detail

later on. This slide is just about sorting aspects.

In addition to attribute-based sorting, sorting using the Report Editor (also called Member Sorting), is
also available.

We recommend that you only use attribute-based sorting in the planning view, as this is the preferred
way of sorting in the Excel add-in. If you want to use both, please note that attribute-based sorting is
applied by the SAP IBP backend, while member sorting is applied by the Excel user interface. Therefore,
member sorting overrules attribute-based sorting, if there are conflicting sorting settings.
To set up member sorting, choose
Advanced → Report Editor.

On the Layout tab, select an attribute

and then Sort or group members by
properties.

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Advanced Settings
Sorting based on key figure values
Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
Where can you find it?

The Value-Based Sorting function is

available on the Key Figures tab in
the Create Planning View or Edit
Planning View dialog as of version
2211.2.0

In the dropdown, you can choose

one of your available value-based
sorting rules that you already saved
previously. If (None) is selected, no
value-based sorting rule applies.

By choosing the … button next to it,

the Manage Sorting Rules – Value-
Based Sorting dialog opens, and
you can define a new value-based
sorting rule or update the selected
one.
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Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
How to set up a sorting rule

In the Manage Sorting Rules – Value-Based

Sorting dialog you can select the key figure whose values
you want to sort.

By using the Ascending and Descending toggle buttons

you can decide whether the key figure values should be
sorted in an ascending or descending order.

Select a time level which fits the selected key figure and
choose a time horizon. (Note: The time level and time
horizon can be different from the ones used on the Time
tab)

If you choose the same time period in the From and To

field, the planning view will be sorted by the key figure
→ See example planning views
values of this period. When you choose several time
periods instead, the planning view will be sorted by the on the following slide
aggregated key figure values over the selected time
periods.
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Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
Sorting based on one time period

The values of Consensus

Demand Shortage in the
coming week are sorted
in a descending order.

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Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
Sorting based on several time periods

The aggregated values of

Consensus Demand
Shortage over the coming
5 weeks are sorted in
a descending order.

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Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
Save your own sorting rule

Once you have configured a sorting rule,

you can choose the Add new
sorting button and define a name.

This way you can save the sorting rule

and reuse it in other planning views
where the related key figure is selected.
To do so, you just need to choose the
name of the sorting rule in the dropdown
of the Value-Based Sorting field.

You can update and delete the selected

sorting rules by using the Update and
the Delete buttons.

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Sorting based on key figure values (value-based sorting)
Restrictions

There are some restrictions related to the planning view settings that you must keep in mind
if you want to use value-based sorting:
▪ Only key figures that are included in the planning view can be used for value-based sorting.
▪ Aggregated constraint key figures can‘t be used for value-based sorting.
▪ Time periods must be placed on the column axis.
▪ Attributes must be placed on the row axis (apart from time profile attributes, which always need to be
placed on the column axis together with the time periods).
▪ Key figures can be placed on either the row or the column axis. On the row axis, the key figures must
be placed after all selected attributes.
▪ Only one version and one scenario can be selected, multiple versions and scenarios are not
supported.
▪ Attribute-based sub-totals are not supported, only attribute-based grand totals and time totals can be
used.
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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Motivation

As of version 2302.2.0 of the Excel add-in, you

can exclude attributes from the value-based
sorting rule, and sort them according to the
attribute-based sorting rule that is defined. In
this way, it is possible to combine attribute-
based sorting and value-based sorting in one
planning view.

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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Including all attributes

If you define a value-based sorting rule and

choose to include all attributes in the lower part
of the Manage Sorting Rules dialog, the
attribute-based sorting is deactivated for all
attributes.

Note: This is the default selection when you

create new sorting rules.

This is also
reflected on the
Attributes tab.

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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Including all attributes

All selected attributes are sorted

by the value-based sorting rule
and attribute-based sorting is
deactivated.

The values of Consensus Demand

Shortage in the coming week are
sorted in descending order for the
available combinations of Product
Group, Product ID and Customer
ID.

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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Excluding the first attribute

If you define a value-based sorting rule, and

choose to exclude some of the attributes in
the lower part of the Manage Sorting Rules
dialog, the attributes you exclude are sorted
by the attribute-based sorting rule that is
defined. The value-based sorting rule is
applied to the attributes that are included.

This is also
reflected on the
Attributes tab.

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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Excluding the first attribute

The attribute Product Group is

excluded from the value-based
sorting rule, and is sorted from A-Z.

The values of Consensus Demand

Shortage in the coming week are
sorted in descending order for the
available combinations of Product
ID and Customer ID inside one
Product Group.

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Exclude attributes from value-based sorting rules
Restrictions

When excluding attributes from the value-based sorting rule, please keep the following in mind:

• Only sorting rules with all attributes included can be saved as custom rule and reused in other
planning views. (The Add new sorting button is disabled otherwise.)

• Only the first or the last attributes can be excluded, attributes in the middle can’t be excluded.

Please note: If you save ad-hoc value-based sorting rules with excluded attributes in planning view
templates or shared favorites, and other users are opening them using 2211 versions of the Excel
add-in, the rule is applied correctly, but the excluded attributes cannot be changed in the older
versions.

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Advanced Settings
Scrolling to current time period
Opening planning views - scrolling to the current time period
Example

You can have the

worksheet
automatically scroll
to the current time
period when you
open a planning
view.

(In this example, the

current time period
is C47 M11 2022.)

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Opening planning views - scrolling to the current time period
How to enable it?

If you select the Scroll to current time

period checkbox on the Display tab of
the Options dialog, the planning view
or change history view of the active
worksheet scrolls to the current time
period every time you open or edit it.

If you want to use this function in a

specific template or favorite, select the
checkbox for all relevant worksheets
and update the template or favorite.

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Opening planning views - scrolling to the current time period
Good to know

▪ The time periods must be placed on the column axis on the Layout tab of the Create Planning
View or Edit Planning View dialog.

▪ If you have defined multiple time levels or totals in your planning view definition, and the
checkbox Scroll to current time period is selected, the planning view scrolls to the current time
period of the first time level defined.

▪ Make sure to freeze the columns including the headers of the row axis (such as attributes and
key figures) using the Microsoft Excel Freeze Panes function in the View group, otherwise the
headers won‘t be visible after the scrolling is applied.

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4) Saving Planning Views as Templates
and Favorites
Comparing templates and favorites

Templates Favorites
• A template administrator can share planning • Individual for the user
view templates with all users.
• Only visible for users with whom the user has
• A template administrator can maintain shared the favorites
defaults, filters, and more.
• The administrator cannot centrally restrict the
• The system administrator can restrict the access to the favorites to certain users.
access to certain templates for the users • Favorites have a separate lifecycle: Favorites
using authorizations.
that were created from a template do not get
automatically updated when the original
template gets
changed (the
formatting, for
example).

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Creating, updating, and deleting a favorite or template

Once you have created a planning view, you can save it as a favorite or, if you have the necessary
authorization of a template administrator, also as a template.

For templates, choose Templates in the SAP For favorites, choose Favorites in the SAP IBP
IBP ribbon and then choose ribbon and then choose
• Add to create a new template • Add to create a new favorite
• Update to update an existing template • Update to update an existing favorite
• Delete to delete an existing template • Delete to delete an existing favorite

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Accessing templates

Once a planning view is saved as a template, it can be opened as follows:

From the Templates dropdown When you create a new planning view from a
menu in the Excel add-in ribbon template, you can select the template to open.
(usually visible for template The settings can then also be adjusted directly.
administrators only)

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Sharing a favorite with another user

You can share your favorite planning views with other users or user groups, as follows:

1) Open the favorite.

2) In the SAP IBP ribbon, click Favorites and then click Share.

3) Select the users and user groups and click OK.

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Opting out of favorites

You can opt out of favorites that another user has shared with you and that you don‘t want to see
any longer.

Drag and drop the

Click Favorites shared favorite to the
and then Opt Out Folder.
Organize.

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 Organizing favorites and templates using folders

Folders can be created for: • Folders only exist when they have favorites
• Planning view favorites assigned. Folders that do not contain a favorite or
• Master data favorites template are removed.
• Planning view templates • Folders cannot be transported or shared with other
users.

To create a folder, create a planning The template folder structure is also Organize your folders and planning views
view and select Add or Update. available when creating or editing the by using drag and drop, sorting, creating
planning view. and deleting folders.

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Renaming favorites and templates

In the Organize menu, you can rename planning view favorites, master data favorites, planning view
templates, and the respective folders.

The Organize menu is included in the following groups of the SAP IBP ribbon:

Please note that the same process and

Favorites in the Favorites in the Templates in the
Planning View Master Data Template Admin
limitations apply as for the renaming of
group group group the attribute-based planning filters.

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5) SAP IBP Formatting Sheet
SAP IBP formatting sheet
You can use the formatting sheet to define a specific format (font, color, size, and so on) for the
data area in the planning view as well as for the header. The formatting settings can be applied to
templates by an administrator, or to individual planning views by planners, provided they have the
necessary authorizations.

The SAP IBP Formatting Sheet consists of the following sections:

• Default Formatting: in this section, you can determine the basic formatting that you want to
apply to your planning view.

• Member/Property Formatting: in this section, you can define additional rules to fine-tune the
formatting dependent of key figure characteristics such as editability or certain conditions.

• Row and Column Banding: in this section, you can define the format for every second row or
every second column to better distinguish between the different rows or columns.

For a detailed description of the different sections, and how to apply formatting to your planning
views using the SAP IBP Formatting sheet, see the application help on the SAP Help Portal at
https://help.sap.com/ibp, under SAP IBP Formatting Sheet.
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SAP IBP formatting sheet
You can open the SAP IBP formatting sheet as follows:

Open a planning view or a planning view template in the Excel add-in, and in
the Planning View group, choose Edit View -> View Formats.

The SAP IBP Formatting Sheet is added to the workbook as an additional

sheet.

Make your formatting settings in the SAP IBP formatting sheet, as required. Once you are done, you can hide
the SAP IBP Formatting Sheet, choose View Formats again.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet enhancements

Starting with the 2105.2.0 version of the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel, your
existing formatting sheets are migrated to a new format on the fly when you open a favorite or
template that contains a formatting sheet that was created with lower versions of the Excel add-in.​

Your planning views are not affected by this migration and the formatting that you are used to
is contained.

During the migration, certain settings that were irrelevant for the usage with SAP IBP are
removed, certain rules are merged, and labels are changed.​ The changes result in a formatting sheet
that is easier to use, and requires fewer formatting rules to be set up to visualize that a value in a cell
is editable, for example.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet enhancements

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 SAP IBP formatting sheet - new rules in the Member/Property Formatting section
Formatting Rule​ Purpose​ Example​

Default Format Maintain specific formatting settings that should be

for Non-Editable applied to cells where the key figure values are not
Cells editable. If not applied, the default formatting is applied.​
Default Format Maintain specific formatting settings that should be
for Editable Cells applied to cells where the key figure values are editable. If
not applied, the default formatting is applied. It is
recommended to use this setting to increase the usability
of the planning views.
Default Format Maintain specific formatting settings that should be
for Changed Cells applied to cells where the user has changed a key figure
value. If not applied, the default formatting is applied. It is
recommended to use this setting to increase the usability
of the planning views.
Default Format Maintain specific formatting settings that should be
for Local applied to cells that are associated with a local member. If
Member Cells not applied, the default formatting is applied.​
Formatting Maintain additional formatting settings based on custom
on Specific Member/ rules. You can create custom rules for example for
Property specific attributes, key figures, time periods, and
properties of these members.​

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - enhanced formatting for a specific member or property

With 2302.2.0, we‘ve enhanced the

SAP IBP Formatting Sheet dialog that is
used to add formatting rules for specific
member or property values.

To add such formatting rules, choose

Add Member/Property in either the Row
or the Column area of the
Member/Property Formatting section.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - add new formatting rules for specific member or property
values
When you choose Add Member/Property, the following dialog is opened. Choose Add Condition to
define a formatting condition based on members, properties or other specifics.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - add new formatting condition for specific member values

To define a formatting condition based on

members, stay on the Member tab.

Select first the dimension (group of

members), for example Key Figures, a time
level or an attribute. Then select the member,
for example key figure name, time period,
attribute value and choose OK.

Please note: It is possible to select multiple

members of the same dimension which will
result in an OR condition.

For further details about the terminology, see

SAP Help Portal at Terminology: Dimension,
Member, and Property.
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SAP IBP formatting sheet - add new formatting condition for specific property values

To define a formatting condition based on

properties, switch to the Properties tab.

First, select the dimension, then choose the

property, operator, and value and confirm by
choosing OK.

(As of version 2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in,

the dimensions on the Properties tab are
grouped to make selecting dimensions easier
when you set up formatting rules for specific
members or properties.​)

In this example, a formatting condition for key

figures that have the property
"Percentage" set to "Y" (Yes) is defined.
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SAP IBP formatting sheet - add new formatting condition for other specifics

To define a formatting condition for blank

members, total members or local members
available in the planning view, switch to the
Specific Selection tab.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - combine multiple conditions in one formatting rule

Once you have selected a condition, it is added

to the first dialog. There you can do the
following:
▪ Add more conditions by choosing Add
Condition. Conditions in the same formatting
group are combined by an OR.
▪ Add additional formatting groups by choosing
Add Group. Formatting groups are combined
by an AND.
▪ Adjust or delete conditions.
▪ After you choose OK, the formatting
rule created is added as a new row to your
formatting sheet, and you can format the
Data or the Header cell according to your
needs.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - example: combine multiple conditions in one formatting
rule

Apply a formatting rule if the key figure

name is “Customer Receipts Adjusted"
OR “Customer Supply Adjusted", AND if
the time period is the current time period.

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SAP IBP formatting sheet - enhanced formatting for a specific member or property -
things to consider

When you open a template or favorite with version 2302.2.0 or higher, the formatting sheet included
is automatically migrated and the formatting keeps working as before.

Please be careful with updating templates or shared favorites that include formatting sheets, if
you have version 2302.2.0 or higher installed. First, make sure that all users that are accessing the
templates and favorites are also using Excel add-in version 2302.2.0 or higher.

If you are updating templates or shared favorites that include formatting sheets with version
2302.2.0 or higher, formatting rules for specific member or property values are not applied if users
with Excel add-in versions lower than 2302.2.0 are opening the templates or shared favorites.

The same applies if you create new templates or favorites that include formatting sheets with
version 2302.2.0 or higher.

The general formatting settings and default settings are applied, only the rules for Formatting on
Specific Member/Property function don‘t work if older Excel add-in versions are used.
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6) Visualization of key figure editability
Key figure editability horizon
The editability horizon is the time defined for key figures in which business users can edit the key figure data.

The system considers editability horizons when users make manual changes in key figure values, it is
disregarded when the changes are done by system processes, for example, when a forecast run changes key
figure values.

Editability horizons are considered in the following areas:

• Excel add-in

• (Editability horizons can be visualized in the Excel add-in, using the formatting rules for editable key figures.
For more information, see the application help on the SAP Help Portal at https://help.sap.com/ibp,
under Formatting Rules to Visualize Key Figure Editability.)

• Web-Based Planning app

• Driver-Based Planning app

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Definition of key figure editability horizon

The Manage Editability Horizons for Key

Figures app can be used to define
editability horizons for one or more key
figures.

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Definition of key figure editability horizon – (fixed rule - static horizon)
The definition of the editability horizon contains:​

• A list of key figures which the horizon belongs to (do

not have to be at the same base planning level)​

• The time level at which the relative time is calculated

(can be any time level from the planning area)​

• The From and To relative periods​

• From or To can be unlimited which results in an open

editability horizon​

In this example, the key figures Marketing Forecast

Qty and Sales Forecast Qty are editable from the month
following the current month until the 4th month.

For example, if the current date is March 15th, 2021,

then from April 2021 to July 2021 (July included)​

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Definition of key figure editability horizon – (rule based on planning level attribute)

It is possible to select the From and/or

the To definition from an attribute of type
integer present in the base planning level of the
key figures.​

In this example, the horizon is defined at a weekly

level. The From value comes from
the FROZENHORIZON attribute of the planning
level and the end of the horizon is open.​

The key figures in the editability horizon definition do

not have to come from the same base planning level,
but the attribute selected should be present in all of
them.

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Definition of key figure editability horizon – (rule based on master data)

It is possible that the attribute defined in the From or To is not

present at the base planning level. In this case, a master data
type can be chosen to define the horizon.​

The join condition of planning level and master data do

not have to be at root attribute level, it can be at any
level that the business process requires.​

If a value is missing from the master data, the static horizon is

used.

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Definition of key figure editability horizon – (create master data)

The master data type doesn't have to be part of a

planning area. There is no need to change and
activate a planning area, you can just create a
master data type for the purposes of the editability
horizon.​

In this example, if the Region is

for example, North America, the horizon defined in
the static section will be used.

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Definition of key figure editability horizon – (role definition)
The editability horizon needs to be assigned to
the users using roles. It can be found in the Write,
Read, Value Help section​

SAP delivers the default editability

horizon SAP_DEFAULT_HORIZON, which
grants an unrestricted editability horizon to all the
active and stored editable key figures of all active
planning areas for which there is no editability
horizon defined in the Ready status.​

The default editability horizon cannot be edited, but

it can be assigned to users via the Editability
Horizon restriction field.​

If you do not want to use this feature, or the

planning area is not normalized, this field needs to be
defined as Unrestricted.

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 Key figure editability horizon – usage considerations

The editability of key figure values by a specific user is

determined by a number of factors. The editability
horizon for key figures is taken into consideration on top
of other settings defining the editability of key figure
values. It serves to restrict and does not extend the
editability of key figures.

For example:

• Edit Allowed field in planning area configuration

= Current and Future Periods and the horizon is -3
Horizon Aggregation (Dynamic Rules) to + 5
The system uses the smallest allowed horizon.​ Editability horizon is: 0 to +5
Horizon information is calculated on the request level based on the
combinations which belong to it, the system considers the read • Horizon is -3 to + 5 but no permission because of
permission filters as well as the attribute filters used for planning permission filter
view for calculating the final horizon:​ Editability horizon is: 0, the user has no permission
• Product 1, Location 1 has horizon from -2 to 3​ to change key figure values
• Product 1, Location 2 has horizon from 0 to 5​
• Planning view is on Product level Product 1 has horizon 0 to 3
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Formatting rules to visualize the key figure editability horizon
The key figure editability feature is accompanied by
enhanced formatting rules to support the visualization of flexible
key figure editability horizons.

Use the Default Format for Editable Cells to define a format for
cells that are editable by the user, for example, indicated by a
white background.​

You can use the Default Format for Non-Editable Cells to define a
format for cells that are not editable and where you wish that the
formatting is different from your overall template background, for
example, indicated by a grey background​

These new rules also work with the existing key figure settings for
editability (for example, Editable in the Current and Future)​

It is recommended to use these two new formatting rules for data

formatting either in the row or the column area due to performance
impact. The header formatting is not impacted by this.​

The new key figure editability settings configured in the Manage

Editability Horizons for Key Figures app are only visualized
Public
correctly when you use the Default Format for Editable Cells rule.
166
Formatting rules – example planning view

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7) Time-Based Disaggregation of partially
editable child nodes
Time-based disaggregation of partially editable child nodes
– How does it work?
You can edit a key figure value for the current period at an aggregated level, even if the period is only
partially editable.
Let's assume that we are now in February 2021. The key figure is stored at a monthly level, and it is editable in
the current and future periods, according to the configuration of the key figure in the Planning Areas app.
The current quarter, Q1 has already begun, which means that
it is only partially editable, as January is over and is closed for
editing. If you try to edit a key figure value at the aggregated,
quarterly level, in other words, if you want to change the value
for Q1, you can do so. Time periods that are partially editable
can be edited at an aggregated level and the changed value is
distributed to the editable time periods, according to the
disaggregation mode that has been specified. In our example,
if you change the value of Q1, the system distributes the
changed value between the months of February and March.
The value in the part of Q1 that is closed for editing (the month
of January), remains the same.

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Time-based disaggregation of partially editable child nodes
– Changes that aren’t allowed

The system rejects following types of changes:

• Changes that would lead to negative values of the editable child nodes at the storage level.
In the previous example, if you change the value of Q1 to 50, the result would be - 75 for
February and March, respectively, which is not allowed.

• Changes of values to empty values, if there are values in the noneditable periods.

• Changes to values if all of the child periods in the editable area are fixed.

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Time-based disaggregation of partially editable child nodes
– Considerations

Things to remember:

• The system considers manual changes that you make to partially editable key figure values in
the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel. It is not possible to edit such values in the Planner
Workspaces app.

• Changes to partially editable child nodes made by system processes, for example forecasting
runs (simulation or background) are not supported.

• As of 2111.2.0, you can fix or unfix key figure values of partially editable periods that haven't
been fixed yet or were fixed before.

• The ADVSIM operator does not consider partially editable child nodes.

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Time-based disaggregation of partially editable child nodes
– Formatting

The Excel add-in shows whether a period is editable or not at the cell level.

As default, noneditable cells have a light gray background. You can use the SAP IBP Formatting
Sheet to set up your own formatting for editable and noneditable cells (as described in slide 123).

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8) How to Work with Planning Views
Editing planning views
Editing planning views

You can edit all settings of a planning view using the Edit View button in the SAP IBP ribbon.

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Quick Edit View &
Quick filter
Quick edit

When working in the planning view, you can also easily add and delete planning levels, and shift
them around.

Right-click an attribute value or

a cell within the time header in
the planning view and choose
Quick Edit Planning View and
select, for example, Add
Planning Level Before.

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Quick filter

You can set a quick filter on an attribute.

The filter comes up with the filter criteria that was defined in the previous step, for example,
customer ID. When you select a specific ID, the data in the planning view is automatically filtered
accordingly.

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Changing key figure values interactively
Changing key figure values in the planning view

After you have created a planning view, you can make changes to the plan and see the results of your
changes directly in the planning view.

Once you have a good understanding of the current plan, you can do the following to change the plan
interactively:

• Make changes to the plan by changing the values of relevant key figures directly in the planning view.

• Run a simulation to see what the effect of your changes are on the plan.

• Run planning operators in simulation mode and check the results after the simulations have finished.

• Discard unwanted changes by refreshing the planning view.

• Save your changes.

• Fix the values of certain key figures to protect them from unwanted changes either by you or by
simulations, planning operators, application jobs, and so on.
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Changing key figure values manually

You can change the values of editable key figures directly in the planning.

If your administrator has set up formatting rules in the SAP Formatting Sheet to distinguish
editable key figure values from noneditable ones, you can tell by the formatting which cells are
editable in the planning view.

If you have the necessary permissions, you can change the editable key figure values directly in the
planning view and save your changes. If your permissions are missing, you get an error message
when you try to save your changes. If this happens, please get in touch with your administrator.

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Resetting changes in your planning view (1)

Usually, you can use the Microsoft Excel Undo function to reset the
changes you made to key figure values manually. However, if your
administrator has applied a formatting rule in the Default Format for
Changed Cells field of the SAP IBP Formatting Sheet to highlight
cells of key figure values that have been edited, you can’t use the
Microsoft Excel Undo function, as it is deactivated in this case.

Instead, you can select a cell or range of cells in the data area of the
planning view, and choose Reset Changes from the context menu.
You can select a broad range that also contains cells that haven‘t
been changed, but keep in mind that the number of cells in the range
that you select can’t exceed 10,000 cells.

When you use the Reset Changes function, the key figure values
and the formatting of the selected cells, including formatting for
alerts, are reset to the last status after you opened the planning view,
or after you triggered functions that reload the planning view, such as
Refresh, Save Data or Simulate. In addition to manual changes, local
changes, for example changes that have been made by using VBA
coding, are also reset.​​

This function is available as of version

2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in.

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Resetting changes in your planning view (2)
Things to remember

• If you've changed the value of one specific cell several times, all changes that have been made to that cell are reset
when you choose Reset Changes. You can't reset the changes step by step.​

• There is no function to redo the changes that you reset using the Reset Changes function, so make sure you only reset
the changes that need to be reset.​

• If you have selected the Keep formula on data checkbox under Settings > Options in the About group of the SAP IBP
ribbon for the active planning view, the following applies to formulas you entered in the planning view:​
• The formulas are not reset if you choose Reset Changes.
• The formulas are not formatted according to the formatting you specified in the Default Format​ for Changed Cells field
of the SAP IBP Formatting Sheet.

• If your administrator has configured the Changed Member Default Format formatting rule to be applied to headers as
well as to data cells, and you choose Reset Changes, the changed header formatting stays for changed data cells. If you
want to reset the formatting of the headers as well, you must include the related header cells in the selected range and
then choose Reset Changes.​

This function is available as of

version 2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in.
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Resetting changes in your planning view (3)
Planning notes and fixing

If you added planning notes or changed existing

planning notes in your planning view, the
planning note changes that haven‘t been saved
yet are also reset when you use the Reset
Changes function.

The same applies to changes related to fixing

and unfixing of key figure values.

This function is available as

of version 2308.2.0 of the
Excel add-in.
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Simulation Mode / interactive planning
Interactive planning – simulating the effect of data changes

The Excel add-in offers powerful simulation capabilities that you can use to run what-if simulations
on the fly. During simulations, you can change data in the planning view, simulate what effect your
changes would have on other key figures, and even run planning operators such as statistical
forecasting in simulation mode to analyze the potential results - without changing the actual
planning data in the base planning version.

The simulated data is only visible to you and doesn’t have any impact on the data that is stored in
the SAP IBP backend. This means that other users are not affected by your simulations.

However, if you come to the conclusion that your changes are valid, you can save the simulation so
that it becomes the actual planning.

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About simulations

• A simulation recalculates the planning view, only considering the changes that you have made in the
planning view.
• If you have changed a key figure value, you can simulate the effects of the change on the dependent
key figures using Simulate (Basic). You can save the changes either as the new baseline plan to the
SAP IBP database, visible to all users, or save it as your private scenario. To discard your changes,
you simply need to refresh the planning view.
• If you have multiple planning views in one workbook, a simulation in one planning view is automatically
propagated to the other planning views in the same workbook. The same applies if you refresh the
data in one planning view to discard all changes; this discards the changes in all planning views of the
workbook.
• To see the impact of your changes on the plan, you can also run a planning operator, such as, supply
planning, inventory optimization, and statistical forecasting, in simulation mode. Starting an operator in
simulation mode means that the system automatically starts Simulate (Basic) first in order to update
dependent key figures based on your changes before starting the operator itself.
• Note that there is no undo button for simulations. If you have run multiple simulations, you cannot undo
the last one, but need to refresh completely, thus losing all previous simulation results.

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Simulate (Basic)

The basic simulation updates the values of the

key figures that depend on the key figures that
you have changed (using the key figure
calculations that have been defined in
configuration) - but only in the planning view. No
data is saved in the SAP IBP database until you
save it.

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Simulate (Basic) – overview

The consensus demand is calculated from the sales forecast quantity, the marketing forecast
quantity, and the demand planning quantity entered by the demand planner.
If you manually change the sales forecast
quantity for 3 consecutive periods and run
Simulate (Basic), the system automatically
updates the consensus demand.
Totals and subtotals are also getting updated.
Sales Forecast

50%
Marketing Demand Planner
Forecast Forecast

30% 20%

Consensus Demand Plan

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Simulate (Basic) – complex key figure calculations
Simple key figure calculation:
Depending on the key figure definition in configuration in
the SAP IBP backend, the calculation for a key figure can
become rather complex and, even if only one value was
changed in the planning view, a lot of operations need to
happen at the database level in order to simulate and re-
calculate the dependent key figures for that single
changed value. A more complex key figure calculation:

This means that the size of key figure calculations plays a

role in the performance of interactive planning.

Please note that in some special cases, data changes that

were done for a specific planning combination (such as,
product A and location A) with a subsequent Simulate
(Basic) run can also have an effect on other planning
combinations (such as, product A and location B) and can
result in updated planning data for these as well.

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Planning operators in simulation mode – Statistical Forecasting

Example: Simulate the effect of different forecast models on the data, or simulate the effect of increased
or decreased sales on the statistical forecast.
The system automatically uses the planning level, the periodicity, and the filter criteria defined in the
planning view for the forecast model.
The available forecast models automatically appear in the Simulate dropdown menu if the user
permissions are given.

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Planning operators in simulation mode – Inventory Planning (Advanced)
Whether an operator is available in the simulation menu, depends on the configured inventory profiles for the
respective planning area, and on your user permissions.

The system uses the planning scope that was set in the Workbook Settings side panel on the Create Planning
View or Edit Planning View dialogs automatically for the operator simulation.

Starting with the 2108.2.0 version of the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel you can run the
Inventory Planning (Advanced) profiles in simulation mode.

Example: Simulate the effect of changed input factors, run multi-stage optimization to calculate target inventory
components.

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Planning operators in simulation mode – S&OP operators

Whether an operator is available in the simulation menu, depends on the configuration of the
operator that is done by your administrator, as well as your user permissions. (The Interactive Mode
checkbox must be selected in the operator profile and the planning operator must be assigned to
the planning area.)

The system uses the planning scope that was set in the Workbook Settings side panel on the
Create Planning View or Edit Planning View dialogs automatically for the operator simulation.
Example: Simulate the effect of changed input factors such as new capacity constraints on the
supply plan.

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Subnetworks and planning scope for simulation runs

Subnetworks (previously called planning units) are relevant but not mandatory for inventory
optimization and time-series based supply planning.
If subnetworks are set-up for your planning
area,
you need to select the subnetworks that you
want to plan in the Planning Scope tab in the
Workbook Settings side panel.

The setting you make here is applied to all

planning views of the workbook and is
automatically used when simulating
Inventory Planning (Advanced) operators or
S&OP operators.

You can define default subnetworks in the

user settings.
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Planning operators in simulation mode – simulation log

Show Messages

After a simulation run, you can access a detailed log of the last simulation run using the Show
Messages menu entry.

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Simulation across different planning views

A simulation session always involves the entire Excel workbook, including all planning views
(worksheets) in the workbook. So if you change data in one planning view (on worksheet 1, for
example), then click Simulate (Basic) or start a planning operator in simulation mode, and then go
to another planning view (worksheet 2, for example), you see that associated data has been
updated with the simulation run.

Example:

In your Excel workbook, you have three planning views on three different worksheets. Planning
view 1 shows aggregated data and summarizes the results from the two other planning views.
Planning views 2 and 3 show data on a detailed level for different regions.

Go to planning Go to planning
Review and Review changed view 1 and view 3. The data
Simulate your
change data on data on planning review simulated on this view is
changes
planning view 2 view 2 results on not affected by
aggregated level the simulation.

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Consecutive simulations in one simulation session

You can run multiple consecutive simulations without saving the data in between. For example, you
can change data, run a simulation, review the results, change data again, simulate, and so on, until
you get the appropriate results and want to save the changes or discard them all by clicking
Refresh.

Example:
Review results Move to Review results
Change data
Simulate your of simulation in planning view of simulation
on planning
changes planning view 2 on different on planning
view 1
1 sheet view 2

Change data on
planning view 2 Review results of Move back to Review results
Simulate your
based on the simulation in planning view 1 and save your
changes
results from first planning view 2 on different sheet changes
simulation run

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Change planning view settings during a simulation session

A simulation session is not affected by changes to the planning view settings. So you can use drill-
downs, or change the settings in the Edit Planning View menu without losing the results of your
simulation. The system applies the changed settings to your planning view, but retains the
simulated results.

Example:
Change for example
Change data the planning level or
Simulate your Review results
in your add / remove key
changes of simulation figures via the Edit
planning view Planning View

Review results
Change data
of simulation in Review results
and simulate Save data
changed of simulation
again
planning view

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Versions
About versions

• Versions are used to create “alternative realities” of the global company plan.
• The base version represents the base plan (operational plan) that is used within the company as the go-to plan.
• Additional versions can help determine what the best path forward is, without interfering with the base version.
• Versions are valid for and used by the whole company, or by departments of a company, and are visible to all end users who have the
necessary authorizations.
• Versions are created centrally in the SAP IBP model configuration and are an optional, but common part of an SAP IBP implementation.
• A version consists of a set of key figures that represent the particular plan. Different versions can have different key figure values. For
example, the sales forecast might be 100 in an upside version, only 50 in a downside version, and in the end, 70 in the base version.
• A version always consists of a sub-set of the available key figures that are included in the base version. They cannot include additional key
figures.
• Some key figures within a version are marked as version-specific and some as pure baseline key figures. Baseline key figures will always
show the data stored in the base version, while data in version-specific key figures can differ from version to version.
• A version can consist of version-specific master data (optional).

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Versions – sample process

Adjust your planning Copy base Copy version to

Change version
view data version to version base version
• Change key figure values • Copy your base • Change key figure • Copy values from a
in the base version version to a version values in the version version to the base
(such as, upside or • Change master data version if you want to
downside) to use the if you are using promote the changed
base version values version-specific values back to the
as a basis for master data base version.
changes to a more
optimistic or
pessimistic plan.

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Comparing versions

• In the planning view definition, in the Workbook Settings side panel, select the versions you want to see in
the planning view.
• The default is Base Version.
• The version selection is valid for all sheets in the workbook.

In the planning view, a new column is added, called Version.

You can compare the different versions, change values, and
more.
Please note that this column is not visible when you have only
selected the base version in the planning view definition.
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Copying versions

In the Manage Versions window, you can

• Copy data from the base version to an alternate
version
• Copy data from the alternate version back to the
base version
• Copy data among alternate versions
• Delete data in versions

The actions are executed as an application job for

which you can define the following parameters:
• Time horizon that should be copied
• Master data attributes filters
• Key figure filter

Version copy and version deletion jobs can also be

scheduled as recurring jobs.
The status of the jobs can be seen in the Version
Status window.
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Scenarios
About scenarios

• Planners can create scenarios themselves directly in the Excel add-in.

• A scenario is a user-specific “alternative reality” of a plan.
• A planner can use scenarios to determine what the best path forward is, without interfering with the
current planning (for example, the company’s base version).
• Scenarios can help the planner to answer what-if questions quickly.
• A planner can make the scenario visible to other users by sharing the scenario with them.
• A scenario is a subset of the data in a planning area, referring to one or multiple versions.
• Multiple users can create different scenarios for the same planning area.
• The baseline scenario (briefly “baseline”) includes the original data set based on which a particular
scenario was created.

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Scenarios - sample process

Adjust your planning

Run simulation Save as scenario Promote scenario
view data
• Change key figure values • Simulate what effect • Keep hold on the • Promote the scenario
in the baseline scenario these changes have changes and to the versions, for
(default) on your planning view simulations without example, the base
saving it in the version.
versions • The data is
• Continue to work on immediately copied
the data until you are over to the versions
confident that the and is visible to all
scenario is ready to users.
be promoted to the
versions, such as, the
base version (which is
the company’s
operational plan).
• Visualize different
scenarios in one
planning view to
compare the data.
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Creating a scenario

• In the Scenarios area, click Create.

• Enter a name and a description of the new
scenario.
• At this point, you can share it with other users
or groups. But this can also be done later on.
• Once you click Save, the new scenario is
created and a new column called Scenario is
added to your planning view.

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Creating an empty scenario and resetting a scenario

If you have not made any changes yet to your planning view in the baseline scenario, you
can create an empty scenario which is defaulted to the baseline values.
Any change in baseline values will also be changed in the scenario, up to the point when you
start changing values in the scenario, which then decouples it from the baseline.

You can manually reset the scenario to the baseline in the Manage Scenarios window.

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 Creating a scenario including unsaved data changes

You can create a new scenario after you have made changes to your data in the planning view. Please note the following:

• You will need to simulate your changes using the Simulate (Basic) first, before creating a new scenario if your planning view
contains more than one time level.

• The new scenario will automatically contain all your data changes if all changes were valid. In that case, it is not necessary to
first simulate these changes using the Simulate (Basic).

• Invalid data changes cannot be detected in all cases by the Microsoft Excel front end as the data validation happens in most
cases when sending the data changes to the SAP IBP backend during a simulation with Simulate (Basic) or when saving the
changes. Invalid changes can occur, for example, if you changed data for a key figure or attribute value without having editing
authorization, or in cases where the fixing of a key figure value would lead to negative values during disaggregation.
When creating a scenario based on a planning view that contains valid and invalid changes, the following behavior applies:
• If the invalid changes can be detected on the frontend, you are informed about the invalid changes before the new scenario is created. All
changes are discarded when the scenario is created.
• If the invalid changes cannot be detected by the frontend, you are not informed about the invalid changes before the new scenario is
created. All changes are discarded when the scenario is created.

Therefore, it is recommended that you first use Simulate (Basic) before creating a new scenario based on changed values.

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Comparing scenarios
In the planning view definition, in the
Workbook Settings side panel, select the
scenarios you want to see in the planning
view.
• The default is Baseline.
• The scenario selection is valid for all
sheets in the workbook.

In the planning view, a new column is added, called Scenario. You

can compare the different scenarios, change values, and more.
Please note that this column is not visible when you have only
selected the baseline scenario in the planning view definition.

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Managing your scenarios

In the Manage Scenarios window, you can

do the following:
• Change the name and description of the
scenario
• Share it with other users and user groups
• Promote the scenario to the versions
involved
• Reset the scenario to the baseline values
• Delete the scenario
• Duplicate the scenario, that is, copy it to
a new scenario

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Sharing a scenario with other users
You can share your scenarios with other users or user groups. In the Manage Scenarios window,
click on the icon and add the respective users or user groups.

Please be aware that these users then have full authorization to change and promote the scenario.

The users can furthermore not opt out on the scenario as they can’t change their assignment
themselves. Only the user who has created the scenario has the rights to remove users again.

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Promoting a scenario

Promoting a scenario means that all changes that were done within the scenario are copied to the
versions and are now visible to all other users in the company.

You can add a comment to explain your decision and changes.

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Explaining “A scenario is a subset of the data in the versions.”

The planning view shows the data that is

stored as the base version in the SAP IBP
database. In this case, the planning view is
the baseline scenario.

When creating a scenario, an additional

layer is added in the SAP IBP database
where only the values that are different
from the baseline scenario are stored
(highlighted in red in the screenshot). This
data is only visible to the users associated
with the scenario, that is, the user who has
created the scenario and anyone they
shared the scenario with.
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Comparing version and scenario
Version Scenario
What is it? • A set of key figures that • A user-specific copy of the plan that the planner can create
represents a particular plan of the to save the results of the simulations made during a
company. planning session. The key figure values in the versions or
• Versions are valid for and used baseline is not changed.
by the whole company, or • The planner can use scenarios for long running what-if
departments of a company, and simulations to see how changes to the planning data might
are visible to all end users who affect the overall plan.
have the necessary • A scenario can also be used to quickly save changes made
authorizations. and continue to work on these later on.
• Different versions can have • A scenario can include data from one or multiple versions:
different key figure data. For All versions that were shown on the planning view at the
example, the sales forecast might time when the planner created the scenario are
be 100 in an upside version, but represented in the scenario.
only 50 in a downside version. • A scenario usually consists of less data and has a shorter
lifecycle, compared to a version.
Who creates it and The administrator creates Planners create it in the Excel add-in.
where? it in configuration.
Who can change The administrator • Planners can change their own scenarios.
it? • A planner can share a scenario with other planners so that
they can view and edit it (on-the-fly collaboration).
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Ad-Hoc drill down
Ad-hoc drill down – overview (1)

When working directly in the planning view, you can use the drill down capabilities to add additional
attributes and quickly drill down to a certain planning combination.

Choose from
the list of
additionally
available
Drill Down: master data
attributes for
further drill
Right-click a cell
down
within the data
range in the
planning view and
choose
Drill Down → By
Attribute…

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Ad-hoc drill down – overview (2)

The planning view is Right-click Back to go one step back, or

updated with the new master Initial View to return to the planning view
data attribute, but only for as it was defined before the drill down.
the planning combination
that was selected previously. Please note that you will not be able to
use the Back option if you edited the
In this case, product family planning view settings, such as time, key
x-phone and customer figure, planning level, and more, after
region APAC. you used the drill down.
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Ad-hoc drill down and simulation capabilities

As mentioned before, you can change your planning view settings or use the drill down within a
simulation session. Within a drill down, you are basically changing and lowering the planning level
of the planning view by adding attributes. Data changes can be simulated in every level and
reviewed in any other level.

Example:
Review results of Drill down to check
simulation. You where the peak is
Change data in Simulate your originating from.
see an unexpected Simulation results are
your planning view changes
data peak in one disaggregated
area. automatically

Change data for Use Back to go

that peak on lower back to the original Review simulation
Save or discard*
level, simulate planning view results on
data
again and review before the drill aggregated level.
results down.

*You can discard the changes by clicking Refresh. The simulation run ends with the refresh.
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Fixing Key Figure Values
Business goal

Protect (lock) key figure values for certain periods on a detailed or aggregated level against
unintentional changes by automated processes or by disaggregation after the user has
simulated/saved changed data.

Reasons could be, for example, a special agreement with customers on a planned event.

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Fixing of cell values

500 ➔ 800
◑ Value change 500 ➔ 800
◑

200 200

100 100 100 100 100 100 ➔ 200 100 ➔ 200 100 ➔ 200 100 100

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Fixing of cell values – subhierarchies (1)

A planner wants to fix a key figure value for a certain period, including all its child values.

Partially fixed

500
Aggregated level,
500
◑
such as, product group

Fixed
200 200
Fix

Fixed Fixed
100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100

Base planning level, such as products

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Fixing of cell values – subhierarchies (2)

Changes on a higher aggregation level do not change fixed values.

500 ➔ 800
◑ Value change 500 ➔ 800
◑

200 200

100 100 100 100 100 100 ➔ 200 100 ➔ 200 100 ➔ 200 100 100

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Fixing of cell values – subhierarchies (3)

Value changes that would cause negative values due to fixing are rejected.

500 ➔ 140
◑ Value change 500 ➔ 140
◑

200 200

100 100 100 100 100 100 ➔ -20 100 ➔ -20 100 ➔ -20 100 100

Negative values are not allowed for fixing-enabled key figures. Negative values that the user has entered are
rejected when the user is trying to save the data and a fixing exists for one of the elements in the disaggregation
path. The system does not create negative values during disaggregation due to fixed key figure values.

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How to fix values

Right
click

Right
click

You can fix:

• Individual cells
• Ranges of up to 50 cells
• Individual rows

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How to indicate fixed values

Fixed values are indicated by standard Microsoft Excel symbols:

🔒 For completely fixed values
◑🔓 For partially fixed values

For partially fixed values, the fixed quantity is displayed in an Excel

comment.

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How to unfix values manually

Right
click

Right
click

You can unfix:

• Individual cells
• Ranges of up to 50 cells
• Individual rows

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About fixing

• Fixing is only possible for key figures that can be edited manually.

• Fixing must be activated per key figure in configuration by the administrator or configuration expert.

• Fixing can only be activated for up to 20 key figures.

• Note that fixing a larger number of cells (all editable key figures in a certain horizon, for example) can have an impact on the
performance.

• You can only fix or unfix a key figure value completely. It is not possible to manually fix or unfix a partial quantity of a key figure
value. Partially fixed values can only be created by the system during aggregation.

• Only single or multiple key figure values can be fixed, not all values of a planning object. For example, you cannot fix all key
figure values for a certain product ID.

• Negative values are not allowed for fixing-enabled key figures. You cannot enter and save a negative value for a fixing-enabled
key figure. The system does not create negative values during disaggregation due to fixed key figure values.

• Empty cells/cells without values (also called NULL values) cannot be fixed.

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Error handling for invalid changes (1)

If you change a completely fixed cell manually and then simulate or save the data, this change is
rejected and a warning message is displayed. Example:

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Error handling for invalid changes (2)


   

Invalid changes detected during saving the data are

listed in a rejection window. The user can:
 Display details for the rejected cells or
 Highlight the rejected cells or
 Resend only the valid changes to the SAP IBP
backend or
 Abort simulation
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Configuration considerations for administrators

For some planning operators that do copy key figure values, the fixing behavior is configurable. As
a system administrator or configuration expert, you need to make the following decisions,
depending on the business process:
• What should happen to a target key figure value after the source value has been copied when the source
key figure value is fixed? Should the target value also be fixed or not?
• How to handle a fixed target key figure value? Should it be protected against changes by the copy
process? Or should it be unfixed so that it can be overwritten with the value from the source?
Regardless: If a source value cannot be copied to the target value because the target value is fixed, a warning
needs to be added to the log.

Configuring the Copy & Disaggregate Key Figures operator

• By default, if a target value is fixed, it is not changed. If the target value is not fixed, it is overwritten with the
source value. However the target is not fixed if the source valued is fixed.
• To also fix the target value when the source value is fixed, use the parameter COPY_KF_FIXING.
• To unfix the target value before the source value can be copied, use the parameter COPY_KF_FIXING.

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Fixing in the copy process – example

Before copying key figure 1 to key figure 2:

Period 1 Period 2 Period 3
Key figure 1 5 5 5
Key figure 2 3 3 🔒 3

After the copy process:

Consider Fixing Automatically Unfix

Period 1 Period 2 Period 3 Period 1 Period 2 Period 3

Key figure 1 5 5 5 Key figure 1 5 5 5
Copy Copy
Key figure 2 5 3🔒 5 Key figure 2 5 5 5

The fixed value in key figure 2 has been considered The fixed value in key figure 2 has been automatically
and remains unchanged. unfixed and changed by the Copy & Disaggregate
Key Figures operator.

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Fixing in SAP IBP operators

Consider
Process Fix Unfix
fixed values
Interactive disaggregation
Yes (Default) Yes Yes
(including versions and scenarios)
Forecast simulation Yes (Default) No No Consider fixed (target) key
Batch forecast run Yes (Default) No No figure values by default
Copy & Disaggregate Yes (Default) Yes Yes
Key Figures operator
Copy operator No No Yes
Copy Version Operator No No Yes
Data integration No No Yes
Mass unfixing No No Yes Unfix fixed (target) key
Inventory optimization No No Yes
figure values by default
Response management No No Yes
Lag-based snapshot No No Yes

Copy scenarios: Fixing information is copied when promoting or duplicating scenarios.

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Planning notes
Business reason and process example for planning notes

A planning note is a special comment that a planner can create for a key figure value to provide
additional business information, such as, the reason for changes, assumptions, and so on.
Planning notes are visible to other planners.

Change data Add new Review

Review data
manually planning note planning note
Demand planner Demand planner Global planner Global planner
Customer orders Adds a planning note in Reviews the plan on Reviews planning notes
additional 20k pieces. Excel to the changed global level Now knows why there
Demand planner cell to make it Wants to know why the was an increase in the
updates data on transparent that the high increase in customer demand
customer level (product, increase of the new demand happened
customer). demand comes from the
new customer order.

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Comparing planning notes and change history

Change history Planning notes

• The user provides a planning note to a key
• The user provides a comment and a reason figure value in the planning view.
code when saving the data.
• It is used to capture additional information
• The comment and the reason code applies to about this specific key figure value.
all changes that the user made before saving • Planning notes are immediately visible in the
the data. planning view, directly where the user is
working.
• Comments and reason codes are visible in
the change history view. • Planning notes are visible to all planners.
They provide a simple way of exchanging
• To enable the change history for a key figure, additional information between planners.
the administrator must enable the key figure • To enable planning notes for a key figure, the
accordingly in the configuration. administrator must enable the key figure
accordingly in the configuration.
• The change history is only recorded for
• A user can only create planning notes for
change-history-enabled key figures. planning note-enabled key figures.

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Creating a planning note (1)

Planning notes cannot be created for the cells in You can only create planning notes for the cells in the green area,
the red area (attributes, key figures, and, time that is, for a certain combinations of attributes, key figures, and
periods). You cannot, for example, create a time periods.
planning note for the master data attribute value A planning note can be created for a single cell, but not for a
North America or for the time period W20 2018. range of cells.
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Creating a planning note (2)

1. Right-click the cell to open the

context menu.
2. Click Add Planning Note.
Note that this entry is only
displayed when the key figure is
enabled for planning notes.
3. Enter the note text
(up to 1000 characters).
4. Click OK.
The planning note is now visible
in the planning view as Draft.
5. Click Save Data to save the note
to the database and make it
visible for other users.
Prerequisites:
• You have the necessary read and write authorizations for planning notes.
• The planning view settings are set to show planning notes.
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Creating a new planning note – time totals and grand totals

It is not possible to create

planning notes for cells
containing time totals and
grand totals.

You can add planning notes

to subtotals, however.

Planning notes that were

created for a subtotal are
saved for the corresponding
attribute value (the product
group HOME THEATER, for
example).

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Disaggregation of planning notes

Planning notes that are created on an aggregated level are - during saving - disaggregated to the base planning
level of the respective key figure. This means that the planning note is attached to each value of a key figure at
the base planning level.
Note that the this can result in massive amounts of data on the database. Restriction: Planning notes cannot be
saved when the disaggregation of the planning note to the base planning level of the key figure would result in
more than 20 million attribute/period level combinations on the database. This results in an error message.

Brand
disaggregation
Planning note

Error Message:
Product Group A Product Group B

Product 1 Product 2 Product 3 Product 4

If the planning note is created at Brand level, it gets

disaggregated to the base planning level Product ID
in this example. Typically, base planning levels are
more complex, such as, product-location-customer.
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Displaying planning notes in the planning view (1)

• The planning note is visualized as an Excel-native note in the planning view.

• You can can use the mouse-over to read the header text of the planning note (such as, Changed At and
Created By).
• The note box automatically auto-sizes so that all of the text is visible when you click into the cell.
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Displaying planning notes in the planning view (2)
To see planning notes in the planning view,
you need to set the display options
accordingly in the planning view definition:
Edit Planning View → Key Figures → Display
Planning Notes

Options:
• Don’t Show: Do not show planning notes.
• Show from This Planning Level Only:
Show only planning notes that were
created on the planning level of the
planning view.
• Show from All Levels: Show planning
notes from all levels of aggregation and
disaggregation.
Please be cautious: This setting can have
quite a performance impact while loading
the data when many planning notes exist
in the system.
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Displaying planning notes in the planning view – example

Possible attribute combinations for a key figure with planning notes:

PRODUCT ID PRODUCT GROUP LOCATION ID REGION CUSTOMER ID CUSTOMER
GROUP
PRD_1 PRDGRP_1 LOC_1 REGION_1 CUST_1 CUSTGRP_1
PRD_2 PRDGRP_1 LOC_2 REGION_2 CUST_2 CUSTGRP_2

Planning note 1 Planning note 2 Planning note 3

Planning notes have been created for the
PRD_1
PRD_2 PRDGRP_1 key figure at different levels.
LOC_1
REGION_2 CUST_1
CUST_1

The planning level of the planning view is product ID and region. Which planning notes are visible in the
planning view depends on the selected option:
• Don’t Show: No planning notes are visible.
• Show from this Planning Level Only: Planning note 2 is shown.
• Show from All Levels: All planning notes are shown.
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Auto-sizing for planning notes

By default, the planning notes have a standard size. Not all of the
planning note details are displayed when hovering over the
planning note or when choosing Show All Notes under Notes in
the Review tab of Microsoft Excel.

To check the text of one specific planning note, select the

respective cell and the size of the note will be automatically
adjusted to the size of the text.

If you want to have the planning notes auto-sized when opening a

planning view, you can change the setting Threshold for auto-
sizing of planning notes in User Settings in the About group of
the SAP IBP ribbon to a higher value than the default value “0”.

Please keep in mind that the auto-sizing feature can have a

negative impact on the performance. We recommend that you Planning note without auto-size:
choose a threshold that considers the number of planning notes
that are usually viewed within a planning view and check the
performance when opening a planning view with several planning Planning note with auto-size:
notes included.

Please note that no auto-sizing is being applied at all if the

threshold has been reached.
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Multiple planning notes in a cell

If multiple planning notes exist for one cell, only the

most recent planning note is shown,
plus the information
<number> further planning notes exist for that cell.

To display the
additional planning
notes (and to edit
or delete a note),
right click on the
cell, then click
Show Planning
Notes.
In the details view, further information about the planning notes
can be seen and the planning notes can be edited or deleted.

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Planning note details: view, edit, delete, use filters

Planning level and attribute values for which the

Planning note text planning notes were created
Status of the
planning note
Draft
Saved
Date and Time
Edited
of last change
Deleted

Click to edit the Click to delete the Planning view filter and
User who last planning note planning note visibility filter that was
changed the
active when the user
planning note
created the planning note

Note: If you edit or delete a planning note,

you still need to save these changes
Public
afterwards! 247
Planning note keywords - assign and create keywords

With Excel add-in version 2205.2.0, you can

assign keywords to planning notes. Keywords can
be interpreted as tags that help classify a set of
planning notes.
Depending on the system setup and your
authorizations, you can choose from a predefined
set of keywords, or create new keywords on the
fly. The keyword input field provides a type-ahead
function that supports selecting the appropriate
keyword.
Keywords can help finding related planning notes
within the new SAP Fiori app Manage Planning
Notes. This app also allows admins to predefine
the keywords.

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Comparing planning notes and Microsoft Excel notes

Planning notes use the Microsoft Excel note features to visualize the planning notes in the planning
view, as follows:

• Creating, editing and deleting planning notes using Context menu: Review tab in Microsoft Excel menu:
Microsoft Excel note features (in the Review tab) is not
supported and results in a warning message when
saving the data in the planning view. These changes are
not saved in the SAP IBP database and will be lost after
a refresh of the planning view.
• You can use the user setting Perform Planning Note
Validation to disable this check and no warning
SAP IBP warning message:
message will be shown.
• Microsoft Excel native comments in an SAP IBP
planning view are also not saved in the SAP IBP
database and are lost after a refresh of the planning
view.
• Other Microsoft Excel note features in the Review tab,
such as Previous Note, Next Note, Show All Notes, can
be used.

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Copying cells with planning notes – example

You can copy a cell or a range of cells that contain planning notes and paste it to another cell or
range. The planning notes are now also shown in the target cell/range. This is the standard
Microsoft Excel behavior for copying notes. However, the copied notes are not recognized as SAP
IBP planning notes and subsequently not saved in the SAP IBP database.

Microsoft Excel note on target cell is not recognized as SAP

Copy cell: IBP planning note and will not be stored in the backend.

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Using planning notes with scenarios and simulations

You can use planning notes also when working with simulations and scenarios. Even your draft
planning notes that you have not saved yet stay visible when running simulations, performing drill
downs, and so on.

Note: If you have changed planning notes in your planning view, and you want to create a scenario, simulate
your changes first by choosing Simulate→Simulate (Basic), then create your scenario.

Review results of Drill down to check where

Change data and simulation. You the peak is originating
Simulate your from. Simulation results
create a new see an unexpected and draft planning notes
changes
planning note data peak in one are disaggregated
area. automatically.

Change data for Use Back to go

Review simulation
that peak on lower back to the original Save or discard*
results and
level, simulate planning view data and planning
planning note on
again, and review before the drill notes
aggregated level
results down

*You can discard the changes by clicking Refresh. This ends the simulation run.
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Mass deletion of planning notes (application job)

• Old or obsolete planning notes that are no

longer needed can be removed using an
application job run by the administrator (job
template Delete Planning Notes).
• The application job can be planned as a
recurring job.
• Application job parameters:
− Planning Area
− Version
− Keyfigure
− User
− Attributes of Planning Note Level
− Notes Created Before
− Periods Ending Before
− Rolling

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Managing planning notes using the Manage Planning Notes app

You can use the Manage Planning Notes

app to view, and delete planning notes that
have been created for a specific planning
area, version, and scenario by you or other
users in the SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft
Excel, and in the Web-Based Planning,
and Planner Workspaces apps.

You can also create new keywords, rename

existing keywords or delete keywords from
the Manage Planning Note
Keywords view of the Manage Planning
Notes app. You can open the view by
clicking Manage Keywords in the planning
note overview.
For more information, see Manage
Planning Notes.
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Copying planning notes with planning operators

You can copy planning notes along with key figure values from one version to another version using
the Copy Version operator.

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Adding Own Key Figures
(Local members)
Local formulas and calculations on top of SAP IBP data

• Users can quickly add their own MS Excel calculations and formulas on top of data from SAP
IBP.

• No need to contact the local IT to get another key figure defined.

• Calculation is kept consistent when changing the planning view definition.

• Data is not saved on the database, but calculated locally when you open the planning view.
Therefore, please be aware that applying Excel formulas and calculations in SAP IBP planning
views can have an impact on the performance.

• Local formulas are calculated by the Microsoft Excel frontend and not by the SAP IBP backend.
A vast amount of calculations (because the formulas are complex or the planning view is large)
can have an impact on performance. You should check case by case whether a local key figure
really makes sense or whether it is better to use standard functionality (such as, totals and
subtotals) or calculated key figures in the in the SAP IBP backend.
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Example for local key figures in rows

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Example for local key figures in columns

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Prerequisites for creating a local key figure

To make the SAP IBP system recognize your

local calculations in the planning view, select
the Activate Local Member Recognition
checkbox in the Options menu.

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Creating a local key figure (1)

1) In Options, select Activate Local Member Recognition.

2) In the planning view, add a new line or column where you want to add your new local key
figure.
3) Enter a name for your key figure.

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Creating a local key figure (2)

4. Add the calculation (formula) in the first cell. You can use simple calculations but also more complex
Microsoft Excel formulas (such as, VLOOKUP)

5. Press Enter.
6. The system automatically applies the formula to the whole row.
You can change the calculation at any time and in any cell of the local key figure. The system
automatically applies the changes to all cells of the local key figure and all lines and columns associated
with it.
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Creating a local key figure (3)

7) The system automatically adds new lines/columns at the same position for all attribute/time
combinations.

First row is manually

added by the user
after the first attribute
combination.

Additional new lines

are automatically
added by the system.

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Creating a local key figure (4)
A local key figure created with local member recognition is linked to the following:

• The SAP IBP objects that it is calculated from, for example, specific key figures or time periods

• A certain position (before or after a certain key figure)

That’s why the formulas remain consistent when changing the planning view, for example, by
changing the order of the attributes or key figures or by adding and removing key figures. When
removing key figures, however, please make sure that no local calculation is associated with them
as the local calculation would otherwise disappear from the planning view.

Example: When using local key figure, the yellow formula on the left is translated to the statement
on the right.

=EPMMEMBER([KEY_FIGURES].[].[CONSEN
SUSDEMAND])+EPMMEMBER([KEY_FIGURE
S].[].[DEMANDPLANNINGQTY]))/2

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Creating a local key figure – use position in axis

In certain cases, you might not want to have a direct linkage between the local key figure and the
SAP IBP objects used to calculate it, but instead want the local key figure to remember a certain
position in the planning view. In this case, you select the Use Position in Axis in Options.

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Using Use position in axis – example (1)

The Position in Axis setting is useful, for example, when you use a local key figure that sums up the
next 3 months. The time periods are set to Rolling.

In January 2019, the planning view and the local key figure calculation look like this:

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Using Use position in axis – example (2)

In February 2019, the time periods displayed in the planning view have rolled by one month.

Without Position in Axis selected, the calculation and the planning view look like this:
The local key figure moved to the left
by one column as it is linked to the
March time bucket. It is now summing
up February and March 2019 only and
also includes the column J with the key
figure description.
With Position in Axis selected, the calculation and the planning view look like this:

The local key figure has kept its

position as column 4 of the time axis
and sums up now the months
February, March, and April 2019.

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Using Use position in axis – internal representation of formulas

With Use Position in Axis selected, the yellow formula on the left is internally translated to the
statement on the right.
=(EPMPOSITION(1)+EPMPOSITION(2))/2

=SUM(EPMPOSITION(1),
EPMPOSITION(2), EPMPOSITION(3))/3

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Local key figures – changing settings for the planning view

If you use your own local key figures, you can still change the planning view definition. You can, for
example, change the sequence of the key figures or add or remove attributes. The calculations for
the local key figures (formulas) are automatically kept consistent by the system.

You can usually change, add, or delete time levels, attributes, and key figures as long as the
formula calculation is kept consistent.

Example: After you have changed the sequence of the key figures, the formula for the local key
figure My local key figure still refers to the same input key figures – provided the Position in Axis
checkbox is not selected.

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Local key figures – changing the layout of the planning view

Even with local key figures included, you can change the layout of the planning view in the Edit Planning
View window anytime. However, always make sure that Key Figure stays the last entry to be displayed.

Example: When you add Scenario, it will automatically be placed after Key Figure. If you use local key
figures, you need to manually adjust the order and move Key Figure to the bottom to still see the local
calculations in your planning view.

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Local key figures – complex calculations across different columns

Local key figures are an easy-to-use feature, designed for simple, on-the-fly
calculations. But in some cases, more complex calculations are required. One
example is when formulas are spread across different columns. This cannot be
achieved with the local member recognition, but requires a power user with
access to the report editor.

Example: When you use local member recognition and enter the formula
=K7+L7 in the K8 cell, the formula gets automatically changed to =K7+K7. In
cases like this, you need to ask a power user to set up the calculations with
the report editor.

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Local key figures – keeping formula on data

You can also enter a formula in a cell that already

contains data, for example, an SAP IBP key figure.

When you perform a refresh, this formula is usually

removed.

If you want the formulas to remain after a refresh,

select the Keep Formula on Data option in the
Options menu. This option also has a positive effect
on performance in many cases. Therefore we
recommend that you keep it switched on.

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Deleting a local key figure

The easiest way to delete local key figures

is using the Options menu. Select the
local key figure you want to delete and
click OK.

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Local members – expert setup

For a more complex definition of local key

figures and advanced setup possibilities,
use the Local Members tab in the report
editor.

You can find more information and

examples about local members in the
SAP IBP documentation:

https://help.sap.com/ibp -> Use ->

Application Help -> User Interface >
Planning with Microsoft Excel

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9) How to Save Key Figure Data in a
Planning View
Introduction

You can change and save key figure values in the planning view.

The changes are saved to the database and directly visible to all other users in SAP IBP.

Planning view
System checks Data is saved
Change key Click Save is refreshed
your on the
figure data Data with the latest
permissions database
data

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Saving data

1) Change key figure values in the planning view.

2) Click Save Data in the SAP IBP ribbon.
3) Valid changes are saved and you are asked to enter a reason code
and a comment (optional).
4) Click Save.
5) The changes are saved in the database, and the planning view is
refreshed with the updated data.
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Reason code and comment

• Adding a reason code and a comment is an optional

step when saving your changes.

• Reason codes are predefined by your IT/administrator

and are used to classify the change. Codes can more
easily be analyzed than free text.

• Using a comment (free text), the user can add more

information about the changes.

• Reason codes and comments are stored as part of the

change history records.

• Share With… Collaboration Group: the SAP IBP

system posts a feed in the Collaboration group that
informs the other users about the data change
including reason code and comment. You can set a
default Collaboration group in the user settings.

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Saving data - prerequisites
Whether a specific user can change values of a specific key figure, depends on the following factors:

• The key figure has been configured to be editable by your administrator. Depending on the
configuration, changes are allowed for past periods, current/future periods, or all periods.

• Roles, authorizations, and permissions assigned to business users determine the subset of key figure
values that a specific user can edit.

• The user must have the relevant permission filters assigned.

• The value must not be fixed. Fixed values are indicated by a lock icon:

• The editability horizon defined in the Manage Editability Horizons for Key Figures app further restricts
the editability of key figure values. (For more information about editability horizons, see slides 114 –
124.)

• The user is logged on to the SAP IBP backend through the Excel add-in.

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Editable time periods

• All Editable
Key figure values can be changed in past, current
and future time periods. If you change a value in a blocked
time period, you get a warning
• Editable in the Current and Future Periods when clicking Save Data:
Key figure values can be changed in the current and
future time periods only.
• Editable in the Past
Key figure values can be changed in past time
periods only.

For more information regarding the system behavior,

please refer to SAP Note 2570654
(https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/2570654)

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Editable in the past with different time aggregation levels

Base planning level of the key figure: days

Current date: July 13, 2018 (calendar week 28)

Data is changed in Data is changed in Data is changed in

Data is changed in weekly periods: monthly periods: yearly periods:
daily periods:
Data can be saved from Data can be saved from Data can be saved from
Data can be saved from calendar week 27 June 2018 downwards. 2017 downwards.
July 12, 2018 downwards.
downwards.

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Editable in the current and future with different time aggregation levels

Base planning level of the key figure: days

Current date: July 13, 2018 (calendar week 28)

Data is changed in Data is changed in Data is changed in

Data is changed in
weekly periods: monthly periods: yearly periods:
daily periods:
Data can be saved from Data can be saved from Data can be saved from
Data can be saved from
calendar week 28 August 2018 onwards. 2019 onwards.
July 13, 2018 onwards.
onwards.

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Invalid changes

If a change is invalid, for example, because the key figure is not editable in a period or the value is
fixed, the user gets a notification when clicking Save Data. Examples:

When you click Yes, the valid changes are saved to the database and the invalid changes are
discarded.
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“Last one wins” principle

• The data a user is working on is not locked. Other users can work on the same data in parallel.

• The last update made to a value is the one that is stored on the database.

Example:
User A saves data at an aggregated level User B saves data at a detailed level (product in this
(product group, monthly periods) at 08:10:02. product group, weekly periods) at 08:10:00.
am

→ The changes from user A will overwrite the changes from user B.
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Time disaggregation

When saving data for an aggregated time period, such as months, quarters, or years, the data is
automatically disaggregated down to the base level of the respective key figure (such as days) and
stored in these lowest periods.

Example: Data is saved for the time period year 2015. The base level of the key figure is technical
weeks.

If the disaggregation rule Equal Distribution is set for the key figure, the data is equally distributed
across the technical weeks.

Disaggregation
Aggregation

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Planning level disaggregation

When saving data for an aggregated planning level, the data is automatically disaggregated down
to the base level of the respective key figure and stored in these lowest periods.
Example:
Data is saved for the planning level brand/region. The base level for the key figure is location
ID/product ID/customer ID.
If the disaggregation rule Equal Distribution is set for a key figure, a key figure value entered for
brand/region is equally distributed across the product/location/customer combinations.

Example for Products Example for Locations

Product Family A Region A

Brand A Brand B Country A Country B

Product A1 Product A2 Product B1 Product B2 Location A1 Location A2 Location B1 Location B2

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Disaggregation mode examples: Equal distribution

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 50 to 100. Disaggregation distributes
the changed quantity equally at the lowest level.

Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 50 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 10 10 10 20 25 25 25 25 Equal distribution

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Disaggregation mode examples: Proportional if aggregated value is not zero;
otherwise, equal distribution (1)

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 50 to 100. Since the initial
aggregated value was greater than 0 (50), disaggregation distributes the changed quantity
proportionally to the initial lowest-level values.
Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 50 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 10 10 10 20 20 20 20 40 Proportional distribution

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Disaggregation mode examples: Proportional if aggregated value is not zero;
otherwise, equal distribution (2)

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 0 to 100. Since the initial aggregated
value was 0, disaggregation distributes the quantity equally.

Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 0 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 0 0 0 0 25 25 25 25 Equal distribution

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Disaggregation mode examples: Copy Value

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 50 to 100. No matter what the initial
aggregated value was, disaggregation just copies the quantity to the values at the lowest level.

Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 50 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 10 10 10 20 100 100 100 100 Copy value

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Disaggregation mode examples: Proportional if aggregated value is not zero;
otherwise copy value to (1)

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 50 to 100. Since the initial
aggregated value was greater than 0 (50), disaggregation distributes the changed quantity
proportionally to the initial lowest-level values.
Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 50 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 10 10 10 20 20 20 20 40 Proportional distribution

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Disaggregation mode examples: Proportional if aggregated value is not zero;
otherwise copy value to (2)

At the aggregated level, you have increased the quantity from 0 to 100. Since the initial aggregated
value was 0, disaggregation just copies the changed quantity to the lowest-level values.

Before After
Change quantity
Aggregated level: 0 100

Disaggregation

Lowest level: 0 0 0 0 100 100 100 100 Copy

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Read and Write Permissions
And Rejection of Changes
Read and write permissions in SAP IBP – overview

Using permission filters, your administrator can limit your read and write permissions to certain data
in SAP IBP.

Example 1: Restricting data that is visible to you

→ You can see data for customers in the region North America, but not for other regions.

Example 2: Restricting data that you can change

→ You can see data for customers in the region North America, but you can only change key figure
values for customers in the country Canada and only for products for which you are responsible.

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Missing write permissions (1)

You are assigned the

permission filter that is visible in
the screenshot on the right
side.
In the planning view, you have
changed the values in the blue
cells. (Note that you have
changed key figure values for
objects for which your are not
authorized, such as, product
HT_002).
Then you have clicked Save
Changes or Simulate (Basic).

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Missing write permissions (2)

You receive the following pop-up with an error message

and various options to choose from.

Opens a new
window with Closes the pop-up, no
details of the non- changes are sent to the
editable cells SAP IBP database

Highlights the cells for which

Sends only the valid changes for which you
you have no permission to
have permission to the SAP IBP database
change the values

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Missing write permissions – resend changes

When you decide to resend the changes,

the SAP IBP system rejects the changes
for cells for which you do not have
permission.

You can see that only the cells for which

you have permission are actually
changed.

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Missing write permissions – highlighting non-editable cells

The 6 cells highlighted in yellow are not-editable for the user, according to the assigned permission
filter. The highlights are removed from the planning view only after you save the valid changes.

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Missing write permissions – details for rejected cells

You get additional information, for

example which planning objects
are not editable, the old value, and
the new value that you have
entered.

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Missing permissions – continue work

When you click Continue Work,

the error message disappears and
you can continue to work with the
planning view. The changed
values stay.

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Missing permissions – jump to rejected cell in planning view

If you click the values in the

column New Value in the Details
of the Rejected Cells window, the
cursor automatically jumps to this
cell in the planning view.

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10) Change History Views
Change history views – overview

You can review and analyze changes to the key figure data directly in the Excel add-in. The change
history view displays changes according to your selection. For example, it shows changes made in
a certain time period, by a specific user, or with a specific reason code.

Change History app Change history view in the

on the Web UI Excel add-in

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Change history views – prerequisites in planning area configuration

To enable the tracking of the key figure changes in a planning area, the administrator needs to
select the Planning Area Enabled checkbox in the Change History section.

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Change history views – prerequisites in key figure configuration

In addition, the administrator needs to select the Change History Enabled checkbox for each key
figure that needs to be tracked. Key figures that are calculated from change history enabled key
figures are tracked automatically.
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Change history views – example

Key Figure Stored Calculated Change-history Change history

enabled visible in
Excel?
KF1 X X Yes Yes
KF2 X No No
KF3 X No Yes
(KF3 = KF1 * KF2)

Key figure changes are tracked for KF3

because it is calculated from the change-history-
enabled key figure KF1.

Please be careful. The administrator needs to keep the performance aspects in mind. An
“accidental” mass tracking of key figures that are calculated from a change history enabled key
figure can have a negative impact on performance.
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Change history views – settings

To define the change history view

from scratch in the Excel add-in,
open a blank worksheet and select
New View → Change History View on
Current Sheet.

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Comparing effects view and original changes view

Two different change history views are available, which serve different
use cases.

Effects of Changes on Planning View Original Changes

The Effects of Changes on Planning View option (effects The Original Changes option (original changes view)
view) provides a summary of changes that happened to displays the changes exactly at the level where they have
the data that you select using the following criteria: been made. You use this view if you are interested in
identifying the origin of changes.
• The time range of the changes
For example, you come across changed key figures in your
• The attributes of your planning view, such as, product planning view. You want to find the reasons for the
ID, customer ID, or location ID (planning level) changes, which most likely lie at a different planning level.
The original changes view helps answering the following
• The key figures you are interested in questions: at which level have the key figures been
changed originally, by whom, with which reason code?
• Time periodicity and time periods
The original changes view is based on the time range of
Additionally, you can set filters according to your changes and the key figures you specify. Optionally, you
requirements. can set filters according to your requirements. The system
automatically detects the planning level and the time
periods where the changes were made.
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Effects view – settings (1)

On the Change History tab, you can

determine the changes to be displayed as
1 follows:
• Changes that happened in a certain time
1 interval
2
• Changes identified by a certain change ID
2 (A change ID is a technical ID,
automatically created by the system, that
points to a specific change or set of
3 changes*. A change ID can include
multiple changed values: if a user changes
multiple values and clicks Save, one
3 change ID is assigned.)
In addition, you can define which values
should be shown, for example, only the value
before the change or the difference between
old and new value.
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Effects view – settings (2)

On the Time tab, you can define the usual

time settings, such as, the period and the
time horizon.

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Effects view – settings (3)

On the Planning Level tab, two attributes are

already preselected for a change history
view:
• Change ID
• Type of Value:

You need to add at least one additional

attribute to further structure the data within
the planning view, such as, the product
name.
The change ID is not mandatory and can be
deselected.

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Effects view – settings (4)

On the Key Figures tab, you can select the

key figures for which you want to see the
changes.
The key figures that are highlighted in bold
are the ones that were change history
enabled in the configuration or calculated
from a change history enabled key figure.
You can also add other key figures to the
effects view, for example, if you want to
check dependencies between the change
history enabled key figures with other key
figures.

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Effects view – settings (5)

On the Filter tab, there are two additional

attributes that you can use to further filter
the data:
• Reason Code
Note that reason codes need to be
enabled in the system to use this feature.
• Changed By
Filters the changes made by the
selected users.

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Effects view – results visualization (1)

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Effects view – results visualization (2)

The effects view includes a header and the results comparison:

• Header: shows the change IDs for which reason codes or comments are available. In addition,
the respective change date and time, user, reason code, and comment are listed.

• Results Comparison: lists the detailed change history of the data, grouped by your selected
attributes, the change ID, the type of the value (dependent on your settings), and the key figures.

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Effects view – results visualization (3)

• The change history view can be saved as a favorite,

but not as a template.

• Formatting sheets can be used, for example, for formatting purposes and to increase the
usability.

• You can enhance, for example, the appearance of the change history views with VBA code.
However, the size of the change history header (number of rows) is determined by the number of
relevant change IDs. The rows are deleted completely at refresh and then created again,
depending on the required number of rows. Therefore, all changes to the header area, such
as formatting or charts, get lost.

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Original changes view

The Original Changes option (original changes view) shows the manual changes that
were made for a specific key figure during a defined time range or for a specific change
ID (which is automatically generated when you save data).
• You don’t need to define a planning level or time settings, because the system
automatically detects the planning level and time periods.
• You only select the relevant key figures.
• The system then shows the following data:
− Relevant settings (planning level, filter, conversions)
that were used at the time when the change was
made
− Dates and time when the changes were made
− Reason codes and comments
− Key figure value before and after the change

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Original changes view – changes at a single planning level

Before saving, a user changes multiple key figure values at the same planning level. When saving, the
changes get assigned one change ID.
Example: User ABC changed values for two brands These changes get captured with the same change
ID 140685/1. That the changes happened at the same planning level is indicated by “/1”.

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Original changes view – changes at multiple planning levels

Before saving, the user changes key figure values at different planning levels. When the planning view
is saved, the changes made at different planning levels get assigned different change IDs, one for each
planning level. Example:
• First the user ABC changes values at the level of Brand ID, Customer Desc., and Location Region,
and then uses Simulate (Basic).
• Then the user ABC changes the planning level (by adding Product ID) and changes data at this
planning level, before clicking Save.
The changes get assigned the change IDs 140690/1 and 140690/2. “/1” and “/2” indicate the two
different planning levels.
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Navigating from the planning view to the original changes view

1. Select an area in the planning view for which you want to see the change history.
2. Right-click the area to call the context menu and choose Show Change History.
3. The change history pop-up opens.
4. Select the time range for which you want to see the changes. All other settings are prefilled according to
your selection in the planning view (see next slide) but you can still adjust the settings.
5. You will only see the change history if the change history is enabled for that key figure.
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Navigating from the planning view to the original changes view – filter
settings

In some cases, you see more attribute combinations in the change history view than what you selected in the
planning view.

Example: You select a range of cells that includes the following location products:

• Product PROD_001 at location LOC_001

• Product PROD_002 at location LOC_002.

The filter criteria for the change history get automatically prefilled with the following data:

• Product = PROD_001; PROD_002

• Location = LOC_001; LOC_002

With these filter criteria, the change history displays

all location product combinations for
PROD_001, PROD_002, LOC_001, and LOC_002.

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Navigating from the effects view to the original changes view

1. Select one or multiple change IDs for which you

want to see the change history.
You can select the ID either in the view, as shown
in the screenshot, or in the header of the change
history view.
2. Right-click and choose Show details for these
changes.

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11) Working Offline with Planning Views
Working offline with planning views – overview

You can work offline with the SAP IBP planning views, and later save your data changes to the SAP
IBP database.
You can take a planning view offline in the following ways:
• Log off from the SAP IBP system and keep the Microsoft Excel workbook open if you just want to
make a short break, or save the workbook to your local computer, close it and open it again
without logging on.
• Choose Go offline in the Data Input group of the SAP IBP ribbon.
Advantages
• You don‘t have to be online to edit data.
• In the offline workbook, you can change key figure values and when you're done working offline,
you can log on to the SAP IBP system and save the data to the SAP IBP database.

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Working offline with planning views – details

• You are working with the local data. As long as you are working offline, you cannot get the latest data from the
SAP IBP database. (Refresh is only available online).

• The same is true as for working online: if a colleague is changing the same data in the SAP IBP backend while
you are working on it offline, you will not be informed about the changes they make. When you log on again and
save the changes you made while working offline, you might overwrite the data entered by your colleague (last
one wins).

• You must not change the master data attributes (such as names) in the offline version, as the SAP IBP system
checks against these when saving and would not recognize them anymore.

• If the master data attributes you are using in your planning view are changed in the SAP IBP backend while you
are working offline (for example, a product is renamed and you have the attribute product name with that product
as part of your planning view), the system rejects all of your changes when you try to save.

• It is not recommended to perform mass changes to the planning view and save these at once, due to
performance reasons.

• You cannot fix values or create planning notes while you are working offline. However, draft planning notes and
fixing indicators that you have created but not saved before you logged off are not lost and you can save them
later on when logged on again.

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12) Sharing Planning Views with non-SAP
IBP users
Offline mode for planning views

With the offline mode, you can easily share your planning views with users
who do not have the Excel add-in installed.

These users can open and work with the planning views (for example,
update key figure values) as a normal Excel workbook file, send it back to
you as an Excel workbook, and you can then set it to online mode again and
upload their changes to the SAP IBP system.

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Offline mode for planning views – conversion of SAP IBP formulas

If you choose Go Offline in the Data Input group of the SAP IBP ribbon, your current workbook, including all
sheets, is converted to a Microsoft Excel workbook that no longer contains the SAP IBP references and
formulas, so that it can be understood by Microsoft Excel installations that don’t have the Excel add-in
installed.

Example:

SAP IBP formulas and references in a planning view (online mode):

This online SAP IBP formula can only be understood by Microsoft Excel installations that also have the Excel
add-in installed.
SAP IBP formulas and references in a converted planning view (offline mode):

This offline formula can be understood by all Microsoft Excel installations, even without the Excel add-in
installed.
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Offline mode for planning views – sheet protection

If you choose Go Offline in the Data Input group of the SAP IBP ribbon, your current workbook, including all
sheets, is also protected against changes that would destroy its structure and later on make it impossible for
you to take it onlie again and save the changes.

Only the data input area can be used in the offline mode. If you click in any other area (highlighted in red in the
screenshot), a warning comes up and their action is blocked. For example, you can’t change the name of a
key figure or an attribute value or remove rows from the sheet.

Please note that the SAP IBP formatting sheet is not protected against changes.

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Offline mode for planning views – available Microsoft Excel functions

When you take a planning view workbook offline (by choosing Go offline), the following Microsoft
Excel functions are available:

• Use AutoFilter

• Format columns: Use any of the column formatting commands of Microsoft Excel, including
changing column width or hiding columns.​

• Format rows: Use any of the row formatting commands of Microsoft Excel, including changing
row height or hiding rows.​

• Group and Ungroup: Expand or collapse a group of cells that is included in your planning view
workbook. However, it is not possible to create new groups.​

Format columns, Format rows, and Group and Ungroup are available as of version 2308.2.0 of
the Excel add-in.

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Filtering data in offline mode

To enable filtering for the users who want to work with a planning view in
offline mode, additional settings are required.

These need to be made by the user who enables the offline mode in an
SAP IBP workbook, as follows:

1) Make sure that the Repeat row headers checkbox is selected. You
find the checkbox in the About area of the SAP IBP ribbon under
Settings -> Options on the Formatting tab.

2) Enable the Microsoft Excel filtering for the planning view:

a. Select the headers in the planning view that you want to be filter-enabled.
b. On the Data tab of the Microsoft Excel ribbon, choose Filter.

3) Choose Go Offline and send the offline workbook to the users who
want to work offline with the planning view.

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Offline mode for planning view – going online

After you have got the file back and want to upload any data changes to the SAP IBP
system, you can open the Excel workbook and log on to SAP IBP, which
automatically sets the workbook to online mode again.

If you are already logged on to SAP IBP when opening the offline workbook, choose
Go online in the SAP IBP ribbon.

Afterwards, choose Save Data to upload the data changes.

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Offline mode for planning views
Using the offline mode in mixed workbooks with SAP IBP and EPM sheet types

Only sheets with worksheet type SAP IBP will be set to offline mode when you use the Go Offline
feature on the SAP IBP ribbon.

If you are using Microsoft Excel workbooks that contain a mixture of SAP IBP and EPM worksheet
types, and want the EPM sheets to be set to offline mode as well, you also have to choose Offline
Mode on the EPM ribbon. Otherwise these sheets would stay online.

The same behavior applies when you want the workbook to go online again.

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13) Application Jobs in the Excel Add-In
Application jobs in SAP IBP

Planning algorithms and other tasks can be run as background jobs in SAP IBP.

Usually, these background jobs are scheduled by a central team (administrators or configuration experts), but there
are also uses cases where planners can rerun or schedule them manually in the Excel add-in.
Example: Demand planning is done every month. At the beginning of the month, the statistical forecasting jobs are
run automatically. After that, the sales and marketing colleagues add their information to the forecast.

Background jobs can perform different planning tasks. Some are used more for housekeeping purposes. Examples:

• Copy and disaggregate key figures

• Inventory optimization
• Statistical forecasting
• Forecast error calculation
• Time-series-based supply planning (using the heuristic or the optimizer)
• ABC/XYZ segmentation
• Deployment run or confirmation run in order-based planning
• Realignment of planning data
• Taking snapshots
• Purging key figure data

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Application jobs on the Web UI and in the Excel add-in
Application Jobs app on Web UI Application Jobs in Excel add-in
• Advanced scheduling options • Quick access for planners to run application jobs
• Definition of job chains and templates directly from the Excel add-in
• More detailed parameter settings for some • Note that not all application jobs can be run from
operators Excel. Some are only available on the Web UI.
• Log overview • Basic job scheduling options
• Saved planning filters only • Business logs with filtering
• Use of job chains and templates that were set up
Recommendation: on the Web UI
Use this area to set up job schedules. • Basic parameter settings for some planning
operators
• You cannot define detailed settings and
configuration of planning operators in the Excel
add-in. This can only be done on the Web UI.
• Ad-hoc filters to run and schedule jobs

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Running operators as application jobs in Excel add-in – prerequisites
The administrator needs to do the following for planning operators:
• Set up the specific configuration on the Web UI. The configuration defines how the operators are working (for
example, what are the input and output key figures, what are the specific parameters and settings,…)
• Assign them to the planning area. Example for Planning Operators:
• Grant the users sufficient permissions to run the relevant application jobs.

Note that not all operators can be started as application jobs in the Excel add-in.

The following operators are available:

• Copy Operator (Advanced)
• Statistical Forecasting
• Forecast Error
• Inventory Optimization Version Copy:
• S&OP Operator (heuristic and optimizer for time-series based supply planning)
• Demand-driven Replenishment
• Snapshot
• Redo Snapshot
The following other application jobs and templates are available: Application Job Templates:
• Version Copy
• Application Job Templates

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Running an operator as application job

You can start an application job by selecting Run in the

respective dropdown menu in the Application Jobs group
of the SAP IBP ribbon.

Depending on the application job, you first select the

planning operator that you want to run and then set
different parameters. Some examples:
Define filter criteria Select the
Operator Profile

Choose Currency
and UoM if
possible

Define Scenario
and Version

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Running application job templates in the Excel add-in

Your administrator can also define application job templates in the SAP IBP backend and make them
available in the Excel add-in. These templates can consist of different steps and operators (job chains,
for example) and can also contain operators that you can normally not start directly from the Excel add-
in, such as, operators for order-based planning, data integration via CPI-DS, ABC & XYZ segmentation
and more.
However, you cannot freely define any settings (such as, scenarios or horizons) for these templates but
have to reuse the settings that the administrator made when setting up the template.

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Information message displayed when you run application jobs
As of version 2305.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the information
message that is displayed when you run application jobs from
the Application Jobs group of the SAP IBP ribbon works in the
following way:

▪ The status of the job is displayed within the message and

is refreshed every 5 seconds.

▪ You can keep the message open and continue working

until the status changes to Finished. (The message does
not block Excel.)

▪ To check further details you can open the Status dialog by

choosing the Navigate to Status button.

Note: The same applies when you copy versions by using the
Manage function in the Versions group of the SAP IBP ribbon.

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Overview

When running or scheduling application jobs in the Excel add-in, in many cases the job should be
triggered for the data set shown in the planning view.

With version 2211.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the planning view settings of the open worksheet are
copied to the application job definition per default, when you choose Run or Schedule in the
Application Jobs group. This saves time, you don‘t need to select the same settings again.

Additional details:

▪ If you decide that you don‘t need this new function, it‘s possible to disable it by using the User
Settings available under Settings in the About group of the SAP IBP ribbon.

▪ An information message explains which settings are copied to inform the end user about the
changed behavior when running or scheduling application jobs.

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Related user setting

In the User Settings in the Application Jobs

section, you will find the Copy planning view
settings checkbox.

By default, the checkbox for this setting is selected

when using version 2211.2.0 of the Excel add-in.

The checkbox Show information message lets you

decide whether you want the related information
message to show up, when running or scheduling
application jobs. By default it is selected.

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Copied planning view settings

Depending on the type of application

job, the following settings of the
Create Planning View or Edit Planning
View dialog are copied:
▪ Scenarios
▪ Versions
▪ Planning Scope
▪ Time period
▪ Attributes
▪ Conversions selected on the
Key Figures tab
▪ Attribute-Based Filter selected on
the Filter tab
Please note: If you have a change
history view open, the settings
available in the Create Change
History View or Edit Change History
View dialog are copied.

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Information message

An information message tells you which

settings are copied when you run or
schedule a specific application job.

By selecting the checkbox Don‘t show

again, the information message won‘t
show up any further for your user and the
system and planning area you are
connected to.

Consequently, the user setting Show

information message will automatically
be deselected.

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Example for Copy Operator (Advanced)

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Example for Statistical Forecasting

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Example for Inventory Planning (Advanced)

Please note: For Inventory Planning (Advanced) the Planning Scope settings are copied.
The same applies for S&OP Operator and Demand-Driven Replenishment.
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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Restrictions S&OP Operator

If S&OP Operator V2 is enabled for the Excel add-in (global configuration parameter
EXCEL_SOP_UI_2 is set to YES) the following applies depending on the version of the Excel
add-in the business user is using:
Version of the Excel Add-In Restrictions
Version lower than 2305.2.0 and higher than 2211.2.0 ▪ The version and scenario of the planning scope settings can only be copied if one
version and one scenario is selected.
▪ From and To time periods of the planning scope are not copied, as the time level can
differ.​
▪ Subnetwork IDs are copied if Subnetwork by Subnetwork ID is selected in
the Network/Subnetwork dropdown.​
▪ The attribute-based filter is not copied as Subnetwork by Filter. This is because the
subnetwork filter differs from the attribute-based filter in the planning view, as not all
attributes can be used as filter criteria. For more information, see Selecting Subnetworks
by ID or by Filter.

Version higher than 2305.2.0 ▪ From and To time periods of the planning scope settings are not copied if multiple time
levels exist, and the time level of the first selected operator differs from the one selected
in the planning scope settings.
▪ The attribute-based filter is not copied in any case. For S&OP operators, we do not offer
a dedicated filter tab, but subnetwork filter possibilities instead, which are defined in the
planning scope settings. For more information, see Selecting Subnetworks by ID or by
Filter

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Copy planning view settings for application jobs
Filter tab not enabled

For some available application jobs, the Filter tab is disabled depending on their configuration (such
as Application Job Templates or Copy Operator (Advanced))

In this case, the attribute-based filter of the planning view is copied, but is only used for those
planning operators that have the Filter tab enabled.

The same applies to conversions, which

can be enabled or disabled

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Filter criteria for application jobs

You can set filter criteria for most planning operators. It is highly recommended that you use this
function to limit the amount of data that is copied, purged, or planned.

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Subnetwork – overview

A subnetwork (previously also called planning unit) is a subsection of the overall supply chain
network for which a planner is responsible or that the planner wants to plan in a separate planning
run (for example, all location products in a particular region or all location products in a particular
product group).

Similar to the master data model for the entire supply chain network, a subnetwork consists of
nodes (that is, location products) and arcs (which are used to model the transport links between the
location products). You define the subnetwork to which a location product belongs in the location
product master data. You can define subnetworks for product groups or regions, or for any other
property of locations, products, or location products.

When you start an application job, you select one or more subnetworks that are to be taken into
account by the planning algorithm. This defines the set of location products that are to be planned.
Subnetworks are relevant (but not mandatory) for inventory optimization, time-series based supply
and demand-driven replenishment planning operators .

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Subnetworks in the Excel add-in Run S&OP operator as an application job:

If subnetworks have been set-up for your planning

area, you can select them when starting the
respective operator in the Excel add-in.
Furthermore, you can select the respective time
horizon for the planning scope for time-series based
supply planning operators.
Simulation runs Set planning scope in planning view definition in the
For planning operator simulation runs, you need to Workbook Settings side panel:
select the subnetworks that you want to plan in the
relevant Planning Scope tab in the Workbook
Settings side panel in the Create or Edit Planning
View dialog.
You can define default values for subnetworks in the
User Settings.
For more information, see SAP Help portal at
Subnetworks.

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Subnetworks in the Excel add-in using S&OP Operator V2 (1/2)
As of version 2208.2.0 of the Excel add-in, the same improved functions as have been provided by
the application job templates S&OP Operator V2 and S&OP Optimizer Explanation V2 are
available in the S&OP Operator function of the Excel add-in.

When running or scheduling an S&OP operator, you can choose one of the following options in
the Network/Subnetwork field:

• Subnetwork by Subnetwork ID

• Subnetwork by Filter

• Forecast Consumption Filter

(The different options in the Network/Subnetwork dropdown depend on the operator and whether
subnetworks are set up.)

Please note:

• Your administrator must make some configuration settings for the improved functions to
become available to you, see S&OP Operator V2 Available in the Application Jobs Group of
the SAP IBP Ribbon

• Version 2208.2.0 of the Excel add-in does not support the advanced functions of the S&OP
Operator V2 in simulation mode.​

• To be able to use the advanced functions of the S&OP Operator V2 in simulation mode you
need to install version 2305.2.0 or newer of the Excel add-in, see SAP Help portal at Running
S&OP Operator V2 in the SAP IBP, Add-In for Microsoft Excel for detailed information about
S&OP Operator V2 in the Excel add-in.

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Subnetworks in the Excel add-in using S&OP Operator V2 (2/2)

The option Subnetwork by Filter allows you to plan

specific location products based on the attributes of the
master data types location, product, or location product.
You can use either a predefined filter or you can
manually specify the filter criteria.

Please note: Only attributes of the master data types

location, product, or location product can be used as filter
criteria, so you might not be able to select all of your
saved filters.

See SAP Help Portal at Selecting Subnetworks by ID or

by Filter for more information.

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Explanation of S&OP optimizer results

The optimizer for time-series-based supply planning

can provide additional information about the
planning results.

You can select the issue types for which you want
to have explanations (for example, why demands
were not met or inventory targets were missed).

This feature needs to be activated by your

administrator.

For more information, see Explanation of Optimizer

Results on the SAP Help Portal.

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Explanation of S&OP optimizer results – time horizon settings

As of version 2211.2.0 of the Excel add-in, when you run an optimizer enabled for explanation (the Explain
Optimization Results checkbox has been selected in the profile for the time-series-based supply planning
optimizer), the time horizon on the Explanation tab is now empty by default, and you need to select the
relevant time horizon.

We recommend using the explanation function with caution and only if needed, as it is performance intensive.
When using the explanation function, please restrict the time horizon to the time periods where problems
have been detected.​

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Scheduling an application job

To schedule a job, choose Schedule from the respective planning operator’s drop down menu. Adjust all
settings and parameters, set a filter, and use the Recurrence tab to define the schedule. Provide a job name
and click Add. The job is automatically scheduled and will show up in the Status window of the planning
operator.
Click Add to save
and schedule the
job

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Application job status

• An information message informs you that the application job

was started.
• When this message is displayed, the application job is queued
and will start to run as soon as possible.
• You can check the status of
the job in the status window.

• All jobs for the specified planning area that were run or are
scheduled are listed. Older past jobs are removed after a
reasonable time period.
• The status Finished means the job finished successfully. The
status Error means that an error occurred and the job did not
run successfully.
• To see the log, click on Finished or Error in the Status column.

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Job log

Depending on the planning operator, a simple log or a more advanced business log is available that
you can analyze.

Simple Log:

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Business logging

Business logging provides more detailed logs on the planning object level, such as, location
product. These logs are created when running S&OP operators (operators for time-series-based
supply planning) or the operators for statistical forecasting.
The new logging structure also allows you to filter for specific planning objects or information within
the job logs.
For example, you can prefilter the log by attributes (see next slides).
And later on, in the log itself, further filters for the attributes are available:
• Severity of the message
• Message text
• Date and time
• Forecast model and step (statistical forecasting only)
• Planning period (S&OP operator only)

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Business logging – example

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Business logging for statistical forecasting

For statistical forecasting logs, you can filter using the same attributes you selected as planning
level attributes within your job definition.

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Business logging for S&OP operators

For logs for S&OP operators (operators for time-series based supply planning), you can filter by the
default attributes that are used within the S&OP operator jobs.

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Running simulations for long-running operators as application jobs in a
scenario – overview

After you have changed key figure values in the planning view, you can start planning operators in
simulation mode to see the impact of your changes on the plan, without interfering with the
productive data. Note that some planning operators, such as, the operator for multi-stage
inventory optimization or the optimizer for time-series-based supply planning replan the entire
network.

Such a huge planning scope run in simulation mode can result in a long runtime.

To avoid this, you can run the application jobs in a scenario instead. With that, you still do not
interfere with the productive data, but the application job is running in the background and does not
hinder you from working.

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Running simulations for long-running operators as application jobs in a
scenario – how-to

1) Change the data in your planning view.

2) Create a scenario.

3) Run the planning operator as an application

job and select your scenario. Deselect the
Baseline Scenario.

4) After the job is finished, you can see the

changes within your scenario, discard the
scenario, or continue with the changes up to
the point where you promote your scenario to
the baseline.

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14) Master Data Maintenance
Making changes to the master data in the Excel add-in

• The basic assumption for SAP IBP is that master data records are
imported from a leading system on a regular basis, using standard
data integration (CPI-DS). Examples of leading systems include systems for master data
management, BW systems, ERP systems, such as SAP ERP or SAP S/4HANA.
• However, there might be reasons and use cases where the master data in SAP IBP can differ
from the data in the leading systems, for example:
− A new product is introduced and needs to be planned before the product record is set up in the ERP
system.
− There are master data attributes defined in SAP IBP that don’t exist in the leading system, for example
ABC codes, because they are only required for planning purposes.
• Therefore, users who have sufficient authorizations can create new master data records, and
change and delete existing records.
• The user needs to have write permissions set in the Attribute Permissions app on the Web UI
for the respective attributes.
• Note that this feature is not intended for mass upload and change of master data records.

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Single master data maintenance
Managing single master data records

• You can access a single master data record, such as, a product, including all of its master data attributes.
• You can view , copy , and edit the master data attributes for a single master data record.
• You can delete the whole master data record.
• You can create a new master data record and the
associated attributes.

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Example: Attribute permissions (write access) in the single master data view
(1)

Example: You don’t have write access for the attribute Customer ID

If Customer ID is a key field and you select the master data type Customer, the Create New
Record, Copy Record, and Delete Record buttons aren't shown. You can still edit all attributes
related to that master data type for existing master data records.

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Example: Attribute permissions (write access) in the single master data view
(2)

Example: You don’t have write access for the attribute Product Group

The attribute Product Group is not a key field in the master data type Product, so you can use the
View, Add, Edit, Copy, and Delete buttons in the Product master data records.

You can't edit the attribute Product Group in this case. That is the reason why the font color in this
field is grey.

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Master data workbook
Maintenance of master data using the master data workbook

• You can access multiple master data types and mass

records in parallel.
• You can view, copy, and edit the master data attributes
for master data records.
• You can create a new master data record and
the associated attributes.
• A master data workbook can include multiple
worksheets, one worksheet per master data type.
• You cannot delete master data records in the master
data workbook. This is only possible in single master
data maintenance.

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Creating a view in the master data workbook

Choose the master data type.

Select Edit to be able to change master data records.

Use attribute filters to

limit or specify the master
data records that you
want to see.

You can create a master data

workbook containing multiple
sheets. Each sheet shows the
records of a different master
data type.
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Using a common filter and suggesting worksheets

When creating a master data workbook, you can define a common filter. The filter is used for all
worksheets that you create.

You can also let the system suggest worksheets that fit this filter: For each master data type that
contains the attributes specified in the filter, the system suggests one worksheet.

Example

You have defined a common filter that is filtering

for certain product IDs. The system suggests all
master data types where the product ID is an
attribute.

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Display Changed By/On and Created By/On information in master data
workbooks

With Excel add-in version 2305.2.0 or newer, you can check when specific master data entries have
been last changed and by whom.

Per default, the following noneditable columns are added to the master data workbook:

▪ Changed By
▪ Changed On
▪ Created By
▪ Created On

If you don’t want the columns to be displayed, you can ask your administrator to change the value
of the global configuration parameter EXCEL_MASTER_DATA_ADMIN_FIELDS from the default
YES to NO.

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Display Changed By/On and Created By/On information in master data
workbooks

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Display Changed By/On and Created By/On information in master data
workbooks

Please note the following:

▪ Even if it is possible to edit the cells of the columns Changed By, Changed On, Created By and
Created On in the Excel add-in, the changes you make are not recognized and are ignored
when you choose Save Changes in the Master Data group of the SAP IBP ribbon.
▪ After you have changed existing master data entries, or added new ones in the master data
workbook, you need to choose Refresh in the Master Data group if you want to see the
updated values for Changed By, Changed On, Created By and Created On.
▪ The timestamps are displayed in UTC and formatted according to your Microsoft Windows
Region settings for Date and time formats. Microsoft Excel recognizes the timestamps as such,
and you can filter on them by using the native Filter function in Microsoft Excel.
▪ If the time is exactly set to 00:00:00, the Microsoft Excel default applies, and only the date is
displayed. You can change the format of the cells by choosing Format Cells… in the Microsoft
Excel context menu.

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Using master data favorites

If you want to save the current workbook as a favorite for future easier accessibility, you can
create a master data favorite and share the workbook favorite with other users.

In the Favorites drop down menu, you can create and

manage favorites:
• Add a new favorite
• Access, update, or delete existing favorites
• Organize the favorites in a folder structure
Please note that structural changes or formatting changes
that you made manually in the master data workbook
(such as hiding and reordering columns, or adding
background colors) are not saved as part of the favorite
and will be lost.
If you need permanent structural and formatting changes,
contact your administrator. They can use VBA hooks to
influence the appearance of the master data workbook:
Extensibility Using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) -
SAP Help Portal

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Editing the master data workbook

You can edit the master data workbook at any time.

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Refreshing the master data workbook

Use Refresh to discard all unsaved changes to the master data workbook and to get the lastest
data from the SAP IBP database.

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Do’s and don’ts for changing entries in the master data workbook

You can:
• Delete rows that will not change (does not delete records, improves performance)
• Cut a row or column and paste it elsewhere
• Add data rows directly after the downloaded rows
• Insert data rows between downloaded rows
• Change record keys (for example, product ID) to create a new record

Do not:
• Delete key columns or other mandatory columns
(for example, the Product ID column)
• Make changes to hidden row 1 or hidden column A
• Create gaps between rows or columns
• Modify large numbers of records while other users are logged in (for performance
reasons and to keep the data consistent for these users)
• Please note that master data workbooks cannot be used in offline mode. The SAP IBP
backend only recognizes a workbook as a master data workbook if you are logged on to
the SAP IBP backend. If you log off from the SAP IBP backend while a master data
workbook is open and then log on again, the SAP IBP backend will no longer recognize
it. Your previous unsaved changes in the master data workbook are lost.

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Example: creating new master data records for a new product

The new product PRODNEW is introduced and all relevant master data needs to be created for the
product. PRODNEW is very similar to the already existing product PRODOLD.
You can achieve this as follows:
1. Open the master data workbook.
2. Select Common Filter and define the filter Product = PRODOLD.
3. Click Suggest Sheets, delete the worksheets you do not need, select the Edit checkbox on all
worksheets and click OK.
4. Worksheets are created for all master data types that contain the product as a key or attribute.
They get filled with the existing master data of product PRODOLD.
5. Go through the worksheets and replace PRODOLD with PRODNEW using the Find and
Replace Excel feature. Make manual changes as needed in order to define all master data
information for the new product.
6. Save the changes.
7. Master data is created for the new product.

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Saving changes

Save Changes sends the continuous range of

cells starting from cell B3 to the SAP IBP
backend.

Hence, deleting rows that have not changed

before saving improves the performance, as less
data has to be send and checked by the SAP IBP
backend.

Please note: Deleting a row does not delete the

record in the SAP IBP backend.

When finished, the system offers a summary of

the changes and you can download a report. This
is useful, for example, if data changes have
rejected and you want to analyze the reasons.
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Processing of master data changes in master data workbooks
Reports​ and application log

• When master data values are created, or changed, an application log is created.

• You can find application logs for a master data type by searching for the master data type in the
Application Logs app.

The improvements described here do not apply to external master data types.
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Processing of master data changes in master data workbooks
Reports​ and application log

• The full report as well as the error report can be found attached to the log
in the Application Logs app.

The improvements described here do not apply to external master data types.
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Processing of master data changes in master data workbooks
Reports​ and application log

Both reports contain the following information:

• The Status column lets you know whether the changes have been successfully processed.

• The Rejection Code and Rejection Description columns explain why the change was rejected
by the system.

• The list of attributes of the master data records.

The improvements described here do not apply to external master data types.

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Processing of the deletion of single master data records
Application log

• When single master data records are deleted using Manage -> Single... in the SAP IBP ribbon
in the Master Data group, an additional application log is created.

• You can find application logs for a master data type by searching for the master data type in
the Application Logs app.

The improvements described here do not apply to external master data types.
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 Processing of the deletion of single master data records
Attached information

You can find the following additional

information attached to the application log
as a .csv file:

• The master data record that was

deleted.​

• The number of deleted records for all

affected master data types.

• The number of deleted planning objects

and planning object records for all
dependent planning areas, versions,
scenarios, and planning levels.​

The improvements described here do not apply to external master data types.
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Example: attribute permissions (write access) in the master data workbook
(1)

Example: You don’t have write access for the attribute Customer ID which is a key field.

You can select the master data type Customer and select Edit:

In the workbook itself, the Customer ID values are marked with a grey background to indicate that
they are not editable.

Because the Customer ID is a key field, you get an error message upon saving when you try to
create, copy or delete a master data record.

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Example: attribute permissions (write access) in the master data workbook
(2)

Example: You don’t have write access for the attribute Product Group.

You can select the master data type Product and select Edit:

In the workbook itself, the Product Group values have a grey background.

If you edit the attribute values for Product Group and save these changes, the system disregards
the changes.

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Formatting sheets in the master data book using VBA hooks

The appearance of the master data worksheets can be changed by using custom VBA code. This is
usually implemented centrally by an administrator or IT department.

Examples:
- Change the sorting of the columns from the default (alphabetical) to a custom order
- Hide columns by default
- Change formatting, like background color or font color for certain attributes
- Apply custom functions such as VLOOKUP
- Apply a value help for certain attributes,
such as A, B, or C for the ABC Code

More information: Extensibility Using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) - SAP Help Portal
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15) Planning object maintenance
Planning objects in SAP IBP

▪ Planning in SAP IBP is based on planning objects.

▪ A planning object is a single entity for which you can perform planning. It is identified by a combination of
master data attribute values.
Example: The location product with the master data attribute values PRODUCT_A and LOCATION_B is
represented by a planning object.
Note: A planning object is comparable to a characteristic value combination in SAP APO.
▪ Before an attribute value combination can be planned in SAP IBP or displayed in the Excel add-in, a
planning object needs to be generated in SAP IBP (such as PRODUCT_A -LOCATION_B). Without a
planning object, there can be no planning for this combination.
▪ There is an additional condition for being able to plan a planning object: It needs to be assigned a time
dimension (a time series, basically).
▪ Planning objects are generated in SAP IBP as follows:
▪ Planning objects are automatically generated – including the time dimension - when transactional data is uploaded during data
integration (for example, from SAP ERP), or when key figure values are uploaded as a CSV file using the Data Integration Jobs app.
▪ If only a master data record is uploaded to SAP IBP or created in the Excel add-in, no planning object is generated. You need to
trigger the generation of the planning object (including the time dimension) explicitly. The next slides explain how to do this in the
Excel add-in.
▪ For more information, see SAP Note 2798109 (https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/2798109).
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Planning objects in SAP IBP - example
1. A user creates a new master data record: Product ID = NEWPRODUCT
• At this point, the master data exists, but not the planning objects.
• This means that this product ID does not show up in any planning view.
2. The user creates the planning objects for the new product based on the base level of a key figure which the
user is planning. The base level of key figure is Product ID | Location ID | Customer ID | Weekly.

Product ID Location ID Customer ID Week 1 Week 2 …. Week n

NEWPRODUCT DC1 CUST-A NULL / Empty NULL … NULL
(shows as empty cell in
planning view)

NEWPRODUCT DC1 CUST-B NULL NULL … NULL

NEWPRODUCT DC2 CUST-C NULL NULL … NULL

3. The 3 combinations can now be planned upon and are visible in the Excel add-in.
4. Other combinations might theoretically be possible, for example a DC3, but might not be realistic.
Therefore no planning should be possible. Example: DC3 is in Europe and the new product is only sold to
US customers and is only distributed by US DCs.
Note that the new master data record must already exist before you can create planning objects.
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Creating planning objects

There are two places where you can create new planning objects after you have created a new
master data record for a new product:
New Planning Object in the Planning Objects with Key Figure
planning view Data in the master data workbook

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Creating planning objects in the planning view – overview

You can add new planning objects to a planning view. Note: Even if the planning view shows data
at an aggregated planning level (for example, a region containing many locations), the records are
created at the lowest level (for example, locations).

You create planning objects, for example, to do the following:

• Introduce a new product based on the planning objects of an existing product, directly in the
Excel add-in without having to use data integration functions (such as, CPI-DS or the Data
Integration app on the Web UI

• Simulate selling a product in a new region or bringing a new plant online

Please note: This function does not replace the data integration functions that are normally used in
SAP IBP (such as, CPI-DS). We recommend that you use it to create and edit smaller numbers of
planning objects and only from a low disaggregation level (such as, product ID).

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Creating planning objects in the planning view (1)

1) Open a planning view that has the key figures and is in the planning level for which you want to create new
planning objects.

2) Click New Planning Object.

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Creating planning objects in the planning view (2)

3) In the New Planning Object window, select the master data records for which you want to create the
planning objects. The attributes that are available in the New Planning Objects window are determined by
the attributes that you selected as the planning level for your planning view.

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Creating planning objects in the planning view (3)

4) Click Add. Please note that the system first simulates the new planning objects and shows the simulation results
in the planning view.

5) Review the planning objects to verify the data is correct. Then click Save Data.

Please note that the new planning objects will only be displayed in planning views if key figure values are associated
to them. So if you want to immediately use the planning objects in a planning view, please enter key figure values
before saving. Otherwise, the planning objects will not be displayed in the planning view.

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Recommendations for creating new planning objects

A mass creation of planning objects at a high level is not recommended, as the planning object
records are created at the base level of the key figures (for example, product-location-customer-
days).

Example: You create planning objects at a high level such as brand = SHOES and the key figure
base level is product-location-customer-days. In that case, the system creates planning objects for
all available product-location-customer combinations (where the respective attribute brand =
SHOES), with all locations, and all customers, and all days.

This may result in many new planning objects that are logically wrong because the combination
product New Shoe US / location Rome, Italy / customer Garibaldi (Italy) is never planned since the
new product is only sold in the US market.

Therefore, please create planning objects at the lowest level possible, OR use the SAP
recommended way using Planning Objects with Key Figure Data in the master data
workbook.
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Creating planning objects with key figure data in the master data workbook (1)

In the master data workbook, you can create, view, and edit planning objects and stored key figure data for a
selected planning level.
This is the recommended way to create planning objects manually in the Excel add-in:

1) Click Master Data Workbook.

2) Select Planning Objects with Key Figure Data

from the drop down menu
(instead of Master Data, which is the default setting)

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Creating planning objects with key figure data in the master data workbook (2)

3) Select the relevant planning level and version. You

can define several sheets for multiple relevant
planning levels for which the planning objects need
to be created.
4) Select a time horizon and a key figure for each
sheet. Only key figures that store values can be
selected. Calculated key figures are not shown in
this list.
5) Use a filter if needed.
6) Select the Edit checkbox.
7) Click OK.

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Creating planning objects with key figure data in the master data workbook (3)

8) The view shows all available planning objects for the selection.

9) Create a new planning object by adding a row or changing data.

10) Click Save Changes.

11) The planning objects are created in the SAP IBP backend. Depending on the data volume, this
task might take some time.

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Creating planning objects with key figure data in the master data workbook (4)

8) When finished, the system offers a summary of the changes. If, for example, data changes
have been rejected, you can download the report and analyze it.

9) The planning view does not refresh automatically after you saved the changes. To refresh the
screen, click Refresh.

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Creating planning objects with key figure data – example (1)

• Edit the master data at base level, for

example, overwrite the product ID HT_001
of an existing planning object with the
product ID HT_NEW_1 of the new
planning object.

• The new product ID must already exist as

master data in the SAP IBP backend.
• Click Save Changes.
• The system creates the new planning
objects for the new product ID and key
figure data using the existing key figure
values.
• You need to remove the key figure values
if you don’t want them to be copied over to
the new planning objects. (Empty cells are
copied as NULL values.)
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Creating planning objects with key figure data – example (2)

• To create a new planning object, you can also copy and paste an existing entry (the entire row,
for example) to a new row.

• Then proceed as in the previous slide.

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Creating planning objects with key figure data – example (3)

You can also use the Planning Objects with Key Figure Data view to overwrite the key figure values
for the individual combinations.

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16) Alert Key Figures and Dashboard
Alert key figures in the planning view

In configuration, the administrator can define alert key figures. Alert key figures can make the user
aware of any data that hits a predefined threshold. For example, the capacity utilization exceeds
95%. Alerts can be displayed in the alerts dashboard of the planning view.
If alert key figures have been configured for the
planning area, the Alerts tab is available when
you create and edit a planning view.

On the Alerts tab you can define a formatting

rule for a specific alert key figure, version and
scenario and can add a name. If you save the
planning view as a favorite the alert with its
name is displayed in your Alert Dashboard.

Note:
• If you share a planning view favorite that
contains alerts, the recipients don’t see the
alerts in the alert dashboard.
• Alert key figures do not work with the sheet
option Remove Empty and Zero Values.
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Alert key figures in the planning view - All Versions and All Scenarios for
alerts (1)​
In the Edit Planning View or Create Planning View
dialogs, you can define a formatting rule for alert key
figures on the Alerts tab. When defining a formatting
rule you need to select the version and the scenario
to which the alert formatting should be applied.

You can choose All Versions in the version dropdown

of the alert definition and All Scenarios in the
scenario dropdown, instead of selecting a specific
version or scenario. This way, the alert formatting is
applied to all valid version and scenario combinations
that are selected in the Workbook Settings side
panel.

When changing the version or scenario in the

Workbook Settings side panel, you do not need to
adjust the alert definition if All Versions or All
Scenarios was previously selected. The selection
stays and can also be saved in templates and
favorites.

Please note: If you want to check the alert in

different versions, the respective alert key figures and
referenced key figures must be available in all This function is available as of version 2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in.
relevant versions.

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Alert key figures in the planning view - All Versions and All Scenarios for
alerts (2)

If you select All Versions or All

Scenarios when defining alert
formatting, the text field for Name in
Alert Dashboard (Favorites only) is
deactivated. The respective alert key
figures do not appear in the Alert
Dashboard dialog.

If you have already defined a name for

an alert in one of your favorites and then
change the version or scenario selection
of the alert to All Versions or All
Scenarios, the name is removed and the
text field is deactivated.
This function is available as of version 2308.2.0 of the Excel add-in.
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Alert dashboard and planning view favorites – example

In the planning view, the

cells where the alert
threshold is met are
highlighted according to
your settings in the
planning view definition.

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Alert dashboard

An alert is only displayed in the alert dashboard if:

1) The planning view which contains the alert key figure definition has been saved as a favorite
planning view.

2) The Name in Alert Dashboard (Favorite Views Only) field has been filled.

Please note that the alerts in the alert dashboard are constantly recalculated by the system. This
can have an impact on the performance.

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17) Task Management
Task management

• Open tasks that have been assigned

to you as part of a process step can be
visualized in the Excel add-in.
• Process, process step details, and
progress can be seen as well.
• Tasks can be grouped and sorted by
the following:
• Process
• Priority
• Due date

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Task management

You can set the status of your tasks to Completed by clicking on the task. If you complete a task,
refresh the dialog to make it disappear from the list of tasks. (The process and task-related information
is automatically refreshed when you log on to the Excel add-in, but you need to refresh it manually
while you are working in your planning view.)
You can set the status of your tasks from the Excel add-in as follows:
Status of the Task Can It Be Changed in the To What Status?
Excel Add-In?
Open Yes Completed
In Progress Yes Completed
Completed No -

If you change the status of a task to Completed, and you decide that the task is not completed after all,
you can change the status back to Open in the Collaboration app. Similarly, if you have a task in
status In Progress, you need to change it back to status Open in the Collaboration app to be able to
complete the task in the Excel add-in.

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Process management

The processes and tasks that are visible in the Excel add-in are defined and managed using the
Manage Processes app.

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Task window in the Excel add-in

The Processes and Tasks Dashboard window is a separate window and not a pop-up. It can
therefore be arranged within a split window next to the Excel window with the planning view on the
same screen (Windows function as of Windows 10).

This makes it easier for you to take a

look at the tasks and, in parallel, review
and change the data to complete the tasks.

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18) Navigation to the Web UI
Navigation to the Web UI

You can navigate from the Excel add-in to specific SAP Fiori apps on the SAP Fiori
launchpad (Web Client).
• Home opens the SAP Fiori launchpad.
• Collaboration opens the Collaboration SAP Fiori app.
• Promotions opens the Analyze Promotions SAP Fiori app.
• Manage Planning Notes opens the Manage Planning Notes SAP Fiori app.
• Manage Product Lifecycle opens the Product Assignments or Forecast Dates tab of
the Manage Product Lifecycle app.
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19) Help, user settings, and more in the
About area
Help

The About area of the Excel add-in provides help and additional information.

Connection Speed: Connection Time Out Check:

▪ The server time measures the time Checks how long it takes to
for basic database access. reach time out and whether the
▪ The network time measures the time it
takes to download a predefined response.
network is set up properly.
▪ The ping time measures the time it takes This feature is designed mainly
for a small data package to reach the SAP for administrators and
About: Know which Excel IBP server until receiving it back consultants.
add-in version is installed (roundtrip).
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 Help
You can open the help that is available on the SAP Help Portal as well as the getting
started video hosted on the SAP youtube channel, from the About area of the Excel
add-in.
• Open SAP IBP Help: opens the application help which has a section for end users
as well as a section for administrators.
• Open SAP IBP End-User Guide: opens this guide.
• Getting Started: opens the getting started video.

As of version 2305.2.0, you can also open the detailed help from the respective dialog
or field in the Excel add-in by pressing the F1 key.
Note: This function doesn't work in all of the dialogs of the Excel add-in, but we're adding new
topics continuously.

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Log
The SAP IBP log is a technical log that can
be used to perform a more detailed error
analysis.

If you encounter issues with the Excel

add-in, your administrator or the SAP
support team might ask to provide the log
file.

You can use the Log Dialog to find the log

and trace files that you need, and copy
them directly out of the dialog.

To open the Log dialog, in the SAP

IBP ribbon, in the About group,
choose Help -> Log.

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Log Dialog
In the Log Dialog, you can see the following information:

• The recent lines of the log.

If you need to provide the log information to your administrator, or to SAP support, you can
copy and paste the text directly out of the dialog.

• Technical information about your installed software and environment.

• The location of the log files on your computer.

By choosing the Open folder… button, you can access the log files directly. You can also
copy the file path to your clipboard.

In the Log dialog, you can specify in which case the Excel add-in should create logs for your
current Microsoft Excel instance. In pervious versions, this required administrator permissions.

For more information, see Trace and Log Files in the Excel Add-In.

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Settings
Default User Settings User Settings (user-specific settings)
(Administrator Settings)

The settings are valid

for the particular
connection
(system/planning area
combination). You
need to make changes
changes individually
for each connection.
The settings are not
stored locally on your
PC.

For more information about the settings, see SAP Help Portal at User Settings.
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Settings – general settings

• Language: You can change the language for the Excel add-in. All Excel add-in controls are displayed in the selected
language.
• Default Display Time: You can decide in which default time zone the dates and times are shown (in the planning
operator logs, for example).

• File Path for Workbooks: When you open a planning view template or favorite, the workbook is downloaded from the
SAP IBP system and stored in a certain folder. From there, it is opened on your PC. This file path determines the
storage location. For performance considerations, it is recommended that you specify a file path pointing to a folder on
your local PC instead of a folder located on a network drive or shared drive. The default file path is the following:
• Documents\SAP_IBP is used before version 2205.2.0.
• %Temp%\SAP_IBP is used as of version 2205.2.0.​
• %localappdata%\SAP_IBP_AddIn\Workbooks is used as of version 2305.2.0.

For more information, see Setting Up File Paths for Workbooks, and Setting Up Your Own File Path for Workbooks.
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Settings – default values

In the settings, you can set various default values, for example, the default currency and unit of
measure. These default values help you to save time when working with planning views.
You can set fixed values or define that the value last used is applied. You can also overwrite these
values with your user-specific ones in the template planning views.

It depends on the configuration of your planning area whether you see the default value fields. If, for
example, no key figure is planning note enabled, then the Display Planning Notes field is not
visible. The same is true for Collaboration groups or units of measure.

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Settings – display options (1)
Show information message for master data workbook: Defines
if you get a pop-up when opening a master data workbook with
additional instructions.

Expand Cascading Filter: Defines if the Cascading Filter

dropdown menu (for example, on the Filter tab of the planning view
definition) should be automatically expanded.

Apply Cascading Filter Automatically: When you select this

checkbox, the cascading filter is applied automatically when you
open the value help to select attribute values for filter conditions.
You don't need to choose Apply manually.​

This function is available as of version 2305.2.0 of the SAP IBP,

add-in for Microsoft Excel.

Show information about slow connection speeds if response

time is more than … miliseconds: If you select this checkbox, and
specify a value here, you will be informed about slow response
times between your computer and the SAP IBP server as well as a
potentially slow network connection. The response time is
measured during logon, and combines server and network response
times.

Show information about the deletion of empty folders: If folders

have been created by using the Organize function, and if no entities
(templates, favorites, filters, and so on) are assigned to them, the
empty folders are deleted when you close the Organize dialog.
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Settings – display options (2)

Show up to <number> most used attributes/key figures:

• You can see a list of your most used attributes and key
figures in multiple places in the Excel add-in.
• This short list helps you to quickly see the attributes and
key figures that are most relevant to you. You do not need
to pick them from a long list of key figures and attributes.
• The default value is 5.
• Set the value to zero to turn the feature off.
• If you reset the user settings by clicking the Reset to
Default button, the Excel add-in “forgets” your most used
key figures and attributes but learns them again over time.

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Settings – display options (3)

If the attributes and key figure list in the

planning view settings should use the
strong-match group and the light-match
group, select the Show Strong and Light
Match Groups checkbox.

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Settings – auto-sizing planning notes

• If you hover the mouse over a cell containing a planning note,

the planning notes are displayed in a standard size that does
not display the free text.
• The system automatically can increase the size of the boxes,
Standard size: adapting them to the respective free text.
• Auto-sizing is only performed if the number of planning notes in
the planning view does not exceed the threshold that you have
entered in the settings.
• The default threshold is 0 (no auto-sizing).
Autosized to fit the full text : • In the example, the threshold is set to 7. This means that auto-
sizing is active if the planning view contains 7 or less planning
notes.
• Consider that auto-sizing a large number of planning notes can
have a significant performance impact.
• Note that if you click a cell, the planning note is always
displayed in full size.
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Settings – planning note validation

You can decide whether an additional

validation step should run when saving
planning notes and inform you about invalid
changes.
Invalid changes can happen if you change an
SAP IBP planning note with native Microsoft
Excel functions, such as, Edit Note.

With or without using the additional check, invalid changes to the planning note are not saved. But with the
additional validation check switched on, the system provides you with information in a warning message. So
you have a better chance to see that the changes you made to the planning note were invalid and will not be
saved.
Please note that the additional validation check can have a negative impact on the performance. It can be
skipped for users who are familiar with the restriction not to use any Microsoft Excel native notes with SAP
IBP planning notes.
As a default, the validation is switched on.
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Settings – application jobs

Depending on how many planning operators are assigned to your planning area, the list in the
Application Jobs group in the Excel add-in ribbon can get rather long. In the Display Operator Types
One by One field, you can enter how many planning operators or application jobs are listed.

Choose Never if no individual application jobs should be displayed.

Choose, for example, Up to 6 to show up to six individual application jobs:

If more than 6 application jobs are assigned to your planning area, no application jobs are
displayed (same as the Never option).
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Message history

In the message history window, you can see all of

the warning and error messages you’ve received since
your last logon to the SAP IBP system.

This is useful if you closed a

error/warning pop-up, and want to review
the information, or when you face issues
and need to inform your administrator.
In the second case, you can send a
screenshot of the respective
warning/error message for
further analysis.

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Check backend version

Hover the mouse over Help button to show the release of the SAP IBP backend, as well as the
Hotfix Collection. This comes in handy when you are asked, for example, by your administrator or
by SAP support, which version of the Excel add-in is installed on your PC.

Example: SAP Integrated Business Planning 2008.0 means that the backend is
SAP IBP release 2008, Hotfix Collection 0

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20) Logging Off and Troubleshooting
Disabled Excel add-ins
Comparing disconnect and log off

After you have finished your work, you can disconnect or log off from the SAP IBP backend
system.
Disconnect Log off

If you choose this option, you get disconnected If you choose this option, you get logged off
from the SAP IBP system without loosing the from the system completely. The system
Remember me settings (depending on the “forgets” you, so that you need to enter the
identity provider). user and password next time when you log on
again.
Alternatively, you can close all Excel
workbooks by clicking Close (X) in the upper
right corner.

Use disconnect, for example, if you have left

the Excel add-in inactive for too long or if a
planning area activation is in progress

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Troubleshooting a disabled Excel add-in

If Microsoft Excel “crashes” while working with the Excel add-in, or was ended in an exceptional
way, for example, through the task manager, it might start the next time without the Excel add-in
that it suspects to have caused the shutdown. In such a case, a pop-up like the following will
appear when you start Microsoft Excel:

Please select No.

If you select Yes, the Excel add-in will be disabled and disappear from the ribbon. You need to
manually enable it again.

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How to enable the Excel add-in (1)

If the SAP IBP menu has disappeared from the Microsoft Excel ribbon, a likely reason is that it has
been disabled.

How to enable the Excel add-in:

• In Microsoft Excel, choose File → Options → Add-Ins.
• Select Manage: COM Add-Ins and choose Go.
• Select SAP IBP, add-in for Microsoft Excel and choose OK.

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How to enable the Excel add-in (2)

Try starting the Excel add-in via the desktop shortcut or the Windows programs.

Please note that this option is only available if your administrator has enabled it.
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