How to Broadcast a BEx Report through E-mail

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It is very common in all SAP BW real-time projects to use various BEx tools for creating multiple objects.
In order to make these objects available to a broad audience (users), you need to use SAP BW
Broadcasting functionality. You can also use SAP BW broadcasting for exception reporting and
performance optimization. This tutorial is part of our free SAP BW training.

It is very common in all SAP BW real-time projects to use various BEx tools for creating multiple objects.
In order to make these objects available to a broad audience (users), you need to use SAP BW
Broadcasting functionality. You can also use SAP BW broadcasting for exception reporting and
performance optimization. This tutorial is part of our free SAP BW training.

You can broadcast the following objects through an email or to SAP NetWeaver Portal:

Web Templates

Reports

Workbooks

Queries/Query Views

BEx objects can be broadcasted either as online links or as precalculated documents. However, you
cannot broadcast workbooks as online links.

This is a step by step guide on how to broadcast a BEx report to the E-mail of specific users.

1) Open the BEx query in BEx Query Designer.

2) Go to Menu “Query->Publish->” and Click on “BEx Broadcaster”

4) Login using the BW login credentials of the User using which you want the BEx report to be
broadcasted.

5) You will see a screen as below which shows the list of available broadcast settings for the particular
query:

6) Click on “Create New Setting” button.

7) There will be four tabs

a. Recipient(s)

b. Texts

c. General Precalculation

d. Filter Navigation

Recipients

You have different options for entering recipients:

User:

Users in Roles:

Note: If an e-mail address for a user that you have specified under User or User in Role has not been
maintained in user maintenance, the user will not receive the distributed file as an e-mail. Instead the
user gets a message in the Business Workplace (transaction SO01).

E-Mail Addresses:

Authorized User:

Language:

User-specific: If you schedule the broadcast setting in the background (for example for a specific time),
then you can generate the document user specifically. The system generates the document for each of
the specified recipients with their personal settings (date format, language) and data authorizations.
Recipients that are only specified with e-mail addresses are excluded from this. For this recipient, the
system generates the document with the settings for the authorized user.
 Texts – Here you can make the following entries:

Subject:

Importance:

Contents:

General Precalculation

Variable Assignment: You can create values for the variables for the query that are ready for input or you
can specify the Web application. The query or Web application is then precalculated with these variable
values. You are able to select an existing variant for the query. The query is precalculated with the values
of the variant.

Filter Navigation

On the Filter Navigation tab page you can specify characteristics or a control query so that the system
precalculates several documents with different filter settings from the same query or Web application.
These filter values provide you with a navigation option in the precalculated document. You can select
the filter values using dropdown boxes in the navigation block.

You can make the following settings:

No Filtering: The system precalculates an unfiltered document.

Filtering Using Selected Characteristics: The system precalculates several documents with various filter
settings according to your chosen settings. Highlight the desired characteristic and specify the desired
filter value using Create Filter Values. You can specify a maximum of two characteristics.

Filtering Using Control Query: The system precalculates several documents with various filter settings.
The filters correspond to the characteristic combinations of the control query that you specified. Specify
the desired control query in the Control Query field either manually or using Selection.

8) Give a description for the broadcast setting

9) Select the Distribution type. In our case it would be “Broadcast Email”.

10) Select the output format. We will select “XML (MS Excel)” which is the Microsoft Excel Format.
11) We can enable the “As ZIP file” checkbox to send the file as a zipped attachment to the recipients
email.

12) Recipients: Specify the email addresses of the users to whom you want the report to be broadcasted
in the “Email Addresses” field.
13) Texts: Specify the Email “Subject” and the Email “Contents”. The subject and contents specified here
will be reflected in the Subject and contents of the email delivered to the recipient.

14) General Precalculation: If the query has any input variables, you will have to create a variable
assignment and assign values for the variable. The broadcasted report will be precalculated for the
variable values which you assign in this tab.
Select VAR_01 as shown in the below screenshot and click on “Create”.

You will see the variable screen where you have to assign values for the variables and click on ok.
(Sample variable assignment shown below)
15) The Filter Navigation tab is used to apply filters (if any) to the query before precalculating and
broadcasting the query. We can leave it blank if no filters are to be applied before broadcasting.

16) Now save the broadcast setting by giving a technical name.

17) The next step is to schedule the broadcast after specifying the recipients, the contents of the email,
and the variable assignment. Click on the “Schedule” button. Enable the “Create New Scheduling” check
box, and select the time to schedule the broadcast and click “Transfer”.

Scheduling the Broadcasts Automatically:

The scheduling of broadcasts can be automated with the help of a program and through process chains.
Create a process chain and include the ABAP program “RSRD_BROADCAST_BATCH”. This program can be
used to schedule the broadcasts in the background without any use intervention.

Create a variant for this program and give the technical name of the Broadcast setting for the selection
variable “S_SETTNG (Broadcast Setting)”.

Now schedule the process chain at the particular time (may be periodic) at which you want the
broadcast to be sent.

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Transaction Codes for SAP BW Broadcasting
There are some transaction codes that you need to know while working on SAP BW Broadcasting. Given
below are some of those:

RSRD_LOG

All logs for SAP BEx Broadcasting settings would be displayed using this transaction code. You can view
logs only for scheduled settings, not for those that are directly executed. The screenshot is given below:

RSRD_START

You can execute and debug any settings using this transaction code. The screenshot is given below:
Programs for SAP BW Broadcasting

There are also some programs that you can use to manage the BEx Broadcaster. Below given are some of
those programs.

RSBCSRE03

To delete the email logs that are created by BEx Broadcaster, you can use this program. The screenshot is
given below:
RSRD_BOOKMARK_REORGANISATION

To reorganize and delete bookmark IDs and view IDs that are not in use anymore, you can use this
program. The bookmark IDs and view IDs are created by SAP BEx Broadcaster. The screenshot is given
below:
Authorizations for SAP BEx Broadcaster:-

· You need to use S_RS_BCS authorization object to control the users who can register the settings
for broadcasting execution.

· To run the broadcasting settings online, you need just one authorization i.e., the authorization to
run the underlying reporting objects.

· To directly schedule in the background, you need to have the authorization to create jobs in the
background.

· If you need to run the broadcast settings of another user (if there are any user-specific
precalculations), the other user needs to have S_BTCH_NAM authorization object to perform
background scheduling.

Scheduling Broadcasting:-
You can schedule broadcasting when you see there is no need to run it immediately. The broadcast
happens at the time defined by you.

You can configure to run broadcasts just once or periodically (every month / every week / every day /
any specific timeslot). You can also run the broadcast only when an event occurs. You can include
broadcasting as part of process chain. You can create a process chain and include
RSRD_BROADCAST_BATCH (ABAP program) (the screenshot is given below) to schedule the broadcast
automatically.

You have the following selection options to schedule a broadcast setting:

Execution with Data Change in the InfoProvider: The system performs broadcasting as and when the
data gets changed in the underlying InfoProvider. You need to use Process Chain to avail this
functionality. You need to use process type Trigger Event Data Change in the process chain.

Execution at a Preset Time: You can set a time at which the broadcast should happen. The system
performs broadcasting as per the chosen time.

Scheduling in SAP Background Processing: You can broadcast based on the set date and time to have
the broadcast performed by the system in the background. You can do this only when you have the
required authorization to create jobs in the background.

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Conclusion

SAP BEx Broadcaster helps in making BEx applications available to a number of users. Hence, it is of
utmost importance to understand BEx Broadcasting in detail. It offers many advantages. Broadcasting
primarily helps in making BW data available to all non-BW users. It also lets your users to link BW and
portal systems together. As a beginner, you might want to first get familiarized with BEx Broadcaster by
working on Broadcasting Wizard. It helps you by providing step-by-step instructions on how to define the
parameters that are essential for broadcasting to happen successfully.