Access to SAP Database

[Former Member]

Hi Experts

SAP R/3 System has 3 layers u2013 Presentation u2013 where user interacts, Application u2013 where we execute or invoke ABAP Programs and Database u2013 where we store/read data.

We can access the database through the logic written in ABAP programs/function modules.

Is there any OTHER WAY that we can read the data from the R/3 Tables?

Can we locate the DATABASE where SAP R/3 Tables reside?

Can we access (using username & password) the Database system for SAP directly?

Please comment.

BD

[lbreddemann]

Hi Bobby,

asking for technical possibility is not enough here.

When you ask whether this is possible, you also need to ask "would this be a good idea?".

You may check my blog [Questions to SAP Support: Is ODBC access to the database a good idea?|https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/scn/weblogs?blog=/pub/wlg/9742] [original link is broken] [original link is broken] [original link is broken]; where I discuss some of the major aspects of accessing SAP databases 'directly'.

In general I propose to shift your perspective to the SAP database.

When you learn database design 101 you learn that the database itself will, by its very design, take care about data integrity, availability and security.

And yes, it may be possible to build a database like that.

Anyhow, SAP systems don't work this way.

SAP uses databases as a storage and retrieval engine - not more and not less.

All security, all consistency checks and all business logic is not in the database but in the application coding.

Therefore the only correct way to access the data is to use the provided interfaces for it - the interfaces you can build in ABAP/Java.

Hope that helps to get the picture right.

regards,

Lars

[stefan_koehler]

Hello Bobby,

not really clear why you want do that, but technically it is possible without any limitation.

> Is there any OTHER WAY that we can read the data from the R/3 Tables?

Yes with any provided "SQL interface/tools" like SQL*Plus, JDBC-Connector, ODBC, etc.

> Can we locate the DATABASE where SAP R/3 Tables reside?

Of course

> Can we access (using username & password) the Database system for SAP directly?

Yes - see the answer to your first question.

But keep in mind that you maybe have some problems with displaying characters. For more information about this topic - please read sapnote #606359 (point 6 and 7).

Regards

Stefan