Instance Profile or Default Profile

[Former Member]

Hi,

I'm asking this question hoping an expert could maybe confirm that my understanding of these two different profiles is correct.

When we had SAP installed, the team performing the installation told us to change parameters in the Instance Profile.  

Now I'm being told this is wrong, we should be changing parameters in the Default Profile.

We have a fairly simple standard setup with our DEV and QAS system sat on one Server (OS400/DB2) and our PROD system sat on another server.

As I understand it, changing parameters in the Default Profile would change that parameter on all Application Servers on that box? So I would be changing parameters on both our DEV & QAS at the same time?

If I was to change the parameter in the Instance Profile, it would simply change it on the instance I was currently logged onto?

Is that correct? What is "Best Practice" with this?

Hopefully I've explained that sufficiently!

Many thanks

[former_member188073]

Hi Paul,

Let us know if you could understand everything. .

I though i got a pretty good revision on profiles

Regards,

Varun

[Former Member]

Hi

take u have 1-CI and 1 -APP servers,if u change the parameter in default profile that shows the effect in both the servers.Change the value in default profile if u want have same value on both the server and be sure that parameter is not set in instance profile of any server because instance profile value will over write the default profile value.

If u want to add one parameter with different values then add that parameter in instance profile of respective server.

Example: if  i want 300 client for my both CI and APP then add login/system_client=300 in default profile.

if i want 200 for CI and 300 APP1 then i add login/system_client=200 in CI and 300 in APP1

Thanks

[Reagan]

Hello

An SAP instance is identified by the SID assigned to it.

If you have a 3 systems landscape then these systems will have different SID's.

Eg : DEC (Development) TEC (Test Environment) PEC (Production)

Each instance (Eg : DEC) will have a set of profiles that includes the DEFAULT, START and INSTANCE profiles

These profiles are located in the /sapmnt/SID/profile directory or file system.

This file system is NOT shared between two different systems with different SID's.

Eg between DEC and TEC

Instead the file system /sapmnt/SID/profile will be shared by a Central Instance (CI) and an Application Server (AS).

If you have an SAP instance with additional Application Servers then there will be additional START and INSTANCE profiles.

Eg: PEC (CI + AS) - 1 DEFAULT profile + 2 START profiles (1 for CI + 1 for AS) + 2 INSTANCE profiles (1 for CI + 1 for AS)

So in total you will have 5 profiles present in the profile directory /sapmnt/PEC/profile

A typical example is this :

DEFAULT.PFL

START_D10_HOSTNAME

START_DVEBMGS00_HOSTNAME

PEC_D10_HOSTNAME

PEC_DVEBMGS00_HOSTNAME

If you modify the instance profile (PEC_D10_HOSTNAME or PEC_DVEBMGS00_HOSTNAME) it will only make changes to that particular instance.

Eg: You modify PEC_D10_HOSTNAME which will make changes only to that dialog instance

But if you modify the DEFAULT profile it will affect the Central Instance and Application Server.

Modifying the DEFAULT.PFL profile will NOT affect the OTHER systems in the landscape.

Hope this clarifies.

Cheers

RB

[divyanshu_srivastava3]

Hi Paul,

SAP setup starts in a sequence:

1st the Kernel Codes are read/

2nd The default Profile

3rd The Instance Profile

Parameters in Default profile are the ones which all applicable to all instances, i.e. a set of common system parameters for eg. message server hostname, transport directory path etc. and common policy parameters for eg. max. length of a password.

Instance profiles contains parameters that only take effect for that particular instance. For eg. no of dialog work process and memory allocation configuration.

If a parameter is defined in both the profiles, then the value of the parameter in instance profile will be effective for that instance.

Regards,

Divyanshu

[Former Member]

Hi Ashton,

Best Practise is to change profile parameters in Instance profile. In RZ10 you can change parameters which are not dynamically switchable (which requires a system restart) then click on copy to save the parameter value. You need to Save the profile which will create a NEw version for the Instance Profile and lastly you need to bounce your system.

For dynamically switchable parameters you can change from RZ11 which restarting the system.

For any doubts please ask.

<removed_by_moderator>

Thanks and Regards,

Santanu

[Former Member]

http://scn.sap.com/community/netweaver/blog/2012/07/28/change-sap-profile-parameters

Please go through this link.

[JPReyes]

To begin... your DEV and QAS even if they share a box they don't share the DEFAULT.PFL... each of them should have their own DEFAULT.PFL sitting on the /sapmnt/<SID>/profile  directory.

The Default profile is for parameters that apply to all instances on a system, the instance profile parameters apply to the instance only and overrule the default profile parameters.

Hope that clear you confusion.

Regards, Juan

[Former Member]

Hi Paul,

For example, (I took this information apply to SAP NW 7.0 EHP1), in general applies to all product, but it is always bestto check the manual for each product before any amendment to the profiles.

If you want to assign the same parameter value for all application servers (such as the name of the database host, or the host on which the message server is running), enter it in the default profile.

Instance profiles provide an application server with additional configuration parameters that complement the settings in the default Profile Typically, these are parameter settings that are adapted to the instance according to the required resources and applications.

for more information u can see that:

https://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw70ehp1/helpdata/en/c4/3a6136505211d189550000e829fbbd/frameset.htm

[Former Member]

Hi Paul,

Default profile is for all common parameters for a particular SAP systems ( including all CI + App Servers) and it associated with a single system like - DEV. Any changes to profile parameter ( either in default or instance ) for a particular system will not change any parameter on other system.

For example if you change some parameter in DEV will not change the same parameter on QA system.

Regards,

Dipam