Changing User ID

[Former Member]

Is it possible to change logon ID's?

For instance, if a user SCOTT has been using the R3 system for some time, would it be possible to change the login name from SCOTT to another value, such as ST4398?

The reason for asking is that we are embarking on a username standardization project, and I need to learn if this is even possible.

Many apps use an internal ID for each user, and this ID is what is used to record a users participation in a transaction. This makes it possible to change the users logon id or username at anytime without affecting existing data.

I just don't know if SAP/R3 will allow that, and if so, how to do it.

[Former Member]

Depending on the version of SAP you are on you can do the following.

Transaction-SU01 then on the menu click Users->Rename.

Cheers,

Ben

[WolfgangJanzen]

Well, technically that is possible (unfortenately w/o any <b>warning</b>).

But have a kind look on what is discussed in another SDN thread:

Regards, Wolfgang

[Former Member]

Re the other thread:

That's what I was afraid of.

Making use of the users actual logon ID in transactional data is somewhat foolish.

An internally generated ID should have been used for that.

Thanks for the info.

[WolfgangJanzen]

Hi Jared,

I fully agree with you. Actually the so-called AliasName would be suitable for that purpose (to be used as "Logon Name"). The AliasName can be changed at any time without any impact on transactional data since the system uses the userID (SY-UNAME) internally.You just have to make sure that the AliasName is unique (in the current logical system / in an CUA landscape).

However: the AliasName is an optional user attribute. So, you cannot assume that every user has such an AliasName (which he could then use for authentication purposes). For the web-based ABAP services (-> ICF services) you can define whether the Logon Name (as used by Basic Authentication and the FORM-based "System Logon") should be interpreted as "Standard R/3 User" (= ABAP UserID / SY-UNAME) or as "Internet User" (= Aliasuser).

Maybe in a future release we dare to make the AliasName attribute mandatory - and then use it as "Logon Name" by default. Since that is an incompatible change it need to be analysed / assessed carefully.

Regards, Wolfgang

[Former Member]

Thanks for the further info Wolfgang.

I will see if we can make use of that.

Re-reading my previous post, I realize I was a bit blunt.

My apologies for that, as I believe this is legacy problem

that must be dealt with.

[WolfgangJanzen]

I'm fine (not feeling offended).

Actually, you are right - it <u>is</u> a stupid idea ...

Unfortenately, it's also true that it's a legacy problem.

Cheers, Wolfgang

[Former Member]

Thanks, that was what I was looking for.