Process Integration Monitoring

SAP NetWeaver Process Integration (PI) is SAP's implementation of Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) middleware service bus. It facilitates the integration of business processes that span different software components, departments, and organizations. Since Process Integration server is the heart of integration in an enterprise, it is very important to maintain high availability of the system for uninterrupted data exchange across the landscape.

Central PI monitoring in SAP Solution Manager provides unified alert notifications, exceptions and status of PI components from a single-entry point. It also provides options to navigate to details of such exceptions in the respective host system. It becomes easier for addressing the issues more quickly and efficiently.


Please note that Central PI Monitoring in SAP Solution Manager 7.2 is generally available for PI domains, where the Integration Server is running SAP PI 7.11 or higher!


Scope

  • Monitor availability of PI component in entire PI domain (distributed across multiple technical systems in your global landscape)
  • Monitor PI communication channel availability for all central and de-central adapter engines in the entire PI domain from central SAP Solution Manager
  • Monitor PI messages (errors, backlog and message flow) on all PI components in the PI domain
  • Search for payload in PI messages across multiple PI components in the PI domainAlert erroneous PI messages based on PI alert rules (also single PI message

 

Benefits

Continuous Business Availability – Centralized monitoring of PI domain helps to accelerate the problem resolution process. This leads to high availability of Process Integration server and the data exchange between the systems are uninterrupted,  hence the high availability of the application.

Central Entry Point – Growing PI landscape complexity and distribution leads to growing requirements towards a central monitoring approach.

Reduced TCO – Simplification of operations processes by providing one single entry point for all component monitors for overall PI domain status. Additional drill down option provides detailed information up to the host level. This reduces the overall problem resolution time and the number of resources involved in the investigation of issues.

Integration – Tightly integrated with other SAP Solution Manager tools such as System Monitoring and Root Cause Analysis, Alerting Infrastructure, Notification, and Incident Management.

Production Resources Freed – Central collection of monitored data relieves the production system from additional burden of monitoring.

Self Check – Self-check feature provides availability of monitored components.

Message Monitoring – Operations support must be able to monitor and query all interfaces based on the date and time triggered, the sender and receiver systems, processing time, errors (if any), and other attributes. Messages will need to be uniquely identified so that they can be traced easily.

Payload Query – The system administrator and any other relevant business/support personnel should be able to query messages based on the contents of the payload. For example, search for messages that have been sent to a procurement system by the Purchase Order Number or Vendor ID within a given date & time interval.


Use Cases

The new Central PI Monitoring in SAP Solution Manager 7.2 supports SAP PI Administrators, Application Support Users, and Operation Control Center Users to monitor theirs PI Landscapes. The main use cases are as follows:

  1. Proactive monitoring – Receive notifications and incidents for PI related issues. E.g. PI channel errors, PI component not available, erroneous PI message for interface xyc, in status abc, in component 123.
  2. Check the overall status of multiple PI Domains in one screen (components, channels, messages, etc.) by selecting them in an easy and fast way.
  3. The Component Monitor provides you with an overview about all important PI components (cross PI domains) such as: Adapter Engine, Mapping Run-time and Integration Directory. Additionally, you can execute Ping and/or PI Self-Test for all components.
  4. The Channel Monitor provides you with an overview about all PI Channels (cross PI domains). Additionally, you can Start, Stop, and Ping the PI Channels in a central place.
  5. The Message Monitor provides you with an overview about the PI message statistics. You can restart and cancel PI messages and use a graphical visualization to analysis the PI message over time.
  6. The Message Search Monitor helps you search for payload in PI messages across multiple PI components in the PI domain.
  7. The Message based alerts helps you alert erroneous PI messages based on PI alert rules.


Features

Available features for SAP Solution Manager 7.2 Central PI Monitoring depending on PI system release. All the features mentioned in older releases are included in the newer ones.

Example: SAP PI 7.31 would have Central User-Defined Search and Enhanced Component-Based Message Alerting plus all the features indicated for SAP PI 7.11 releases.

SAP PI 7.11+SAP PI 7.31+SAP PI 7.4+SAP PI 7.5+
  • New SAPUI5 based UI
  • Template based configuration
  • Support of Multiple PI Domains
  • Add related metrics
  • Support of the UI5 Shell Personalization Features
  • Component Monitor
  • Channel Monitor incl. exclusion PI Communication Channels from Alerting
  • Message Monitor
  • Central User-Defined Search
  • Enhanced Component-Based Message Alerting
  • SAP NetWeaver BPM Monitoring
  • Monitoring of PI Integration Gateway

Configuration

Configure the Managed Systems:

Managed System Configuration for all managed systems that are part of the PI Domain is a prerequisite for PI monitoring use case. You configure the managed systems in SAP Solution Manager Configuration under Managed Systems Configuration using the Full Configuration Mode. Configuring managed systems is a series of steps. For more information on each step, see the detailed help documentation in SAP Solution Manager Configuration.

Setting Up System Landscape Directory (SLD):

Monitoring solutions focus on technical scenarios. A technical scenario corresponds to a PI Domain with its PI components. As a prerequisite you need to create an SLD destination for which the PI Domain information (central SLD or a local SLD) is required.

For more information on Creation of SLD, see SAP Solution Manager Configuration (transaction SOLMAN_SETUP) → Mandatory Configuration → Infrastructure Preparation → Set Up landscape Management → SLD Connections.

Note: The SLDs that you create in SAP Solution Manager 7.2 should be the same as the SLDs maintained in SAP Solution Manager 7.1 including protocol, host, and port or else the content activation will fail.

Note: While creating the SLD Connection, SLD Role must be of type PI SLD.

After creation the SLD, choose Save in Step 1.1 (SLD Connection) before moving to the next step 


Setting up PI Monitoring:

The PI domain with all its PI components must be known to SAP Solution Manager for central PI Monitoring. PI domain is modelled as Technical Scenario of type PI Monitoring in LMDB. You configure the PI monitoring in SAP Solution Manager configuration under Application Operations → Integration Monitoring → Process Integration. PI monitoring setup is a series of steps. For more information on each step, see the detailed help documentation in SAP Solution Manager Configuration.

Miscellaneous, Troubleshooting, FAQ

Relevant SAP notes must be implemented in your SAP Solution Manager system to make sure PI Monitoring works flawlessly. The required notes depend on your SAP Solution Manager support package. Useful troubleshooting guides are included for your reference. More information can be found in the SAP Note 2625154: Notes, troubleshooting guides and additional information for Central PI Monitoring.

What PI release is required to use PI Monitoring with SAP Solution Manager 7.2?

To be able to use PI Monitoring with SAP Solution Manager you need at least SAP PI 7.11 SP06.

If you plan to use Message Based Alerting and Central User Defined Message Search please note that this is only available with a PI release of 7.31.

Feature

Supported in PI Release less than 7.11 SP06

Component Availability

Yes

Component Self-Test data

Yes

Ping and Self-Test of a component

Yes

Channel Status

Yes

Cluster Node Details and Short Log

No

Process in log

No

Ping of a channel

No

Changing Channel Control

No

Force Start or Force Stop of a Channel

No

Start and Stop of a Channel

Yes

Get message count

Yes

Restart, Error, and Schedule Message

Yes

Cancel, Error and Schedule Message

Yes

What does the status FORWARDED mean in PI Monitoring in SAP Solution Manager?

In SAP Solution Manager you find messages with the status FORWARDED. This status does not exist in the single systems on the PI domain. You want to know what it means.

As SAP Solution Manager collects information from all components in the PI domain in the Central PI Message Monitor, the message status overview is displayed for entire PI domain and not only for one component (as is would be in the traditional distributed PI monitoring approach). But this means, if you count successful messages, they are counted in each component and as a sum you will receive the number of successfully counted messages (All successful messages in all components, even if a message was successful in 2 components). This is not the total number of messages in the PI domain, it could be more.

To avoid this discrepancy, the status FORWARDED was introduced, locally on SAP Solution Manager only. This status means, a message was successful on one PI component, it was passed to another PI component, but it did not yet reach its ultimate target and passed the PI domain successfully. In the single components of the decentralized traditional PI monitoring this distinction is not necessary as you do not have an overall overview over messages in other components. In SAP Solution Manager this status was needed to mark a not-finished but so far successful PI message.

Miscellaneous

SAP Solution Manager 7.2 SP13 and higher

Key features in central Message Monitor:

  • One central Message Monitor for messages which running through the ABAP Server and/or ABAP Proxy
  • One central Message Monitor for messages which running through the Java Adapter Engine (Central and Decentral)
  • Alignment on message status groups between local and central Message Monitor (message status = SUCCESSFUL instead of FORWARDED)

SAP Solution Manager 7.2 SP12 and lower

Key features in central Message Monitor:

  • One unified central Message Monitor for messages which running through the ABAP Server and/or Java Adapter Engine (Central or Decentral)


Content Activation: Migration from 7.1 to 7.2

Symptom

This page describes the procedure to migrate Central Process Integration Monitoring from SAP Solution Manager 7.1 to SAP Solution Manager 7.2. It indicates the requisites, which elements are migrated and which not and the steps to achieve a successful migration.

Reproducing the Issue

During Central Process Integration Monitoring setup:

  1. SAP Solution Manager configuration.
  2. Application Operations.
  3. Integration Monitoring.
  4. Process Integration.
  5. Go to 2.6 Configure Automatically.

As indicated in the help text, you need to execute this step if you are planning for content activation for PI Monitoring and Message Flow Monitoring. For content activation, PI Monitoring and Message Flow (MF) Monitoring need to be already configured in 7.1.

IMPORTANT: You shouldn't perform this step, if you are planning to set up MF Monitoring and PI Monitoring for SAP Solution Manager 7.2 from scratch, just skip it. In case you execute the step without performing a migration (PI Monitoring setup from the scratch), you'll see the error “No PI Domains configured with SLD” in "Basic PI Configuration" automatic activity at step “2.6 Configure Automatically” in PI Monitoring setup. This error message is not relevant at all, just skip this step as indicated before.

Cause

Further information about Central Process Integration Monitoring migration.

Resolution

1. CONDITIONS

  • PI Monitoring migration from SAP Solution Manager 7.1 to 7.2: Automatic activities in step 2.6 "Configure Automatically" should only be done for those users planning for content activation for PI Monitoring and Message Flow Monitoring. For content activation, PI Monitoring and Message Flow (MF) Monitoring need to be already configured in 7.1.To know more about which information is or it is not migrated and the correct checks to perform a successful migration, please read the points 2, 3 and 4 below.
  • PI Monitoring setup in SAP Solution Manager 7.2 from the scratch:  In case you're planning to set up Message Flow Monitoring or Process Integration Monitoring for SAP Solution Manager 7.2 from the scratch, do not execute the automatic activities in step 2.6 "Configure Automatically", just skip this step.


2. INFORMATION MIGRATED

The following information is migrated when performing the automatic activities in step 2.6 "Configure Automatically":

A) Domain Maintenance.

B) All automatic activities in "Load Meta-Data" step.

C) All scheduled extractors (for "Channel Monitor" and "Message Overview Monitor").


3. INFORMATION NOT MIGRATED

The following information is not migrated when performing the automatic activities in step 2.6 "Configure Automatically":

A) Auto-reactions settings (auto-notification, incidents, third-party tools, etc.).

B) Changes done in the template (including the auto-reactions indicated in the previous point, data collection period, etc.).

C) Message Based Alerts (defined in "Message Alerting" step) which are not active.


4. CHECK TO DO FOR A SUCCESSFUL MIGRATION

Procedure to check if the correct SLD URL is introduced in "Configure Infrastructure":

A) Please go to transaction SE37 -> E2E_PI_DOMAIN_READER -> Execute (F8)

B) Execute (F8) again.

C) Click the icon showing the entries for the PI Domains.

D) The PI Domains with their SLD URLs are shown

E) Now go to "SLD Connections" (SAP Solution Manager Configuration -> Mandatory Configuration -> Infrastructure Preparation -> SLD Connections) and make sure that the PI SLD URL for your domain appears here and it's the same that the one appearing in D).

  • If the PI SLD is present there -> Proceed with the migration (Step 2.6 "Configure Automatically" in PI Monitoring setup).
  • If the PI SLD is not present ->  Create a new connection completing the wizard and introducing the URL displayed in D) (See pictures below) and proceed with the migration