Query Designer

Query Designer, as the name suggests, is an application within SAP BW which allows us to create new queries or display/ change existing ones. It can be launched by trying to change a query in BEX analyzer or by a separate link in the SAP GUI menu. The options in query designer has changed quite a bit between BW 3.5 and BI 7. However the essential functionality remains the same. Lets start our discussion by displaying a query in the BW 3.5 designer.

The leftmost bar displays a list of InfoObjects, both characteristics and keyfigures, which are defined for the InfoProvider. The rest of the Designer display the different design areas in the query. Thus we have separate areas for filters, free characteristics, rows and columns. The bottom right area gives a pre-view of the query output. This is how the result from the query will look like once its executed through Bex. We now selectively drag InfoObjects into the different areas of the query depending on our reporting needs. In general, characteristics appear as filter criteria, free characteristics or rows while keyfigures appear as columns. Characteristics also should be restricted to particular values as otherwise all data for them will be pulled into the query result and result in long execution times for the query. Characteristics can be restricted to actual values or to input variables which prompt user for values during query execution. In the displayed query, the filter criteria calendar year/month is restricted to Aug, 2010 while material is restricted to an input variable. We also have an option of using authorization variables, where an input variable is automatically filled by the authorized values for the executing user.

Query Designer also allows the use of calculated key figures, restricted key figures and provides many different options for controlling the display of the InfoObjects. We would not get into these details as our intention is only to concentrate on the security aspects of query design. We end our brief introduction to Query Designer by opening the same query opened in Query Designer for BI 7.Though the look and feel, and certainly the features, is different it has the same basic areas. The difference which is readily observed is a separate tab to contain all the filter criteria. One important factor to note, is while queries designed in the old designer can be opened in the new version, the reverse is not true.