Operation
What is it?
Enterprise Manager includes job subtype definitions for the SAP Business Objects Scheduler. You can access the job subtype by selecting the SAP Business Objects job subtype from the list shown when the Windows Job Type is selected.
The SAP Business Objects Connector does not create job definitions in the SAP Business Objects database. It only references existing reports.
Defining a SAP Business Objects job
The SAP Business Objects Connector currently supports a single START job type that you can select.
To open the SAP Business Objects Definition screen, complete the following steps:
- Create or open a job in Enterprise Manager.
- Select a Job Type of Windows.
- Select a Job Sub-Type of SAP Business Objects.
The SAP Business Objects Definition screen appears.
The job definition consists of two areas:
- A General Definition area required by all jobs.
- A type-specific area that depends on the selected job type.
General Definition fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Connector Path | Required. The installed location of the connector. This should not be changed; the location should be defined in the SAPBOPath property. If more than one SAP Business Objects Connector is installed on the same system, define a new global property and update the entry in this field. |
| Function | Required. The function to run. Currently only a START function is available. The selected function determines which TABs are available for additional information. |
| User Name | Required. The name of a SAP Business Objects user that has the required privileges to run the job. |
| User Password | Required. The password of the defined user. Use encrypted global properties for the password — the value is decrypted by the Windows Agent. |
| CMS Authentication | Required. The authentication mode associated with the user defined in the User Name field. Select a value from the list that matches your installation: Enterprise, LDAP, WinAD, or SAPR3. |
START job fields
The START job type schedules a report within the SAP Business Objects environment. When the START job type is selected, the Start and Failure Criteria TABs are available for defining additional information, with the Start TAB displayed.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Report Type | Required. The type of Business Objects report to schedule. Select CrystalReport, WebIntelligence, or Publication from the list. |
| Report ID | Required. The ID of the Business Objects report to schedule. You can extract this information from the Business Objects system by examining the properties of the report on the Business Objects system. |
The Report Attributes, Report Prompts, and Report Destinations TABs are only supported for Web Intelligence reports.
Report Attributes
The Report Attributes TAB defines attributes that are passed to the report. Attributes are entered as name/value pairs.
To manage attributes:
| Action | Steps |
|---|---|
| Add | Enter the attribute name in the Attribute field and the attribute value in the Value field, then select the Add button. |
| Modify | Select the attribute in the table — the entry is displayed in the Attribute and Value fields. Modify the value, then select the Update button. |
| Remove | Select the attribute in the table — the entry is displayed in the Attribute and Value fields. Select the Remove button. |
Special attributes
Two special attributes can be used to define the title of the report and the format of the report:
- SCHEDULE-TITLE — Free format title. If omitted, a title consisting of the report ID and a date timestamp is used (for example,
7793_201512011535). - SCHEDULE-FORMAT — Output format (
webi,pdf,xls, orcsv). If omitted, the default value defined in theConnector.configfile is used.
Report Prompts
The Report Prompts TAB submits a response to a prompt when a report is scheduled. Each entry consists of the message associated with the prompt and the value to be submitted. You can define multiple prompts for a schedule.
Prompt types can be character, integer, or date/time values. The values are passed as strings in the XML submitted to the web service, and the web service converts them to the appropriate format.
To manage prompts:
| Action | Steps |
|---|---|
| Add | Start typing in the Prompt field, enter the message and value pairs, then select the Add button. |
| Modify | Select the prompt in the Prompt list — the entry is displayed in the Prompt field. Modify the value, then select the Update button. |
| Remove | Select the prompt in the Prompt list — the entry is displayed in the Prompt field. Select the Remove button. |
Multiple values for one prompt
You can enter more than one value for a prompt by separating the values with a semicolon. For example, to add a second Category value to the Enter values for Category: prompt:
- Prompt:
Enter values for Category: - Value:
Evening Wear;Jackets
Example:
Enter values for Lines: Dresses
Enter values for Category: Evening Wear;Jackets
Report Destinations
The Report Destinations TAB defines destinations for the report. The destinations override the default values associated with the report. Destinations are entered as type/value pairs using a destination type identifier and the value.
Report Destinations supports the following destination types:
- DiskUnmanaged — A directory on disk
- FTP — An FTP server defined in
Connector.config - Managed (Inbox) — A Business Objects user inbox
- SMTP — An SMTP server defined in
Connector.config
DiskUnmanaged
The DiskUnmanaged TAB defines disk directories for the report.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Directory | The directory where the report is placed (for example, c:\temp). |
FTP
The Ftp TAB defines FTP destinations. The FTP definitions are used in conjunction with a defined FTP server in the Connector.config file.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Indicator | An FTP destination identifier. The value FTP1 is matched with the value of an FTP Server definition in the Connector.config file (for example, [FTP1]). The values associated with the FTP1 definition in Connector.config are used to define the FTP Server. |
| Directory | The directory where the generated file is placed on the FTP server. |
Managed (Inbox)
The Managed (Inbox) TAB defines SAP Business Objects users that receive a copy of the report in their mailbox.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Selected Users | The list of users that receive the report. See the procedures below to add, modify, or remove a user. |
To manage Selected Users:
| Action | Steps |
|---|---|
| Add | Enter the user ID number in the Users field, then select the Add button. |
| Modify | Select the user in the Selected Users list — the user appears in the Users field. Modify the value, then select the Update button. |
| Remove | Select the user in the Selected Users list — the user appears in the Users field. Select the Remove button. |
The web services interface does not currently provide the capability to use a name instead of the user ID.
SMTP
The Smtp TAB defines SMTP destinations. Unlike the Ftp TAB, the SMTP definition does not reference Connector.config — the subject, message and addresses you enter here are passed to SAP Business Objects, which sends the mail using its own configured mail settings.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Subject | Required. The information placed in the subject field of the email message. See the caution below. |
| Message | A message added to the email message body. If no message is submitted, the default value Created by OpCon from SMA Solutions is used. |
| Email Addresses | The list of email addresses that receive the report. See the procedures below to add, modify, or remove an address. |
Complete the Subject field. If you leave it empty, the whole mail destination is discarded before the report is scheduled — the job completes successfully and no email is sent, with nothing reported to indicate it.
To manage Email Addresses:
| Action | Steps |
|---|---|
| Add | Enter the email address in the Email Address field, then select the Add button. |
| Modify | Select the address in the Email Address list — the address appears in the Email Address field. Modify the value, then select the Update button. |
| Remove | Select the address in the Email Address list — the address appears in the Email Address field. Select the Remove button. |
Job-finished processing
The START job type requires a Failure Criteria definition.
The connector returns the HTTP status code that the SAP Business Objects RESTful web service produced. Two codes indicate success, and the Failure Criteria has to accept both:
| Code | Status | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 200 | FINISHED_OK | The report was successfully scheduled. |
| 201 | FINISHED_OK | The report was successfully scheduled. A schedule request normally returns this code. |
| 1 | ERRORED | The connector could not process its job definition, or stopped on an unhandled error. No request reached Business Objects. |
Do not set the Failure Criteria to NE (Not Equal) to 200 on its own. A schedule request normally returns 201, so a single not-equal-to-200 test fails jobs that succeeded.
Use the Failure Criteria TAB to define criteria that treat both 200 and 201 as successful. The TAB accepts more than one condition for this purpose.
Other return codes
Because the return code is the web service's HTTP status, any error the web service reports arrives in OpCon as that status. The codes you are most likely to meet are:
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 401 | The User Name, User Password or CMS Authentication value was rejected. |
| 403 | The user was authenticated but is not permitted to schedule the report. |
| 404 | No report exists with the given Report ID. |
| 500 | The Business Objects server reported an internal error. Check the connector log and the Business Objects server log. |
A returned code from SAP Business Objects of warning is logged and mapped to an ERRORED condition.
Logging
The connector writes log files containing information about the connector and any jobs it runs, including error messages and return codes.
- Location: installation_dir\log
- Active file:
sapbo.log - Rolled files: a subdirectory named for the month, with the date and an index in the file name — for example
log\\2026-09\\sapbo_2026-09-17.0.log - Behavior: A new file starts each day, and the index increments when a file reaches 100 MB.
Rolled log files are retained indefinitely. The log directory grows until you remove old files, so include it in whatever disk monitoring you apply to the connector host.
FAQs
Q: Does the SAPBO Connector create new reports in SAP Business Objects? A: No. The connector schedules reports that already exist in the SAP Business Objects environment. It does not create job definitions in the SAP Business Objects database.
Q: Which Business Objects report types are supported? A: Crystal Reports, Web Intelligence and Publications. In the Report Type list these appear as CrystalReport, WebIntelligence and Publication.
Q: Which job types support Report Attributes, Report Prompts, and Report Destinations? A: These TABs are only supported for Web Intelligence reports.
Q: How do I check that a job finished successfully? A: Codes 200 and 201 both mean the report was scheduled, and a schedule request normally returns 201. Define the Failure Criteria so that both are treated as successful — a single NE 200 test fails successful jobs.
Q: Where do connector log files live?
A: The active file is installation_dir\log\sapbo.log. Older files are rolled into month-named subdirectories beneath log, and they are retained indefinitely.
Glossary
CMS Authentication — The authentication mode associated with the SAP Business Objects user. Valid values are Enterprise, LDAP, WinAD, and SAPR3.
Failure Criteria — The OpCon job setting that determines what return code(s) cause a job to be considered failed. For SAPBO START jobs, set this to NE 200 to detect a successful initiation.
Report ID — The Business Objects identifier for a report, found by examining the properties of the report on the Business Objects system.
SCHEDULE-FORMAT — A special attribute that overrides the default report output format (
webi,xls, orcsv).
SCHEDULE-TITLE — A special attribute that sets a free-format title for the scheduled report. If omitted, a title consisting of the report ID and a date timestamp is used.
START — The SAPBO Connector function that schedules a Business Objects report. The connector initiates the task and does not wait for task completion.