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The Sign-Off Table

Lesson 4 of 5

Assets migration

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Mapping decides where each capability goes. Asset migration decides which content travels with it. For Contoso, that means process documentation, test assets and change history. The principle that keeps this manageable: move what will be used on S/4HANA, archive what must be kept for audit, and leave the rest behind.

Selective Data Transfer

SAP's tool for content is Selective Data Transfer (SDT). SAP's learning content describes it as a one-time, selective migration, not a synchronization. It can carry process hierarchies, several library types, custom solution processes and diagrams, documents, and Focused Build test cases and test steps. Relationships between processes, activities, executables, documents and test steps are rebuilt in Cloud ALM using unique IDs during upload.

  1. ScopePick source branches, current content and the migration scope, guided by the transition roadmap
  2. ExtractRun the extraction in Solution Manager
  3. SimulateRun simulated uploads, find issues and fix them in the source
  4. UploadPerform the final upload into the Cloud ALM project
  5. ValidateCheck the result in Cloud ALM analytics and with process owners
SAP's Selective Data Transfer sequence.
The Sign-Off Table · thesignofftable.com/academy/sap-alm-302

Two warnings from SAP's material shape the plan. There is no rollback after an upload; you can only delete what was transferred. And SAP recommends starting with small proof-of-concept packages. Documents can be handled as links to an external document store or pushed to the SAP BTP document management service. Check the minimum Solution Manager support package and notes in the current SDT guide before scheduling the work.

Because an SDT upload cannot be rolled back, Contoso starts with a small package and simulates until clean before each real upload.
The Sign-Off Table · thesignofftable.com/academy/sap-alm-302
AssetTypical choiceWhy
Process hierarchy and current documents for processes that continueTransfer with SDT, or rebuild from SAP Best Practices contentUseful on S/4HANA if current and accurate
Outdated documentsLeave behind; archive if audit requiresMigrating stale content makes Cloud ALM look current when it is not
Focused Build test cases and stepsTransfer selectively, then reviewBusiness intent carries over; screens and apps often change
Test Suite run historyExport and archive for auditEvidence for past releases, not for S/4HANA testing
ChaRM change documents and approvalsArchive in place or exportNot migrated by SAP's tools
Monitoring configuration and historyRebuild in Cloud ALM operationsSAP: operations use cases are re-established, with no bulk migration
Asset-by-asset decisions in a Solution Manager to Cloud ALM transition.
The Sign-Off Table · thesignofftable.com/academy/sap-alm-302

Test assets: migrate intent, not steps

Contoso's 420 ECC regression test cases describe ECC transactions, custom screens and old output. After the conversion, many of those steps run through different apps, some custom transactions are retired, and credit management and the business partner work differently. Copying the steps would give Cloud ALM a regression pack that cannot be executed as written.

  • Keep the intent. For each high-value ECC scenario, keep the business objective, the data conditions and the expected outcome.
  • Rebuild against processes. Create the S/4HANA test case in Cloud ALM against the matching solution process, using the converted system's apps and transactions.
  • Reuse what SDT can carry. Where test cases came from Focused Build and the process is unchanged, transfer them and review step by step.
  • Archive history. Export ECC run results and defects for the retention period and store them where audit can find them.
Each ECC regression test keeps its business intent; only unchanged Focused Build tests travel with SDT, and everything else is rebuilt against S/4HANA processes.
The Sign-Off Table · thesignofftable.com/academy/sap-alm-302
Archive (Solution Manager, read-only until retired)ECC run history, ChaRM change records and approvals, old documents
Transfer (Selective Data Transfer)Current process hierarchy and documents for continuing processes; reviewed Focused Build test cases
Rebuild (Cloud ALM)S/4HANA regression test cases from ECC intent; monitoring use cases; feature-based change control
RetireDormant business process monitoring setup; unused reports and custom document types
Four destinations for Solution Manager content at Contoso.
The Sign-Off Table · thesignofftable.com/academy/sap-alm-302

Sequencing the migration

Asset moves should follow the capability plan, not run ahead of it. Contoso transfers process content into the program's Cloud ALM project after Explore, when the S/4HANA scope is stable. Test rebuilding runs during Realize so the regression pack is ready for the final SIT cycle. Archiving happens last, after ECC is retired and the audit team has confirmed the exports.

What would you do?

Sam suggests transferring all 1,100 ECC documents with Selective Data Transfer in one run "so nothing is lost". What should Priya recommend?

Key points
  • Selective Data Transfer is a one-time, selective migration with no rollback; start with small proof-of-concept packages.
  • SDT can move process hierarchies, libraries, custom processes, documents and Focused Build test cases and steps.
  • Migrate test intent and rebuild steps against S/4HANA processes; archive ECC run history for audit.
  • ChaRM records are archived, not migrated; monitoring is rebuilt, not migrated.

Check your understanding · not graded

Lesson check

  1. 1. How does SAP describe Selective Data Transfer?

  2. 2. What can you do if an SDT upload brought in the wrong content?

  3. 3. What should happen to ECC Test Suite run history?

  4. 4. Why not copy ECC test steps one-to-one into Cloud ALM?