Lesson 1 of 5
Client administration
10 min
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Every client in an SAP system has a short list of settings that decide what may happen in it: whether anyone can change customizing, whether those changes are recorded in transports, whether cross-client objects can be touched, and whether the client may be overwritten by a client copy. These settings live in transaction SCC4 (Client Maintenance), in table T000. They are some of the most important controls a Basis administrator owns, because a wrong setting silently undermines both production integrity and test evidence.
Client role
The client role labels the client's purpose: Production, Test, Customizing, Demo, Training/Education or SAP Reference. Some functions behave differently depending on it. The role is a statement of intent that the other settings must back up: a client labeled Production that still allows changes is a finding waiting for an auditor.
Changes and transports for client-specific objects
| Option | What it means | Typical client |
|---|---|---|
| Changes without automatic recording | Customizing can change; nothing is recorded automatically, though manual transports are possible | Test, training or demo clients |
| Automatic recording of changes | Customizing can change and every change must go into a transport request | The customizing client in development (CMD) |
| No changes allowed | Customizing is locked; settings can still be exported manually | Production, and clients that must match production |
| Changes without automatic recording, no transports allowed | Changes allowed but can never leave the client | Sandboxes and pure test clients |
The four options for client-specific changes, as SAP training describes them.
Cross-client object changes
Repository objects (programs, dictionary objects) and cross-client customizing exist once per system, so a change made "in client 200" changes them for every client. SCC4 offers four levels: changes to repository and cross-client customizing allowed; no changes to cross-client customizing objects; no changes to repository objects; and no changes to either. The last one is right for every client except the development and customizing clients. A cross-client change is only possible if both SCC4 and the system change option in SE06 allow it (next lesson).
Protection against client copies
Protection level 1 (no overwriting) stops the client copy tools from overwriting the client. Protection level 2 (no overwriting, no external availability) also blocks read access from other clients during a copy or a customizing comparison. Production clients should be protected so that nobody accidentally copies a test client over them.
| Setting | CMD customizing client | CMQ test client 100 | CMP production client |
|---|---|---|---|
| Client role | Customizing | Test | Production |
| Client-specific changes | Automatic recording of changes | No changes allowed | No changes allowed |
| Cross-client changes | Repository and cross-client customizing allowed | No changes to repository and cross-client customizing | No changes to repository and cross-client customizing |
| Copy protection | As agreed | As agreed (often none, so it can be refreshed) | Protected against overwriting |
Restrictions and who may change SCC4
The restrictions group includes a setting that controls whether the test tools eCATT and CATT may run in the client. Automated tests that use eCATT in CMQ need it permitted there; in production it should stay blocked so that test scripts cannot post documents. Treat SCC4 itself as a protected function: only Basis should hold the authorization to change client settings, every change should go through the same approval as a production change, and the settings of every client should be checked on a schedule. A client is only as protected as the last person who opened it.
What would you do?
A consultant asks Sam to switch CMQ client 100 to "Changes without automatic recording" for a day so she can fix a pricing condition directly before Maria's acceptance test. What should Sam do?
- SCC4 controls client role, client-specific changes, cross-client changes, copy protection and restrictions.
- Production and test clients: no changes allowed, no cross-client changes.
- The customizing client in development records changes automatically.
- Protect production clients against being overwritten by client copies.
- Current settings (rates, periods) stay maintainable in a closed client.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. Which transaction maintains client settings?
2. Which client-specific change option suits the customizing client in development?
3. What does protection level 1 do?
4. Why can Dan open posting periods in a closed production client?