Working with ALV lists

Many SAP GUI reports display their results in an ALV list (SAP List Viewer). Once you know ALV, you can work confidently in hundreds of reports, because they all share the same toolbar. ALV is the SAP GUI cousin of the Fiori list report from sap-fnd-103.

Selection screens first

Most reports start with a selection screen, where you restrict what the report reads: plant, material, date range, company code. Then you choose Execute (F8). For example, MB52 (warehouse stocks of material) asks for material, plant and storage location; Contoso’s Chicago warehouse lead enters plant 1720 and executes.

A good habit is to read the selection screen fully before executing. Many reports have more options than their first screen shows: expand hidden blocks, check the default values, and look for a field for the layout to use. Running a report with too broad a selection can take a long time and produce a list too large to check. Running it with too narrow a selection can make you miss the very documents you were meant to see.

The ALV toolbar

Function	What it does	Typical use
Sort ascending / descending	Orders the rows by the selected column	Largest stock values first
Set filter	Shows only rows meeting a condition	Only storage location 172A
Total (Σ)	Adds up a numeric column	Total stock value for the plant
Subtotals	Totals per group after sorting by a column	Value per storage location
Change layout	Choose, order and size columns	Hide columns you do not need
Select / save layout	Store and reuse column, sort, filter and total settings	A standard layout for monthly checks
Export	Save the list to a spreadsheet or local file	Supporting evidence or analysis

ALV functions common to most SAP GUI reports

Layouts

A layout (once called a display variant) stores how the list looks: which columns, their order and width, sort order, filters, totals and subtotals. When you save a layout you can usually choose whether it is user-specific (only you see it) or available to all users, and whether it is your default, loaded automatically when the report runs. Whether you may save shared layouts depends on your authorizations.

Selection variants

A layout controls the output. A selection variant controls the input: it saves the values on the selection screen. Fill in the fields, then choose Goto → Variants → Save as Variant (or the save icon) and give it a name and description. Next time, use Get Variant to load it. Variants can also use dynamic date calculations, so "current month" stays current.

Aspect	Selection variant	ALV layout
Controls	What data the report reads	How the result list looks
Saved from	The selection screen	The ALV result list
Contoso example	Plant 1720, storage locations, current month	Columns material, storage location, value; subtotal per storage location
Why it helps testing	Every tester reads the same data set	Every tester checks the same columns and totals

Two kinds of saved settings that make SAP GUI checks repeatable.

Used together, a selection variant and a layout turn a report into a repeatable check. A test step can say: "Run MB52 with variant UAT_1720 and layout /UAT_STOCK; confirm the total value for storage location 172A." Anyone can repeat it and should get the same answer from the same data.

A worked example

Start MB52, enter material CMC-ALT-100, plant 1720, and execute with F8.
In the result list, select the storage location column and sort ascending.
Select the stock value column and choose Total, then Subtotals to see value per storage location.
Choose Save Layout, name it for the test (for example /UAT_STOCK), and decide whether it is user-specific or shared.
Go back to the selection screen and save the selection as variant UAT_1720 with a clear description.

What would you do?

Contoso’s inventory controller asks three testers to confirm stock values for plant 1720 after a valuation change. Each tester gets a different total. What is the most likely cause, and fix?

Key points

Reports start with a selection screen; Execute is F8.
ALV toolbar: sort, filter, total, subtotal, change layout, save layout, export.
A selection variant saves input values; a layout saves how results look.
Shared variants and layouts make report checks repeatable test evidence.