1. Is Rev-Trac integration with SAP certified.
Rev-Trac 5.0 was awarded SAP Certified Integration as ABAP add-on on October 20, 2003.
2. What hardware / Software dependencies does Rev-Trac have?
None: Rev-Trac lives in SAP and so all needs in this regard are already met by the fact that you have a fully functional SAP environment. We have been extremely careful to ensure that Rev-Trac can function in any environment supported by SAP.
3. Does Rev-Trac consume a lot of resource?
No, the system normally consumes very little disk space (Rev-Trac data is stored in SAP tables) the users are normally using SAP already and are simply change transactions.
4. We have an SAP I.S. (Industry solution). Will Rev-Trac be affected?
SAP I.S. are enhancements to SAP applications and do not change SAP's technical infrastructure, so no issues are expected.
5. Do you need different versions of Rev-Trac for different SAP versions?
No, the system will sense which version of SAP it is in and behave accordingly; we have users, which control landscapes with multiple SAP versions.
6. How is security handled?
SAP passwords, new authorizations, profiles and named users.
7. Do the users have to log on to the Rev-Trac control instance?
No, you can set up Rev-Trac's DSS (Dynamic System Switch) which allows the transparent use of the product in a different system.
8. How easy is it to implement Rev-Trac?
Most sites are able to install Rev-Trac, enable full system monitoring and run the history load in one day. It normally takes a company 2-3 weeks to decide on which processes they will use - and a day to configure a proto-type.
9. What about training?
End-user training is 1-2 hours, whilst one to one hands on training is generally less than 30 minutes.
10. Managing at transport level is painful. Does Rev-Trac assist?
Rev-Trac manages at issue (request) level, all transports are automatically linked to this, sequences and dependencies are noted. When approval is given the entire solution is moved.
11. Do I have to manage all work through one process?
No, Rev-Trac allows as many different processes as you require. These are then invoked by the classification of the project and type of change required; different classes (eg: emergency) of requests can then "tune" the process further.
12. How does Rev-Trac "Enforce" the process?
The system becomes the only "normal" user to create transports; this means Rev-Trac can ensure things like specifications are completed or budgets approved before the transport is created (or a change made). Rev-Trac can police what's put into the transport and because the transport is migrated by Rev-Trac, it can ensure testing signoffs etc...
13. We are aware that transports may contain objects such as profiles, number ranges etc… which either should not be migrated, or should get special approval, can Rev-Trac handle this?
Yes, Rev-Trac examines the contents of transports and can route them via specific processes, which may include special approvers. For example the web team need to approve changes to these 7 tables.
14. Do we have to create the request first, and then do the change?
No, you can create the request whilst changing SAP without changing transaction; the Rev-Trac screens are interlinked with the SAP ones. Some Rev-Trac users pre-load issues into Rev-Trac to assist in managing workload/forecasting etc…
15. How versatile is the approver selection?
Extremely, the system links steps in your self defined processes to approvers by organizational structures, and/or logic is then applied, names can be pulled from other sources and even user-exit logic can be overlaid.
16. Communication is a real problem in our distributed environment, how can Rev-Trac alleviate this?
Rev-Trac is designed to bring full transparency to the changes occurring across projects and teams; users can see the "absolute" state of the project based on real activity. Rev-Trac high level management reporting gives extensive information on the state of play. Workflow to approvers will notify of actions to be done, and FYI (For your information) messaging will keep others in the loop.
17. How does Rev-Trac send workflow?
Rev-Trac sends Popup messages within SAP, these messages can be clicked on to enable access and approvals etc.. Messages with html content can be emailed via the SAPoffice gateway.
18. What email systems are supported?
Rev-Trac uses the SAPoffice gateway to send email; subsequently we support any that can link to SAPoffice.
19. Does Rev-Trac store documentation?
Yes, any attachment you could add to an email could be added to a Rev-Trac request, this is encouraged to centralize important information. Attachments are highly compressed before storage in SAP tables.
20. Can we use Rev-Trac to manage manual processes?
Yes, Rev-Trac is used to manage processes that don't require changes to SAP; you can also use it to manage oracle, Unix or legacy systems.
21. Sometimes people change an object without knowing it's being tested in the test system, this causes a lot of problems; can Rev-Trac help here?
Yes, Rev-Trac is able to lock objects to a full development cycle (not just a system as in standard SAP), these locks can be held across several development systems.
22. We have problems with overtaking transports. Can Rev-Trac help?
Yes, Rev-Trac uses O.O.P.S. (Overtake & Overwrite Protection System) which checks the sequence of transports going to a destination, it does this by looking for related transports with common components to the one being sent.
23. I hear Rev-Trac can report on where transports are across the landscape - how does this work?
Monitors run in each of your systems, policing and housekeeping the imports into every client, whenever you run a Rev-Trac report it polls all the systems to get real-time information which can be reported via a selection of reports (eg: chronologically, comparison etc...)
24. What about client copies, client deletions and system restores?
Rev-Trac automatically reacts to this information and adjusts the housekeeping data accordingly.
25. How can Rev-Trac check the consistency of the landscape?
Rev-Trac has information on what should be, it also has information on what is. Reports are produced to tell you any discrepancies.
26. We periodically replace Test with a copy of production, this causes some issues - can Rev-Trac help?
Rev-Trac knows what should be in test and will tell you what was removed. An array of reports also allows comparisons between old and new.
27. We have several landscapes, how can we handle this?
Rev-Trac is able to control several landscapes from a central Rev-Trac system; you can also control landscapes autonomously if required.
28. We have many systems and clients - can Rev-Trac handle this?
Yes, Rev-Trac is designed to push different types of work into different sets of destinations (eg: for different projects etc…)
29. How does Rev-Trac perform transports?
Via integration with TMS and TP, Rev-Trac will attempt to do the transports associated with a request (or a full queue) and will request assistance via workflow if bad return codes are intercepted.
30. Can the transports be scheduled?
Yes, Rev-Trac has a comprehensive mechanism for scheduling transports at different times and schedules; immediate imports are also supported.
31. I know Rev-Trac will help us keep a consistent environment in the future, but we have problems now, we need to audit our system and check the integrity of our clients.
Rev-Trac has a "History Load" program that takes information from your transport logs; overlays it with client copy and system activity information and loads it into the Rev-Trac housekeeping tables for immediate analysis.
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