Upport Downport Overview (UDO) tool

SAP as any other software vendor needs to support its software thru its whole lifecycle. This involves also providing code changes introduced in higher-level releases to lower ones. Process like that is so called downporting. There can be a e.g. legal reasons for that.

Downporting is the process of porting an application or software component from a higher version of a platform to a lower version of the same platform. Similarly, there is an opposite process called upporting. It involves porting of software from lower to higher version.

In a world of SAP software, downporting and upporting is done using the UDO tool which simplifies the process of by generating a report which will be saved in the system in the normal deliverable package and be shipped in a SAP note.

The UDO tool is continuation of other tools like Correction Workbench (t-code SCWB), ABAP Split Screen Editor (t-code SE39), Version Management (dev pack SVRS), Note Assistant (t-code SNOTE) etc. It compares active version of the ABAP object in remote system (system that has the feature implemented) with version in the local SAP system (system where the feature is to be implemented aka downported). Then it collects DDIC changes, documentation changes and it prepares a new ABAP program. The ABAP program is usually called UDO_NOTE_X or in BW area RS_UDO_NOTE_X, where X stands for SAP Note number e.g. RS_UDO_NOTE_2367512. The report is called UDO report. The UDO report is published in specific SAP Note on SAP ONE Support portal and it can be downloaded from there. When the UDO report is executed (e.g. in customer system) it takes care of the DDICs and documentation and creates and activates them in the target system.

If there would not be the UDO tool in place all of these activities would need to take place manually. Of course, no one wants to do this job. On one hand, responsible developer may forget to write down all the steps needed. On the other hand, person who is implementing those steps manually may forgot to perform few of them. Therefore, a need to automate such activities is it is obvious.

Technically the UDO tool is implemented by ABAP program called SAP_LOCAL_DOWNPORT_ASSISTANT associated with t-code UDO and it is a part of SAP Software Logistics Toolset.