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ABAP Spreadsheet Importer (backend)

A reusable, server-side ABAP RAP component that imports Excel (.xlsx) and CSV files into a consuming RAP business object via dynamic EML — the ABAP counterpart to the UI5 Spreadsheet Importer. Parsing and inserting happen in the backend (offloading the browser for large files), and because inserts go through EML the consuming BO's determinations, validations and authorizations all run — unlike a raw DB insert.

Early version — experimental

This component is at an early, experimental stage (0.x). The public API (ZCL_SSI_* / ZIF_SSI_* and the option/result types) can still change between releases — pin to a tag and check the public API contract before upgrading.

Commercial component

The ABAP importer is a commercial component; its source repositories are private. These docs describe how to integrate and use it. Contact the maintainers for licensing.

What you get

  • Generic create — point it at a RAP BO by name; flat active create needs zero per-BO code (payload built at runtime via RTTC).
  • XLSX + CSV parsing (XCO for xlsx; an RFC‑4180 state machine for CSV — ;/, auto‑detect, quoted fields, UTF‑8 BOM, configurable header row).
  • DDIC‑aware coercion — dates, EU/US decimals, NUMC zero‑pad (+ reject), ALPHA key conversion, amounts/quantities with currency symbols and grouping, booleans.
  • Per‑row results — created keys + messages with real severity and the offending field.
  • Synchronous import (frontend waits, one OData call); an optional async/queue transport ships as a separate package for very large files.
  • Generated typed adapters for draft / deep / upsert targets where the generic path can't reach.
  • Developer extension hooks (ZIF_SSI_HOOKS) — inject custom logic (validate/filter rows, override a cell's conversion, mutate the payload, reshape/observe messages) without forking.

Requirements

  • S/4HANA 2023 (SAP_BASIS 758) or higher, or SAP BTP ABAP Environment / S/4HANA Cloud.
  • Developed in the ABAP for Cloud Development language version (clean core), so one codebase runs on on‑prem and Cloud.
  • Your import target is a RAP business object (managed or unmanaged) that is EML‑create‑enabled.
  • abapGit (ADT plugin) to install the component.

Install (abapGit)

  1. In your system, open abapGit → New Online → the component's repository URL.
  2. Assign a package (objects use the ZSSI_ prefix).
  3. Pull, and activate.

Quick start

DATA(result) = zcl_ssi_import=>import_file(
  iv_content = lv_xstring          " the raw .xlsx / .csv bytes
  is_options = VALUE #( entity_name = 'ZMY_ROOT_ENTITY' ) ).
" result-created / result-failed / result-keys / result-messages

The facade never raises — parse/insert problems come back as messages in result.

Where to next

  • Integration Guide — install, connect your target BO (zero‑code generic vs. generated adapter), frontend config, results, and the processing model.
  • Fiori Elements & file upload — add an "upload & import" action to your BO and surface it in a Fiori Elements app (with the metadata extension).
  • Options & data types — the full ts_options, the end‑user data rules, and amounts/quantities parsing.
  • Extension hooks — inject validate / filter / coerce / observe logic without forking.
  • Template download — give users a CREATE template that re‑imports zero‑config.
  • Troubleshooting & limits — symptom → cause → fix, and the current limits.
  • Public API contract — the stable public surface, the exception taxonomy, and the stability/deprecation policy.
  • Usage cookbook — a copy‑pasteable snippet + expected output for every public API, each proven by an ABAP Unit test.