SAP Automation with UiPath RPA (Full Tutorial)

Introduction

In this tutorial, we will learn how to automate the process of creating a purchase order in SAP using UiPath, a leading RPA (Robotic Process Automation) tool. This guide will walk you through the steps to set up automation from scratch, enabling you to streamline your SAP tasks effectively.

Step 1: Enable SAP GUI Scripting

• Open SAP and navigate to the options menu.
• Select Accessibility & Scripting.
• Check the box for Enable scripting.
• Ensure that scripting is enabled on both the server and client sides to allow UiPath to interact with SAP.

Step 2: Create UiPath Studio Project

• Open UiPath Studio.
• Click on New Project.
• Choose Process and provide a name for your project (e.g., "SAP Purchase Order Automation").
• Click Create to start with a blank canvas.

Step 3: Start SAP Logon

• Add an Open Application activity from the Activities panel.
• Configure it to open the SAP Logon application.
• Use the Attach Window activity to ensure your automation interacts with the SAP Logon window.

Step 4: SAP Login

• Use Type Into activities to input your SAP credentials:
  • Username
  • Password
• Add a Click activity to select the Logon button.

Step 5: Call Transaction or Program

• Use the Type Into activity to enter the transaction code for creating a purchase order (e.g., ME21N).
• Add a Send Hotkey activity to press Enter and navigate to the purchase order creation screen.

Step 6: Iterate Each Excel Row

• Use the Excel Application Scope to open the Excel file containing purchase order data.
• Add a Read Range activity to read data from the Excel sheet.
• Use a For Each Row activity to iterate through each row of the data.

Step 7: Fill the Vendor

• Inside the loop, use the Type Into activity to fill in the vendor information from the Excel row.
• Make sure the selector is correctly identifying the input field for the vendor.

Step 8: Fill SAP Table

• Continue using Type Into and Select Item activities to fill in other necessary fields in the SAP purchase order form based on the Excel data.

Step 9: Fix Selector

• If the automation fails due to selector issues, use the UI Explorer tool in UiPath to adjust the selectors.
• Ensure that the selectors are stable and can consistently identify the SAP fields.

Step 10: Create Purchase Order

• Add a Click activity for the Save button in SAP to finalize the purchase order creation.

Step 11: Extract Purchase Order Code

• Use the Get Text activity to capture the purchase order code generated by SAP after saving.
• Store this value in a variable for later use.

Step 12: Write Purchase Order Code into Excel

• Use the Write Cell activity to write the extracted purchase order code back into the Excel file.
• Specify the correct cell location to save the data.

Step 13: Run Automation

• Save your project.
• Click on Run to execute the automation.
• Monitor the process to ensure everything runs smoothly and the purchase orders are created as expected.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we covered the essential steps to automate the creation of a purchase order in SAP using UiPath. By enabling SAP GUI scripting, setting up the UiPath project, and executing the automation workflow, you can significantly reduce manual effort and increase efficiency in your SAP processes.

Next steps may include exploring advanced functionalities in UiPath or integrating additional SAP transactions into your automation workflows.