transport-release-gate

name

transport-release-gate

description

Run a quality gate over an SAP transport request before it is released — collect the TR's objects, check for inactive objects and foreign locks, run syntax checks, ATC, and unit tests, then produce a structured go/no-go report. Use whenever the user wants to release a transport, asks "is this TR safe to release?", mentions transport quality, release checklists, pre-release validation, or CI/CD for ABAP. Also applies when reviewing someone else's transport before import into QAS/PRD. The gate only reads and checks by default — the actual release stays a human decision unless the user explicitly asks to release.

Transport Release Gate

A pre-release quality gate for SAP transport requests, built from sap-adt-mcp tools. The philosophy: the gate decides "ready or not"; the human decides "release". Never call adt_release_transport unless the user explicitly asks for the release after seeing the report.

Prerequisites

• sap-adt-mcp ≥ 0.8.1 connected to the target system (adt_ping to verify).
• NetWeaver 7.50+ or S/4HANA recommended. The core flow (transport read, syntax check, ATC worklist) works on most 7.4x+ systems, but ATC worklist endpoints vary across releases — if adt_run_atc_transport fails, fall back to per-object adt_run_atc.
• ATC configured on the system: a check variant must exist. The tool uses the system default variant when none is passed; if the system has none, ask the user for a variant name (often DEFAULT or a Z variant).
• SAP user authorizations: display for repository objects (S_DEVELOP display), transport read (S_TRANSPRT), ATC execution. Release additionally needs transport release authorization — only relevant if the user requests it.
• Read-only mode is enough for ~90% of the gate: transport read, syntax check (/checkruns), and ATC (/atc/) are whitelisted read-only POSTs. Unit tests (adt_run_unit_tests) require write mode — in read-only mode, skip them and note that in the report. adt_release_transport obviously requires write mode too.

Workflow

Run the steps in order; collect findings as you go instead of stopping at the first problem — the report should show everything wrong at once.

1. Resolve the transport

adt_get_transport with the TR id. Verify it exists and is modifiable (already-released TRs can't be gated — say so and stop). Extract the object list. If the TR is empty, report "nothing to check" and stop.

2. Cheap structural checks first

• adt_list_inactive_objects — any object of this TR still inactive is an instant NO-GO (released TRs with inactive objects import broken).
• adt_list_locks — objects locked by other users/TRs indicate parallel work in flight; flag as a warning with the blocking TR if visible.
• Optionally adt_transport_diff against the target system (if a second system is configured) to preview what would change on import.

3. Syntax check

For each ABAP source object in the TR (programs, classes, function groups, includes): adt_syntax_check. For includes pass context (the main program) — without it the check returns notProcessed. Any syntax error is a NO-GO; warnings are findings.

4. ATC

adt_run_atc_transport with the TR id — one call covers every object. Use the priority histogram: priority 1 findings are NO-GO, priority 2 are NO-GO unless the user's organization tolerates them (ask once if unclear), priority 3 are listed as advisories. If the abap-clean-core skill is available, classify findings against the clean-core levels for richer framing.

5. Unit tests (write mode only)

For classes in the TR that have test classes: adt_run_unit_tests. Any failed assertion is a NO-GO. In read-only mode, skip and record "unit tests not run (read-only mode)" in the report — never silently omit.

6. The report

Produce a compact verdict block first, then details:

TRANSPORT GATE — E4DK900123 (system DEV)
Verdict: NO-GO  (2 blockers, 3 warnings)

Blockers
1. ZCL_INVOICE_POSTING — inactive object
2. ZSD_PRICING_UPD — ATC priority 1: SELECT in loop (CI_DYNPRO check)

Warnings
…

Checked: 14 objects | syntax 14/14 ok | ATC: 1×P1 2×P2 5×P3 | tests: 12 passed

End with next actions: what to fix for each blocker, and — only if the verdict is GO — offer the release: "Say 'release it' and I'll run adt_release_transport." On an explicit release request, run it, then verify with adt_get_transport that the status flipped to released.

Failure handling

• ATC endpoint shape varies by release — on persistent ATC errors, degrade to syntax-check-only mode and mark the report "ATC unavailable on this system".
• Never treat a tool error as a clean check: a check that errored is unknown, not passed. Show it in the report as such.