sap-mobile

# SAP Mobile Development ## Related Skills - `sap-s4hana-extensibility` — Backend OData services consumed by mobile apps - `sap-security-authorization` — Mobile app authentication and security policies - `sap-build-apps` — Alternative low-code approach for mobile apps ## Quick Start **Choose your mobile framework:** | Framework | Language | Offline | Best For | |-----------|----------|---------|----------| | **MDK (Mobile Dev Kit)** | Metadata/JS | Built-in | Cross-platform business apps | | **BTP SDK for iOS** | Swift | Built-in | Native iOS enterprise apps | | **BTP SDK for Android** | Kotlin/Java | Built-in | Native Android enterprise apps | | **SAP Build Apps** | No-code | Manual | Simple apps, citizen developers | | **SAP Mobile Start** | Config only | N/A | Unified mobile launchpad | **MDK Quick Start:** 1. SAP Business Application Studio → MDK project from template 2. Define application → Pages → Actions → Rules → Services 3. Deploy to Mobile Services → Test with SAP Mobile Services Client ## Core Concepts ### SAP Mobile Services Central management platform for all SAP mobile apps: - **App Configuration** — Define app features, security, connectivity - **Push Notifications** — APNS (iOS), FCM (Android) integration - **Offline Store** — OData offline delta sync engine - **App Update** — OTA (over-the-air) updates without app store - **Usage Analytics** — User sessions, feature usage, crash reports - **Security Policies** — Passcode, biometrics, jailbreak detection ### Offline Architecture ``` Mobile App ──► Local SQLite DB ──► Offline OData Store │ [Sync Engine] │ SAP Mobile Services │ Backend OData Service ``` **Sync modes:** | Mode | Description | Use Case | |------|-------------|----------| | **Download** | Server → device | Initial load, refresh | | **Upload** | Device → server | Submit local changes | | **Delta sync** | Changed records only | Incremental updates | | **Defining requests** | Subset of data per entity | Control offline data scope | ### MDK Application Structure ``` MDKApp/ ├── Application.app # App-level config ├── Pages/ │ ├── Main.page # Landing page │ ├── CustomerList.page # List page │ └── CustomerDetail.page # Detail page ├── Actions/ │ ├── Service/ │ │ ├── InitializeOffline.action │ │ ├── SyncStartedMessage.action │ │ └── UploadOffline.action │ └── Customers/ │ ├── CreateCustomer.action │ └── UpdateCustomer.action ├── Rules/ │ ├── OnWillUpdate.js │ └── FormatAddress.js ├── Services/ │ └── MyODataService.service ├── Styles/ │ └── Styles.less └── i18n/ └── i18n.properties ``` ## Common Patterns ### Pattern 1: MDK List Page with Search ```json // Pages/CustomerList.page { "_Type": "Page", "_Name": "CustomerList", "Caption": "Customers", "Controls": [ { "_Type": "Control.Type.SectionedTable", "_Name": "CustomerTable", "Sections": [ { "_Type": "Section.Type.ObjectTable", "Target": { "EntitySet": "Customers", "Service": "/MDKApp/Services/MyODataService.service", "QueryOptions": "$orderby=CompanyName&$top=50" }, "ObjectCell": { "Title": "{CompanyName}", "Subhead": "{CustomerID}", "Description": "{City}, {Country}", "StatusText": "{ContactName}", "AccessoryType": "DisclosureIndicator", "OnPress": "/MDKApp/Actions/Customers/NavToDetail.action" }, "Search": { "Enabled": true, "Placeholder": "Search customers...", "BarcodeScanner": true }, "EmptySection": { "Caption": "No customers found" } } ] } ], "ToolBar": { "Items": [ { "_Type": "Control.Type.ToolbarItem", "_Name": "AddButton", "Caption": "Add", "SystemItem": "Add", "OnPress": "/MDKApp/Actions/Customers/NavToCreate.action" } ] } } ``` ### Pattern 2: Offline Initialization Action ```json // Actions/Service/InitializeOffline.action { "_Type": "Action.Type.ODataService.Initialize", "_Name": "InitializeOffline", "Service": "/MDKApp/Services/MyODataService.service", "ShowActivityIndicator": true, "OnSuccess": "/MDKApp/Actions/Service/InitializeOfflineSuccessMessage.action", "OnFailure": "/MDKApp/Actions/Service/InitializeOfflineFailureMessage.action", "DefiningRequests": [ { "Name": "CustomersReq", "Query": "/Customers", "AutomaticallyRetrievesStreams": false }, { "Name": "OrdersReq", "Query": "/Orders?$filter=OrderDate gt datetime'2026-01-01T00:00:00'", "AutomaticallyRetrievesStreams": false } ] } ``` ### Pattern 3: MDK Rule — Custom Validation ```javascript // Rules/ValidateCustomer.js /** * @param {IClientAPI} clientAPI * @returns {string} Empty string if valid, error message if invalid */ export default function ValidateCustomer(clientAPI) { const formProxy = clientAPI.getPageProxy().getControl('FormCellContainer'); const companyName = formProxy.getControl('CompanyName').getValue(); const email = formProxy.getControl('Email').getValue(); const phone = formProxy.getControl('Phone').getValue(); if (!companyName || companyName.trim().length < 2) { return 'Company name must be at least 2 characters'; } const emailRegex = /^[^\s@]+@[^\s@]+\.[^\s@]+$/; if (email && !emailRegex.test(email)) { return 'Invalid email address'; } if (phone && !/^\+?[\d\s-()]{7,15}$/.test(phone)) { return 'Invalid phone number'; } return ''; } ``` ### Pattern 4: Push Notification (iOS SDK — Swift) ```swift import SAPFoundation import SAPFiori import UserNotifications class PushNotificationManager { static func registerForPush(application: UIApplication) { UNUserNotificationCenter.current().requestAuthorization( options: [.alert, .badge, .sound] ) { granted, error in guard granted else { return } DispatchQueue.main.async { application.registerForRemoteNotifications() } } } static func sendTokenToMobileServices(deviceToken: Data) { let tokenString = deviceToken.map { String(format: "%02.2hhx", $0) }.joined() // Register with SAP Mobile Services let url = URL(string: "\(mobileServicesURL)/mobileservices/push/v1/register")! var request = URLRequest(url: url) request.httpMethod = "POST" request.setValue("application/json", forHTTPHeaderField: "Content-Type") request.httpBody = try? JSONSerialization.data(withJSONObject: [ "deviceToken": tokenString, "deviceType": "iOS", "applicationId": Bundle.main.bundleIdentifier ?? "" ]) URLSession.shared.dataTask(with: request).resume() } } ``` ### Pattern 5: Offline Sync with Conflict Resolution (Android SDK) ```kotlin import com.sap.cloud.mobile.odata.offline.* class OfflineSyncManager(private val offlineStore: OfflineODataProvider) { fun syncData(callback: SyncCallback) { // Upload local changes first offlineStore.upload( successHandler = { // Then download server changes offlineStore.download( successHandler = { callback.onSuccess() }, failureHandler = { error -> callback.onError("Download failed: ${error.message}") } ) }, failureHandler = { error -> if (error is OfflineODataException && error.errorCode == OfflineODataErrorCode.UPLOAD_CONFLICT) { handleConflict(error, callback) } else { callback.onError("Upload failed: ${error.message}") } } ) } private fun handleConflict(error: OfflineODataException, callback: SyncCallback) { val errorArchive = offlineStore.getErrorArchive() for (entry in errorArchive) { // Strategy: server wins (discard local change) entry.cancelUpload() // Alternative: client wins — entry.retryUpload() } // Retry sync after conflict resolution syncData(callback) } interface SyncCallback { fun onSuccess() fun onError(message: String) } } ``` ### Pattern 6: Mobile Security Configuration ```json // Mobile Services — App Security Config { "security": { "passcode": { "enabled": true, "minLength": 6, "hasDigit": true, "retryLimit": 5, "lockTimeout": 300, "biometricEnabled": true }, "certificatePinning": { "enabled": true, "pins": [ { "host": "*.hana.ondemand.com", "pins": ["sha256/AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA="] } ] }, "rootDetection": { "enabled": true, "action": "WARN" }, "dataProtection": { "encryptDatabase": true, "preventScreenCapture": true, "clipboardTimeout": 60 } } } ``` ## Error Catalog | Error | Message | Root Cause | Fix | |-------|---------|------------|-----| | `Offline init failed` | Cannot create offline store | Defining request error or backend down | Check OData service; validate defining request query | | `Upload conflict` | Entity modified on server | Concurrent edit during offline period | Implement conflict resolution (server/client wins) | | `Push: Token invalid` | APNS/FCM token rejected | App reinstalled or token expired | Re-register device token on app launch | | `Sync timeout` | Download timed out | Large dataset or slow network | Reduce defining request scope; increase timeout | | `Certificate error` | SSL handshake failed | Certificate pinning mismatch | Update pinned certificates; check cert rotation | | `Passcode locked` | Too many failed attempts | User exceeded retry limit | Admin reset via Mobile Services console | | `MDK deploy error` | Metadata upload failed | Invalid page/action JSON | Validate JSON syntax; check MDK version compatibility | | `OData 413` | Payload too large | Offline store sync payload exceeds limit | Split defining requests; limit data scope | ## Performance Tips 1. **Defining requests** — Scope offline data narrowly; don't sync entire entity sets 2. **Delta tokens** — Enable server-side delta tokens for incremental sync 3. **Image handling** — Download images on demand, not during sync; use thumbnail URLs 4. **Batch size** — Configure upload batch size (default 100); reduce for slow networks 5. **Sync frequency** — Don't auto-sync on every app resume; use manual or timed sync (every 15-30 min) 6. **MDK page loading** — Use lazy loading for detail pages; preload only list pages 7. **SQLite optimization** — Offline store uses SQLite; keep total offline data under 500 MB ## Gotchas - **MDK vs. native SDK**: MDK is cross-platform but less flexible; native SDKs offer full platform APIs - **Offline data scope**: Defining requests determine what's available offline — missing data = blank screens - **iOS enterprise distribution**: Apps need MDM or Apple Business Manager for enterprise deployment - **Mobile Services regions**: Ensure Mobile Services instance is in same BTP region as backend - **OData version**: Offline OData store supports V2 and V4; check backend service version - **App update strategy**: MDK supports OTA updates for metadata; native apps need app store updates