Validation and Substitution in Accounting Documents (SAP FICO)

  

6.11        Validation and Substitution in Accounting Documents

You can use validation to minimize errors in document entry because this calls for additional checks other than the system-built mandatory checks while posting a document. The substitution, on the other hand, enables the system to populate certain fields with the appropriate values (business area, cost center, etc.) based on pre-defined conditions in the system. In the following subsections, we will take a look at these two tools that can be configured for global use by the company codes for validation of accounting documents and substitution of field values.

6.11.1        Validation in Accounting Documents

Using validation, you can define additional checks for accounting documents to minimize the errors in data entry. Validations are defined at the company code level, and you can set them up at the document header and line-item levels. Once set, these validations are valid for both manual and automatic entries.

Case Study: Mercury

BS wants to have additional checks in place so that unrelated business areas are not keyed in by users during data entry. For example, in the case of company code BS11, the

valid business areas are only FIXT and SERV.

Define a validation by following these steps:

Use the menu path SAP Customizing Implementation Guide • Financial Accounting (New) • Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) • Tools • Validation/Substitution • Validation In Accounting Documents or Transaction OB28.

On the overview screen thus activated, click the New Entries button. On the resulting screen, enter the CoCod, and select 0002 (line item) under CallPnt  (call-up point). Now, double-click the newly created entry or select the item and click Validation under Environment on the menu bar.

Tips and Tricks

You can use the call-up point at the header level (0001), line item level (0002), or whole

document level (0003).

1. On the next screen, click the Validation button and enter a name (BS11), and a description. Press [Enter] and save.
2. On the create validation header screen, select the validation (BS11) thus createdand insert a step for validation by clicking the Step button. The system numbers this 001. You may enter a name for this.
3. Now, expand the step and click on Prerequisite. This brings up the Expert Mode with a white rectangle box at the top right, enabling you to enter a condition. You can now type the condition, for example, BKPF-BUKRS = ‘BS11’ (see Figure 6.24).

Figure 6.24  Case Study—Mercury: Expert Mode, Step 001

1. Click Check, and enter the details of the checks to be performed as shown in Figure 6.25 (in our case, the check is whether the entered business area is valid for the company code BS11).
2. Create and assign an appropriate message by double-clicking the Message button. We have created the message with message number 23.
3. Double-click Validation Step 001, and you can see the Prerequisite, Check, and Message sections, as shown in Figure 6.25.

Figure 6.25  Case Study—Mercury: Prerequisite, Check, and Message for Validation

Go back to the first validation overview (Change View • Validation of Accounting Documents • Overview) screen, enter BS11 in Validation field, against the company code (CoCd)/call-up point (CallPnt) combination row, and activate the same by selecting 1 (1 – active, 0 – inactive, and 3 – active, no batch input) in the Activtn level field. Save your work With this last step, we have created the necessary validation for BS11 for allowed business areas for that company code. You can now define other validations by following the steps detailed in this section.

While validation ensures that you can enter only the entries allowed for particular conditions, you can actually make a system to substitute with the necessary value for a field in accounting documents, based upon certain pre-defined conditions, by using substitution. Let’s move on to discuss the substitution now.

6.11.2        Substitution in Accounting Documents

Substitution helps to replace the field contents based on pre-defined conditions. As with validation, you can have them set up at the document-header and line-item levels, and they are valid for both manual and automatic entries. The procedure is the same as that for creating a validation.

Case Study: Mercury

BS wants to derive the value of Region from State for all US-based company codes.

You can define a substitution by following these steps:

1. Use the menu path SAP Customizing Implementation Guide • Financial Accounting (New) • Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) • Tools •

Validation/Substitution • Substitution In Accounting Documents or Transaction OBBH.

1. On the resulting overview screen, click the New Entries button. On the next screen, enter the CoCod, and then select 2 in CallPnt (call-up point). Now, select the newly created row on the initial overview screen, and click Substitution under Environment on the menu bar.
2. On the next screen (Change Substitution Overview), click the Substitution button and create a new substitution by entering a name in the Substitution field (REG_SUB), as well as a Description. Press [Enter] and then save.
3. Now, select the newly defined substitution under the Line items on the left pane and insert a new step (001). When you have completed the step definition, click Prerequisites and enter the details (actually, these are the pre-conditions) on the white window.
4. Save, and then click Substitutions (for Fulfilled Requirements) below the

Prerequisites.

1. On the resulting change substitution screen, enter the required values underthe Substitutions (if prerequisite is met) data block. When completed, you are looking at the screen shown in Figure 6.26, with the prerequisite and substitutions defined for the step 001.
2. Go back to the screen described in step 2 above and enter REG_SUB in the Subtitution field, against the company code (CoCd)/call-up point (CallPnt) row, and activate the same by selecting 1 in the Activtion level field. Save. You can use the same substitution rule for the other two company codes in the United States (BS12 and BS21).

Figure 6.26  Case Study—Mercury: Overview of Substitution REG_SUB

This completes our discussion on validation and substitution that you can employ for error-free and faster data entry in accounting documents. Let’s now move on to discuss how to archive accounting documents that are no longer required for online processing.