Build SAP Ariba Procurement-Connected Web Apps in Servoy

Servoy is a rapid application development and deployment platform. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for SAP Ariba Procurement, users can build SAP Ariba Procurement-connected apps that work with live SAP Ariba Procurement data. This article describes how to connect to SAP Ariba Procurement from Servoy and build a simple web app to display and search SAP Ariba Procurement data.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live SAP Ariba Procurement data. When you issue complex SQL queries to SAP Ariba Procurement, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to SAP Ariba Procurement and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations client-side (often SQL functions and JOIN operations). Its built-in dynamic metadata querying lets you work with SAP Ariba Procurement data using native data types.

Connect to SAP Ariba Procurement in Servoy Developer

To build SAP Ariba Procurement-connected apps, you need to first create a data provider in Servoy Developer using the CData JDBC Driver for SAP Ariba Procurement.

1. Install the JDBC Driver.
2. Copy the JDBC Driver JAR file. (cdata.jdbc.saparibaprocurement.jar) to the /application_server/drivers/ directory in the installation directory for Servoy.
3. Open Servoy Developer.
4. In the Solution Explorer, right-click Database Server (under Resources) and choose "Connect to existing database" -> "empty."
   1. Name the server.
   2. Click to show the advanced server settings.

      • Set the URL, for example: jdbc:saparibaprocurement:ANID=AN02000000280;API=PurchaseOrdersBuyerAPI-V1;APIKey=wWVLn7WTAXrIRMAzZ6VnuEj7Ekot5jnU;AuthScheme=OAuthClient;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;

        Built-In Connection String Designer

        For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the SAP Ariba Procurement JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

        				java -jar cdata.jdbc.saparibaprocurement.jar
        				

        Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

        In order to connect with SAP Ariba Procurement, set the following:

        • ANID: Your Ariba Network ID.
        • ANID: Specify which API you would like the provider to retrieve SAP Ariba data from. Select the Buyer or Supplier API based on your business role (possible values are PurchaseOrdersBuyerAPIV1 or PurchaseOrdersSupplierAPIV1).
        • Environment: Indicate whether you are connecting to a test or production environment (possible values are TEST or PRODUCTION).

        Authenticating with OAuth

        After setting connection properties, you need to configure OAuth connectivity to authenticate.

        • Set AuthScheme to OAuthClient.
        • Register an application with the service to obtain the APIKey, OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret.

          For more information on creating an OAuth application, refer to the Help documentation.

        Automatic OAuth

        After setting the following, you are ready to connect:

        APIKey: The Application key in your app settings. OAuthClientId: The OAuth Client Id in your app settings. OAuthClientSecret: The OAuth Secret in your app settings.

        When you connect, the provider automatically completes the OAuth process:

        1. The provider obtains an access token from SAP Ariba and uses it to request data.
        2. The provider refreshes the access token automatically when it expires.
        3. The OAuth values are saved in memory relative to the location specified in OAuthSettingsLocation.
        👁 Using the built-in connection string designer to generate a JDBC URL (Salesforce is shown.)
        
      • Select the Driver class you just copied, for example, cdata.jdbc.saparibaprocurement.SAPAribaProcurementDriver
   👁 Connecting to data through the JDBC Driver (Salesforce is shown).
   

Build a SAP Ariba Procurement-Connected Web App

Once you have configured the connection to SAP Ariba Procurement in the Servoy Developer resources, you are ready to build apps with access to live SAP Ariba Procurement data.

Create a New Solution

1. In the Server Explorer, right-click "All solutions" and select "Create new solution."
2. Name the solution.
3. Select the checkbox to include the "search" module.
4. Click "Finish."

Create a New Form

Right-click "Forms" and select "Create new form."

1. Name the form.
2. Select a Datasource.
3. Set the type (e.g., Simple) and click "Finish."

Add a Data Grid to the Form

1. Drag a Data Grid component (from Servoy NG-Grids) onto the form.

2. Drag a column component onto the Data Grid and set the "dataprovider" property for each column component to a column from the SAP Ariba Procurement "table" (e.g., DocumentNumber from the Orders table).

   Continue adding columns as desired.

Add Searching to the App

Note that the "svySearch" extension is required to add search functionality (included by default when you create a new solution). If you did not add the extension when you created the solution or you are modifying an existing solution, you can add the search module by right-clicking Modules (in the solution) and selecting "Add Module." Select "svySearch" and click "OK."

1. Drag a Text Field component onto the Form.
2. Right-click the Form and select "Open in Script Editor."
3. Create a new variable (JavaScript) to hold the search value:

   var searchText = '';
   

4. Back on the Form, in the Text Field properties:
   1. Set the "dataprovider" property to the Form variable you just created.
   2. Double-click to add a method for the onAction event.
   3. Click to create the method in "Form," name the method (e.g., onEnter), and click "Create private."
   4. Click "OK & Show."
5. Add the following JavaScript to the JavaScript file to use the Servoy framework to implement searching bound data based on the text in the Text Field:

   var search = scopes.svySearch.createSimpleSearch(foundset).setSearchText(searchText);
   search.setSearchAllColumns();
   search.loadRecords(foundset);
   

Save and Launch the App

Save the form and JavaScript file, then click Run -> Launch NGClient to start the web app.

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for SAP Ariba Procurement and start building SAP Ariba Procurement-connected apps with Servoy. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.