SAP Glossary of Terms and
Concepts
ABAP (Advanced Business
Application Programming)
ABAP is the programming
language in which the SAP
R/3 application is written.
Account Assignment
Category The account
assignment category
determines which account
assignment data (for example,
cost center, account center)
are required for an item.
Accounting Document An
accounting document is
identified by a unique
document number and fiscal
year.
Account Group
Classification feature that
identifies how accounts are
processed.
Active Line Items Line
items whose net value adds
into the overall net value of
the sales document.
Additional Practice
Exercises Hands-on
exercises that reinforce skills
learned during the training
session.
Availability Check
Indicator code identifying
whether or how the system
checks material availability.
Backward Scheduling The
process of calculating
sequential dates for a series of
activities backward from the
finish date of the last activity.
Base Unit of Measure Unit
of measure in which the stock
of a material is kept. The
system converts all quantities
entered in other units into the
base unit of measure.
Billing Block Code used to
block a sales document from
the billing cycle.
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Bill of Exchange A
document which promises to
pay a certain amount of
money (to or by Company X)
on a certain date for a specific
business transaction
performed.
Bill of Material (BOM) A
listing of all the parts that
comprise a parent assembly
showing the quantity of each
needed.
Bill-to Partner Person or
company who receives the
invoice for a delivery or
service. The bill-to partner is
not necessarily the payer who
settles the bill.
Blocked Stocked Items
that are in the possession of,
and belong to, the company
but should not be used until
released from this status.
Financial documents are
created.
Business Area Code
identifying the organizational
unit within the company for
which balance sheets and
income statements are
prepared.
Case Material It is the
combination of a purchase
order number plus the
sequence case number.
Characteristics Term used
to describe the features of a
material.
Chart of Accounts
Organized list of all general
ledger account master records
that exist for one or more
company codes.
Class A method of grouping
together characteristics to
define the features of a
material.
Clearing Accounts
Account to which temporary
entries are posted. Clearing
accounts are auxiliary
accounts that are set up for
accounting reasons and
always cleared.
Client The highest level in
SAP R/3 that represents a
group or corporate identity
and under which the SAP
system runs normal business.
CO Controlling. A module in
SAP that is used to conduct
financial analysis and then
carry out management
decisions.
Company Code The central
organization unit within SAP
used in financial accounting.
It is the level at which
accounting balances are kept
independently and creates the
legally required balance sheet
and the profit and loss
statement.
Concept Slides Training
document that provides end-
user with the overall concept
of SAP and its relation to their
specific business area.
Includes process flows, key
changes and key concepts of
the new business process.
Condition Data element
used to define discounts,
surcharges, taxes, and output.
Condition Type (CnTy)
Code identifying the type of
condition record (e.g. a
discount).
Configuring Involves
changing table settings within
SAP to ensure that the client’s
business needs can be
accommodated.
Configurable Materials
Materials for which the user
selects among characteristics
and values during processing.
For example, during sales
order processing, the user can
“configure” a material
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 SAP Glossary of Terms and
selecting the appropriate
features of the product.
Confirmation Control Key
Indicator used to control order
confirmations or shipping
notifications.
Contract Billing A gradual
process of billing a customer
for merchandise.
Cost Center Place in which
costs are incurred. A unit
within a company
distinguished by area of
responsibility, location, or
accounting method.
Defaults Pre-set values that
SAP automatically uses unless
the user enters different
values.
Deliveries The process of
issuing goods from the
warehouse.
Delivery Block Code used
to block a sales document
from the delivery cycle.
Delivery Due List Work list
which serves as a basis for
creating deliveries. The
delivery due list is made up of
all sales orders and scheduling
agreements that are due for
delivery within a specific
period.
Delivery Schedule Plan
that details the specific date,
time, and quantity of the
delivery of the materials.
Demonstration Instructor-
led demonstration of an SAP
transaction.
Distribution Channel
Organizational unit that
determines how a sales
material reaches the customer.
At Company X, the
distribution channels include
XXX, XXX, XXX, XXX, and
XXX.
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Concepts
Division Organizational unit
set up to supervise the
Exchange Rate
distribution and monitor the
Relationship between two
profitability of a particular
currencies. This rate is used
sales material; for example:
to translate an amount into
“OI-XXX”, “02-XXX.”
another currency.
Document Flow
FI The financial module of the
Representation in the system
SAP system.
of all documents related to a
particular business Field A defined area of an
transaction. SAP screen where you can
enter or review specific
Down Payment Payment
information. Fields are
for a product or service not
grouped together to form
yet supplied or performed.
records.
Down payments must be
reported in the balance sheets Function Key A key that
separately from other can have a specific action
receivables or payables. associated to it. On the
keyboard function keys are
Down Payment Request
usually labeled F1, F2 and so
Request for a down payment
on.
to be made on a particular
date. Down payment requests Goods Issue Goods
are stored separately in the movement where material is
system. shipped to the customer,
scrapped, converted to
Drill Down An interactive
available stock from an asset
function in SAP reporting that
(consumption), or returned to
allows the user to obtain
the vendor.
increasingly more specific
information. Goods Movement An
activity that results in a
Drop Ship Orders which are
change in stock. Goods
shipped to an address other
movement are divided into:
than the customer’s default
Goods Receipt, Transfer
ship-to address.
Postings and Goods Issue.
Dunning Area
Goods Receipt Receipt of
Organizational unit within a
goods into the warehouse.
company code used for
dunning purposes. The GR Blocked Items that are
dunning area can be defined in the possession of, and
as a division, a distribution belong to, the company but
channel, a sales organization, should not be used until
or a profit center. released from this status.
Financial documents are NOT
EDI Electronic Data
created.
Interchange. Means of
exchanging data between Header Pricing Pricing that
different computers and applies to every line item of
companies on the global the sales document.
network. It is a standardized
IM Inventory Management
interface for receiving and
(IM) is concerned with the
acknowledging customers
flow of materials within
orders, sending bills and
paying invoices.
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 SAP Glossary of Terms and
Company X. IM is part of the
MM module.
IMG On-line implementation
guide. It contains step-by-
step information about how to
configure the SAP-system and
is the means for documenting
table changes.
Incompletion Log List that
includes all information that is
missing in a sales document.
Information Record A
sales information record is
used to store customer-
specific sales and delivery
data (e.g., specific delivery
data and tolerances). A
purchasing information record
stores vendor-specific
information about a material.
Intercompany posting
Posting involving more than
one company code. The
system generates a document
for each company code
involved.
Inventory Allocation The
process by which inventory is
allocated to fill a customer’s
sales order. Inventory maybe
allocated by the SAP system
or manually from any
warehouse.
Item Category A
classification that
distinguishes between
different line items and
determines how the system
will process them.
Key Combinations Used to
identify the criteria for
applying pricing conditions.
Key Figures Breakdown of
information presented as
values that can be used in
formulas when creating
reports.
Legacy System Systems
that are replaced by SAP at
the time of implementation.
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Concepts
Line Item Part of a document
which includes details of a
transaction, such as an
amount, an account number,
whether the item is a debit or
credit, and other information,
depending on the transaction.
Line Item Pricing Pricing
condition that affects one
particular line of sales
document and its sub-items.
MM Material Management. A
module within the SAP
system dealing with all
materials management aspects
of the SAP implementation
(e.g., Inventory Management,
Purchasing).
Material Pricing Group An
indicator on the Material
Master to segregate materials
into special groups for pricing
and financial purposes.
Company X is using it to
identify service materials for
unique discount logic in
combination with key
combination rules.
Master Data Data relating to
individual objects that
remains unchanged for a long
period time. An example
would be an employee name
or number. This differs from
transactional data, which
could be the date an entry was
made or the user ID of the
person who made it.
Matchcode An index key
attached to data used to
perform quick interactive
searches.
Material Document
Describes a goods movement
from the inventory view.
Each material document is
identified by its unique
document number and
document year.
Material Master Record
(MMR) The main record for a
material used at Company X.
The material master record
contains the name,
identification code, and
business-related information
for a material. This basic data
is set up once and reused
throughout the system.
Material Type An indicator
that subdivides materials into
groups, such as raw materials,
semi-finished materials, and
operating supplies. Material
type determines the user
screen sequence, the
numbering in the material
master records, the type of
inventory management, and
the account determination for
a material.
Menu Bar Contains the
current menus available such
as Logistics and Environment.
Menus that appear in the
menu bar change depending
on which application and task
you are using.
Menu Path Series of pull-
down menus that are used to
access a SAP transaction.
Movement Type A three-
digit code used to differentiate
stock movements.
Movement Type Reversal
For every movement type
(odd number) there is an
associated reversing
movement type (even
number). The reversing
movement type is used to
correct processing errors.
MRO Purchasing
Maintenance Repair Operative
Supplies. Ppurchased items
(asset and cost center items)
that are not received into
inventory. The material is
debited directly to the
consumption point.
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 SAP Glossary of Terms and
MRP Profile Code used to
store material requirements
planning (MRP) parameters.
Non-cased Materials Uses
predefined warehouse bin
numbers. Used for items
other than equipment.
Order Type Code
identifying the type of sales
document being processed.
Partner Type of customer
(sold-to, ship-to, bill-to, pay-
to), or type of supplier
(primary, remit-to, goods).
Payer Person or company
that pays the bill for goods or
services rendered. The payer
is not necessarily the bill-to
partner.
P&L Profit and Loss
statement.
Pop-up Window (Dialog
Box) A window displayed on
top of the active window.
You must select a response
from the pop-up windows
before you can return to the
underlying window.
Posting Key Code
identifying the type of
accounting entry. Posting
keys specify the account type,
debit or credit posting and
layout of entry screens.
Posting Period Division of
the fiscal year that is open for
posting entries. Each period
is closed out at the end.
Price Condition Pricing
(automatic and manual)
element that represents a
discount, surcharge, or tax.
Prospect Partner who has
not placed an order with
Company X.
Quick Reference Guide
Document that contains quick
information about SAP that
the users can reference in their
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Concepts
everyday interaction with the
system.
Reports A snapshot of the
business data at a specific
point in time.
Report Characteristics
The elements in information
structures that are used to sort
information in a report.
Return Authorization A
sales document that authorizes
a customer to return items.
SAP Systems, Applications,
and Products. The company
that manufactures the
client/server software used at
Company X.
SAP R/3 The client/server
version of the SAP
application.
Sales Order Stock Stock
that is allocated to a sales
order.
Sales Organization
Organizational unit that is
responsible for distributing
materials and services, and
negotiating sales conditions.
The sales organization at
Company X is “0100-
Company X.”
Script Step-by-step
procedures for executing a
transaction in SAP.
SD Sales & Distribution. A
module within the SAP
system used to process sales
and distribution related
business transactions (e.g.,
quotes, orders, deliveries,
bills).
Session An additional SAP
R/3 window you can open.
When you log into the R/3
system, the system opens a
window, or session, in which
you begin your work. This is
one session and you can open
up to nine sessions.
Settlement of Expenses
A financial event when
expenses identified to sales
order line items are matched
against those items to deliver
sales order profitability
analysis.
Shipping Notification
Notice that materials are in
transport.
Ship-to Partner Person or
company that receives goods.
The ship-to partner is not
necessarily the sold-to, bill-to,
or payer partner.
Sold-to Partner Person or
company that places an order
for goods and services (except
leasing companies). The sold-
to partner can also perform the
functions of the payer, bill-to,
or ship-to partner.
Source List A list that
specifies the allowed and
disallowed sources of supply
for a material.
Standard Analysis Sales
information system report.
Information structures,
statistical in nature with drill-
down functionality.
Statistical Line Items Line
items whose net value does
not add into the overall net
value of a sales document.
These are displayed for
information purposes only.
Storage Bins A storage bin
represents an area within a
specific Storage Section.
Storage Location A place
where materials are stored. A
storage location can be real or
logical. Goods receipts are
processed by receiving goods
into one of these locations.
There are two Storage
Locations used at Company
X: 0006 - Company X
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 SAP Glossary of Terms and
Distribution Center; and, 0098
Customs Clearing.
Storage Sections
Represent physical locations
within the warehouse.
Storage Types Used to
represent physical (or logical)
storage areas/locations within
the warehouse.
Structured Conditions
Defines whether a pricing
condition can be
automatically allocated down
to sub-items when entered on
a main item. Only percent
discounts can be defined as
structured.
Tax Code Two digit code
telling SAP whether and how
to calculate tax on an account.
Third Party Drop
Shipments Third party drop
ships occurs for certain XXX
and “non-installation”
(equipment with short time
installation) orders. Goods
receipt processing is not
required.
Tracking Number A unique
number that enables the user
to group
requisition/purchasing
documents.
Transaction Code A four-
character code that represents
a specific task. You can use a
transaction code instead of
menus to go to the first screen
of a task.
Transfer Order A
warehouse management
document that indicates the
quantity, material number and
storage bin to which a
material should be moved.
Transfer Posting A general
term for stock transfers and
changes in stock category of a
material. Physical movement
may or may not be involved.
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Concepts
The process that does not “warehouse” in XXX: 006 -
involve physical movement of Company X United States.
stock is referred to as a
WM Warehouse Management.
“Logical Transfer Posting.”
A module within SAP that
Transfer Requirement A supports the processing of all
warehouse management relevant movement of goods.
document used to plan goods
Workflow Module that
movements. The transfer
automated certain business
requirement contains
processes according to
information regarding
predefined procedures and
quantity of a material to
rules. As events occur that
transfer and the reason for
trigger a process, a workflow
transfer.
item is initiated.
Unrestricted Use Stock
Work Instruction An
Stock that is available for
instructional document which
goods issue.
contains step-by-step
Valuation Class Code procedures for performing
identifying the general ledger system transactions.
account assigned to the
material.
Valuation Date Date on
which materials and internal
and external activities are
evaluated for cost.
Valuation Type Identifies
whether selections should be
greater than, less than or equal
to a specified value.
Variant A group of selection
criteria that have been saved
in the system. It is used in
reporting to obtain desired
information.
Vendor Master Record
Record of all information that
is required to process business
transactions with the vendor.
Volume Rebate Group An
indicator on the Material
Master record used to segregate
materials for special purposes.
Company X is using it to
identify XXX materials for
unique discount logic in
combination with key
combination rules.
Warehouse Encompasses all
storage areas within Company
X. There is only one
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 SAP Glossary of Terms and
Concepts

Control Menu Title Bar Menu Bar

Standard Toolbar Minimize Button

Command Field

Application Toolbar Maximize/Restore Button

Close Button

Work Area

Status Bar

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