What Is SAP Mobile Start?

[ThiloBerndt]

Let’s have a closer look at the key features, business benefits, and technical details of SAP’s new native entry point.  

Mobile is becoming the predominant workstyle across industries. Spanning all generations, professionals use their smart mobile devices to stay up to date, on top of business activities, and ahead of their competition by being able to take actions immediately on the go. In order to do so, business content and tasks need to be accessible easily and intuitively in one place – no matter where they are or what time of the day it is. The user experience needs to feel personal, relevant, and frictionless across all devices – just like you would expect it from using apps in your private life.

With SAP Mobile Start, we launch a new native mobile application for all SAP users that addresses those needs, tailored to your tasks and workstyle.

Let’s dive a little deeper into five of the features:

• Never miss a business critical situation: Native notifications and business widgets
  Be up to date on latest information from your business systems, to ensure that you do not miss any important task and to enable you to directly take action – anywhere and anytime. SAP Mobile Start supports you with native notifications and business widgets right on your phone’s home screen. You decide on how many and which widgets you prefer. SAP Mobile Start leverages the SAP BTP notification service (part of SAP Launchpad service) that can federate notifications from various solutions, so that they can be presented to you in one uniform list.


• Find your apps immediately: Native Device Search
  Instead of spending time on searching for the right app, SAP Mobile Start allows you to even search and open your native and web-based SAP apps directly through the native device search, such as the Apple Spotlight Search. It indexes your web-optimized apps and then leverages to device search capabilities.


• Get the app you need right away: Most important apps and content at your fingertips
  On the start screen, you can see your latest notifications, monitoring tile updates, and news feeds. SAP Mobile Start promotes apps that might be relevant for you, based on your usage patterns. The idea of this first screen is to provide you with the apps and content you require most, so that you have easy access to your most important business needs.


• Get all your business in your pocket: Application screen
  In case you need access to further apps, you get a full list of your apps on the application screen. This screen presents all your relevant native, but also web-optimized app like SAP Fiori apps, news feeds and web links to you. Also, apps from your app catalog can be searched and started right from the in-app search. This easy and performant access to mobile apps allows you to spend your time on getting your important work done in an efficient way, instead of spending time on searching for the right content. By providing relevant news feeds to you, your company can help you to stay up to date regarding your company, industry, or business domain.

Architecture wise, SAP Mobile Start leverages SAP Business Technology Platform services.

On the server-side SAP Mobile Start integrates with SAP Mobile Services, SAP Launchpad service, and SAP BTP notification service.

• SAP Mobile Services acts as the single https endpoint and is used as authentication and routing server.


• SAP Launchpad service is the strategic entry point for web-based applications provided by SAP's product technology stacks (SAP S/4HANA, SAP SuccessFactors, SAP Concur, etc.).


• SAP BTP notification service exposes enterprise notifications from SAP products like SAP S/4HANA on sites available via SAP Launchpad service.

SAP Mobile Start retrieves most required data from the SAP Launchpad service, like the federated business application metadata for the user, which contains all relevant information for the client, including the list of applications for the user.

Customer IT administrators can choose to either federate content from various backend or to create it manually in the SAP Launchpad service site manager. Native applications can easily be added and assigned to the relevant role. Content is presented in SAP Mobile Start with so-called tiles. A tile has as minimum a title but can also have subtitles, a count number, and an icon. SAP Mobile Start Version 1.0 supports basic launch tiles, monitoring tiles, news feed tiles and native tiles.

Finally, let’s have a quick look how you can get SAP Mobile Start. SAP Mobile Start is provisioned automatically with the SAP Launchpad service. All SAP Launchpad service customers can use SAP Mobile Start immediately as of now. With the SAP Mobile Start toggle in the SAP Launchpad service site manager, it can be disabled/ enabled. To onboard your mobile device to SAP Mobile Start, you just download the app from the Apple App Store and scan a registration barcode from your SAP Launchpad service settings and you will be guided through a simple three-step on boarding process what only should not take longer than a minute.

Integration of SAP Task Center

With Task Center integration in SAP Mobile Start the user will have access to all workflow tasks in one screen. Tasks can be processed with just one click and now the user no longer need to install numerous Inboxes from various applications. This will reduce the time spent by approvers and improve the approval time for critical items. By providing a dedicated screen to access the tasks and notifications, the user has one place to easily process all their “to-do”s.

My colleague Ivan Chaushev describes all details regarding SAP Task Center in his blog post.

 

Now, you can use SAP Mobile Start and enjoy the SAP’s universe on your mobile device.

SAP Mobile Start version 1.0 is available for iOS iPhone and iPad as of September 2021. An Android version is planned. You can download the app from the Apple App Store and explore it with the build-in demo mode.

Post your questions or feedback about SAP Mobile Start in the Q&A area. Start by visiting your SAP Mobile Applications community page and click “follow”. We’ll be publishing more informative blog posts. Want to be notified? Check your #communications to ensure you have your settings activated.

[jvanattenhoven]

Thanks for the information. Look very promising.

As a customer, do you need the SAP BTP Launchpad service, or can you also use SAP Mobile Start just with an on-premise FLP (S4).

[Murali_Shanmu]

Hi Jeroen, SAP Mobile Start requires subscription to SAP BTP Launchpad service. This is documented in the System Prerequisites of the SAP Help documentation.

[former_member767860]

Thanks Thilo. Wonderful information. I would like to know something about SAP Mobile Start funtionality that promotes apps that might be relevant, based on your usage patterns. In order to do that, machine learning is used? That is a services provided by SAP BTP?

 

Regards

Vero Valdes

[ThiloBerndt]

Dear Vero, thanks for your question and interest in SAP Mobile Start. The suggestions are done based on the usage behaviour of the user. We do capture tiles´ interactions and timestamp and a simple machine learning algorithm is applied. I hope I could answer your question. All the best, Thilo

 

[FelipeBorges]

Thanks Thilo, very interesting posting.

I would like to understand how SAP Partners can contribute to this new platform. Can we develop solutions and publish them as SAP Mobile Start app? Perhaps someone could describe a business case example, where an SAP partner creates a solution for a customer?

Felipe

[ThiloBerndt]

Dear Felipe,

thanks for your question on SAP Mobile Start. We do see several potentials for partners to contribute. SAP Mobile Start allows to launch customer and partner apps in a same way as SAP apps. Those can be native but also web-app.

Web apps that can be launched via an URL can be integrated, as well as UI5 apps. Native apps can be integrated easily with a schema or a deeplink, as described in the following blog: Adding native apps to your content.

This can be realised in a very easy way via the SAP Launchpad service configuration.

I hope i could answer your question. Happy to hear back from you.

Thanks and all the best,
Thilo

 

 

[sopiken]

Hi thilo.berndt ,

 

Thank you for your blog. Does SAP Mobile Start cater offline functionality of sapui5 mobile apps as well?

[shabeer_jameela]

Not sure what exactly you meant by "sapui5 mobile" app. SAP Mobile Start will simply launch a SAPUI5 app in safari view controller (in version 1 of the mobile app). The app should work the same way as it does in a safari browser. SAP Mobile Start doesn't provide any additional capabilities wrt offline for the sapui5 app; the app need to be self-relaint to do whatever it needs to do.

[ivan_chaushev]

Thanks for for great article Thilo. Looking forward to starting to use the app.

[former_member780999]

Hi!

Is going to be available for Android in the future? When?

thx!

[robert_wassermann]

Hello Vir,

Yes, absolutely!

We are planning to deliver the first SAP Mobile Start version for Android in H1 2022.

 

Best regards,
Robert

[ajaygupta]

Hello Robert,
we have planned a rollout of our SAP Mobile Start in H2 2022 for Android users.
Could you foresee any delays or we already have a beta version ready?
Thanks,
Ajay

[robert_wassermann]

Hello Ajay,

 

as per my earlier post, we are still planning to release the first SAP Mobile Start version for Android in H1 2022.

I hope this helps!

Feel free to reach out directly via email in case you would like to set up a call to discuss your concrete timeline and next steps.

 

Best regards
Robert

[ajaygupta]

Thank you Robert.


Regards,
Ajay

[ThiloBerndt]

Hi Ajay, All,

we have just launched our first SAP Mobile Start Android app and it is available in Google Playstore. Besides the Android app, we have included many new features like MDM support for both - the iOS and the Android app.

Please see the following two blogs for details: June 2022: SAP Mobile Start brings Android version and much more and SAP Mobile Start for Android is available today.

All the best, Thilo

[NagaPrakash]

Hi Murali,

The above link does not work.

[Murali_Shanmu]

Hi Naga, I have fixed the link. Please try now. Thanks

[xudonny]

May I ask if Mobile Start support the federated apps from business suite? Lauchpad service support content federation from Business Suite but I saw mobile start help doc doesn't list business suite. Thanks.

[ThiloBerndt]

Dear Donny,

thanks for your question. Yes, SAP Mobile Start is only release for S/4HANA and not for SAP Business Suite.

All the best,

Thilo

[cesar_gr]

Hi I have an S4HANA 2020 system and I configure my content provider to expose tiles over Central Launchpad to access from my Sap Mobile Start

In Central Fiori Launchpad over web browser I can access to WDA Tiles, UI5 native Tiles, GUI Tiles, but when I use Sap Mobile start to access my Cloud launchpad, I don't find GUI transactions, only find some UI5 native apps from each catalog and group.

Do you know if is there some restriction about access GUI tiles, from Sap Mobile Client?

There aren't errors, I see only a few tiles respect over total of tiles that I should see,

Regards!

[flpvanegas]

Hi Murali,

Does the customer who purchased S4Hana Cloud Public require an additional subscription?

[Murali_Shanmu]

SAP Mobile Start is included with the subscription for SAP Build Work Zone Standard Edition. Many of the RISE with SAP subscriptions also include the above services as part of the entitlements. I would request you to check the Supplement Guide in the Trust Center.

[Summitt12]

Great blog thilo.berndt

For Mobile start, it is mandatory to be on embeded FES or a Hub deployment is also supported

What would be the Mobile start Architecture for S4 customers with FES on hub deployment

Regards

 

Manish

 

 

[shabeer_jameela]

pre-requisites for SAP Mobile Start is mentioned in https://help.sap.com/docs/SAP_MOBILE_START/386859cc981742f3b6bb31f7e0d8a168/e5d7a82d035544b791e69c3d...

Why is 1) embedded FES and 2) SAP_GWFND - 754 SP06 relevant? These 2 are based on SAP S/4HANA's ability to send cloud notifications to SAP BTP (nothing to do with SAP Mobile Start). As per https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/3200288 Cloud Notifications functionality is available in Gateway Component: SAP_GWFND - 754 SP06.

In a hub set up the maximum version possible is NW 7.52 SP11 (which is well below the pre-req for cloud notifications) as per page 6 of https://www.sap.com/documents/2018/02/f0148939-f27c-0010-82c7-eda71af511fa.html

Other functionality like content federation etc should work even with a hub set up, but you will miss out on notifications on SAP Build Work Zone, standard edition site, in app notifications on SAP Mobile Start and native notifications on the device because of above SAP S/4HANA limitation with a hub set up.

 

[shabeer_jameela]

only the apps that are optimised for tablet or phone will show on the respective device when you access using SAP Mobile Start. If you check https://fioriappslibrary.hana.ondemand.com/sap/fix/externalViewer/#/detail/Apps('F3770')/S25OP as an example you will see that this app is optimised for

Device Type(s)

Desktop, Tablet

The same concept will apply for any custom apps as well.

1) It might be that the the apps you are interested in are only optimised for desktop. Check if this is the case; for e.g if its a standard webgui app, you can check in fiori apps library. if its a custom one the developer should know.

2) if you directly access the SAP Build Work Zone, standard edition site using a device browser (for e.g. Safari in an iPhone or Chrome in Android phone) do see the same tiles missing? That will also be another proof that they are not optimised for mobile (whether you use Safari, chrome or SAP Mobile Start)

[kevin_xu2]

Thanks for the sharing.

Does SAP have a low code tool to support the mobile app development in the SAP Mobile start?

[ThiloBerndt]

Hi Kai,

thanks for your question. You can use our intuitive development environment SAP Build (no-code) to provide additional apps and add those to SAP Mobile Start via the SAP Build Work Zone sitemanager configuration.

I hope this answers your question.

Thanks Thilo

[former_member227693]

Hi Thilo,

Hope you are well.

What's the relationship between SAP Mobile Start and SAP Mobile Services Client App - SAP Mobile Services Client on the App Store (apple.com)?

Thanks,

Gaurav