abap-adt

ABAP ADT Skill

You can interact with SAP ABAP systems through the abap-adt CLI tool.

Security — Password Handling

NEVER print, echo, eval, or log passwords or encrypted credential blobs. You must:

• Never run echo $ADT_PASS, printenv ADT_PASS, or any command that would expose the password
• Never pass --password with an actual password value to any command
• Never read or display the encryptedPassword field from ~/.sap/adt-connection.json
• If authentication fails (401), ask the user to re-run abap-adt systems connect — do not attempt to read or display credentials yourself

Setup

Switching systems (recommended)

Use the systems commands to browse and connect to SAP systems from SAPUILandscape.xml:

abap-adt systems list
abap-adt systems search SBX
abap-adt systems connect SBX 100

The connect command stores the connection (encrypted) to ~/.sap/adt-connection.json. Multiple systems can be stored and switched between. No env vars needed after connecting (Windows).

Use --no-https to force HTTP.

Managing connections

abap-adt systems status                # show all stored connections + active details
abap-adt systems switch SBX            # switch active connection (partial match supported)
abap-adt systems switch DEV/800        # switch with exact key
abap-adt systems remove DEV/800        # remove a stored connection

Credentials

After systems connect, credentials are stored encrypted. No env vars needed for subsequent commands (Windows).

• ADT_PASS — only needed for the initial systems connect call, or as an override
• ADT_USER — optional override; defaults to stored user or OS username (uppercased)
• On non-Windows platforms, ADT_PASS must be set for every session

Environment variable overrides

Env vars override the connection file when set:

• ADT_URL, ADT_CLIENT, ADT_LANGUAGE, ADT_ALLOW_SELF_SIGNED, ADT_USER, ADT_PASS

CLI Invocation

After abap-adt systems connect ..., subsequent commands pick up the connection automatically:

abap-adt search "Z*"
abap-adt sql "SELECT * FROM T000"

First-time setup (if abap-adt command not found)

npm install -g @st-gr/abap-adt-skill

All commands support --json for machine-readable output.

Commands

search — Find ABAP objects

abap-adt search "Z*" --type CLAS/OC --max 20
abap-adt search "Z*" --type DEVC/K              # search packages
abap-adt search "CL_ADT*" --type CLAS/OC        # search standard classes

Returns: Name, Type, Package, Description, URI for each match.

structure — Object metadata

abap-adt structure /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class

Returns: Object name, type, description, source URI, class includes (for classes), links.

read — Read source code

abap-adt read /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class
abap-adt read /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --include definitions
abap-adt read /sap/bc/adt/programs/programs/zmy_report

If given an object URL (not a source URL), automatically resolves the source URI. For classes, use --include to read: main, definitions, implementations, testclasses.

write — Modify source code

abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --source-file /tmp/source.abap --transport NPLK900042

Handles the full lock-edit-save-unlock cycle automatically.

• Sets a stateful session
• Locks the object
• Writes the source from the file
• Unlocks the object
• If no transport specified and one is required, auto-selects or errors with available transports

Writing class includes (testclasses, definitions, implementations):

abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/includes/testclasses -s /tmp/tests.abap

For testclasses: automatically creates the include if it doesn't exist yet. The class must be activated before writing tests.

Important workflow: To modify ABAP source:

1. Read the current source with read
2. Write the modified source to a temp file using the Write tool
3. Use write to push it to SAP
4. Use activate to activate the object
5. Optionally run syntax-check to verify

create — Create new objects

abap-adt create class ZCL_NEW_CLASS --package ZPACKAGE --description "My new class" --transport NPLK900042
abap-adt create program ZNEW_REPORT --package $TMP --description "Test report"

Type aliases: program, class, interface, function-group, function-module, include, table, structure, cds, data-element, domain, package, message-class, service-definition, service-binding

After creation, write source code and activate.

delete — Delete an ABAP object

abap-adt delete /sap/bc/adt/programs/programs/zmy_report
abap-adt delete /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --transport NPLK900042

Handles the lock-delete-unlock cycle. Auto-selects transport if required and available.

activate — Activate objects

abap-adt activate ZCL_MY_CLASS /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class

inactive-objects — List inactive objects

abap-adt inactive-objects

transport — Transport management

abap-adt transport info /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class
abap-adt transport create /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --description "My changes" --devclass ZPACKAGE
abap-adt transport release NPLK900042
abap-adt transport list --user DEVELOPER
abap-adt transport delete NPLK900042

test — Run ABAP unit tests

abap-adt test /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class
abap-adt test /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --risk critical --duration long

Risk levels cascade up: --risk critical includes harmless+dangerous+critical. Duration cascades similarly.

syntax-check — Validate syntax

abap-adt syntax-check /sap/bc/adt/programs/programs/zmy_report --source-file /tmp/source.abap

Write the source to a temp file first, then pass the file path.

atc — Run ATC quality checks

abap-adt atc /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --variant DEFAULT

pretty-print — Format ABAP code

abap-adt pretty-print --source-file /tmp/source.abap
abap-adt pretty-print --source-file /tmp/source.abap --output /tmp/formatted.abap

table — Read database table

abap-adt table SFLIGHT --rows 10
abap-adt table HTTPURLLOC --rows 10
abap-adt table T000 --rows 50

The table command uses the ADT tableContents API. It returns columns and rows as structured data. Response format: { columns: [{name}], values: [{COL1: val, COL2: val, ...}] } Column names are always UPPERCASE. String values may have trailing spaces — always .trim() when comparing.

sql — Run SQL query

abap-adt sql "SELECT * FROM sflight WHERE carrid = 'LH'" --rows 50
abap-adt sql "SELECT * FROM T000" --rows 10

The sql command uses the ADT runQuery API. Same response format as table. Note: Some older systems may return HTTP 400 for SQL queries — use table as a fallback.

whereused — Find usage references

abap-adt whereused /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class
abap-adt whereused /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class --line 10 --column 5

Returns all objects that reference the given object (callers, includes, type usages).

classrun — Execute an ABAP class

abap-adt classrun ZCL_MY_RUNNER

Runs a class that implements IF_OO_ADT_CLASSRUN and returns its console output. Does not work with reports — only classes with IF_OO_ADT_CLASSRUN~MAIN.

users — List system users

abap-adt users

package — List package contents

abap-adt package $TMP
abap-adt package ZDEV

Lists all objects in a development package with type and name.

exec — Execute arbitrary ABAP code

abap-adt exec --code "out->write( 'hello world' )."
abap-adt exec --source-file /tmp/my_code.abap

Creates a temporary class implementing IF_OO_ADT_CLASSRUN in $TMP, writes the provided ABAP code into the MAIN method, activates, runs, prints output, and deletes the temp class. The code you provide is placed inside the method body — use out->write() for output.

definition — Go to definition

abap-adt definition /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main --line 10 --start-col 5 --end-col 15
abap-adt definition /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main --line 10 --start-col 5 --end-col 15 --implementation

Finds the definition (or implementation with --implementation) of a symbol at the given source position. Returns URI, line, and column of the target. Source is fetched from server automatically unless --source-file is provided.

classinfo — List class components

abap-adt classinfo /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class

Lists all class components (methods, attributes, types, events) with their visibility. Useful for understanding a class before reading its source.

completion — Code completion

abap-adt completion /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main -s /tmp/source.abap --line 10 --column 5

Returns code completion proposals at the given position. Requires a source file and the source URL.

quickfix — Fix proposals

abap-adt quickfix /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main -s /tmp/source.abap --line 10 --column 5
abap-adt quickfix /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main -s /tmp/source.abap --line 10 --column 5 --apply 0

Lists available quick fixes at a position. Use --apply <index> to retrieve the actual edits for a fix.

rename — Rename refactoring

abap-adt rename /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main --line 8 --start-col 14 --end-col 22 --new-name evaluate_number
abap-adt rename /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/source/main --line 8 --start-col 14 --end-col 22 --new-name evaluate_number --transport NPLK900042

Renames a symbol across all usages. Evaluates the rename, previews affected objects, then executes. Requires a transport for non-$TMP objects.

Useful SAP Tables

Table	Description	Key Fields
HTTPURLLOC	HTTP/HTTPS URL configuration	PROTOCOL, HOST, PORT
T000	SAP clients	MANDT, MTEXT
TDEVC	Development packages	DEVCLASS, DLVUNIT, PARENTCL
DD02L	Table directory (all tables)	TABNAME, TABCLASS, AS4LOCAL
TADIR	Object directory (all objects)	PGMID, OBJECT, OBJ_NAME, DEVCLASS
USR02	User master (logon data)	BNAME, USTYP
SFLIGHT	Flight demo data	CARRID, CONNID, FLDATE

debug — Debugger operations

# Start listening for a debuggee (blocks until breakpoint is hit)
abap-adt debug listen --mode user
# Attach to the debuggee
abap-adt debug attach <debuggeeId> --mode user
# Set breakpoints (URI with line: /sap/bc/adt/.../source/main#start=42)
abap-adt debug breakpoints "/sap/bc/adt/programs/programs/zmy_report/source/main#start=10"
# Step through code
abap-adt debug step stepOver
abap-adt debug step stepInto
abap-adt debug step stepReturn
abap-adt debug step stepContinue
# Inspect call stack
abap-adt debug stack
# Inspect variables
abap-adt debug variables SY-SUBRC LV_RESULT
abap-adt debug children @ROOT

systems — SAP system landscape

# List all SAPGUI systems from landscape file
abap-adt systems list
abap-adt systems list --urls              # include HTTP URLs in output
abap-adt systems list --landscape /path/to/file.xml

# Search systems by SID or name (case-insensitive)
abap-adt systems search S4
abap-adt systems search "solution manager"

# Connect to a system — saves connection to ~/.sap/adt-connection.json
abap-adt systems connect SBX 100
abap-adt systems connect SBX 100 --no-https --user DEVELOPER

# Show all stored connections and active connection details
abap-adt systems status

# Switch active connection (partial key match supported)
abap-adt systems switch SBX
abap-adt systems switch DEV/800

# Remove a stored connection
abap-adt systems remove DEV/800

The connect command auto-discovers HTTPS, stores credentials encrypted, and sets the connection as active. Use --no-https to force HTTP. If multiple landscape entries share the same SID, picks the first in non-interactive mode.

Key Workflows

Reading an ABAP object

1. Search: abap-adt search "ZCL_MY*" --type CLAS/OC
2. Get structure: abap-adt structure /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class (from search URI)
3. Read source: abap-adt read /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class

Modifying source code

1. abap-adt read /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class — get current source
2. Write modified source to a temp file (e.g., /tmp/abap_source.abap)
3. abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class -s /tmp/abap_source.abap -r NPLK900042
4. abap-adt activate ZCL_MY_CLASS /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class
5. Optionally abap-adt syntax-check and abap-adt test

Creating a new object

1. abap-adt create class ZCL_NEW --package ZDEV --description "Description" --transport NPLK900042
2. Write source to temp file
3. abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_new -s /tmp/source.abap -r NPLK900042
4. abap-adt activate ZCL_NEW /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_new

Adding unit tests to a class

1. Activate the class first — the testclasses include cannot be created on an inactive class
2. Write test source to a temp file (local test class with FOR TESTING)
3. abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_new/includes/testclasses -s /tmp/tests.abap (auto-creates the testclasses include if it doesn't exist)
4. abap-adt activate ZCL_NEW /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_new
5. abap-adt test /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_new

Querying data

Use table for simple full-table reads (more reliable), sql for filtered queries:

# Read all rows from a table
abap-adt table T000 --rows 50

# SQL with WHERE clause
abap-adt sql "SELECT DEVCLASS, DLVUNIT FROM TDEVC WHERE DEVCLASS LIKE 'Z%'" --rows 100

Tips:

• Column names in results are UPPERCASE
• String values may have trailing spaces — .trim() when comparing
• --rows limits the result set (default varies by command)
• If sql returns HTTP 400, fall back to table and filter client-side

Executing arbitrary ABAP

# Inline code (placed inside IF_OO_ADT_CLASSRUN~MAIN)
abap-adt exec --code "out->write( sy-datum )."

# From a file
abap-adt exec --source-file /tmp/my_logic.abap

The temp class is auto-cleaned up. Use out->write() for output.

Debugging

1. abap-adt debug listen --mode user (runs in background — blocks until breakpoint hit)
2. User triggers the ABAP program in SAP
3. When debuggee found, abap-adt debug attach <debuggeeId>
4. abap-adt debug stack to see where you are
5. abap-adt debug children @ROOT to see local variables
6. abap-adt debug step stepOver / abap-adt debug step stepInto to navigate
7. abap-adt debug step stepContinue or abap-adt debug step terminateDebuggee to end

Object Type Reference

Type	ID	Example URI pattern
Program	PROG/P	/sap/bc/adt/programs/programs/<name>
Class	CLAS/OC	/sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/<name>
Interface	INTF/OI	/sap/bc/adt/oo/interfaces/<name>
Function Group	FUGR/F	/sap/bc/adt/functions/groups/<name>
Function Module	FUGR/FF	/sap/bc/adt/functions/groups/<group>/fmodules/<name>
Table	TABL/DT	/sap/bc/adt/ddic/tables/<name>
CDS View	DDLS/DF	/sap/bc/adt/ddic/ddl/sources/<name>
Data Element	DTEL/DE	/sap/bc/adt/ddic/dataelements/<name>
Domain	DOMA/DD	/sap/bc/adt/ddic/domains/<name>
Package	DEVC/K	/sap/bc/adt/packages/<name>
Message Class	MSAG/N	/sap/bc/adt/messageclass/<name>

Practical Patterns & Gotchas

exec — Line Length and OO Context

The --code inline flag silently fails or errors if any single shell argument exceeds ~255 characters. For anything beyond a trivial one-liner, write the code to a file and use --source-file:

abap-adt exec --source-file /tmp/my_logic.abap

The exec context is an OO method body (IF_OO_ADT_CLASSRUN~MAIN). This means:

• Use out->write() for output, not WRITE statements
• No FORM/ENDFORM, REPORT, or START-OF-SELECTION
• IMPORT ... FROM DATABASE must use the OO form: IMPORT name TO var FROM DATABASE ... (the short form IMPORT var FROM DATABASE ... is not allowed in OO context)

Writing Classes — Combined Source Only

Always write the combined DEFINITION + IMPLEMENTATION as a single file to /source/main. Writing to /includes/definitions and /includes/implementations separately creates duplicate CLASS ... IMPLEMENTATION blocks and breaks activation.

# Correct — single combined file
abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class -s /tmp/combined.abap

# Wrong — causes activation error
abap-adt write /sap/bc/adt/oo/classes/zcl_my_class/includes/implementations -s /tmp/impl.abap

RFC Function Calls via exec

To call an RFC-enabled function module on a remote system from exec, use the DESTINATION addition. Parse the output by writing delimited lines with out->write():

DATA lv_msg TYPE c LENGTH 200.
CALL FUNCTION 'SOME_RFC_FM'
  DESTINATION 'RFC_DEST_NAME'
  EXPORTING  query_table = 'SOME_TABLE'
  TABLES     ...
  EXCEPTIONS
    system_failure        = 1 MESSAGE lv_msg
    communication_failure = 2 MESSAGE lv_msg
    OTHERS = 7.
out->write( |RC={ sy-subrc } MSG={ lv_msg }| ).

The MESSAGE addition on system_failure/communication_failure must use a fixed-length TYPE c field — TYPE string causes an activation error.

/BODS/RFC_READ_TABLE2 Conventions

This generic table-read FM is common on SAP systems with Data Services:

• WHERE clause uses SQL syntax (=), not ABAP keywords (EQ)
• NUMC fields require zero-padded values: REQUEST = '0000011333'
• Output table chosen by total row width (sum of field lengths): ≤128 → tblout128, ≤512 → tblout512, ≤2048 → tblout2048, ≤8192 → tblout8192, >8192 → tblout30000
• Output rows are raw concatenated field values in the order fields were requested; parse by computing byte offsets from field lengths
• Does NOT support a rowcount EXPORTING parameter — passing it causes RC=7 (OTHERS)
• A successful call (subrc=0) with zero rows means the query ran but found nothing — not an error

Reading ABAP Cluster Tables via RFC

ABAP cluster tables (like /RSC/T_BD_2S) store compressed internal tables that cannot be read directly via RFC_READ_TABLE. The round-trip approach:

1. Read the raw row (RELID, SRTFD, SRTF2, CLUSTR, CLUSTD) via RFC
2. Write the raw row locally with a different RELID (e.g. 'ZZ') as temporary storage
3. IMPORT var TO var FROM DATABASE table(ZZ) ID key to deserialize
4. Delete the temporary local row immediately
5. Process the resulting internal table

Date Formatting — User Locale

Use string template formatting to respect the logged-in user's date/time format (SY-DATFM):

" Locale-aware (respects user settings, e.g. MM/DD/YYYY)
DATA(lv_date_str) = |{ sy-datum DATE = USER }|.
DATA(lv_time_str) = |{ sy-uzeit TIME = USER }|.

" Hardcoded ISO (ignores locale — avoid unless specifically needed)
DATA(lv_iso) = |{ sy-datum+0(4) }-{ sy-datum+4(2) }-{ sy-datum+6(2) }|.

DDIC Object Creation

Some SAP systems restrict DDIC object creation (structures, table types, data elements, domains) via ADT. If abap-adt create structure or similar fails, the user may need to create DDIC objects manually via transaction SE11. The abap-adt sql command can query DDIC metadata (DD03L, DD02L, DD40L) to inspect existing structures:

abap-adt sql "SELECT FIELDNAME, DATATYPE, LENG FROM DD03L WHERE TABNAME = 'MY_STRUCT' AND AS4LOCAL = 'A' ORDER BY POSITION"

Error Handling

• 401/403: Authentication failed — check ADT_USER and ADT_PASS
• Lock conflict: Another user has the object locked — ask user to release or wait
• Transport required: Object is not in $TMP — a transport number must be provided
• Activation errors: Usually syntax errors — read the messages and fix the source
• Connection refused: Check ADT_URL and ensure the SAP system is reachable