Unique technical identifier to prevent duplicates being sent to SAP
As part of the project to address the issue of duplicate IDOCs when sending them to SAP via Talend, we developed an innovative approach based on two complementary strategies: creating a unique technical identifier for each IDOC and embedding it in the ARCKEY field of the EDI_DC40 segment in the IDOCs.
Creating a unique technical identifier: Each row in the source files is associated with a generated technical identifier stored in a dedicated table. During file processing, this identifier is used to check whether a corresponding IDOC has already been sent. This verification is performed before sending the IDOC to SAP to ensure that only unique IDOCs are transmitted, even in cases of recovery after a failure. The table is updated after each successful transfer to maintain traceability and prevent duplicates in future processing. This mechanism provides an automated and sustainable solution, suitable for handling large volumes of IDOCs.
Embedding the identifier in SAP: To ensure continuity of traceability on the SAP side, we utilized the ARCKEY field, which is common to all IDOC architectures. This unused field was selected to transmit the technical identifier generated by Talend. This allows SAP to verify if the received IDOC is unique and corresponds to the latest version sent. After testing with SAP teams, this method was validated as the most optimal and adaptable solution, regardless of the IDOC types or processed flows.
This dual approach ensures proactive management of duplicates while facilitating data traceability between Talend and SAP. It is directly reusable in other projects leveraging ETLs, thereby enhancing its applicability and impact in integration ecosystems.
