This document is a presentation comparing LO-VC (Legacy Variant Configuration) and AVC (Advanced Variant Configuration) in SAP S/4HANA. It highlights the differences in master data, functionalities, and improvements introduced with AVC in an S/4HANA 2022 on-premise system.
Key takeaways from the comparison:
- General S/4HANA Changes (affecting both LO-VC and AVC):
- Increased Length: Material number length increased to 40 characters and Characteristic value length to 70 characters, allowing for more complex configurations.
- Removal of Features: Actions and Classification as selection conditions are removed in S/4HANA for new implementations, though existing ones in LO-VC might still function.
- AVC Specific Improvements and Differences:
- Processing Modes: AVC introduces mandatory processing modes defined at the configuration profile level, impacting procedures, constraints, and variant tables. This controls how the configuration engine works (LO-VC or AVC engine).
- Domain Restrictions: AVC enhances domain restrictions with negative syntax (using “Not Equal”), allows restriction for all characteristic types (including multi-value), and utilizes
$SELF,$PARENT,$ROOTfor object references within constraints. - Alternative Values: AVC improves user experience by always displaying alternative values, even after a selection, making it easier to explore options compared to LO-VC where users need to manually reset selections to see alternatives.
- Type Conversion: AVC provides built-in type conversion functions (
to_string(),to_int(),to_float()) simplifying procedures and reducing the need for variables for type handling like in LO-VC. - Numeric Characteristics: AVC offers improvements in numeric characteristic handling and precision.
- Arbitrary Characteristics: AVC requires all characteristics in the configuration model to be assigned to a class, removing the ability to use temporary variables at high-level configuration which was considered a weakness in LO-VC.
- Multi-Value Characteristic Restriction: AVC simplifies multi-value characteristic restriction, making them restrictable by default through constraints, unlike LO-VC which relied on pre-conditions.
- Consistency Checker: A new consistency checker specifically for AVC models is introduced to help identify missing configurations and AVC-specific requirements.
- BOM Changes:
- High-Level vs. Low-Level Configuration: AVC clearly distinguishes between high-level configuration (sales order) and low-level configuration (BOM explosion). Dependencies on the configuration profile are high-level, while BOM item procedures are low-level.
- Procedure on BOM Items: In AVC, procedures on BOM items are executed during low-level BOM explosion but cannot set values for characteristics, unlike LO-VC.
- Improved Trace Functionality: AVC offers enhanced trace functionality in simulation with filtering options for high/low-level, message types, dependencies, and characteristics, improving debugging and model understanding.
- BOM Explosion Strategy: AVC uses a single-pass, top-down BOM explosion strategy, which is more deterministic compared to LO-VC’s potentially iterative breadth-first approach.
In essence, the presentation argues that AVC in S/4HANA is a significant improvement over LO-VC, offering enhanced functionalities, better performance, improved user experience, and a more robust and streamlined configuration engine. It addresses limitations of LO-VC and leverages the capabilities of S/4HANA to provide a more modern and efficient variant configuration solution.