SAP NetWeaver Portal is one of the building blocks in the SAP NetWeaver architecture. With only a Web Browser, users can begin work once they have been authenticated in the portal which offers a single point of access to information, enterprise applications, and services both inside and outside an organization. The Netweaver Portal also provides the tools to manage this knowledge, to analyze and interrelate it, and to share and collaborate. With its coherent interface, role-based content, and personalization features, the portal enables you to focus exclusively on data relevant to your daily decision-making processes.

Knowledge Management offers capabilities that everyone can use to distribute and access unstructured information within an organization through a heterogeneous repository landscape.

Collaboration brings users, information, and applications together to ensure successful cooperation. All collaboration tools and channels are easily accessible directly from the portal. These tools include collaboration rooms,discussion forums, instant messaging, chat, e-mail, and calendar integration.

The Portal is used for different purposes.

• Internationalization
• Personalization
• Integration
• Authorization

SAP NetWeaver Portal is the platform for running Web Dynpro

Web Dynpro

Web Dynpro is a proprietary web application user interface technology developed by SAP AG and exists in a Java and an ABAP flavor. Both have in general the same functionality, but usually one flavor is improved after the other, so temporary one flavor is more advanced than the other...

 applications or Dyn Page applications created by SAP or custom designed for connecting to some ERP functionality.

Authentication

SAP NetWeaver Portal allows different forms of authentication:

• username and password
• SAP Logon Ticket
  SAP Logon Ticket
  SAP Logon Tickets represent user credentials in SAP systems. When enabled, users can access multiple SAP applications and services through SAPgui and web browsers without further username and password inputs from the user...
  
  s
• X.509
  X.509
  In cryptography, X.509 is an ITU-T standard for a public key infrastructure and Privilege Management Infrastructure . X.509 specifies, amongst other things, standard formats for public key certificates, certificate revocation lists, attribute certificates, and a certification path validation...
  
   certificates (i.e., Single Sign-On
  Single sign-on
  Single sign-on is a property of access control of multiple related, but independent software systems. With this property a user logs in once and gains access to all systems without being prompted to log in again at each of them...
  
  ) via Secure Network Communications
  Secure Network Communications
  Secure Network Communications is a software layer in the SAP system architecture that enables the use of stronger authentication, encryption and single sign-on mechanism. SAP provides SNC for server to server communications only...
  
   or Secure Socket Layer

Criticism

Independent analyst firm CMS Watch

CMS Watch

Real Story Group is a content technology analyst firm, based in Silver Spring, USA. Previously known as CMS Watch, the company announced a name change to Real Story Group in February, 2010. The company publishes reports on various areas, including web content management, enterprise content...

 has chronicled SAP Portal's slow embrace of Web 2.0

Web 2.0

The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web...

 technologies, such as wikis. CMS Watch customer research also compared NetWeaver Portal somewhat unfavorably to competing offerings.

See Also

• X.509
  X.509
  In cryptography, X.509 is an ITU-T standard for a public key infrastructure and Privilege Management Infrastructure . X.509 specifies, amongst other things, standard formats for public key certificates, certificate revocation lists, attribute certificates, and a certification path validation...
  
  
• SAP Logon Ticket
  SAP Logon Ticket
  SAP Logon Tickets represent user credentials in SAP systems. When enabled, users can access multiple SAP applications and services through SAPgui and web browsers without further username and password inputs from the user...
  
  
• Single Sign-On
  Single sign-on
  Single sign-on is a property of access control of multiple related, but independent software systems. With this property a user logs in once and gains access to all systems without being prompted to log in again at each of them...
  
  
• Secure Network Communications
  Secure Network Communications
  Secure Network Communications is a software layer in the SAP system architecture that enables the use of stronger authentication, encryption and single sign-on mechanism. SAP provides SNC for server to server communications only...
  
  
• Secure Socket Layer
• SAP
  SAP AG
  SAP AG is a German software corporation that makes enterprise software to manage business operations and customer relations. Headquartered in Walldorf, Baden-Württemberg, with regional offices around the world, SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software...
  
  

External links

• SAP Netweaver Capabilities - Portal and Collaboration on SAP Developer Network (SDN)
  SAP Developer Network
  SAP Developer Network is an online community for SAP developers. It is a resource and collaboration channel for SAP developers, architects, consultants and integrators. SDN Hosts forums, expert blogs, a technical library, downloads, a code gallery, Elearning catalog , a Wiki and more...
  
  
  • Download Predefined SAP Portal Content from SDN's Portal Content Portfolio Topic Page