ABAP/4: Tips for Finding Data in SAP

When learning to program in SAP with ABAP/4, it can sometimes be difficult to find the right tables and fields to work with (don't worry, it gets pretty easy). Here are some tips to help locate data:

Go to an SAP report or program that does something similar to what you want to do, and:
Click on the screen fields, and use F1->Technical Info to find the field & table names
Trace the program with ST05 (SQL Trace) and ST01 (System Trace)
Follow the program with the debugger (enter /h in the command line)

Use the Table Contents utility to verify that the tables have the data that you think they have (SE80 -> Dictionary Objects (press Edit), enter the name of the table you want to see, and press Display. Go To Utilities -> Table Contents).

Look for a logical database that sounds like what you're looking for. Analyze its structure and program to understand how its data is processed, and where the data is being kept.