SD Customer and Business Partner Part 2: Business Partner Model and CVI Configuration

📌 KEY POINTS
✅ In S/4HANA the Business Partner (BP) is the only entry point for customers and vendors; XD01/VD01 are redirected to transaction BP.
✅ BP category (person, organization, group), BP roles (000000, FLCU00, FLCU01, FLVN00…) and BP grouping (number range) define the BP.
✅ CVI synchronizes BP data into KNA1/KNB1/KNVV (and vendor tables) — the classic tables still exist and SD reads them.
✅ Number assignment maps each BP grouping to a customer account group, usually with "same number" for BP and customer.
⚠️ A BP without a customer role has no customer number — SD cannot use it.

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▶ WHERE WE ARE
Part 1 showed the customer data levels. Here is how S/4HANA maintains them through the Business Partner.

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▶ 1. BP BASICS

• BP category: 1 person, 2 organization, 3 group.
• BP role: defines the business view; customer roles FLCU00 (FI) and FLCU01 (sales); vendor roles FLVN00/FLVN01.
• One BP can be customer and vendor at the same time (linked via CVI).

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▶ 2. GROUPINGS AND NUMBER RANGES

• BP number range (internal or external) and BP grouping referencing it.
• Customer account group with its own number range.
• "Same number": BP number = customer number — simplest for users and interfaces.

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▶ 3. CVI CUSTOMIZING

• Activate synchronization BP → customer (synchronization objects).
• Role category mapping: which BP roles create a customer.
• Number assignment: BP grouping → customer account group, with same-number flag.
• Field value mappings (industry, form of address, etc.).

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▶ 4. WHAT HAPPENS ON SAVE

• BP save triggers CVI: customer record created/updated in KNA1/KNB1/KNVV.
• Link stored in CVI_CUST_LINK (BP GUID ↔ customer number).
• Errors in CVI (e.g. missing mandatory customer field) block the BP save.

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▶ 5. DAY-TO-DAY IMPACT

• SD users still see customer numbers in orders; maintenance happens in BP or Fiori apps.
• Authorizations cover BP roles plus customer sales area objects.
• Interfaces should use BP APIs (released APIs, e.g. Business Partner OData or SOAP), not direct table updates.

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▶ STEP BY STEP

1. Define BP number range and grouping.
2. Define or reuse customer account group and number range.
3. Map BP grouping to account group with same number.
4. Check role category mapping for FLCU00/FLCU01.
5. Create a BP in roles 000000, FLCU00, FLCU01 and verify KNA1/KNVV.

✅ CHECKPOINT: a new BP with the customer roles appears as a customer with the same number in a sales order.

On a greenfield S/4HANA project, the team created BP groupings with internal numbering but mapped them to customer account groups that also used internal numbering, without the same-number flag. BP 1000345 became customer 0000200017. Interfaces from the CRM system, which sent the BP number, failed to find customers, and order entry users had to look up two numbers. Before go-live the architect corrected the design: customer account group number ranges were set to external with identical intervals and "Same Numbers" was activated, so BP and customer numbers are always identical.

• Trying to maintain customers via XD01/VD01 in S/4HANA instead of BP.
• Not using same number for BP and customer, creating two numbers per customer.
• Missing role category mapping, so a BP with FLCU01 never becomes a customer.
• Updating KNA1/KNVV directly in interfaces, bypassing BP and CVI.
• Ignoring CVI errors that block BP save in mass loads.

• Use same number for BP and customer/vendor.
• Keep a small set of BP groupings aligned with customer account groups.
• Run CVI_FS_CHECK_CUSTOMIZING after changes.
• Use released BP APIs for integration.
• Train users on BP roles instead of classic transactions.

Questions: "How is the customer maintained in S/4HANA?", "What is CVI?", "How do you get the same number for BP and customer?"
Strong answer: BP is the single entry point; roles FLCU00/FLCU01 create the customer views; CVI synchronizes BP to KNA1/KNB1/KNVV and stores the link in CVI_CUST_LINK. Number assignment maps BP grouping to account group with the same-number flag and matching (external) customer number range. Mentions BP category, roles, groupings and that SD still reads customer tables.