COBRB table — COBRB Settlement Rule Distribution Items
COBRB holds the individual receiver lines of a CO settlement rule: for a given sender object (order, WBS element, cost center) it stores each receiver, the receiver category, the percentage or amount to be settled, and whether the split is periodic or full. It is the line-item detail behind the settlement rule maintained on an order or WBS element, paired with the header table COBRA.
COBRB is the CO table that stores the distribution rule items used when an order, WBS element or similar object is settled to one or more receivers. This page covers what a row represents, which fields drive the percentage split, and the failure patterns seen when settlement runs produce unexpected receivers, remainders, or errors like a rule that does not add up to 100 percent.
Published 15 Sept 2026· 1,174 words
What it stores
Each row in COBRB is one distribution rule item: a single receiver assigned to a sender object's settlement rule, together with the share of costs that receiver is entitled to. A sender object (internal order, WBS element, cost center under order settlement, sales order item, and similar) can have several rows in COBRB, one per receiver, distinguished by a sequence number. Each row carries the receiver category (cost center, G/L account, asset, order, project, profit center, and so on), the specific receiver key for that category, and either a percentage rate or a fixed amount, plus an indicator for whether the split applies per period or to the full life-to-date value. The header information about the sender object and validity is held separately in COBRA; COBRB is purely the receiver-level detail underneath it.
Key fields
- MANDT - client
- OBJNR - object number of the sender (order, WBS element, etc.), links back to the CO object
- LFDNR - sequence number of the distribution rule item, distinguishes multiple receiver lines under the same object
- PROZS - percentage rate assigned to this receiver line, the sum across all lines for a given rule should reach 100 percent
- PERBZ - distribution type indicator (periodic versus full settlement), controls whether the percentage applies per posting period or to the accumulated value
- EMPFB and the receiver-specific key fields (cost center, order, WBS element, asset, G/L account, profit center) that identify the actual receiver for this line, populated according to the receiver category; exact field spelling should be verified against the current data dictionary before being relied on in a query
How it joins the data model
- COBRB-OBJNR = COBRA-OBJNR to join a distribution rule item back to its header rule and sender object
- COBRB-OBJNR resolves through the object number conversion (object type prefix) to the sender's own master table, for example an order number or WBS element
- COBRB receiver key joins to CSKS when the receiver category is a cost center, confirming the receiving cost center exists and is open in the relevant period
- COBRB receiver key joins to ANLA when the receiver category is an asset, confirming the settlement can post to that asset
- Settlement runs driven by these rules generate CO line items visible in COEP and, on the FI side, postings that land in ACDOCA (or the classic FI tables on non-S/4HANA systems)
How to read it safely
COBRB is client-dependent and keyed on object number, not on a human-readable order or WBS number directly, so the object number has to be resolved first, typically by looking up the sender object's own master record to get its internal object number. The table is not huge in most systems compared to line-item tables, but it should still be restricted by object number range or by object type before browsing, since a full scan pulls in distribution rules for every order, WBS element and cost center in the client. When investigating a specific settlement, start from the sender object, get its object number, then select COBRB by that object number to see every receiver line and percentage in one shot.
How to prove it in the data
Symptom: settlement of an order posts a residual amount to a default cost center instead of the expected receivers. Get the order's object number, select all COBRB rows for that object number, and sum the percentage field across the rows. If the sum is less than 100, the remainder is exactly what falls through to the default settlement receiver defined elsewhere; if a row's validity or the settlement type does not match the period being settled, that receiver was correctly skipped for this run rather than missing from the rule.
ECC vs S/4HANA
COBRB continues to exist as a table in S/4HANA and is still where settlement rule distribution items are stored; it has not been removed or folded into the universal journal, since it describes configuration of how settlement should happen, not the posted result. The posted outcome of running settlement against these rules now lands in ACDOCA rather than the separate classic FI tables, but the rule definition itself is read and maintained largely the same way as on ECC.
Common pitfalls
- Assuming the percentages in COBRB always sum to 100: partially maintained rules are common, and the shortfall is either rejected at settlement or diverted to a default receiver, depending on configuration; the table itself does not enforce completeness.
- Forgetting that COBRB only holds the rule, not the result: whether a given line actually posted in a settlement run depends on the settlement period, the object's status, and whether that receiver was valid at the time; a row existing in COBRB does not mean money moved to that receiver in every period.
- Editing distribution rule percentages directly at table level or via mass update tools without going through the settlement rule maintenance transaction: this bypasses validation on receiver existence, category consistency, and the 100 percent check, and produces rules that fail or misallocate the next time settlement runs.
- Confusing COBRB with COBRA: COBRA is the header (one row per settlement rule per sender object, holding validity and settlement structure), COBRB is the receiver detail; a query against COBRA alone will not show where the money is actually going.
- Reading old distribution rule lines as still active: rules can carry validity periods, and a line that is present but expired should not be counted when explaining a current-period settlement discrepancy.
- Treating the receiver category field as freely combinable with any receiver key: the receiver category constrains which of the receiver-specific fields is meaningful for that row, and reading the wrong receiver field for a given category returns garbage rather than an error.
Whose problem this is
Distribution rule content is a controlling configuration and master data question, owned by whoever maintains settlement profiles and settlement rules for orders or WBS elements, typically a CO or PS consultant. Disputes about whether a specific receiver percentage is correct for a business unit belong with the process owner who requested that cost allocation, not with FI.
Related SAP objects
Reviewed pages this object connects to in the ERPClimb knowledge graph.
Source: ERPClimb — https://erpclimb.com/sap-tables/cobrbERPClimb is an independent platform and is not affiliated with SAP SE. Reference pages are written and reviewed by SAP consultants for learning and troubleshooting.