Changing Data Element of a column and showing description in Transaction SE16N

When working with transaction SE16N in SAP, you may need to change the data element of a column to display proper descriptions. This process involves updating the Data Dictionary (DDIC) element and ensuring the system recognizes the changes.

Methods to Update Data Element Descriptions

Method 1: Activate the Change

The primary approach is to activate the change after modifying the data element. This ensures the system properly updates the column description in SE16N.

Method 2: Force System Recognition

An alternative method involves temporarily creating an error to force the system to refresh the element description ?

Step 1: Delete the current description and enter an incorrect character in the data element name.

This action will make the system show an error message since that element does not exist in the Data Dictionary.

Step 2: Correct the DDIC element spelling to the proper name.

The system now considers this a significant enough change to pull in the correct description of the element. This method effectively refreshes the element reference and updates the displayed description.

Example Scenario

Consider changing a data element from ZOLD_ELEMENT to ZNEW_ELEMENT ?

* Original data element
Data Element: ZOLD_ELEMENT
Description: Old Customer Number

* Temporary incorrect entry (to force error)
Data Element: ZOLD_ELEMNT  "Missing 'E'

* Corrected data element  
Data Element: ZNEW_ELEMENT
Description: New Customer Number

After applying either method, the SE16N transaction will display the updated column description corresponding to the new data element.

Conclusion

Both activation and the error-correction method effectively update data element descriptions in SE16N, with activation being the standard approach and the error method serving as an alternative when the system doesn't automatically recognize changes.