How to Send a Workflow Notification As Email in SAP

Understand the role of workflow in SAP

Workflow functionality is commonly used for approvals or other defined actions within SAP. Because users cannot realistically stay logged in to monitor new items, email notifications let approvers know when action is required without having to check SAP manually.

Access the SAP Easy Access screen

Open SAP GUI and log in to your SAP system. On the SAP Easy Access screen, you can see your Favorites and SAP Menu, including the workflow and purchasing transactions you need.

Open the Business Workplace (SBWP)

In the command field at the top of the screen, enter SBWP and press Enter. This opens the SAP Business Workplace, where all workflow items are managed.

Review workflow items in your inbox

In the Business Workplace, locate your Inbox. Workflow items here are grouped by task, content, content type, and sort key.

Under Grouped according to task, you can see specific approval tasks, such as "General Decision 7." Each item — for example, "Approve Invoice 5100000023" — shows its status, creation date, and time.

Identify the dialog task for a workflow item

To configure notifications for a specific task, you first need to identify its dialog task. In the Business Workplace, select the relevant workflow item (for example, "Approve Invoice 5100000023") to highlight it.

View workflow technical details

With the item selected, click Display workflow log in the toolbar. In the workflow log window, go to Extras > Technical Data to review the task details associated with the item.

Copy the workflow task number

In the technical details, locate the task number tied to the workflow item you want to send notifications for, and copy it. You will need this number on the notification program's selection screen.

Open transaction SE38 to run the notification program

SAP provides a standard report to trigger email notifications for workflow items. From the SAP Easy Access screen, enter SE38 in the command field and press Enter to open the ABAP Editor.

Run program RSWWWFM_L2

In the ABAP Editor, enter the program name RSWWWFM_L2 and click Execute (F8) to open the notification program's selection screen.

Enter task and job details on the selection screen

On the Sending notifications for work items screen, fill in the following fields:

• Job suffix: enter a numeric or alphanumeric value (for example, 2).
• Tasks: paste the copied task number (for example, TS91000001).
• New Work Items Only: check this box to notify only on new work items.
• With Passive Substitution: optionally check this box so substitutes also receive notifications.

Set the notification granularity

Under Send granularity, select One Message per Work Item to receive an individual email for each workflow item. Alternatively, choose Collective Message for a daily summary, though this option is less commonly used.

Add an executable attachment to the email

Under Add Executable Attachment to Message For, check Workflow Entry, and make sure the Workflow Inbox Transaction field is set to SO01. This adds a shortcut to the SAP inbox inside the notification email, so recipients can double-click to open the item directly.

Review notification text settings (optional)

In the Standard Text for Notification section, you can adjust:

• Message Class for Subject — default is SWU_NOTIF.
• Message Number for Subject — default is 1, or as required.
• Before/After Work Item Description — defaults are SWU_NOTIF_INBOX, SWU_NOTIF_PROLOG1, and SWU_NOTIF_EPILOG1.

Execute or schedule the program

Once all fields are filled in, click Execute to run the program immediately, or schedule it as a background job for regular notifications. This scheduling is typically performed by a user with the WFH or SAP_WFRT role.

When the program runs periodically, it uses the Job suffix to identify and process only new or changed work items since the last run, so only relevant items are picked up for notification.

Review execution results

After execution, the program processes all tasks matching the specified task number. If no work items are processed, check whether you selected the correct type or filter options — if you missed a required type (for example, "All"), return to the selection screen, select the appropriate type, and execute again.

Filter by work item creation date

To test or refine your selection, use the From work item creation date field. Click the calendar icon next to the date field, select a specific date (for example, a date in 2019) to filter work items created from that date onward, and click Choose to confirm.

Execute with the date filter and review output

After setting the creation date filter, click Execute again. The program displays the number of work items found and the number of notifications sent — for example, a message such as "2 work items were written, none were sent" can appear if prerequisites are not met.

Verify the user's email address

Before workflow email notifications can be sent, the user's email address must be maintained in the SAP user master record. Open the Maintain User Profile screen using transaction SU3, and in the Communication section, check that the E-Mail Address field contains a valid address. Without it, SAP will not generate or send workflow email notifications.

Save changes and retest

If you added or corrected the email address, save the user profile. Return to the notification program and execute it again to confirm that notifications are now sent successfully.