SAP keeps a list which users are allowed to change the code of SAP. These users need a developer key.

The developer key will be stored in the table DEVACCESS in the column ACCESSKEY. The table row will be selected by UNAME=<your user name>.

Wenn will you be asked for your developer key?

For normal work within SAP you do not need a developer key. You can create or change orders, deliveries etc. without it.

You need your SAP developer key the first time you want to change the SAP code. That means e.g.:

• SE11: creating or altering a table
• SE37: creating or altering a function module
• SE38: create or change a report
• SE24: create or change an ABAP class

All these transactions can be used for viewing these objects. But as soon as you try to edit one of them for the first time you will be asked to enter your developer key. You cannot change to edit mode without it. After entering the key, it will be stored in the table DEVACCESS and you will not be asked again.

How can I copy my developer key from one SAP system to another?

Scenario: your company has a number of SAP development systems and today is the first day that you are working on the system DEVX. You want to create a report in SE38 and SAP now wants to know your developer key. You cannot find the e-mail with the key and the system administrator is not available.

But you know that in principle you have a developer key, because you have already worked on the SAP system DEVY and you know that the development keys are the same across all systems because they are all registered for the same company.

In this case it is sufficient to look up your development key on another SAP system. Simply look into the table DEVACCESS with UNAME=<your user name> and copy the key.

Attention: This key is only the same within a company. It is different between your client 1, client 2 and your software company. In those cases you definitely need the e-mail from the sysadmin.

How can I delete an SAP developer key?

Deleting a developer key is not offered in the standard dialogs within SAP. So you have to delete it directly in the table DEVACCESS, e.g. by

• using the transaction SE16n to directly change the table
• writing a report that performs
  delete from DEVACCESS where UNAME = ‘xy’
  

You can find more articles about SAP here.

Image: thanks to Bruno /Germany on Pixabay