It has been over a year since we first introduced the concepts behind central CTS here on SDN. We used this time wisely and built, what we believe to be the first step of the most powerful version of the SAP Change and Transport System ever. Over the course of the last year, we wrote a lot of code, discussed concepts, visited customers in the context of the Customer Engagement Initiative, gathered early feedback, presented a first version at SAP TechEd 2010 and made a major step towards a first delivery. However, there might be a little grain of salt here as well: our first shipment (we call it 'version one') will most likely not be available for general use, but we plan to make it available to a selected set of customers at first, who agreed to test-drive central CTS during the Customer Engagement Initiative. As we make progress with version two and its delivery, we will keep you informed about a general availability of the release.

For those, who might not really know much about central CTS, its concepts, ideas and solutions, let me give a quick recap on what we intend to deliver. From an evolutionary perspective, one could describe the growth of CTS as a step by step introduction of a set of tools able to handle more and more change management requirements that arose around SAP ecosystems.

It all started with the core CTS introduced in 1992. Over the years it was improved in an iterative fashion. Due to the fact, that system landscape grew more diverse over the years, including non-ABAP and even non-SAP systems, CTS was enhanced in 2007 to handle such landscapes with the well known and supported transport tools. A common transport system for different technologies was highly appreciated. However, it did not cover all aspects arising from divers landscapes: What about cross-technology dependent changes? What about downgrades and so-called 'over takers'? What about integration into higher level change management tools and processes? With central CTS, we plan to address some of those questions and create the next generation CTS. If you could not make it to SAP TechEd 2010, allow me to share two helpful links with you: the complete set of slides of the session ALM210: CTS – it's one tool to control your changes is available online, a live recording can be found here: Virtual SAP TechEd. Central CTS is not just an extension or enhancement of CTS, but together with CTS+ and the core CTS it constitutes the next generation CTS.

Please remember, that your feedback is honestly appreciated by the whole team developing central CTS - so keep it coming!

The existing SAP Change and Transport System (Change and Transport System) has grown over the years from early R/3 days into what it is today - a stable and proven solution for managing and transporting changes in the SAP ecosystem. As part of this evolutionary development CTS+ was introduced in 2007 as an enhancement for transporting changes across technology stacks. We intend to take the same iterative path to scale CTS even further.

Even in midsized business organizations IT landscapes tend to be rather large, diverse and complex. Software changes in such an environment demand for well educated administrators, project managers and developers. But without a solid, yet flexible tool base, even the best staff will not be able to handle change projects in a transparent way. Our goal is to deliver exactly this reliable tool base. Central CTS is planned to be the technological basis for that.

In order to give you the opportunity to learn more about the foundation of the next generation of transport tools, we would like to offer a technology preview in the form of a white paper that introduces the main concepts behind central CTS and illustrates them for a simple, yet illuminating scenario. The white paper is available for download here on SDN.

We see central CTS as the technological basis for the next generation of our products. As such, it should gratify your needs and solve your actual day to day problems. Consequently, we would like to get in touch with you, gather your feedback and let you take part in the development of central CTS. Please feel free to provide any feedback and ask questions in the comment section. Every comment will help us create the best product we possibly can!