Value truncated at column X - – VirtDB

Symptom: when you export data through the Data Distribution Engine, you get the following error (or similar):

[Error] Value truncated at column: XYZ ('ABC'), row: 0. Original value: '09.2019', truncated value: '09.201'

Reason: SAP table columns may have so called "Conversion Exits" assigned to them. This is ABAP code that is executed when SAP converts a specific value from its internal representation (in the DB) to the external representation (on the screen). A typical example is Conversion Exit ALPHA, which removes leading zeroes when displaying a value on the screen.

However, some Conversion Exits may contain a logic that make the external representation longer than the internal one. This leads to an error, as the VirtDB ABAP component sends the metadata (length) of each field to the DDE, but the DDE actually may find a longer value in the exported data.

Solution: you can force the ABAP component to handle specific fields differently. You can specify an Extraction Method per datasource (in the Field Catalog Extension screen), or by setting default values in transaction /N/VDB/CUST_EXM:

B (Bypass conversion routine): this will put the original value (internal representation) to the data extract
F (Force string data type): this will change the metadata so the specified field will be exported as a string field with unlimited length.
E (Exclude): exclude the field from the extract
N (Null if error occurs): if any errors occur during the processing of the field value, it will be replaced with a NULL and processing will continue

You can set defaults in /N/VDB/CUST_EXM per data element, domain or conversion routine.

If this transaction does not show any entries, make sure to load the defaults by activating the BC sets in the relevant client: https://virtdbhelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360011840797-Error-Number-range-interval-01-does-not-exist-when-using-the-product