How To Fix K9017 - Obligatory characteristic "&" has not been defined

K9017 - Overview

• Message type: E = Error

• Message class: K9 - CO Planning Processor

• Message number: 017

• Message text: Obligatory characteristic "&" has not been defined

Self-Explanatory Message

Since SAP believes that this specific error message is 'self-explanatory,' no more information has been given.The majority of messages in the SAP system have a message text, however this is frequently insufficient to comprehend or resolve the problem.

To make things easier, more detailed information is frequently added to describe the issue, how to fix it, and the necessary steps or configuration modifications.

Unfortunately, there isn't any extra information in this error notice.

What else can you do?

First, use our AnswerBot below to get a possible cause and solution (requires a premium subscription).

Also, review the in-depth Common Questions & Answers listed below; you could discover a solution there or be able to connect with others who have faced similar challenges.

You can also try searching the SAP support portal (support.sap.com) but you need a special user ID to access it. It is possible that an SAP support note exists that provides additional details about the mistake or even steps for fixing it.

K9017 - Details

• The SAP error message K9017, which states "Obligatory characteristic '&' has not been defined," typically occurs in the context of Profitability Analysis (CO-PA) when a required characteristic is missing in the configuration of your CO-PA settings. This error indicates that a mandatory characteristic that is expected in the data structure has not been defined or is not available in the current context.
  
  Cause:
  
  Missing Characteristics: The characteristic that is indicated by the placeholder "&" is not defined in the operating concern or the data structure you are working with.
  
  Configuration Issues: There may be a misconfiguration in the CO-PA settings, where certain characteristics are marked as obligatory but have not been set up properly.
  Data Source Issues: The data source from which you are trying to pull information may not include the required characteristic.
  
  
  Solution:
  
  
  Check Configuration:
  
  Go to the CO-PA configuration settings in SAP (Transaction code: KEA0).
  Verify that the characteristic indicated in the error message is