Subject: SAP-Fiori-Elements | SAP Field
SAP Fiori Elements have revolutionized SAP UI development by enabling rapid application creation using metadata-driven templates. While the standard templates like List Report, Object Page, and Analytical List Page offer rich functionality out-of-the-box, business requirements often call for enhanced user interactions and custom logic. This is where building custom UI components within Fiori Elements becomes essential.
In this article, we explore how developers can extend SAP Fiori Elements applications by integrating custom UI components without losing the benefits of the metadata-driven development model.
SAP Fiori Elements are a framework to build SAP Fiori applications using predefined templates and annotations defined in CDS (Core Data Services) views. The primary advantage is consistency in design and UX, minimal coding effort, and faster time to value.
However, in scenarios where standard templates are not sufficient—for example, complex visualizations, interactive charts, or tailored forms—developers can insert custom UI components into the Fiori Elements application.
While Fiori Elements provide standard functionality, here are some situations where custom UI components are necessary:
There are three main ways to extend Fiori Elements with custom UI components:
You can define custom sections (Object Page) or custom facets using annotation extensions and bind them to a controller with your logic.
Steps:
@UI.facet annotation to define a placeholdermanifest.json under sap.ui.viewExtensions"sap.ui.viewExtensions": {
"sap.suite.ui.generic.template.ObjectPage.view.Details": {
"SectionExtension|MyCustomSection": {
"className": "sap.ui.core.mvc.View",
"viewName": "my.namespace.ext.view.MyCustomView",
"type": "XML"
}
}
}
Custom buttons can be added to the toolbar or header and bound to controller logic.
How:
@UI.lineItem: [{ type: #FOR_ACTION, ... }]ext.controller.MyCustomHandler)manifest.json to hook the custom action logicIf your app structure exceeds the capabilities of Object Page or List Report, use the Flexible Programming Model to build freestyle pages integrated with standard pages. This gives full control over layout and logic while retaining Fiori Elements navigation and state management.
@UI.facet: [
{
id: 'CustomChartFacet',
label: 'Custom Sales Chart',
type: #COLLECTION,
position: 50
}
]
In manifest.json:
"sap.ui.viewExtensions": {
"sap.suite.ui.generic.template.ObjectPage.view.Details": {
"SectionExtension|CustomChartFacet": {
"className": "sap.ui.core.mvc.View",
"viewName": "my.app.ext.view.CustomChart",
"type": "XML"
}
}
}
In CustomChart.view.xml:
<core:View xmlns:core="sap.ui.core" xmlns="sap.m" controllerName="my.app.ext.controller.CustomChart">
<VBox>
<Text text="Sales Data Overview"/>
<!-- Place your custom chart component here -->
<html:canvas id="salesChart" width="400" height="200"/>
</VBox>
</core:View>
Custom UI components in SAP Fiori Elements offer the flexibility to meet complex and evolving business needs while maintaining the benefits of the template-based development model. By thoughtfully integrating custom views, actions, and logic, developers can create rich, dynamic applications without sacrificing standardization and scalability.
As SAP continues enhancing the Fiori Elements framework, particularly with the Flexible Programming Model and tighter BTP integration, customizability will only become more seamless—making this skillset a key asset for SAP UI developers.