2437450 - UWL fails to connect due to an exception on com.sap.mdi method

When accessing the UWL, instead of receiving updated tasks the following error is shown:

When clicking in the link to check the details of such error, following is shown:

while trying to invoke the method com.sap.mdi.Rfm.getRfmParameter(java.lang.String) of a null object loaded from field com.sapportals.connectors.SAPCFConnector.metadata.functions.SAPFunctionParameter.rfm of an object loaded from local variable 'this'.

This is displayed in the UWL Connection Status:

In addition to the above symptoms on UWL, also ABAP dumps might be generated at the ABAP system corresponding to the portal system alias. Such dumps would be CALL_FUNCTION_NOT_FOUND or RFC_CONVERSION_FIELD for function module RFC_GET_SAP_SYSTEM_PARAMETERS.

When collecting the traces (according to SAP KBA 2261632) from the time when loading the UWL, the following exception can be found:

• SAPCFConnectorException.isConnectionBroken
  [EXCEPTION]
  java.lang.NullPointerException: while trying to invoke the method com.sap.mdi.Rfm.getRfmParameter(java.lang.String) of a null object loaded from field com.sapportals.connectors.SAPCFConnector.metadata.functions.SAPFunctionParameter.rfm of an object loaded from local variable 'this'
     at com.sapportals.connectors.SAPCFConnector.metadata.functions.SAPFunctionParameter.getStructure(SAPFunctionParameter.java:173)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.utils.r3.Transaction.createNewAbstractRecordInput(Transaction.java:293)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.utils.r3.Transaction.createNewRecordSetInput(Transaction.java:238)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.webflow.WebflowConnector.readInboxInternal(WebflowConnector.java:818)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.webflow.WebflowConnector.readInbox(WebflowConnector.java:946)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.webflow.WebflowConnector.retrieveSysItems(WebflowConnector.java:436)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.webflow.WebflowConnector.getItems(WebflowConnector.java:295)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.ConnectorThread$1.run(ConnectorThread.java:126)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.ConnectorThread$1.run(ConnectorThread.java:100)
     at java.security.AccessController.doPrivileged(Native Method)
     at javax.security.auth.Subject.doAs(Subject.java:335)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.connect.ConnectorThread.run(ConnectorThread.java:100)
     at com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.core.ThreadManager$PoolWorker.run(ThreadManager.java:209)

It comes accompanied with the following:

• Internal error in calling BWF API to retrieve inbox items in system SAP_ECC:java.lang.NullPointerException: while trying to invoke the method com.sap.mdi.Rfm.getRfmParameter(java.lang.String) 
  of a null object loaded from field com.sapportals.connectors.SAPCFConnector.metadata.functions.SAPFunctionParameter.rfm of an object loaded from local variable 'this'

• SAP Enterprise Portal
• SAP NetWeaver Application Server Java
• Universal Worklist

Cannot connect to the provider, SYSTEM_RESET_RFC_SERVER, exception occured, occurred, ocurred, , KBA , EP-BC-UWL , Universal Worklist , BC-DWB-DIC-MDI , Meta Data Interface Java Library , Problem