Hello guys ,
As we all know sometimes during our ServiceNow implementations we are asked to customize a particular feature which is part of the baseline product. Now this can be tricky given it can lead to an accumulation of technical debt over the period of time and hence leading to more maintenance overheads (such as impact on upgrades)
In this series we would first cover how to make a decision around customizing Script includes
Check if it supports Extension Points
As we know the platform provides extension points on script include to extend the base application code.
Without going into too much detail, a simple way to check this is to search for GlideScriptedExtensionPoint API in your script include.
If yes, then you can create an implementation and utilise the extension points
Check if it comes with a default implementation
Check if the Script include comes with a default implementation that is designed to be modified and an SNC version that is not? if yes, then go ahead override the default implementation
If not, then check if it is protected , and modify . In case if its protected then check if the calling entities be easily modified to call a different script include. In this case, copy the protected record , rename the new copy , Implement changes, and adjust all references to use this new script include
In case if a protected script include is required for a critical fix and the calling entities can't be modified then reach out to the support team and ask for 'maint' access or ask support to do it
Post these changes, I STRONGLY recommend to track these changes in your customization register and review them in your next upgrade.
To make it more visual here is the pictorial representation of what i described above
Next article in this series is here
Options to consider before customizing - Business Rules
