9 ways to fetch sys id in ServiceNow and 3 Bonuses included

[Community Alums]

Hola Community,

As per definition from ServiceNow docs: "A unique 32-character GUID (Globally Unique ID), called a Sys ID (sys_id) identifies each record in an instance".

Think of the sys_id as a 32-character Social Security Number(SSN) in US or Aadhaar number in India: unique, permanent, and identifying its holder. In the digital universe of ServiceNow, it is like assigning unique and permanent number to a record. The record can be incident, asset, configuration item, HR case and so on.

Just like your SSN or Aadhaar are linked to your bank accounts or income tax statements, the sys_id grants access to all the details and relationships associated with a record.

Just like governments have access to our all the details of individuals using SSN or Aadhar number, SN Admins have access to all the sys_ids and which record they are related to. (It's not an official statement on behalf of any government or SN Admins) 😅

Using sys_ids, you can:

✔️ Track down any record in seconds:
You can easily search for a specific record in ServiceNow.

✔️  Automate : 
We can use it in scripts or flows sys_ids to target specific records and streamlining processes. (Best practice is store sys_id in System Properties)

✔️ Connect the dots :
sys_ids can reveal the relationships between records. (hint: Reference fields)

There are multiple ways to find sys_ids in ServiceNow but I don't know any way to find anyone's SSN or Aadhar info. 😅

PFB a video where I have discussed 9 ways to find sys_id of any record.

At the end of the video, there are 3 bonuses which are kind of secret. So, keep them with yourselves, just like you keep your SSN and Aadhar number safe with you only. 😉

Don't forget to share this article with someone in ServiceNow Community who is new to ServiceNow and help them learning about sys_id.

Please mark this article as helpful if it helped you.

Cheers,

Hardit Singh

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