Multi step request process

[ChrisLawer]

I have a business need to have a set of requests that can read from each other. Essentially the client comes in and starts the process with an initial request and when that one gets done, a second request one could be triggered and so on down the line to a potential of four request. 

There will potentially be fields that I need to share from each step along the way. 

If the process makes it to the end and all the requests are completed, I will need to gather the info from each one to then populate an entry in a table. 

Is this even possible, can I lookup variable info from a completed request and pull it into a current request? 

[YaswanthKurre]

Hi @ChrisLawer ,

You can achieve this by using Flow Designer and Catalog Items in ServiceNow, you can follow this approach:

You start by designing a Catalog Item that collects the necessary variables from the user. When this item is submitted, a flow is triggered. Inside the flow, you can use the "Get Catalog Variables" action to retrieve the values submitted with the catalog item. These variables can then be used to populate fields in the current request or passed to another catalog item submission.

To submit another catalog item from within the flow, use the "Submit Catalog Item" action. This allows you to chain requests by submitting a second catalog item and passing in values from the first one using the variables you retrieved earlier. You can repeat this process, each time using the variables from the previous step to populate the next.

At the end of the chain, you can use another flow or a script to gather all the variable data from each request and populate a final record in a custom table.

Mark this as helpful and correct, if this helps you.

Thanks,

Yaswanth

[venkat917181]

Hi Chris,

Here's a simple solution using custom variables and a business rule:

Required Variables to be created:

• u_request_chain_id  - Links all requests (If you already have any variable unique for all 4 requests you can use that)
• u_step_number (Integer) - Step sequence (1, 2, 3, 4)

Final Table Fields:( sample)

Create u_your_final_table with:

• u_chain_id (String)
• u_step_1_request (String) - Request number
• u_step_1_description (String) - Short description
• u_step_2_request (String)
• u_step_2_description (String)
• u_step_3_request (String)
• u_step_3_description (String)
• u_step_4_request (String)
• u_step_4_description (String)
• u_process_started (Date/Time)
• u_process_completed (Date/Time)
• u_initiated_by (String)

BUSINESS RULE CREATED TO RUN AFTER REQUEST4 GET COMPLETED:

1. Fetches all 4 requests using the chain ID
2. Grabs standard fields like request number, description, assigned_to, etc.
3. Populates your final table with data from each step
4. No need for custom step value fields// Business Rule Configuration:

   // Table: sc_req_item (or your request table)
   // When: After
   // Insert: false
   // Update: true
   // Condition: current.state == 3 && current.u_step_number == 4 // Adjust state value as needed

   (function executeRule(current, previous) {
   
   // Only run when step 4 request is completed
   if (current.u_step_number != 4 || current.state != 3) {
   return;
   }
   
   var chainId = current.u_request_chain_id.toString();
   if (!chainId) {
   gs.log('No chain ID found for request: ' + current.number);
   return;
   }
   
   // Query all requests in this chain
   var requestData = {};
   var gr = new GlideRecord('sc_req_item'); // Change to your table name
   gr.addQuery('u_request_chain_id', chainId);
   gr.orderBy('u_step_number');
   gr.query();
   
   while (gr.next()) {
   var stepNum = gr.u_step_number;
   requestData['step_' + stepNum] = {
   request_number: gr.number.toString(),
   sys_id: gr.sys_id.toString(),
   short_description: gr.short_description.toString(),
   description: gr.description.toString(),
   state: gr.state.toString(),
   created_by: gr.sys_created_by.toString(),
   created_on: gr.sys_created_on.toString(),
   assigned_to: gr.assigned_to.getDisplayValue(),
   // Add any other fields you need from the request
   work_notes: gr.work_notes.toString()
   };
   }
   
   // Validate all 4 steps are complete
   if (Object.keys(requestData).length < 4) {
   gs.log('Not all steps completed for chain: ' + chainId);
   return;
   }
   
   // Insert into your final table
   var finalRecord = new GlideRecord('u_your_final_table'); // Change to your table name
   finalRecord.initialize();
   
   // Populate with data from all steps
   finalRecord.u_chain_id = chainId;
   finalRecord.u_step_1_request = requestData.step_1.request_number;
   finalRecord.u_step_1_description = requestData.step_1.short_description;
   finalRecord.u_step_2_request = requestData.step_2.request_number;
   finalRecord.u_step_2_description = requestData.step_2.short_description;
   finalRecord.u_step_3_request = requestData.step_3.request_number;
   finalRecord.u_step_3_description = requestData.step_3.short_description;
   finalRecord.u_step_4_request = requestData.step_4.request_number;
   finalRecord.u_step_4_description = requestData.step_4.short_description;
   
   // Additional fields
   finalRecord.u_process_started = requestData.step_1.created_on;
   finalRecord.u_process_completed = current.sys_updated_on;
   finalRecord.u_initiated_by = requestData.step_1.created_by;
   
   var finalSysId = finalRecord.insert();
   
   if (finalSysId) {
   gs.log('Successfully created final record: ' + finalSysId + ' for chain: ' + chainId);
   
   // Optional: Update all requests in chain with reference to final record
   var updateGr = new GlideRecord('sc_req_item');
   updateGr.addQuery('u_request_chain_id', chainId);
   updateGr.query();
   while (updateGr.next()) {
   updateGr.u_final_record_id = finalSysId;
   updateGr.update();
   }
   } else {
   gs.error('Failed to create final record for chain: ' + chainId);
   }
   
   })(current, previous);

[ChrisLawer]

Thank you all for the feedback. We decided to go with a custom table solution similar to what venkat917181

suggested.