ServiceNow Dynamic Translation Enables Seamless Localization

[Garrett Prochno]

ServiceNow Dynamic Translation is a feature that allows for fields to be translated into a user's preferred language. This is incredibly useful if your ServiceNow instance has a user base that spans multiple countries, because prior to the New York release, there was no easy way to translate dynamic user-entered text. Now it’s relatively simple to do so by adding the Dynamic Translation Enabled attribute in the system dictionary for a field, enabling seamless localization without the need for a custom solution.

Dynamic Translation leverages several translation service providers by using pre-built IntegrationHub Spokes. These include Google, Microsoft, and IBM – all of which are available from the ServiceNow Store to get you started quickly and easily.

Here is an example of the “short description” field on a form being translated from French to English:

There are a few prerequisites to enabling Dynamic Translation in your ServiceNow instance:

• Activate the Dynamic Translation plugin (New York+)
• Configure a Google Cloud Translator Account (Google Translate)
• Install the IntegrationHub Google Cloud Translator Service Spoke (Store Link)

Once that happens, you are ready to begin.

Step 1: Create a Java KeyStore Certificate to handle authentication

1. Generate and save a key from Google - Create Service Account
2. Follow the detailed instructions: Set up Google Translator Spoke

Step 2: Enable Dynamic Translation on Fields

1. Navigate to any form, e.g. an Incident form.
2. Right-click the required field and select Configure Dictionary.
3. In the Attributes related list, click New.
4. In the Dictionary Attribute form, fill the fields.

   Dictionary Attribute form fields

   Field	Value
   Attribute	Dynamic Translation Enabled
   Value	true

5. Click Submit.
6. Click Update.

Once you have these steps completed, any Flow or Subflow can very quickly and easily take advantage of the Spoke actions available: Detect Language and Translate into a Single or Multiple Language(s).