Dell Unity box discovery

[Gopi Ramesh]

Hi Team,

Any one able to discover the dell unity box successfully? The logical components NAS servers and file shares using CIM or REST?

[AJ-TechTrek]

Hi @Gopi Ramesh ,

As per My understanding the Solution overview will be:-

ServiceNow Discovery can discover Dell Unity storage boxes and logical components via two approaches:1. CIM (Common Information Model / SMI-S)
2. REST API

The recommended and most reliable method is REST API, as Dell Unity supports an extensive REST API that exposes NAS servers, file systems, and shares more directly.

Suggested solution :- Discovery using REST API (recommended)
1.Enable and configure Dell Unity REST API
* Make sure the Unity system has REST API service enabled.
* Get or create a read-only service account on Dell Unity with access to
* NAS servers
* File systems
* CIFS/NFS shares

2. Create/verify credentials in ServiceNow
* In ServiceNow → Discovery → Credentials:
* Create a Basic Auth Credential for the Dell Unity REST API.
* Use the read-only service account created above.

3. Use OOB Discovery Patterns
ServiceNow (from Orlando onwards) includes out-of-the-box serverless discovery patterns for Dell EMC Unity
* DellEMCUnity-Storage Array
* These patterns use the REST API to discover:
* Storage systems
* Physical disks
* Storage pools
* NAS servers
* File systems
* Shares
Patterns are under: Pattern Designer → DellEMCUnity-*

4. Configure Discovery schedule
* Go to Discovery → Schedules
* Create a new schedule:
* MID Server: select the MID Server that can reach your Dell Unity box
* IP Range: use the management IP of Dell Unity system
* Choose "Storage Devices" as the discovery type.

5. Validate and troubleshoot
* Monitor Discovery logs:
* ECC Queue → look for REST calls and responses.
* Confirm that discovered CIs appear in:
* cmdb_ci_storage_device (physical array)
* cmdb_ci_file_system (file systems)
* cmdb_ci_nas_server (NAS servers)
* cmdb_ci_file_share (shares)

CIM / SMI-S alternative (less preferred)
Dell Unity supports SMI-S protocol, which Discovery can use via CIM:
* Create SMI-S / CIM credentials in ServiceNow.
* Use Shazzam and probes to classify and discover via CIM.

However, this is:
* Sometimes limited in logical detail compared to REST
* May not capture full NAS and file share hierarchy

Best practice (recommended by ServiceNow & Dell)
* Use the DellEMCUnity REST API patterns (serverless).
* Avoid CIM unless REST is blocked (e.g., due to firewall or older firmware).

Key tips to succeed:
1.MID Server must have network access to the Unity management IP


2. Use read-only API user with sufficient privileges


3. Ensure Unity firmware is updated (some older versions lack REST features)


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Thank You
AJ - TechTrek with AJ
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ServiceNow Community MVP 2025