Automating the lifecycle of Change records is a critical step toward operational efficiency. While many organizations still rely on legacy Scheduled Scripts, the modern architectural approach in ServiceNow is to utilize Flow Designer. This ensures the solution is easier to maintain, audit, and upgrade.
Based on industry best practices and official frameworks, here is the recommended approach to satisfy this requirement:
1. Using Flow Designer (The Modern Approach) Flow Designer is the 'Out-of-the-Box' (OOB) standard for this type of automation. It eliminates the need for complex scripting and provides a clear visual representation of the logic.
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Trigger: Set the trigger to 'Daily' or 'Repeat' at a specific interval.
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Look Up Records: Use the 'Look Up Records' action to find Change Requests where:
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For Each Loop: Iterate through the results and use the 'Update Record' action to:
2. Why Flow Designer over Scheduled Scripts? From an Enterprise Architecture perspective, choosing Flow Designer aligns with Pillar 5 (Data Governance) and ensures a sustainable 'TO-BE' state:
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Traceability: Every execution is logged, providing a clear audit trail of why a Change was closed.
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Maintainability: Business stakeholders can understand the logic without needing to read JavaScript code.
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Upgrade-Safe: Flows are less likely to break during platform upgrades compared to custom scripts.
https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/servicenow-incident-auto-close-configuration-pdf/275085671
