Customizing Microsoft Teams Collaboration Chat

[rohanaditya]

Overview

ServiceNow's Microsoft Teams Collaboration Chat allows users to start a Microsoft Teams conversation directly from a ServiceNow record, making it easy to collaborate with subject matter experts without leaving Teams.

By default, every new collaboration chat begins with the standard compliance message: "This chat log may be saved to better serve you in the future."

While this satisfies compliance requirements, it doesn't provide participants with a quick way to navigate back to the originating ServiceNow record.

This article demonstrates how to extend the out-of-the-box functionality so that, immediately after the compliance message is posted, Microsoft Teams automatically sends another message containing direct links to the originating ServiceNow record.

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Solution

Rather than replacing the default compliance message, this solution extends the existing behavior.

After the standard welcome message is sent, a second Teams message is automatically posted with direct links to the originating record.

• Incident records display:
  • Open in Employee Center
  • Open in Agent Workspace
• All other supported tables display:
  • Open in Agent Workspace

This provides users with one-click navigation back to ServiceNow directly from Microsoft Teams.

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Step 1: Create a Child Script Include

To keep the customization upgrade-safe, create a child Script Include that extends MSTeamsChatUtilSNC instead of modifying the out-of-the-box Script Include.

Override the runSendCardToChatFlow() method and invoke the parent implementation first to preserve the native functionality.

var result = sn_tcm_collab_hook.MSTeamsChatUtilSNC.prototype.runSendCardToChatFlow.call(
    this,
    chatId,
    message,
    tableName,
    sourceSysId
);

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Step 2: Generate Dynamic Record Links

Retrieve the instance URL dynamically using the glide.servlet.uri system property. This avoids hardcoding environment-specific URLs and works across Development, Test, and Production instances.

var instanceUrl = gs.getProperty('glide.servlet.uri');

var sowUrl =
    instanceUrl +
    "now/sow/record/" +
    tableName +
    "/" +
    sourceSysId;

For Incident records, generate an Employee Center URL as well.

var portalUrl =
    instanceUrl +
    "esc?id=ticket&table=incident&sys_id=" +
    sourceSysId;

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Step 3: Build and Send the Teams Message

Format the custom message as HTML before sending it to Microsoft Teams.

var customPayload = {
    body: {
        contentType: "html",
        content: htmlMessage
    }
};

Reuse the existing Flow Designer action to post the message.

sn_fd.FlowAPI.getRunner()
    .action('sn_tcm_collab_hook.send_message_to_microsoft_teams_chat')
    .inForeground()
    .withInputs(inputs)
    .run();

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Result

After a collaboration chat is created:

1. The standard compliance message is posted.
2. A second message is automatically sent with links to the originating ServiceNow record.

Incident records include:

• Open in Employee Center
• Open in Agent Workspace

All other supported tables include:

• Open in Agent Workspace

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Benefits

• Preserves the out-of-the-box compliance message.
• Adds direct navigation back to the originating ServiceNow record.
• Supports both Employee Center and Agent Workspace for Incident records.
• Reuses the existing Microsoft Teams integration and Flow Designer action.
• Remains upgrade-safe by extending the base Script Include instead of modifying it.

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Complete Script Include

var MSTeamsChatUtil = Class.create();
MSTeamsChatUtil.prototype = Object.extendsObject(sn_tcm_collab_hook.MSTeamsChatUtilSNC, {
    initialize: function() {
        sn_tcm_collab_hook.MSTeamsChatUtilSNC.prototype.initialize.call(this);
    },

    runSendCardToChatFlow: function(chatId, message, tableName, sourceSysId) {

        // Send the standard OOB message first
        var result = sn_tcm_collab_hook.MSTeamsChatUtilSNC.prototype.runSendCardToChatFlow.call(
            this,
            chatId,
            message,
            tableName,
            sourceSysId
        );

        // Prevent loops and ensure valid record parameters
        if (message && message.indexOf('now/sow/record') === -1 && tableName && sourceSysId) {

            var instanceUrl = gs.getProperty('glide.servlet.uri');
            var sowUrl = instanceUrl + "now/sow/record/" + tableName + "/" + sourceSysId;

            var htmlMessage = "View this record here:<br><br>";

            // Show Employee Portal link first for Incidents
            if (tableName === 'incident') {
                var portalUrl = instanceUrl + "esc?id=ticket&table=incident&sys_id=" + sourceSysId;

                htmlMessage +=
                    "<a href='" + portalUrl + "'><b>Open in Employee Portal</b></a>" +
                    " or ";
            }

            // Show Agent View link
            htmlMessage +=
                "<a href='" + sowUrl + "'><b>Open in Agent View</b></a>";

            var customPayload = {
                body: {
                    contentType: "html",
                    content: htmlMessage
                }
            };

            var inputs = {};
            inputs.chat_id = chatId;
            inputs.payload = JSON.stringify(customPayload);
            inputs.credential_alias = this.getTeamsChatCredentialsAliasGr();

            try {
                sn_fd.FlowAPI.getRunner()
                    .action('sn_tcm_collab_hook.send_message_to_microsoft_teams_chat')
                    .inForeground()
                    .withInputs(inputs)
                    .run();
            } catch (ex) {
                gs.error("Failed to send custom HTML link to Teams: " + ex.getMessage());
            }
        }

        return result;
    },

    type: 'MSTeamsChatUtil'
});

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Conclusion

By extending MSTeamsChatUtilSNC instead of modifying the out-of-the-box implementation, you can enhance Microsoft Teams Collaboration Chat while remaining upgrade-safe. Users continue to receive the standard compliance message, followed by a second message containing direct links back to the originating ServiceNow record, making collaboration more efficient without changing the native experience.