SLA Duration Types

[SravanK11377255]

<p>

Hello Community,

I am working on configuring Service Level Agreements (SLAs) in PDI and would like some guidance and best practices regarding SLA Duration Types , Explain all types.

Specifically, I want to make sure I am choosing the right approach between User-Specified Duration and Relative Duration (including scripted relative durations) for our business requirements.Provide me with some realtime examples please.</p>

[Tanushree Maiti]

Hi @SravanK11377255 

Refer: https://www.servicenow.com/community/itsm-forum/sla-duration-help/m-p/2662131

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yw3VP9aXkU&t=3s

[yashkamde]

Hello @SravanK11377255 ,

Basically In short ask your business analyst ask them these two questions to make your decision:

Do you need the SLA clock to pause if the assignee is waiting on someone else? - 

If YES: You must use User-Specified Duration.

Is the deadline based on a hard date (like an employee start date or end-of-month audit) or based on how much time the team spends working on it? - 

If Hard Date: Use Relative Duration.

If Time Spent: Use User-Specified Duration.

Types :

1. User-Specified Duration : You explicitly define a fixed amount of time (e.g., 4 hours, 3 days, 30 minutes). ServiceNow calculates the planned end time by taking the SLA start time and adding this fixed duration, strictly adhering to the Schedule you select (e.g., 8-5 weekdays, 24x7).

Real-Time Example : You have a 4-hour SLA tied to an 8 AM – 5 PM (Monday-Friday) schedule.

A P1 ticket is created on Friday at 3:00 PM.  The SLA runs for 2 hours on Friday (until 5 PM). It skips the weekend, starts again at 8 AM on Monday, and breaches at 10:00 AM on Monday.

2. Relative Duration : Instead of a fixed amount of elapsed time, a Relative Duration calculates a dynamic target date/time based on a script or predefined logic at the exact moment the SLA attaches.

Real-Time Example : End of next business day

Two separate non-urgent requests come in. Ticket A is submitted at 8:00 AM on Monday. Ticket B is submitted at 4:59 PM on Monday. Both tickets will have the exact same SLA breach time: 5:00 PM on Tuesday. The elapsed time doesn't matter; the calendar target is what matters.

Refer the official docs for more info :
SLA duration types 

If my response helped mark as helpful and accept the solution.

[Aditya_hublikar]

Hello @SravanK11377255 ,

ServiceNow provides two primary SLA duration types to define the timeframe within which a task must be completed to avoid breaching the SLA:User specified durationandRelative duration.These durations work in conjunction with an SLA schedule if defined, enabling precise control over SLA breach timing based on business needs.

You can refer this servicenow doc :

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/it-service-management/service-level-management/c_SLADuration.html

If this helps you then mark it as helpful and accept as solution.

Regards,

Aditya