Smart Assessment - New Template - Control Attestation - Copy of GRC Attestation cannot be published

[Monika10]

Hello,

In Assessment Workspace, I have copied the standard GRC Attestation provided by ServiceNow for Control Attestations in Smart Assessment context and added some new questions and sections. This, however, cannot be published. Any idea what went wrong?

Thank you!

[MaxMixali]

✅ Issue Summary
You have copied the standard GRC Attestation used for Control Attestations in Smart Assessment within Assessment Workspace, modified it by adding new sections and questions, but now you are unable to publish it.
This typically happens due to metadata linkage and referential integrity issues in the cloned attestation configuration.

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🔍 Root Causes
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When you copy an attestation definition or template, certain dependencies may break, especially those linked to Smart Assessment definitions, control type mappings, or workflow versioning.

Possible Causes:
- Missing Smart Assessment linkage
- Locked or inactive record
- Broken reference to Question Bank
- Invalid configuration JSON
- Not cloned via proper method

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🧩 Recommended Fix Steps
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Step 1 – Verify Assessment Definition Linkage
1. Open your copied Attestation record (table: sn_grc_assessment_definition).
2. Check the “Smart Assessment Definition” field — it must point to a valid Smart Assessment configuration.
3. If empty, re-link it to the correct Smart Assessment Definition (e.g., Control Attestation for Controls).

Step 2 – Validate Questions and Sections
1. Go to Assessment Designer.
2. Validate all Questions and Sections: ensure all have labels, response types, and are active.
3. Avoid using deleted or inactive questions.

Step 3 – Check for JSON Validation Errors
1. Go to System Logs → All → Error after attempting to publish.
2. Search for errors referencing sn_grc_assessment_definition or smart_assessment_config.
3. Fix any malformed question data or invalid references.

Step 4 – Publish via “Assessment Designer”
1. Navigate to Governance, Risk, and Compliance → Assessment Designer.
2. Open your cloned attestation.
3. Validate first, then click Publish.

Step 5 – Recreate via “Create New from Existing” (if all else fails)
1. Open the original standard GRC Attestation.
2. Click Create New from Existing.
3. Rebuild your modifications.
4. Save and publish — this retains all backend associations.

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⚙️ Additional Checks
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- Ensure roles: sn_grc_admin or sn_grc_assessment_admin
- Ensure no duplicate published version
- Ensure linked workflow version is active

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✅ Best Practice
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- Always use “Create from existing” from Assessment Designer for cloned attestations.
- Never edit the base OOTB attestation.
- Validate question references regularly.
- After publishing, test via Control Attestation Campaign.