Asset linked with the CI but not showing up in the form

[Avik]

For some of the Configuration Items in our CMDB, the asset field is coming blank. But when we are looking at the Asset tab in the related list, we can see the linked asset (Please check the attached picture). Any idea why this might happen and how to fix such records? TIA!

[Scott Halverso1]

On the CI form could you do a show xml and confirm the value in listed in the Asset field (cmdb_ci_computer.asset) is blank.   On the surface by the looks to me that someone intentially wanted multiple assets to be related to one CI (which isn't ootb).  Can you you also show xml on the related asset and see what the value is for the alm_hardware.ci field.

[Avik]

So the value listed  in the Asset field (cmdb_ci_computer.asset) is blank. The value exist in the alm_hardware side - <ci display_value="L4175XXX">b4198f2e1b2a385405e253d7624bcXXX</ci>.

Is there a way to fix it or I have to delete the Asset and CI, Then recreate it as a fresh CI?

[CMDB Whisperer · Accepted solution]

That "Assets" related list is not the OOB method for linking CIs to Assets.  It is fundamental to ServiceNow platform that you cannot link a single CI to multiple Assets, nor can you link a single Asset to multiple CIs.  If you are trying to associate them then this is a misunderstanding of ServiceNow's data model.

If you have a single asset that is deployed into operational use, there is a CI that represents the operational use of that CI.  There can also be logical CIs that might be related to that deployed asset, such as virtual machines, applications, storage volumes, memory, etc.  But you simply relate those CIs together using CI relationships, you don't relate them to the same asset.  Likewise, there may be multiple assets, such as assets in a bundle, or components in a chassis, which are both individually managed as assets and configured as a unit.  But you don't link multiple assets to a single CI, instead you determine which types of assets (e.g. PCI cards) may be tracked as child assets, where the parent asset is the one associated with a CI, or you decide to track everything as a CI, and then create the appropriate relationships between the CIs as well as between the assets.  So first thing's first, stop using that Assets tab.

Now, OOB your CI/Asset synchronization depends on proper setup of Models and Model categories, so I would start there to make sure you are creating Assets for the appropriate classes of CIs, and that those model categories are associated with the appropriate models.  That's your most likely cause of an empty Asset record on a CI, or vice versa.

Finally I will say that sometimes the form appears to show an empty value on a reference field but in actuality it's just that the record has an empty display value.  If you do a Show XML and you see a sys_id value in the 'asset' field, that means you actually do have an asset but it is not getting named properly, possibly because it has neither a model nor an asset tag, which is what drives the display value of an asset.