Hi @bonsai
The update_guid_history field is mainly a technical field used internally by ServiceNow to track the lineage and versioning of records as they move through the update set process, ensuring that conflicts can be detected and resolved and that there is a clear audit trail for each record. It is not typically exposed or manipulated by end users, but is important for developers and administrators managing deployments.
Function of update_guid_history
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Tracking Record Versions:
The field stores a history of GUIDs (often the sys_id or a specific update identifier) that have been associated with the record as it is updated, moved, or transformed across ServiceNow instances. This helps ServiceNow understand the lineage and versioning of a record, especially when comparing changes between environments or during update set application
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Conflict Detection and Resolution:
By maintaining a history of update GUIDs, ServiceNow can better detect and resolve conflicts when records from different update sets or sources are merged. This is essential for ensuring data integrity during deployments and migrations.
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Audit and Traceability:
The field provides an audit trail, allowing administrators and developers to trace how a record has evolved, which is useful for troubleshooting or compliance purposes.
Example
When you examine the content of an update set, you might see entries like:
<update_guid_history>c14f66b30862130032e58149a6b15276:-1687087610,e21feebf672213008f55b48750b1e7e7:-1927638987,96eeee7315621300c59fa88c53eac9d3:-1979395775</update_guid_history>
This indicates that the record has been updated or moved multiple times, and each unique GUID (often a sys_id or similar identifier) is stored in this field, sometimes with additional metadata (like timestamps or hashes)
Maik
