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3 weeks ago
HI All, Can someone please share/suggest the what is the best strategy for version upgrade in servicenow ? ( from Xanadu to Zurich)
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3 weeks ago - last edited 3 weeks ago
At a high level, check your current environment and any customizations performed. Review release notes for the version you are upgrading to and document all the changes or any deprecated features. Prepare a upgrade strategy and start involving stakeholders to plan the activities. Prepare a implementation and roll back plan and find a suitable window to upgrade your development environment. Evaluate the changes and look out for any impacts to the functionality. If there are any issues identified, resolve it and retest in Sub-Production instance. Once thoroughly tested, migrate to Pre-Production and then to Production instance.
If there are UI or functional changes with new release or new features that will be adopted, prepare a SOP guide and plan for training session to users with help from OCM team. This is only a high-level reference as upgrade planning needs a detailed strategy and must capture finer information. If you have access to Now Create, look for upgrade strategy plan and you will get more resources.
Follow below Upgrade Strategy article for more details
https://noderegister.service-now.com/kb?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB1271313
I hope you appreciate the efforts to provide you with detailed information. If my response helped to guide you or answer your query, please mark it helpful & accept the solution.
Thanks,
Bhuvan
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2 weeks ago
Watched your video, it is really helpful.
Will you be able to share some documentation which we can use for upgrade planning.
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2 weeks ago
Hi @hanwar2
In my video, you may have noticed I was talking about a checklist — that's the master checklist available here. You can download and use it as needed.
Also, with the recent ServiceNow upgrade, the Upgrade Management module has been significantly enhanced.
https://support.servicenow.com/kb?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0541128
https://support.servicenow.com/kb?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0678054
If my response proves useful, please indicate its helpfulness by selecting " Accept as Solution" and " Helpful." This action benefits both the community and me.
Regards
Dr. Atul G. - Learn N Grow Together
ServiceNow Techno - Functional Trainer
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dratulgrover
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LearnNGrowTogetherwithAtulG
Topmate: https://topmate.io/atul_grover_lng [ Connect for 1-1 Session]
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2 weeks ago
Hi @baba .
ServiceNow Upgrade Checklist (Xanadu → Zurich)
✅ Preparation
Review Zurich release notes & feature deprecations.
Check Store apps / plugins for supported versions.
Run Customization Reports (BRs, client scripts, flows, integrations).
Define upgrade timeline (Dev → Test → Prod).
🔄 Upgrade Path
Confirm direct upgrade Xanadu → Zurich supported.
Apply latest patches/hotfixes pre- and post-upgrade.
🧪 Sub-Prod Execution
Upgrade Dev → resolve skipped records.
Clone Prod → Test → upgrade Test.
Run ATF scripts & smoke tests.
🔗 Data & Integrations
Validate outbound integrations (REST/SOAP, MID, Webhooks).
Validate inbound jobs (Discovery, imports, flows).
Verify ACLs & roles.
👥 UAT
Engage business users for UAT scripts.
Test all critical business workflows.
Collect sign-off before Prod upgrade.
🚨 Production Upgrade
Schedule low-usage window (weekend/night).
Communicate downtime to users.
Freeze non-urgent dev before upgrade.
Post-upgrade: resolve skipped records + run smoke tests.
📊 Post-Upgrade
Apply Zurich patches/hotfixes.
Resume paused integrations/jobs.
Monitor errors, logs, and performance (hypercare 1–2 weeks).
Document lessons learned for next family upgrade.
âš¡ Pro Tips:
Don’t blindly fix all skipped records → decide case by case.
Automate regression testing with ATF.
Keep upgrade aligned with ServiceNow’s support calendar.
