Approval with e-signature

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Approval with e-signature

    The Approval with e-signature feature in ServiceNow enables users to approve or reject approval records by re-entering their login credentials, ensuring compliance with Title 21 CFR Part 11 electronic signature requirements. This functionality is essential for organizations that must meet regulatory standards by maintaining secure, auditable electronic signatures on approvals.

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    Key Features

    • Regulatory Compliance: Validated for Title 21 CFR Part 11 compliance, capturing signer’s printed name, timestamp, and signature meaning (approval or rejection) as part of the record’s activity stream and audit history.
    • Supported Tables: By default, supports Change Request ([changerequest]) and Standard Change Proposal ([stdchangeproposal]) tables. Additional approval tables can be added to require e-signature authorization.
    • Approver Authentication: Approvers must re-enter their credentials to approve or reject. The system validates credentials against local user records or an active Single Sign-On (SSO) integration. Failed credential verification blocks approval changes.
    • Approval History Tracking: Each approval record maintains an activity stream that logs all changes, including e-signature actions, ensuring transparent audit trails.
    • Approval Options for Change Requests: Multiple ways to approve or reject—context menu options, UI actions on forms, or changing the State field—all trigger the credential confirmation dialog.
    • User Credential Sources: Supports local User [sysuser] records and remote identity providers via Multi-Provider SSO with SAML 2.0 integration. Proper setup of users or SSO is required before activating e-signature approvals.
    • Plugin Activation and Configuration: The plugin (com.glide.esignatureapprovals) must be activated to enable e-signature approvals. It installs necessary properties and automatically enables e-signature for all existing approval tables. Deactivation procedures are also available.

    Practical Use and Next Steps

    • Ensure local user accounts or SSO integration are configured to provide valid credential sources for approvers.
    • Activate the Approval with e-signature plugin to enforce credential re-entry on approval actions.
    • Add or remove approval tables as needed to extend e-signature requirements beyond default tables.
    • Use the activity stream and audit history to review signature details and maintain compliance records.
    • Follow deactivation procedures if e-signature functionality needs to be disabled.

    Approve or reject an approval record by re-entering your login credentials. See the history of an approval from its activity stream or its audit history.

    Support for Title 21 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 11

    The Approval with e-signature plug-in is validated for Title 21 CFR Part 11 electronic signature requirements. This plug-in is required for compliance to 21 CFR Part 11.

    Each time someone approves a record, the system stores this information.
    • The printed name of the signer
    • The date and time when the signature was made
    • The meaning of the signature (approval or rejection)

    This information is stored as part of the activity stream and audit history of the record.

    Approval tables

    By default, Approval with e-signature supports these tables.
    • Change Request [change_request]
    • Standard Change Proposal [std_change_proposal]

    When you add an approval table, any approval for the table needs an e-signature authorization. See Select an approval table to add or remove a table from supporting Approval with e-signature.

    Approver Authentication dialog

    Approvers must enter their user credentials to change the approval state. If the credentials fail, then the approval remains unchanged. The system checks the user credentials against local user records or an active single sign-on integration.

    Dialog to enter user credentials

    Approval History

    Each Approval [sysapprover_approver] record has an activity stream that tracks changes to it. Approvals made by e-signature are stored as field changes.

    Figure 1. Example activity stream
    Example approval showing Bow Ruggeri approving a change request

    Available approval options

    The Change Request [change_request] table provides these approval options.

    List options
    The Change Request table provides context menu options to approve or reject records. When someone selects either the Approve or Reject context menu option, the system displays the Approver Authentication confirmation dialog.
    UI actions
    The Change Request form provides UI actions to approve or reject a record. When someone selects either the Approve or Reject UI action, the system displays the Approver Authentication confirmation dialog.
    Change record state
    The Change Request table provides a State field to approve or reject a record. When someone selects either the Approved or Rejected state, the system displays the Approver Authentication confirmation dialog.

    User credential sources

    Approval with e-signature supports these types of user credential sources.
    • A set of local User [sys_user] records.
    • A remote identity provider service accessed by the Multi-Provider Single Sign-On (SSO) integration.

    User credentials must be set up before enabling Approvals with e-signature. See Creating users to create local User records.

    See Multi-Provider Single sign-on (SSO) to create an integration to a Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) 2.0 identity provider.