Software Asset Management Foundation plugin migration

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated June 16, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    Summarized using AI
    This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.

    Summary of Software Asset Management Foundation plugin migration

    This content guides ServiceNow customers on migrating from the Software Asset Management (SAM) plugin to the Software Asset Management Foundation plugin, available starting with the Yokohama release. The migration enables customers to leverage enhanced features and improved asset management capabilities. While some changes occur automatically during plugin activation, manual actions are required to complete the migration successfully, especially for customized forms, lists, and certain field configurations.

    Show full answer Show less

    Automatic Changes During Migration

    • Table Updates: Several key tables are renamed to better reflect their updated roles:
      • almlicense changes from "Software License" to "Software Entitlement"
      • almentitlementuser changes from "User Entitlement" to "User Allocations"
      • almentitlementasset changes from "Device Entitlement" to "Device Allocations"
    • New tables and script includes are added to support expanded functionality.
    • Values in the Software Entitlements License key field are added to the License Key table (sampswlicensekey).
    • Field value transfers and renaming:
      • The "Inference mandatory" field for software suites is transferred to a new "Mandatory" field.
      • The "Rights" field in Software Entitlements is renamed "Active rights" and its value moved to a new "Purchased rights" field.
      • The software model field in software entitlement allocations is automatically set based on the entitlement.
      • Quantities for entitlement allocations are set appropriately, with aggregation of multiple allocations into single records to prevent duplicates.
    • Form and list layouts for key areas like Software Models, Entitlements, Discovery Models, and Software Installations are automatically adjusted to align with the new plugin structure.

    Manual Actions Required by Customers

    • After activation, customers must manually overwrite any customizations made to forms and lists because these are reset to the new layouts.
    • Manual configuration of specific fields in software models, entitlements, and user/device allocations forms is necessary to ensure data integrity and full functionality.

    Disabled Functionality

    • The scheduled job for SAM License Counters is disabled, stopping software counter updates.
    • Auto-match functionality between discovery models and software models is deactivated.
    • The original Software Asset Management navigation menu is renamed and deactivated.
    • Legacy business rules related to discovery models are disabled.

    Key Takeaways for ServiceNow Customers

    Migration to the Software Asset Management Foundation plugin enhances your SAM capabilities but requires careful planning. Expect automatic updates to core tables, fields, and layouts, alongside the need to manually reapply customizations and configure key fields. Some previous SAM functionalities will be disabled, so review these changes to adjust workflows accordingly. Ensuring these steps are followed will result in a smooth transition and access to the improved features of the Foundation plugin.

    Migrate from the Software Asset Management plugin to the Software Asset Management Foundation plugin to take advantage of more powerful features. Manual actions by the customer are required after plugin activation.

    After automatic changes are performed during plugin activation, successful migration from the Software Asset Management (com.snc.software_asset_management) plugin to the Software Asset Management Foundation (com.snc.sams) plugin requires a Overwrite customizations for Software Asset Management migration to be performed by the customer.

    Customizations to forms and lists may need to be manually overwritten by the customer after plugin activation. In addition, certain fields in software models, software entitlements, user/device allocations forms require manual configuration by the customer after plugin activation.

    Automatic changes

    The Software Asset Management Foundation (com.snc.sams) plugin performs these automatic changes:
    • Tables
      • Table labels renamed
        Table Original Label New Label
        [alm_license] Software License Software Entitlement
        [alm_entitlement_user] User Entitlement User Allocations
        [alm_entitlement_asset] Device Entitlement Device Allocations
      • Adds new tables and script includes.
      • Adds any string value in the Software Entitlements License key field to the License Key [samp_sw_license_key] table
    • Field names and values
      • Inference mandatory field

        For software models that have suite components (to bundle software models), the Inference mandatory field value in the Software Suite [cmdb_m2m_suite_model] table is transferred to a new Mandatory field

      • Rights field

        The Software Entitlements (formerly Software Licenses) Rights field value in the License Entitlements [alm_entitlement] table is transferred to a new Purchased rights field, and name changed from Rights to Active rights

      • The Software model field for a software entitlement allocation (Software Entitlement [alm_license] table) is automatically set to the software model on the entitlement (License Entitlements [alm_entitlement] table)
      • The quantity for a software entitlement allocation (License Entitlements [alm_entitlement] table) is set to 1 unless there are multiple allocations

        If there are multiple software entitlement allocations for the same user or device, the allocations are aggregated into one record, the quantity is set to the count of aggregated records, and duplicate allocations are not allowed.

    • Forms and lists
      Software Models, Entitlements (formerly Software License), Discovery Models, and Software Installations form and list layouts are modified to fit the new application
      Note:
      Any customizations to these forms and lists must be manually overwritten after plugin activation.
    • Functionality
      Table 1. Functionality disabled
      Functionality Description
      License and software counters The scheduled job trigger for SAM License Counters is changed to None so that it is deactivated, and software counters are disabled.
      Auto-match functionality The auto-match functionality, which attempts to match a discovery model to a corresponding software model, is deactivated.
      Navigation menu The navigation menu for the Software Asset Management plugin is deactivated and renamed.
      Business rules Legacy business rules applied to discovery models are disabled.