TPRM and the Explicit Roles plugin

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of TPRM and the Explicit Roles plugin

    Activating the Third-party Risk Management (TPRM) plugin in ServiceNow also installs the Explicit Roles plugin. This setup introduces explicit role assignments to control access for both internal and external users within your instance. The plugins streamline role management by automatically assigning appropriate roles to users and updating access controls across various tables, enhancing security and simplifying administration.

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    Key Features

    • Role Assignments: Internal users are assigned the sncinternal role, while third-party contacts receive the sncexternal role, providing tailored access to resources such as the Third-party portal.
    • Role-based Access Control Updates: The Explicit Roles plugin updates records with empty Roles fields by assigning the sncinternal role, restricting access to authorized users only.
    • Automatic Role Assignments: Existing users are granted the sncinternal role upon plugin installation, and new users must be explicitly assigned this role to access certain records.
    • Configuration Property: The glide.sc.useusercriteria property controls catalog item visibility, allowing exclusion of external users by applying SNC External user criteria when set to true.
    • Affected Tables: Key tables such as Access Control ([syssecurityacl]), Catalog Item ([sccatitem]), Page ([contentpage]), Navigation Menu ([sysappapplication]), Overview Help Panel ([sysuioverviewhelppanel]), Portal Page ([sysportalpage]), Processor ([sysprocessor]), and Report ([sysreport]) have their Roles fields updated to include sncinternal where previously empty, reinforcing consistent access control throughout the platform.

    Practical Impact for ServiceNow Customers

    By implementing the Explicit Roles plugin alongside TPRM, administrators gain finer control over user access, ensuring that only authorized internal and external users can access sensitive content and functionality. Existing unrestricted access is tightened by assigning explicit roles, which enhances security and compliance. Customers should plan to manage user role assignments actively, especially for new users, to maintain seamless access to necessary resources like Service Catalog items and portal pages.

    Activating the Third-party Risk Management plugin also installs the Explicit Roles plugin. Administrators assign the snc_internal and snc_external roles to provide internal and external users access to the instance.

    When third-party contacts are created, they are automatically assigned the snc_external role, giving them access to resources related to the Third-party portal.

    Various tables provide role-based access to record by setting the Roles field. If the Roles field is empty, all users have access to that record. For example, if the Roles field for a Service Catalog item has an empty Roles field, all users have access to that Service Catalog item.

    However, when the Explicit Roles plugin is installed, the Roles field is updated to snc_internal. Also, all users are given the snc_internal role. Continuing with the previous example:
    • Before installing the Explicit Roles plugin, if a Service Catalog item had an empty Roles field, it was accessible to every user.
    • After installing the Explicit roles plugin, the Roles field of the Service Catalog item is updated to snc_internal and all existing users are given the snc_internal role, making the catalog item accessible to those users.
    • After that, all new users must be assigned the snc_internal role, or they will not have access to that Service Catalog item.

    The following table describes the changes to tables affected by the Explicit Roles plugin.

    Table 1. Tables affected by the Explicit Roles plugin
    Table Changes
    Access Control

    [sys_security_acl]

    		 For all existing and newly created ACLs without a role requirement, the snc_internal role is assigned.
    Catalog item

    [sc_cat_item]

    		 For all records where the Roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. If the glide.sc.use_user_criteria property is set to false, newly created catalog items are automatically assigned the snc_internal role. If the property is set to true, the SNC External user criteria is added to all newly created catalog items, excluding external users from viewing the record.
    Page

    [content_page]

    		 For sites that have a login page, where the Read roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. For sites that have no login page or that have automatically created content pages, the public role is added.
    Navigation Menu [sys_app_application] For all records where the Roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. Newly created navigation menus with an empty Roles field are also automatically assigned the snc_internal role.
    Overview Help Panel [sys_ui_overview_help_panel] For all records where the Roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. Newly created overview panels with an empty Roles field are also assigned the snc_internal role.
    Portal Page [sys_portal_page] For all records where the Read roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. Newly created portal pages with an empty Read roles field are also automatically assigned the snc_internal role.
    Processor [sys_processor] For all records where the Roles field is empty, the snc_internal role is added. Newly created processors with an empty Roles field are also automatically assigned the snc_internal role.
    Report [sys_report] For all records where the Roles field is empty, snc_internal is added. Newly created reports that have an empty Roles field when sharing are also automatically assigned the snc_internal role.