--- sourceDocument: australia Combined Product Files sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/delta-zurich-australia Release : - australia ft:locale : - en-US ft:publication_title : - australia Combined Product Files ft:clusterId : - delta3az bundleId : - delta3az --- # Combined Core Business Suite release notes for upgrades from Zurich to Australia # Combined Core Business Suite release notes for upgrades from Zurich to Australia {#ariaid-title1} Release version: Australia Updated November 5, 2026 ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 5 minutes to read Summarize ![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) 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 Combined Core Business Suite release notes for upgrades from Zurich to Australia This consolidated release notes document guides ServiceNow customers through the upgrade of the Core Business Suite (CBS) from the Zurich release to the Australia release. It highlights key new features, changes, and important upgrade considerations to help you prepare and optimize your CBS environment. Show full answer Show less ## Key Features * **Enhanced Security for Read-Only Fields:** Australia introduces granular control over read-only fields within the ServiceNow AI Platform®, including new "readonlyoption" settings like "strictreadonly" and "clientscriptmodifiable." These backend changes strengthen instance security while maintaining backward compatibility. * **ServiceNow AI Platform Licensing Tiers:** Three AI experience tiers are available---Foundation (basic insights), Advanced (productivity boost), and Prime (autonomous AI with customization capabilities). * **ServiceNow Otto Rebranding and Capabilities:** The conversational AI platform, formerly known as ServiceNow Otto®, now delivers agentic capabilities, multimodal interactions, and autonomous orchestration integrated into ServiceNow workflows. * **Knowledge Base Enhancements:** The Knowledge module in CBS allows adjustment of default Knowledge Base settings, importing articles, and creation of additional knowledge bases to support cross-functional sharing. * **Business Unit Admin Permissions:** Specific permissions enable business unit admins to manage Knowledge Bases and articles within their departments, available from CBS version 3.3.2 and ServiceNow Otto setup 5.0.20. * **Employee Hub and Slate:** Employees get a consolidated, conversational interface to interact with Employee Center widgets, raise issues, and submit business unit-specific service requests. * **CBS Installation via Product Hub:** CBS applications can now be installed directly from Product Hub based on subscription tier, streamlining deployment. * **Requester Role Automation:** Automated assignment of the CBS requester role reduces administrative overhead when onboarding new employees. * **Core Business Suite Analytics Dashboard:** Centralized access to customer insights and request activity with AI-enhanced summaries across departments. * **Guided Setup and Configuration:** A new CBS home page facilitates installation and configuration of applications across business units with progress tracking and guided support. * **Group Assignment:** Assign people to groups for effective task and project management across CBS organizations. ## Key Changes * **Role Permissions:** New iaadmin and iauser roles provide broader CBS admin permissions but are not assigned by default. * **No Deprecated or Removed Features:** No CBS functionality was deprecated or removed in the Australia release. ## Upgrade and Activation Guidance * Before upgrading, review and complete the outlined pre- and post-upgrade tasks to ensure a smooth transition. * CBS is available for installation via the ServiceNow Store; customers should request the application accordingly. * For detailed technical guidance on read-only field security adjustments, refer to the specified knowledge base article (KB2718122). ## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers * Improved security controls reduce risk while maintaining flexibility in AI platform customizations. * Enhanced knowledge management empowers business units with ownership and collaborative capabilities. * Employee support is streamlined through conversational interfaces and centralized portals, improving user experience. * Automation and guided setup reduce manual administrative tasks, accelerating deployment and operational efficiency. * Analytics dashboards provide actionable insights for monitoring and improving service delivery across departments. Consolidated page of all release notes for Core Business Suite from Zurich to Australia. ## How to use this page To help you prepare for your upgrade, we have combined the cross-family Core Business Suite release notes onto one page. Read this summary of the new features, changes, and updated information for your product from Zurich to Australia. Tip: If there were no updates for a release notes section in a certain family release, we included a short note for your reference. For example, if a product did not have any updates in Tokyo, the row says "No updates for this release." ## Important information for upgrading Core Business Suite to Australia Before you upgrade to Australia, review these pre- and post-upgrade tasks and complete the tasks as needed. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__2} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | Upgrade information : * The Australia release introduces enhanced protections for read‑only fields across the ServiceNow AI Platform®. These changes include a new "read_only_option" field with granular control levels, including "strict_read_only" and "client_script_modifiable". The changes occur in the back end and maintain backward‑compatible behavior. This update helps strengthen your instance security while preserving the flexibility you need. Refer to [KB2718122](https://support.servicenow.com/kb?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB2718122) for additional technical details on how to identify affected fields and adjust their settings. For more information about granular read-only security options, see [Configuring read-only security options](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=read-only-option&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US). * The ServiceNow AI Platform now brings you a new AI experience with three licensing tiers available: * Foundation: AI basics to deliver insights * Advanced: AI to boost productivity across relevant use cases * Prime: Act autonomously with all AI assets, and create your own For more information, see [ServiceNow product tiers](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=ai-native-sku-overview&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US). * ServiceNow Otto introduced AI on the platform. As that experience has evolved, there's a new name for the experience. ServiceNow Otto® is the conversational AI platform integrated into ServiceNow workflows. It provides agentic capabilities, supports multimodal interactions across web, mobile, and messaging channels, and enables autonomous orchestration for cross-system workflows. | [ ] ## New features Between your current release family and Australia, new features were introduced for Core Business Suite. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__8} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | [Australia Patch 5](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=australia-patch-5&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US)[Knowledge Base in Core Business Suite](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=kb-cbs&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Use the Knowledge module in CBS to adjust the default settings for Knowledge Base articles. You can also import articles, or create additional knowledge bases to support cross-functional knowledge sharing across business units. [Australia Patch 5](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=australia-patch-5&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US)[Knowledge Base in Core Business Suite](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=kb-cbs&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Provide specific permissions for business unit admins to own and manage Knowledge Base and Knowledge Base articles in different departments within CBS. The functionality is available with Core Business Suite version 3.3.2 along with ServiceNow Otto for Setup version 5.0.20. [Australia Patch 3](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=australia-patch-3&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US)[Employee Hub for Core Business Suite](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=employee-slate-cbs&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Provide your employees with a consolidated view of the Employee Center widgets with a conversational interface on Employee Slate. Raise issues, ask for information, or submit business unit-specific service requests conversationally. Employee Slate is the default employee support portal for CBS. [CBS on Product Hub](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=cbs-product-hub-overview&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Install your CBS application directly from Product Hub, depending on your subscription tier. [Requester role enhancements](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=cbs-requester-role-enhancements&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Automate assignment of the CBS requester role to enable admins reduce repetitive, manual work of assigning the role to each new employee. [View Core Business Suite Analytics](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=view-cbs-analytics&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Access all CBS customer insights in one place to monitor and review request activity across departments, both detailed and in AI-enabled summaries on the Core Business Suite Analytics Dashboard. [Configure Core Business Suite using Otto](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=configure-cbs-using-now-assist&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Use a guided flow to set up the CBS. [Otto requester experience](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=now-assist-configurations-requesters&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Provide your employees with the AI-native requester experience in CBS. [Configure Core Business Suite using guided setup](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=config-cbs-using-guided-setup&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Use the new CBS home page to initiate installations of different applications across BUs in one place. Track setup progress and receive guided configuration support from a unified product console. You can install and configure applications according to your business requirements. [Australia Patch 5](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=australia-patch-5&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US)[Groups in Core Business Suite module](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=groups-cbs&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Assign people to groups for task and project management across Core Business Suite organizations in CBS. | [ ] ## Changes Between your current release family and Australia, some changes were made to existing Core Business Suite features. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__14} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | [Exploring employee support](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=exploring-emp-home&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) [Exploring supplier support](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=exploring-supplr-home&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) : Provide CBS admins with ia_admin and ia_user roles to give them broader permissions and control. The roles aren't available for the CBS admin by default. | [ ] ## Removed Between your current release family and Australia, some Core Business Suite features or functionality were removed. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__20} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Deprecations Between your current release family and Australia, some Core Business Suite features or functionality were deprecated. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__26} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Activation information Review information on how to activate Core Business Suite. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__32} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | Activation information : Install Core Business Suite by requesting it from the ServiceNow Store. Visit the [ServiceNow Store](https://store.servicenow.com/sn_appstore_store.do#!/store/home) to view all the available apps, and for information about submitting requests to the store. For cumulative release notes information for all released apps, see the [ServiceNow Store version history release notes](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=sn-store-release-notes&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US). Important: Core Business Suite is available in the ServiceNow Store. For details, see the "Activation information" section of these release notes. | [ ] ## Additional requirements If any additional requirements were introduced or changed for Core Business Suite we have noted them here. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__38} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Browser requirements If any specific browser requirements were introduced or changed for Core Business Suite we have noted them here. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__44} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Accessibility information Review details on accessibility information for Core Business Suite, such as specific requirements or compliance levels. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__50} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Localization information If there are specific localization considerations for Core Business Suite we have noted them here. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__56} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | No updates for this release. | [ ] ## Highlight information If there are specific highlight considerations for Core Business Suite we have noted them here. {#dfrn3-corebusinesssuite-summary__entry__62} | Release | Release notes | |-|-| | Zurich | No updates for this release. | | Australia | * Accelerate application setup with Now Assist in CBS. * Launch CBS applications from a new admin home configuration console, and set up each application from the entry point. * Use the AI-native requester experience in CBS. * Get Employee Slate as your default employee support portal on CBS with two configuration options for more flexibility for different organizations. * Install CBS applications from the Product Hub depending on your subscription. * Automate assignment rules for the CBS requester role, enabling administrators reduce manual effort. * View performance insights and resolution trends across business units on the Core Business Suite Analytics dashboard. * Use the Knowledge module in Core Business Suite to adjust the settings of default knowledge bases, import or edit Knowledge Base articles, or create new ones across organization. * Assign specific persons to groups to organize tasks and projects across Core Business Suite. See [Core Business Suite](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=cbs-landing&family=australia&ft:locale=en-US) for more information. | [ ]