---
sourceDocument: Australia Platform security
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/platform-security

 Release :

    - australia

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia Platform security

ft:clusterId :

    - psec

bundleId :

    - psec

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Applicative credentials

# Applicative credentials {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Australia  
Updated March 12, 2026  
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## Summary of Applicative credentials

Applicative credentials are additional login credentials required by some applications beyond the host machine credentials.
These typically include a user name and password specifically for accessing applications or devices, enhancing security by separating host and application access.
For instance, the ABAP SAP Central Services (ASCS) application requires applicative credentials alongside host credentials such as SSH or Windows credentials.
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In ServiceNow, devices and applications within a service instance are termed configuration items (CIs). Applicative credentials are assigned to MID Servers and are created per CI type, such as the SAP ASCS Application CI type. MID Servers use these credentials during discovery, trying multiple credentials in a defined order until access is successful.

## Key Features

* **Credential Assignment:** Applicative credentials are linked to specific CI types and assigned to MID Servers to facilitate secure discovery and access.
* **Credential Configuration Fields:** Include a descriptive name, active status, user name, password, CI type association, credential alias for specific discovery schedules, target MID Servers, and order of credential usage.
* **Credential Aliases:** Enable assigning credentials for discovery schedules that may use applicative credentials from CI types different from their own.
* **Order of Use:** Credentials can be prioritized to prevent lockouts during discovery by specifying the sequence in which credentials are attempted.

## Practical Use and Considerations

* Check ServiceNow Discovery requirements to determine if applicative credentials are necessary for specific application CIs; configure only if required.
* Use descriptive names without spaces or special characters for credentials and passwords to ensure proper recognition and security.
* Assign credentials either globally to all MID Servers or to specific MID Servers based on your network and security architecture.
* Managing the order of credentials is critical in environments with multiple credentials to avoid security lockouts caused by failed login attempts.
* Refer to the provided list of common CI types and their corresponding tables to correctly assign applicative credentials for various applications such as SAP components, Microsoft Exchange, Oracle databases, and others.  
Some applications require credentials in addition to the credentials the that host machine requires. Credentials required to access these applications are referred to as applicative credentials.{#applicative-creds__ph_short-desc}
A typical credential contains a user name and a password for logging in to a device or application. While most applications require only one credential for accessing them, sometimes hosts and
applications have separate credentials for extra security. For example, ABAP SAP Central Services (ASCS) requires applicative credentials in addition to the SSH or Windows host credentials for the server that hosts ASCS.{#applicative-creds__p_applicative-cred-context}  
Note:  
ServiceNow applications refer to devices and applications that comprise a service instance as configuration items (CIs).

As with host credentials, you assign applicative credentials to MID Servers.

You create applicative credentials per CI type, for example, the CI type for ASCS is SAP ASCS Application \[cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs\]. The preconfigured pattern for discovering CIs belonging to this CI type contains commands that
require a MID Server to use the applicative credential for this CI type. If there's more than one credential configured for this CI type, the MID Server tries each credential in the order you define until it finds a match.

Check the Discovery requirements information in the ServiceNow documentation to determine if you need to configure applicative credentials for specific application CIs. There's no need to configure applicative credentials, if Discovery prerequisites don't mention it.  
{#applicative-creds__table_glz_wgm_ht__entry__2}

| Field | Description |
|-|-|
| Name | Name of the credential. Use a descriptive name like Oracle DB or London Oracle DB (for an Oracle database). Don't use spaces or special characters for the credential name. |
| Active | Select the check box to use the credential. |
| User name | Enter the actual user name of the applicative credential. |
| Password | Enter the actual password of the applicative credential. Don't use spaces or special characters for the credential password. |
| CI type | Select a CI type to which the CI belongs. |
| Credential Alias | Create an alias to assign specific credentials for specific discovery schedules. When assigning an alias, you must identify the table name for the CI type whose applicative credentials the application uses. Applications may use applicative credentials of a CI type different from their own. For a specific application, see the list for the appropriate table: * ABAP SAP Central Services (ASCS): cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * IBM Security Access Manager appliance: cmdb_ci_app_server_webseal * SAP Central Instance: cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * SAP Central Services (SCS): cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * SAP Evaluated Receipt Settlement (ERS): cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * SAP Java Cluster: cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * SAP NetWeaver Dialog Instance: cmdb_ci_appl_sap_ascs * Microsoft Exchange Mailbox (for Microsoft Exchange): cmdb_ci_exchange_mailbox * Microsoft SQL Database: cmdb_ci_db_mssql_instance * MySQL Server: cmdb_ci_db_mysql_instance * Oracle Advanced Queue Queue: cmdb_ci_db_ora_instance * Oracle Database: cmdb_ci_db_ora_instance * Oracle E-Business Suite: cmdb_ci_db_ora_instance * Oracle WebLogic Module: cmdb_ci_app_server_weblogic * Tibco Enterprise Message Service (EMS): cmdb_ci_appl_tibco_message {#applicative-creds__ul_svh_dpq_slb} |
| Applies to | Select whether to apply these credentials to All MID servers in your network, or to one or more Specific MID servers. Specify the MID Servers that should use these credentials in the MID servers field. |
| Order | Order (sequence) in which Discovery tries this credential as it attempts to log on to devices. The smaller the number, the higher in the list this credential appears. Establish credential order when using large numbers of credentials or when security locks out users after three failed login attempts. If all the credentials have the same order number (or none), the instance tries the credentials in a random order. |
[Table 1. Applicative credentials form fields]

{#applicative-creds__table_glz_wgm_ht}