Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated August 10, 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 Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery

    The Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery enables ServiceNow customers to discover and map AWS Elastic Block Store (EBS) snapshots within their cloud environments. This functionality is part of the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application and helps automatically populate detailed snapshot data into the ServiceNow Configuration Management Database (CMDB), facilitating better cloud resource management and visibility.

    Show full answer Show less

    Key Features

    • Pattern-based Discovery: Uses predefined patterns to find EBS snapshot resources in AWS accounts, requiring activation of the specific snapshot pattern which is disabled by default.
    • Prerequisite Checks: Requires verifying AWS discovery prerequisites and ensuring the relevant resources are not listed in the Resource Inclusion List to avoid duplicate discovery.
    • GovCloud Support: Supports discovery of AWS GovCloud (US) accounts by configuring the discovery schedule with appropriate datacenter URLs.
    • CMDB Data Population: Automatically populates detailed EBS snapshot information including unique Amazon Resource Name (ARN), snapshot state, encryption status, size, and associated volume identifiers into the cmdbcistoragevolsnapshot table.
    • Tag Collection: Collects AWS resource tags and stores them in the cmdbkeyvalue table for enhanced metadata visibility.
    • CI Relationships: Establishes relationships between snapshots and AWS datacenters to maintain accurate Configuration Item (CI) linkage.

    Key Outcomes

    • Enables automated, accurate discovery and inventory of EBS snapshots in AWS environments, improving CMDB completeness.
    • Supports ongoing pattern updates without losing customization status, ensuring discovery logic remains current after upgrades.
    • Facilitates compliance and operational oversight by tracking snapshot encryption, state, and size details.
    • Provides enhanced tagging data to support governance, reporting, and cost allocation.
    • Helps avoid duplicate discovery through Resource Inclusion List management, ensuring data accuracy and consistency.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns finds AWS services on your cloud environment. Discovering some of these resources may require updating to the latest version of the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application from the ServiceNow Store.

    Pattern-based discovery and mapping requirements

    Verify the AWS discovery prerequisites
    For more information, see the prerequisites section in AWS discovery using patterns.
    Remove resources from the Resource Inclusion List table
    Verify that the relevant resource isn't listed in the Resource Inclusion List [sa_cloud_inventory_resource_whitelist] table to avoid duplicate discovery. For more information on removing resources from the Resource Inclusion List, see AWS Resource Inventory discovery with Patterns.
    Enable the relevant pattern
    The pattern for this service is disabled by default. Starting with Visibility Content version 6.28.0, activating or deactivating a pattern won't be considered a customization, and it will continue to receive updates. Patterns that were previously activated or deactivated will reset to the latest predefined version after upgrading while retaining the last active field value. For more information on enabling patterns, see Activate a disabled pattern.
    Configure the Discovery schedule to support GovCloud
    Discovering AWS GovCloud (US) accounts requires using a datacenter URL when setting up an AWS service account. For more information, see Create AWS service accounts.

    Data stored in CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the CMDB when running the Amazon AWS - Elastic Compute Cloud EBS Snapshot - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    Table 1. Storage Volume Snapshot [cmdb_ci_storage_vol_snapshot]
    Field Description
    Object ID [object_id] The Amazon Resource Name (ARN) uniquely identifying the EBS Snapshot.

    The ARN consists of the AWS region, account ID, and snapshot ID in the following format: arn:aws:ec2:<region>:<accountId>:snapshot/<snapshot_id>.
    Name [name] The unique identifier for the EC2 snapshot.
    State [state] The current state of the snapshot. For example: pending or completed.
    Install Status [install_status] Install status of the resource. Default value is Installed.
    Encrypted [is_encrypted] Indicates whether the snapshot is encrypted.
    Operational status [operational_status] Operational status of the resource. Default value is Operational.
    Description [short_description] Type of resource. The value is set to AWS::Elastic Compute Cloud::EBS Snapshot.
    Size (GB) [size] The size of the resource expressed in gigabytes (GB).
    Size bytes [size_bytes] The size of the snapshot in bytes.
    Volume Name [volume_name] The identifier of the volume associated with the snapshot.

    CI relationships

    The Amazon AWS - Elastic Compute Cloud EBS Snapshot - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern creates these relationships to support Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot discovery.

    CI Relationship CI
    Storage Volume Snapshot [cmdb_ci_storage_vol_snapshot] Hosted on::Hosts AWS Datacenter [cmdb_ci_aws_datacenter]

    AWS tag discovery

    The pattern collects tags and populates them in the Key Value [cmdb_key_value] table.
    Table 2. Key Value [cmdb_key_value]
    Field Description
    Key [key] Tag name.
    Value [value] Tag value.