OT Asset Management licensing

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of OT Asset Management licensing

    The ServiceNow® OT Asset Management application uses a licensing model that charges organizations based on the number of Industrial and Hardware assets used within the platform. Licensing is structured around resource categories, each grouping related model categories, which determine how assets count toward subscription units. This model helps customers manage licensing costs by associating assets with predefined ratios for subscription units.

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    Licensing Structure and Resource Categories

    Assets are grouped into resource categories that define their subscription unit ratio, which is the number of assets per license unit. For example, 25 Industrial Consumable assets count as one subscription unit. The application supports default resource categories for both Industrial and Hardware assets, enabling customers to easily classify and license assets accordingly.

    Custom model categories created under licensable Industrial or Hardware parents automatically inherit the parent's resource category, ensuring they are included in license calculations.

    Key resource categories include:

    • Industrial categories (e.g., Industrial General OT, OT Supervisory System, OT Control System) with ratios from 1:1 to 25:1 depending on asset type.
    • Hardware categories (e.g., OT Servers, OT Network Gear, OT Storage) with ratios ranging from 1:1 to 15:1.

    Only hardware assets flagged as OT (Operational Technology) are licensed under OT Asset Management. Non-OT hardware assets are not licensed under this model and cannot use OT Asset Management workflows.

    Relationship with Hardware Asset Management (HAM)

    There is a clear distinction between OT Asset Management and Hardware Asset Management (HAM) licensing:

    • OT hardware assets are licensed exclusively under OT Asset Management categories.
    • Non-OT hardware assets are licensed under HAM categories.
    • OT Asset Management workflows support only OT hardware assets, while HAM workflows support both OT and non-OT hardware assets.

    When both applications are in use, licensing and workflow support are divided accordingly to avoid overlap.

    Practical Usage and Monitoring

    To manage and review license consumption, customers can use the ITAM License Report within ServiceNow. This report provides detailed subscription usage for OT Asset Management, enabling effective license tracking and compliance.

    Activating the OT Asset Management application opts in all default OT license resource categories automatically, simplifying initial setup.

    Key Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Cost control: Licensing based on asset categories and ratios helps optimize licensing costs.
    • Automated categorization: Custom model categories inherit resource categories for accurate license tracking.
    • Clear asset management: Differentiates OT hardware from non-OT hardware for precise licensing and workflow application.
    • Integrated reporting: ITAM License Report provides visibility into subscription usage.

    The ServiceNow® platform uses a licensing method where your organization is charged for using the OT Asset Management application. In this licensing model, all assets of the Industrial and Hardware model categories are charged based on the Subscription unit ratio.

    The ServiceNow® OT Asset Management licensing is based on resource categories. A resource category is a group of related model categories. The OT Asset Management application supports some default resource categories. These resource categories enable assets of the Industrial and Hardware model categories to use the features and workflows of the OT Asset Management application. Any asset of the Industrial and Hardware model category is counted toward a Subscription Unit based on the predefined ratio of number of assets to subscription units.

    When you create a custom model category with a licensable Industrial or Hardware model category as its parent, the custom model category is automatically associated with the resource category of the parent model category. Based on the resource category, the assets of these custom model categories are licensed and counted toward a Subscription Unit.

    Note:
    When the OT Asset Management application is activated on your ServiceNow instance, all the OT Asset Management license resource categories are opted in by default.
    Table 1. OT Asset Management license resource categories
    Resource category Subscription unit ratio Model category
    Unclassed OT 1:1
    • Industrial
    • Industrial General
    OT Supervisory System 1:1
    • OT Supervisory
    • OT Supervisory EWS
    • OT Supervisory Historian
    • OT Supervisory HMI
    • OT Supervisory OPC
    • OT Supervisory SCADA
    OT Control System 3:1
    • OT Control
    • OT Control 3D Printer
    • OT Control CNC
    • OT Control DCS
    • OT Control DPU
    • OT Control IED
    • OT Control Module
    • OT Control PLC
    • OT Control RTU
    • OT Control SCADA
    • OT Control Server
    OT Field Devices 10:1
    • OT Field Actuator
    • OT Field Device
    • OT Field Drive
    • OT Field Robot
    • OT Field Sensor
    Industrial Consumable 25:1 Any consumable asset created using any of the preceding model categories.
    Operational Equipment 1:1 Not applicable
    Hardware resource categories
    OT Servers 1:1 Any model category which contains Server in the name and belongs to the alm_asset or alm_hardware class. Examples:
    • AIX Server
    • ESX Server
    • HPUX Server
    • Linux Server
    • Netware Server
    • OS/X Server
    • Solaris Server
    • UNIX Server
    • Windows Server
    OT Network Gear 5:1
    • IP Router
    • IP Switch
    • Network Gear
    OT Storage 3:1 Storage Device
    OT End User Computers 4:1 Computer
    OT Mobile Devices 10:1 Mobile Device
    OT Monitors 15:1 Monitor
    OT Printers 10:1 Printer
    OT Unclassified Hardware 1:1 Hardware

    The Subscription unit ratio is the ratio of the number of assets to the number of subscription units. For example, the subscription unit ratio of Industrial Consumable is 25:1, where 25 assets require a single unit of license. If 1 license costs $100, then 25 industrial consumable assets cost $100 and 50 industrial consumable assets cost $200.

    You can view the subscription details of your OT Asset Management application using the ITAM License Report. For more details, see View the license report for the OT Asset Management application.

    OT hardware assets in OT Asset Management licensing

    The OT Asset Management licensing model includes a few default hardware resource categories to license OT hardware assets.

    In the OT Asset Management licensing model, only hardware assets with the OT entity flag set to true are licensed and counted toward a Subscription unit under the hardware resource categories of OT Asset Management licensing. The OT Asset Management workflows support OT hardware assets.
    Note:
    Non-OT Hardware assets with the OT entity flag set to false can't use the features and workflows of the OT Asset Management application even if you have installed the application. The non-OT hardware assets aren't licensed under OT Asset Management.

    The Hardware Asset Management (HAM) licensing model includes default resource categories equivalent to the hardware resource categories of OT Asset Management.

    Table 2. Comparison of resource categories
    OTAM hardware resource category Equivalent HAM resource category
    OT Servers Servers
    OT Network Gear Network Gear
    OT Storage Storage
    OT End User Computers End User Computers
    OT Mobile Devices Mobile Devices
    OT Monitors Monitors
    OT Printers Printers
    OT Unclassified hardware Unclassified Hardware

    When both OT Asset Management and Hardware Asset Management applications or licensed HAM solutions are activated, and HAM resource categories are opted in, consider the following points:

    • OT hardware assets are licensed only under the hardware resource categories of OT Asset Management licensing.
    • Non-OT hardware assets are licensed only under the resource categories of HAM licensing.
    • OT Asset Management workflows support only OT hardware assets.
    • HAM workflows support both OT hardware assets and non-OT hardware assets.

    For more details on licensing hardware assets, see Licensing framework for Hardware Asset Management solutions.