Amazon CloudFront Distribution pattern-based discovery

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated May 6, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Amazon CloudFront Distribution pattern-based discovery

    The Amazon CloudFront Distribution pattern-based discovery enables ServiceNow customers to identify and map Amazon CloudFront Distributions within their AWS cloud environments using Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns. This process supports populating both CMDB and non-CMDB tables with detailed CloudFront distribution data, enhancing cloud resource visibility and management.

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    Prerequisites and Configuration

    • AWS Discovery Prerequisites: Ensure all AWS discovery prerequisites are met as outlined in the AWS discovery using patterns documentation.
    • Resource Inclusion List: Confirm that relevant CloudFront resources are not present in the Resource Inclusion List [sacloudinventoryresourcewhitelist] table to prevent duplicate discovery.
    • Pattern Activation: The CloudFront Distribution discovery pattern is disabled by default. From Visibility Content version 6.28.0 onward, enabling or disabling patterns will not be treated as customizations, and patterns will reset to the latest version after upgrades while retaining activation status.

    Data Population and Tables

    The discovery pattern populates data in two main areas:

    • Non-CMDB Tables: When running the Amazon AWS - CloudFront Distribution - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern, data is stored in non-CMDB AWS tables accessible via the ServiceNow navigation. Key information includes domain name, Amazon Resource Name (ARN), unique ID, deployment status, and references to configuration items.
    • CMDB Tables: The same pattern populates the Cloud Resource [cmdbcicmpresource] table with detailed resource data such as ARN, domain name, resource type (AWS::CloudFront::Distribution), operational status, and install status.

    CI Relationships and References

    • The pattern establishes relationships such as "Hosted on" between Cloud Resource and Cloud Service Account CIs to support comprehensive discovery and mapping.
    • References link AWS CloudFront Distribution records to corresponding Cloud Resource records and related key-value pairs, facilitating integrated CMDB data.

    AWS Tag Discovery

    The discovery pattern collects AWS tags associated with CloudFront Distributions and stores them in the Key Value [cmdbkeyvalue] table. Each tag entry includes the tag name, value, and a reference back to the relevant Cloud Resource CI.

    Practical Benefits

    By implementing this pattern-based discovery, ServiceNow customers can:

    • Automatically identify and track CloudFront Distributions in their AWS environments.
    • Maintain up-to-date CMDB and non-CMDB records for improved cloud resource management and operational insight.
    • Leverage CI relationships and tags for richer context and more effective service mapping.
    • Ensure discovery accuracy by managing resource inclusion and pattern activation correctly.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns finds Amazon CloudFront Distributions 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.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in both CMDB and non-CMDB tables.

    Data stored in non-CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the non-CMDB table when running the Amazon AWS - CloudFront Distribution - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    You can review the non-CMDB AWS tables by navigating to All > Configuration > AWS. You can also search the navigation filter for the specific pattern name.

    Table 1. AWS CloudFront Distribution [cmdb_aws_cloudfront_distribution]
    Field Description
    Name [name] Domain name of the CloudFront distribution.
    Object ID [object_id] Amazon Resource Name (ARN) that uniquely identifies the CloudFront distribution.
    Id [id] Unique identifier assigned to the CloudFront distribution.
    Status [status] Deployment status of the CloudFront distribution.
    Configuration Item [configuration_item] References the Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] table.

    Data stored in CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the CMDB when running the Amazon AWS - CloudFront Distribution - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    Table 2. Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]
    Field Description
    Object ID [object_id] ARN that uniquely identifies the CloudFront distribution.
    Name [name] Domain name of the CloudFront distribution.
    Resource type [resource_type] Type of resource. The value is set to AWS::CloudFront::Distribution.
    Operational status [operational_status] Operational status of the resource. Default value is Operational.
    Install Status [install_status] Install status of the resource. Default value is Installed.

    CI relationships

    The Amazon AWS - CloudFront Distribution - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern creates the following relationships and references to support Amazon CloudFront Distribution discovery. References link to records in other tables and don't appear in the CI Relationship [cmdb_rel_ci] table.

    Table 3. CI relationships
    CI Relationship CI
    Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] Hosted on::Hosts Cloud Service Account [cmdb_ci_cloud_service_account]
    Table 4. CI references
    CI Field Referenced CI
    AWS CloudFront Distribution [cmdb_aws_cloudfront_distribution] Configuration Item [configuration_item] Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]
    Key Value [cmdb_key_value] Configuration item [configuration_item] Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]

    AWS Tag discovery

    The Amazon AWS - CloudFront Distribution - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern collects tags and populates them in the Key Value [cmdb_key_value] table.

    Table 5. Key Value [cmdb_key_value]
    Field Description
    Key [key] Tag name.
    Value [value] Tag value.
    Configuration item [configuration_item] References the Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] table.