Work notes for incident field updates with DEX

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated July 24, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Work notes for incident field updates with DEX

    This functionality enhances incident records by automatically adding work notes when key fields related to configuration items (CIs), Business Services, or Service Offerings are set or changed to items monitored by Digital End-user Experience Self-service (DEX). These work notes provide service desk agents with immediate monitoring context and direct access to detailed DEX insights, supporting faster and more informed incident handling.

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    How it Works

    • When the CI, Business Service, or Service Offering field on an incident is set or updated, the system checks if the item is monitored by DEX.
    • For device CIs, it verifies if a DEX agent is connected.
    • For application CIs, Business Services, and Service Offerings, it verifies if they are monitored by DEX.
    • If monitored, a work note is automatically posted to the incident record with a message and a link to view more details in DEX.

    This automatic work note is distinct from other incident diagnostics and suggested resolutions available in the Investigation tab.

    Work Note Content and Posting Scenarios

    • Work notes are added when:
      • A monitored CI, Business Service, or Service Offering is set on a new incident.
      • Any of these monitored items are changed on an existing incident.
    • The wording of the notes varies based on the field type (Application CI, Device CI, Business Service, Service Offering), whether the item was set initially or updated, and the CI type.
    • Example messages inform agents about the monitored status and provide a clickable link for more details.

    Link Destinations

    Clicking the link in the work note opens the relevant page within the Service Operations Workspace, tailored to the item type:

    • Device CI: Device health overview tab of the device page.
    • Application CI: Overview tab of the installed or web application page.
    • Business Service: Corresponding business service page.
    • Service Offering: Corresponding service offering page.

    Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    This feature enables service desk agents to quickly understand the monitoring context of incident-related items without manual lookup, improving incident triage and resolution efficiency. By integrating DEX monitoring insights directly into incident work notes, customers gain streamlined access to end-user experience data relevant to their incident investigations.

    When a configuration item (CI), Business Service, or Service Offering on an incident record is set to an item monitored by DEX, a work note is added automatically. Service desk agents use these notes to view monitoring context on the incident record.

    When the CI, Business Service, or Service Offering field on an incident record changes, the platform determines whether the associated item is monitored by Digital End-user Experience Self-service (DEX). The system checks the following:

    • For a device CI, whether the device has a DEX agent connected
    • For an application CI, whether the application is monitored by DEX
    • For a Business Service, whether the business service is monitored by DEX
    • For a Service Offering, whether the service offering is monitored by DEX

    If the item is monitored, the system automatically posts a work note on the incident. The work note includes a message and a link to view more details in DEX. Service desk agents can select the link to view more details. For link destinations by field type, see Link destination by field type.

    Tip:
    This automatic work note is separate from the incident diagnostics and suggested resolutions available from the Investigation tab. For more information, see Incident investigation with DEX.

    When the work note is posted

    The system posts a work note in the following cases:

    • When a CI, Business Service, or Service Offering is set on a new incident.
    • When the CI, Business Service, or Service Offering on an existing incident is changed to a different value.

    The work note wording depends on the field type, the CI type (device or application), and whether the value was set at incident creation or changed afterward.

    Table 1. Example work note text by field type
    Field type Set on a new incident Changed on an existing incident
    Application CI The Configuration Item on this incident is CI name. This CI is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX. The Configuration Item on this incident has been updated to CI name. This CI is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX.
    Device CI The Configuration Item on this incident is CI name. This CI has a DEX agent connected. Click the link below to view more details in DEX. The Configuration Item on this incident has been updated to CI name. This CI has a DEX agent connected. Click the link below to view more details in DEX.
    Business Service The Business Service on this incident is service name. This service is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX. The Business Service on this incident has been updated to service name. This service is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX.
    Service Offering The Service Offering on this incident is offering name. This offering is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX. The Service Offering on this incident has been updated to offering name. This offering is monitored by DEX. Click the link below to view more details in DEX.

    Link destination

    Selecting the link in the work note opens the following page in the Service Operations Workspace, depending on the field type:

    • For a device CI, the Device health overview tab of the device page.
    • For an application CI, the Overview tab of the installed application or web application page, depending on the application type.
    • For a Business Service, the corresponding business service page.
    • For a Service Offering, the corresponding service offering page.