Implementing normalization data services using guided setup

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 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 Implementing normalization data services using guided setup

    The Normalization Data Services feature in ServiceNow enables consistent and standardized referencing of company names within your Configuration Management Database (CMDB) and Asset Management records. This is achieved through a guided setup that walks you through activating the necessary plugin, downloading normalized data, updating reference qualifiers, activating normalization properties, and normalizing existing data.

    Show full answer Show less

    Note that this feature requires an internet connection to download mapping information and is not supported for on-premise instances.

    Key Features

    • Plugin Activation: The guided setup starts by activating the Normalization Data Services plugin (com.glide.dataservicescanonicalization.client), which installs the required schema to support normalization of company references.
    • Downloading Normalized Data: It downloads a comprehensive repository of enterprise vendor names and their standardized mappings. You can review these mappings in the Normalized Company Names and Normalized Mappings tables to ensure accuracy.
    • Reference Qualifier Updates: The setup updates reference qualifiers on fields linked to the Companies table so users select only normalized company names (e.g., “Dell Inc.” instead of “Dell”). Some qualifiers may require manual updates as noted in the knowledge base.
    • Normalization Property Activation: You can enable properties like “Normalize existing canonical corecompany records” to clean up cases where multiple records were previously marked as normalized before mapping was applied, ensuring only one canonical record remains.
    • Data Normalization: The final steps involve normalizing existing data across CMDB Configuration Items, CMDB Models, Software, and Asset Management tables to align records with the standardized company names.

    What You Can Expect

    • Improved data consistency and accuracy in your CMDB and Asset Management records by enforcing a single normalized company name for each vendor.
    • Reduced confusion and errors caused by multiple variations of company names in reference fields.
    • A streamlined process through guided setup that minimizes manual configuration and helps ensure proper normalization of existing and future records.
    • Visibility into normalized data mappings and the ability to verify and adjust mappings as needed.

    You can implement Normalization Data Services using a guided setup.

    Normalization Data Services guided setup provides a sequence of tasks that help you configure the Normalization Data Services plugin on your instance. To open Normalization Data Services guided setup, navigate to Normalization Data Services > Guided Setup. For more information about using the guided setup interface, see Using guided setup.

    Note:
    Because the Normalization Data Services feature requires an internet connection to download mapping information, this feature isn’t supported for on-premise instances.

    Activating the plugin

    In the first task of the guided setup, you activate the Normalization Data Services plugin (com.glide.data_services_canonicalization.client). Activating the plugin installs all the necessary schema to support normalizing references to Company records in the configuration management database (CMDB) and Asset Management.

    Downloading normalized data

    In this task, you download the repository of all enterprise vendor names and the mappings to their normalized counterparts. After the download finishes, you can view the downloaded data in the Normalized Company Names [cds_client_name] table. You can verify mappings in the Normalized Mappings [cds_client_mapping] table. For example, you can verify that “Dell”, “DELL”, “Dell (UK)” are mapped to “Dell Inc.”.

    Updating reference qualifiers

    This task modifies the reference qualifiers in reference fields linked to the Companies [core_company] table, helping to ensure that users can only select from a list of normalized company names. For example, when creating a Computer (cmdb_ci_computer) record, users can only select “Dell Inc.” and not “Dell” or “Dell Incorporated”.

    Some reference qualifiers may not get updated. To normalize these reference qualifiers manually, see KB0784201.

    Activating normalization properties

    In this task, select the properties you want to activate. See Normalization properties.

    Enable the Normalize existing canonical core_company records property if the Companies [core_company] table has two or more records that were both set to Normalized ("canonical=true") before any mapping. This option ensures only one [core_company] record is set to Normalized. When you normalize the CMDB tables later in guided setup, the normalization job reassigns the proper normalized value.

    For example, prior to mapping, both “DELL Inc” and “Dell Inc.” are set to Normalized ("canonical=true"). You define a new mapping for “DELL Inc” to “Dell Inc.”. If this property is true, guided setup denormalizes "DELL Inc", and updates the manufacturer field in the CMDB records to “Dell Inc." when the CMDB tables are normalized.

    Normalizing data

    To finish the guided setup, complete the remaining tasks by normalizing data in the following tables:

    • Configuration Items (CMDB)
    • Configuration Items (CMDB) Model
    • Software Asset Management tables