Explore and Search view in Service Graph Workspace

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 5 minutes to read
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    Summary of Explore and Search view in Service Graph Workspace

    The Explore and Search view in Service Graph Workspace enables ServiceNow customers to efficiently browse and search Configuration Management Database (CMDB) data without needing detailed knowledge of the CMDB data model. It offers intuitive navigation via contexts mapped to CI classes and supports AI-driven natural language search. This functionality helps users quickly find and manage configuration items (CIs) and related service graph data, improving visibility and operational efficiency.

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    Access and Roles

    • Navigate to Workspaces > Service Graph Workspace, then select the Explore and Search icon.
    • Required roles: sncmdbuser, sncmdbeditor, or sncmdbadmin.

    Explore Features

    The Explore mode offers two navigation options:

    • Contexts: Presents a hierarchical view of contexts grouping classes by category, allowing drill-down to CIs. This mode requires the Service Graph Workspace - Content store app and its dependencies, which provide context definitions and quick class filters for CI lists.
    • Classes: Lists classes based on existing CMDB group definitions. Available if the Content store app is not installed.

    Within the CI list view, users can apply quick filters common to all listed CI classes and open individual CIs in the CI Form for detailed management.

    Search Functionality

    The Search tab supports multiple modes to query service graph data:

    • AI Search: Uses Now Assist’s AI-driven natural language capabilities to interpret and refine queries. Requires sncmdbuser and nowassistpaneluser roles, the Now Assist for CMDB store app (version 3.0+), and activation of the Search result classifier skill.
    • Intelligent Search: Provides Natural Language Query (NLQ) functionality when AI search prerequisites are unmet. Accessible by CMDB Admin, Editor, and User roles, it offers dynamic suggestions, supports multi-table queries, and integrates with the CMDB Query Builder for advanced query editing.
    • Conditional Search: Offers a basic condition builder for specifying search filters by CI class and related lists. It includes features to limit record counts for performance optimization, controlled by system properties.

    Search results display in list format with options to load additional results (up to system-defined limits). Users can provide feedback to CMDB Admins to improve search accuracy.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Enables non-expert users to navigate and search complex CMDB data easily.
    • Improves CI discovery and management with hierarchical context navigation and class-based browsing.
    • Facilitates powerful, natural language searching with AI assistance, boosting productivity.
    • Offers fallback and refinement options to ensure accurate and relevant search results.
    • Supports detailed CI inspection and editing directly from search and exploration results.

    Additional Considerations

    • Installing the Service Graph Workspace - Content store app enhances exploration capabilities with contexts and filters.
    • System properties can be tuned to control performance impacts during search operations.
    • Various supplemental roles enable access to specific application and service types within the workspace.

    Search through CMDB tables without having detailed knowledge of the CMDB data model by using contexts that are mapped to CI classes as navigation. Use natural language with the AI-driven search to search the CMDB and related data.

    Access

    Navigate to Workspaces > Service Graph Workspace, and then in the navigation panel, select the Explore and Search icon.

    Role required: sn_cmdb_user, sn_cmdb_editor, or sn_cmdb_admin

    Explore

    Explore classes and CIs using one of the following exploration modes:
    Contexts

    The top-level contexts expand into a hierarchy of contexts (where classes are grouped by categories). As you expand navigation entries, the next level of contexts appears.

    This option is available only if the Service Graph Workspace - Content store app is installed. The Service Graph Workspace - Content app automatically installs all its dependent apps, such as the Data Model Navigator store app. The Service Graph Workspace - Content store app and its dependent apps enable the Explore by contexts option, and provide the contexts definitions and the quick class filters used in the CI list views.

    Classes

    The top-level contexts expand into lists of classes.

    If the Service Graph Workspace - Content store app isn't installed, then Explore by classes is the only mode of exploration available. In this case, existing CMDB groups definitions in which type = CMDB Workspace are used to organize the navigation panel. For more information, see CMDB groups.

    In either exploration mode, you can drill-down to see a list of CIs that belongs to the selected context or CMDB group.

    In the CIs list view you can:
    • Use the class quick filters to filter the list of the CIs by fields. Only filters that are common to all the CI classes in the list, appear (if there are none, then no class quick filters appear).
    • Select a CI to open it in CI Form. For more information, see Manage CI details using CI Form in Service Graph Workspace.

    Search

    Select the Search tab to search through the service graph data. Search provides the following modes of operation where depending on system configurations and usage, each mode might produce different search results:
    AI search

    Lets you access a Now Assist AI-driven search using natural language. Now Assist analyzes your search utterance to determine the optimum search method, shows the results, and then lets you refine the search using natural language in the Now Assist panel.

    To access all of the functionality, including follow up questions, the following requirements must be met:
    • Role: sn_cmdb_user and now_assist_panel_user
    • This skill is available starting with the Now Assist for CMDB version 3.0 store app, which must be installed
    • The Now Assist skill Search result classifier, must be activated

    For more information, see Search the Service Graph database using natural language.

    Intelligent Search

    Lets you use Natural Language Query (NLQ) search capabilities provided by Intelligent Search for CMDB.

    If the Now Assist store app and the Search result classifier skill requirements for AI search aren't met, the system defaults to using Intelligent Search to search service graph data.

    Intelligent Search

    Accessible to: CMDB Admin, CMDB Editor, CMDB User.

    Lets you use Natural Language Query (NLQ) search capabilities provided by Intelligent Search for CMDB. Use the input field to construct a search string using everyday language. As you type, a dynamic list of relevant suggestions appears, with items matching single words or part phrases in the typed-in text, such as table names.

    You can:
    • Select Search tips to see tips about constructing search strings. See details about the usage, examples for single and multi-table search, advanced filtering, and relationships in Intelligent Search.
    • Select Search to either run the query if the search string is already fully converted into a valid CMDB query, or to open the Refine your query dialog box.
      • If the search string has no ambiguities with the table name or relationships, then the query runs and the results appear in a list view format.

        Only the first 100 results of the query appear in the results pane.
        • Select Load More Results to view the next set of 100 results.
        • Select Load All Results to view the rest of the query results, up to the number specified by the glide.cmdb.query.max_results_limit system property (10,000 by default).

        If the constructed CMDB query contains more than a single table, then the View in Query Builder button appears. Select the button to open the CMDB Query Builder with your query fully constructed on the Query Builder canvas. You can use the Query Builder to continue editing the query.

      • If there are any ambiguities with table names or relationship types in the search string, then the search string can't be converted into a valid CMDB query. In this case, the Refine your query dialog box appears letting you select from suggested CI classes and continue to parse your search string into a valid CMDB query. Those suggested CI classes are based on phrases in your search string. Use the drop-down lists to select the CI classes that match your intended search and then select View search results to run the query.
      • If Intelligent Search is unable to convert your search string into a valid CMDB query, then selecting Search doesn't generate any query results. Instead, a feedback form appears. Fill out the form and select Submit Feedback to record your feedback for your CMDB Admin to review.
    • Use the Sample searches list to get you started in running a pre-defined search. This list consists of more common searches, or searches that are more difficult to construct such as searches that involve service instances (application services).
    • Use the Your recent searches list to rerun a previous search.
    • Select Results Feedback to submit feedback on the search results for your CMDB Admin to review.

    For more details about using NLQ with Intelligent Search, see Intelligent Search for CMDB.

    Alternatively, you can select Use conditional search instead to use a basic condition builder functionality where you can specify conditions to search for CIs of a specific class.

    You can:
    • Select New condition set to add a condition phrase.
    • Select Related List Condition to add a condition phrase for related lists.
    • Select Search to search through the CMDB.
    • Add and then adjust the sn_cmdb_ws.list.record_count_limit system property to limit the record count summation and so to minimize the performance impact of that operation. The record count shows on the Conditional search page, for example, above the results list. For more information about adding and modifying that system property, see Components installed with Service Graph Workspace.

    In the results list, select a CI to see its details in CI Form.

    UI activity Additional requirements
    • Mapped Application Service
    • Application Service
    • Application Service Group
    • Dynamic CI Group
    • Tag Based Service
    app_service_user role
    • Business Service
    • Technical Service
    • Application Service Outage
    service_viewer role