---
sourceDocument: Australia ServiceNow AI Platform Capabilities
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/servicenow-platform

 Release :

    - australia

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia ServiceNow AI Platform Capabilities

ft:clusterId :

    - platcap

bundleId :

    - platcap

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Debug user criteria of a catalog item

# Debug user criteria of a catalog item {#ariaid-title1}

* Release version: Australia
* 
* Updated March 12, 2026
* 
* ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 1 minute to read

Debug whether a user can access a catalog item based on the matched user criteria and
fix any issues.

## Before you begin

Role required: catalog_manager, catalog_admin, or admin

## About this task

You can only debug access issues based on user criteria, but not based on access control list rules (ACLs). For information about user criteria, see [Set security for items and categories](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/OE3exxwlN7xBqVXtDN4fUw "An administrator can control access to content in the service catalog by creating and applying user criteria records.").

For any scripted
user criteria that uses a session api such as gs.getUserID(), the
session of the logged-in user is used. Edit the behavior of the scripted user
criteria using the pre-defined <var class="keyword varname">user_id</var> variable in the
Script field of a user criteria. For information about
the Script field, see [Create a user criteria record in Service Catalog](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/~feUFCS0L4aTpW~W0_TOsg#t_CreateAUserCriteriaRecord "Create a user criteria record to define conditions that are evaluated against user records.").

## Procedure

1. Navigate to AllService CatalogCatalog AdministrationUser Criteria Diagnostics.  
   The User Criteria Diagnostics form is displayed.
2. In the Select user field, select the user whose access you want to debug.
3. In the Select catalog item field, select the required catalog item.
4. Click Diagnose.  
   * The item hierarchy is displayed along with an indication of the user's access to each node (catalog, category, or catalog item) based on the user criteria associated with the node.  
     Note:  
     * If the item is available in multiple catalogs or nested categories, the corresponding catalogs and categories are displayed as nodes in a tree format.
     * If the user matches multiple user criteria associated with the node, then the user can access the node only if the following conditions are met:
       * The user matches at least one of the user criteria in the Available For list.
       * The user does not match any user criteria in the Not Available For list.
       {#debug-user-criteria-cat-item__ul_mlc_v2w_tgb}
     {#debug-user-criteria-cat-item__ul_r14_lm1_sgb}
   * All user criteria defined for the item is displayed. For each user criteria, the following information is available:

     User Match
     :   ![user match icon]() is displayed if the selected user
         matches
         the user criteria.

     Association
     :   Association of the node with the user criteria, that is,
         Available for or Not Available for.

     User Criteria
     :   Name of the user criteria.
   {#debug-user-criteria-cat-item__ul_vpz_jn1_sgb}
5. To verify if the user can view a node of the hierarchy, click the node.  
   User criteria defined at the node is displayed. For example, when you click a node representing a category, the user criteria defined for the category is displayed.
6. To edit the configuration of a user criteria, click its name under the User Criteria column.

*[\>]: and then