Cascade Update function

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Cascade Update function

    The Cascade Update function allows ServiceNow customers to update an attribute of a configuration item (CI) within the Telecommunications Network Inventory application and propagate this change to all related CIs. This function is particularly useful for automating updates through Workflow Studio, ensuring consistency across the entire hierarchy of inventory records.

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    Key Features

    • Cascading Updates: Automatically applies changes made to a CI attribute down through related CIs based on the inventory hierarchy.
    • Error Handling: If discrepancies arise among related CIs, the function returns an error detailing the conflict, ensuring users are informed of issues during execution.
    • Workflow Studio Integration: Can be utilized as an action within Workflow Studio, enabling streamlined inventory data operations.
    • Role Permissions: Only users with the admin role can configure and implement this function in a flow.

    Input Fields

    The function requires specific input fields for proper execution:

    • Change Request: The related change request for the affected CI list.
    • CI: The specific configuration item targeted for the update.
    • Field: The attribute within the CI that you wish to cascade changes to.

    Key Outcomes

    By utilizing the Cascade Update function, customers can ensure that attribute changes in a CI are reflected throughout all related CIs, maintaining data integrity and consistency. This leads to more efficient inventory management and reduces the likelihood of manual errors across interconnected CIs.

    The Cascade Update function enables you to update a configuration item (CI) attribute in the Telecommunications Network Inventory application and cascade the change in all related CIs. You can use this function to automatically cascade the field values in related CIs when you use Workflow Studio.

    You can use the Cascade Update function to update any field in the inventory record and cascade the changes all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned in the inventory record.

    If there’s a conflict, such as any discrepancies found in the related CIs, this function returns an error. For example, let's say that you pass the change request and CI but the CI isn’t added to the affected CI list of the change request. Instead, it returns a sort error with the conflict information in execution.

    Note:
    This function doesn’t work on Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Status fields.

    You can use this function as a Workflow Studio action in the Telecommunications Network Inventory workflow.

    Roles and availability

    Users with the admin role can add an action to a flow and define the configuration details of the flow. This function is available as a Workflow Studio action in the Telecommunications Network Inventory application so that you can perform inventory-related data operations.

    Input fields

    The following table lists the input fields in the Cascade Update function and their descriptions.

    Table 1. Input fields of Cascade Update function
    Field Name Description Data Type Mandatory?
    Change Request Change request that is related to the affected CI list. Reference.Change Request No
    CI CI where you want to update the field. Reference.Configuration Item No
    Field Attribute in the CI that you want to cascade. String No

    To learn more about the variable data types, see Flow Designer input and output data variables.

    Output

    Use this function to update the CI attribute in all related CIs.

    Cascade rule for all common attributes of CI

    The following table lists the information about the cascade rules for the different types of CIs.

    Table 2. Cascade rules
    CI Cascade Rule Example
    Telco Equipment Attributes that are updated for the related equipment holder (slot), interface card, telco equipment holder (subslot), and network interface records. The Type field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned in the inventory record.
    Telco Equipment Holder Attributes that are updated for the related interface card, telco equipment holder (subslot), and network interface records. The Type field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned.
    Interface Card Attributes that are updated for the related telco equipment holder (subslot) and network interface records. The Type field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned.
    Network Interface Attributes that are updated for the related network interface record. The Port Bandwidth field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned in the inventory record.
    Physical Connection Attributes are updated for the related physical connection record. The Bandwidth field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned in the inventory record.
    Logical Connection Attributes that are updated for all the next element CI records, which are defined in the connection element that reference the logical connection record. The Bandwidth field that is updated in the equipment record cascades all the way down to the hierarchy mentioned in the inventory record.