Discovery status

Release version: Yokohama

Updated June 16, 2026

2 minutes to read

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Summary of Discovery status

The Discovery status in ServiceNow provides a detailed summary of each Discovery run via a schedule. It enables you to monitor, analyze, and if necessary, cancel a Discovery while it is in progress. The status form consolidates information such as the date and mode of Discovery, the number of probes and sensors processed, and helps troubleshoot Discovery issues effectively.

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Key Features

Discovery Status Monitoring: The Discovery Status Monitor job automatically analyzes schedules with no updates after a set time, focusing on those discovering configuration items.
Status Form Access: Accessible via Discovery > Status, each record corresponds to one Discovery execution and displays high-level details like mode, schedule, and probe activity.
Probes and Sensors Tracking: You can track individual probe and sensor threads, troubleshoot failures, and rerun specific elements directly from the status.
Discovery Timeline: Graphically displays the sequence of probes and sensors used during the Discovery, enhancing visibility into the process.
Discovery Log Entries: Captures critical events such as classification failures, CMDB updates, and authentication issues for detailed troubleshooting.
ECC Queue Entries: Provides a flow of probe and sensor activity with XML payload details exchanged with MID Servers or other integrations.
Device History: Summarizes all scanned devices and the actions sensors performed on the CMDB during Discovery.
Cancellation Capability: Allows manual cancellation of an ongoing Discovery directly from the Discovery Status record.

Key Details in Discovery Status Records

Number: Unique identifier for each Discovery status record.
Description: Indicates how the Discovery was run (e.g., Scheduled, Discover Now, or API-driven).
Schedule: The specific Discovery schedule name.
State: Current status such as Starting, Active, Completed, or Canceled.
Probes Started/Completed: Counts of probe executions during Discovery.
Source: Origin of the Discovery (e.g., Schedule, Quick Discovery, or DiscoveryAPI).
Discovery Type: Classifies the Discovery as Configuration items, IP addresses, Networks, or Processes/Connections (ADM).
Max Run Time: Maximum allowed run time for the Discovery schedule.
Log State Changes: Records state transitions during Discovery visible in device lists.

Practical Use for ServiceNow Customers

ServiceNow customers can leverage the Discovery status to gain comprehensive insights into each Discovery run, enabling effective monitoring and troubleshooting of Discovery processes. The ability to view detailed logs, timelines, and device histories helps identify and resolve issues quickly. Manual cancellation provides control over problematic or long-running Discoveries, while automated monitoring ensures stale jobs are highlighted. This results in more reliable and transparent Discovery operations, supporting accurate CMDB population and maintenance.

The Discovery status provides a summary of a Discovery launched from a schedule. You can also cancel a Discovery that is in progress from the status form.

Note:

Discovery schedules that have no status updates for a over a defined number of minutes are analyzed automatically by the Discovery Status Monitor job. By default, this job applies to Discovery schedules that discover configuration items. For more information, see the Discovery Status Monitoring Job article in the Now Support Knowledge Base.

To access the Discovery Status form, navigate to Discovery > Status and open the status record for a Discovery.

Each record in the Status list represents the execution of a Discovery by a schedule and displays such high-level information as the date of the Discovery, the mode, the number of probe messages sent to devices, and the number of sensor records that were processed. A status record contains data that can help you troubleshoot a failed discovery. Use this data to troubleshoot the behavior of individual probes and sensors or even run those elements separately. Use the status controls to enter probe/sensor threads at any point for a specific Discovery, and then follow the process in either direction. You can also clearly see which classification probe ran and discovered a particular device by viewing the classification probe column in the device list.

Refresh: Refreshes the related tabs, including the Discovery Log and ECC Queue for discoveries still in progress.
Discovery timeline: The Discovery timeline is a graphical display of a discovery, including information about each probe and sensor that was used.
Discovery log entries: The Discovery Log shows information such as classification failures, CMDB updates, and authentication failures. A Discovery Log record is created for each action associated with a discovery status.
ECC queue entries: Entries in the ECC queue provide you with a connected flow of probe and sensor activity, as well as the actual XML payload that is sent to or from an instance.
Device history: The device history provides a summary of all the devices scanned during discovery, and what action sensors took on the CMDB.

Note:

By default, only 30 days of Discovery records are displayed in the status list at a time.

The following Discovery status record shows the discovery of a load balancer using a pattern.

Figure 1. Example Discovery status record


Field	Description
Number	An auto-generated number for the record.
Description	How this discovery was run. Typically, the description is Scheduled, but if you ran discovery manually from a Schedule, the record would show Discover Now in the Description field.
Schedule	The name of the Discovery schedule.
State	The state of the discovery: Starting Active Completed Canceled
Started and Completed	The number of probes started and completed during discovery.
Source	Optional read-only field that shows the source of the discovery, such as Schedule Discovery, or Quick Discovery. If the source of the Discovery was from an API call, the source is DiscoveryAPI.
From Schedule (Read-only schedule data)
Discover	Shows the Discovery type. The possible types are: Configuration items, IP addresses, Networks, or Processes/Connections (ADM).
Max Run Time	Displays the maximum amount of time Discovery was permitted to run on this schedule.
Log state changes	Indicates that state changes were logged during this Discovery. These states can be seen in the Last and Current fields in theDiscovery Devices list in this form.