Offline mode for mobile
Summarize
Summary of Offline mode for mobile
Offline mode in ServiceNow mobile apps allows you to access and submit actions to records without an internet connection. This feature is essential for users who need to work in areas with limited or no connectivity. By downloading data in advance, you can continue your work offline, with all changes logged locally and synchronized with the instance once the device reconnects to the internet.
Show less
Key Features
- Enable Offline Mode: Activate offline mode via the Settings tab by toggling on Offline Mode. If the offline cache is not downloaded, you will be prompted to download it before going offline.
- Offline Navigation: An "Offline Mode" banner appears at the top of screens, and certain actions may be disabled depending on administrator settings. Submitted changes are marked with a patterned background until synchronization.
- Synchronize Outbox: When returning online, toggle off Offline Mode or sync changes via the Outbox screen. Synchronization updates the instance and deletes the offline cache.
- Cache Expiration: Administrators set cache expiration periods. Unsynchronized data is lost after expiration, so regular synchronization before and after offline work is critical.
- Resolve Synchronization Errors: Conflicts from offline changes (e.g., records updated or closed by others) generate errors visible in the Outbox. Users can resolve or delete these errors directly from the Outbox interface.
- Scheduled Offline Caching: Automatically download offline data based on your work schedule, running in the background. This feature can be enabled or disabled in settings, with an option to restrict downloads to Wi-Fi connections only.
Practical Guidance for ServiceNow Customers
To effectively use offline mode, plan ahead by downloading necessary data while online. Remember that changes made offline are stored in the outbox and require synchronization to reflect in the instance. Regularly sync your cache to prevent data loss due to cache expiration. Monitor and resolve synchronization errors promptly to maintain data integrity. Utilize scheduled offline caching to ensure your offline data is current without interrupting your workflow.
Access and submit actions to records in your mobile apps, even if you do not have an internet connection.
This video shows how offline mode works in your mobile apps. Learn how to download data, enable and disable offline mode, synchronize your outbox, and resolve synchronization errors.
Plan ahead when you use offline mode. If you will be working in an area with no internet access, download what you want to work on ahead of time while you are still connected to the internet.
When you are in offline mode, the changes that you make to your records are logged in your outbox. Your outbox tracks all the actions that you made on your cached records. After your device has internet access, you can synchronize your device with the instance. The cached changes in your outbox update to the instance.
Enable offline mode
Enable offline mode in your Settings tab. Tap Offline and then toggle on Offline Mode.
If you have not already downloaded the offline cache, you see a dialog box that asks you to download it. Tap Download and Go Offline.
Navigate the mobile app in offline mode
When you are in offline mode, a banner that reads "Offline Mode" appears across the top of all screens.
Depending on how your administrator configures the mobile app, you are unable to submit certain actions while you are in offline mode. These actions are grayed out on the user interface.
When you submit an action while you are in offline mode, the change gets marked with a patterned background. Changes remain marked until your device synchronize to the server.
Disable offline mode and synchronize outbox
To return online in the mobile app, navigate to . On the offline mode screen, toggle off Offline Mode.
- From the Offline Mode screen, toggle off the Offline Mode button.
- From the Outbox screen, tap Sync All.
Cache expiration
Your administrator configures a default length of time after which your offline cache expires.
When a cache expires, you lose all the data that you saved to the cache. If you do not synchronize the cache to an instance before the cache expires, none of your changes show on the instance.
Warning messages appear periodically to remind you to synchronize your cache before it expires. To avoid losing your data due to a cache expiration, always synchronize your cache before and after going offline.
Resolve synchronization errors
Problematic changes that you made in offline mode do not synchronize to the instance. They remain in the outbox until they are resolved.
You cannot synchronize changes that contradict changes made by other users while you were offline. For example, you may receive an error message if you try to synchronize changes to a record that another user closed while you were working in offline mode.
To view the errors in your cached changes, navigate to . Error messages indicate where errors occurred in your cached records while you were offline. You can resolve any of the listed issues directly from your outbox.
You can either tap Resolve to fix the error or tap Delete to remove the issue from the list.