Workflow drawing canvas keyboard commands

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Workflow Drawing Canvas Keyboard Commands

    This guide details keyboard commands for navigating and operating the Workflow Editor canvas in ServiceNow. Using these commands enables efficient workflow management without relying on a mouse, supporting accessibility and streamlined editing.

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    Navigation and Selection

    • Navigate between activity boxes: Use Tab or arrow keys (right, left, up, down) to move focus across workflow activities. Navigation typically follows a row-by-row pattern but may vary with workflow complexity.
    • Select and edit activity: Press Enter on an activity box to highlight and enter Edit mode. Within Edit mode, Tab cycles through elements like Activity Properties, Title, Condition Properties, and node context menus.
    • Exit element without changes: Press Esc to leave an element.

    Editing and Workflow Actions

    • Modify activity elements: Access properties and conditional settings when the workflow is checked out. Limited editing (only properties and title) is available for published workflows.
    • Add conditions: Use the Condition Properties within an activity box to specify activity conditions.
    • Create connections: Use the node conditional context menu to link or delete connections between activities.
    • Add activities: Use node conditional port options to add core or custom activities to the workflow.
    • Move activity boxes: Select an activity and use arrow keys to reposition it. Hold Shift plus arrow keys to move by single pixels for precise placement.
    • Validate workflow: Navigate to the Validate option using Tab and press Enter, or select Validate from the Workflow Actions menu.
    • Run workflow: Navigate to the Run option and press Enter to execute the workflow. Note that workflows linked to database tables run automatically based on conditions and cannot be manually triggered here.
    • Publish workflow: Open the context menu, navigate to Publish, and press Enter to publish the workflow.
    • Close canvas: Use Tab to focus the close button on the workflow tab and press Enter to close the drawing canvas.
    • Jump to top: After tabbing through all elements, press Enter on the "Jump to Top" option to quickly return to the top of the canvas.

    Practical Benefits

    These keyboard commands empower ServiceNow users to efficiently build, edit, validate, run, and publish workflows using only the keyboard, improving accessibility and productivity when managing complex workflows.

    Use keyboard commands to navigate and operate the Workflow Editor canvas.


    Workflow Editor Drawing Canvas - Tab Sequences / Elements
    Task or Action Keyboard Commands
    Select Workflow Actions menu command (for example, Validate Workflow or Publish Workflow)
    1. Press Tab until the context menu () is highlighted.
    2. Press Enter to open the context menu.
    3. Use the down arrow key to move to the command, then press Enter to select it.
    Set general workflow properties
    1. Press Tab until Information icon is highlighted.
    2. Press Enter to open Workflow Properties.
    Navigate from activity box to activity box. Simply press Tab or use the arrow keys (right, left, up and down) to navigate from activity to activity within the workflow.
    Note:
    Depending on the complexity and number of activity boxes in the workflow, the sequence of navigation is not always predictable. Depending on how you are navigating within the workflow, the navigation sequence is generally (but not always) row-by-row, and focus is usually placed on the nearest activity box.
    Modify a selected activity.
    1. Navigate to the activity box, then press Enter to select it and place it in Edit mode. When you select an activity box, it appears as highlighted.
    2. Once in Edit mode, use Tab to move around within the activity box to change or access elements such as:
      • Activity Properties ()
      • Title
      • Node context menu
      • Delete Node ()
      • Condition Properties ()
      • Node conditional context menu ()
      • Node conditional port options ()
      Note:
      All elements in a selected activity are only accessible when working with a checked out workflow. When working with a published workflow, you can only access its activity properties and title,
    3. Press Enter to select an element, or press Esc to escape an element without making changes.
    Add a condition to an activity.
    1. Within an activity box, select Condition Properties icon to access Condition Properties.
    2. In Condition Properties, specify the conditions for the activity.
    Create a connection from a condition on one activity to the next activity that follows
    1. Within an activity box, select Node conditional context menu ().
    2. Select Link to... to create a connection to the next activity box that follows, or select Delete to delete an existing connection.
    Add a core or custom activity
    1. Within an activity box, select Node conditional port options ().
    2. Select Add Core Activity to access Workflow Activity Definitions to add a new core activity, or select Add Custom Activity to add a custom activity to the workflow.
    Move an activity box
    1. Press Tab to navigate to the activity box, enter press Enter to select it.
    2. Use the arrow keys to move the activity box. To move the activity box one pixel at a time, press Shift while using the arrow keys.
    Validate a workflow
    1. Press Tab until Validate icon is highlighted.
    2. Press Enter to validate the workflow.

    You can also select Validate from the Workflow Actions menu.
    Run a workflow
    1. Press Tab until Run icon is highlighted.
    2. Press Enter to run the workflow.
    Note:
    If the workflow is tied to a database table, this function is disabled. The workflow runs when the proper table conditions are activated (for example, insertion of a new record into the table).
    Close workflow drawing canvas
    1. Press Tab until Close icon (on the right side of the tab that contains the name of the workflow) appears.
    2. Press Enter to close the canvas.
    Publish a workflow
    1. Press Tab until the context menu () is highlighted.
    2. Press Enter to open the context menu.
    3. Use the down arrow key to move to the Publish command, then press Enter to select it.
    Jump to Top After tabbing through the entire workflow, The Jump to top button appears at the bottom of the listing. Press Enter to jump to the top of the Workflow drawing canvas.