Asset and CI management
Summarize
Summary of Asset and CI Management
Asset and Configuration Item (CI) management in ServiceNow Zurich release involves creating assets, managing their lifecycle states, synchronizing assets with CIs, handling consumables, and retiring assets. Assets are tracked financially via the Asset Management application, while CIs are maintained in the CMDB for operational tracking and user access. Synchronization between assets and CIs ensures consistent, accurate data across both records.
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Asset and CI Relationship and Synchronization
The relationship between assets and CIs is maintained by synchronizing key fields, primarily the asset’s State and the CI’s Status. Two-way synchronization is enabled via business rules, updating fields on one record when the corresponding record changes, provided that the asset and CI are logically mapped.
- Asset states and CI statuses are mapped logically rather than one-to-one (e.g., "In Stock - Pending disposal" asset state maps to "In Disposition" CI status).
- Synchronization involves CI fields such as Install Status (for non-hardware CIs) and Hardware Status/Substatus (for hardware CIs).
- Asset-to-CI and CI-to-Asset synchronization updates relevant fields to keep data consistent.
- CI’s Hardware Status and Install Status are independent; using both simultaneously for hardware CIs is not recommended to avoid confusion.
Fields Synchronized Between Asset and CI
Numerous fields are automatically synchronized between asset and CI records to maintain data consistency, including but not limited to:
- Asset tag, Assigned to, Company, Cost (one-directional from asset to CI), Department, Location, Model, Serial number, Support group, Vendor, Warranty expiration, and Purchase details.
This synchronization helps maintain aligned financial and operational information.
Asset, CI, and Install Base Item (IBI) Synchronization
Install Base Items (IBI) represent items sold or provided as services. Assets, CIs, and IBIs are linked through the Model category and synchronized based on lifecycle stages and statuses.
- The synchronization approach depends on activation of the CSDM Lifecycle plugin and a related system property (
csdm.lifecycle.sync.between.ci.and.asset.activated). - When this property is false, synchronization uses legacy State and Substate fields.
- When true, synchronization happens directly between the CSDM Lifecycle Stage and Status fields for asset, CI, and IBI.
- Lifecycle changes in one record (asset, CI, or IBI) propagate updates to the others, ensuring lifecycle alignment across all related records.
Asset and CI Creation System Properties
- glide.createalmasset.async: Controls whether assets are created immediately when a CI is created or after a delay via scheduled jobs. Delayed creation improves performance when importing large CI volumes.
- glide.asset.createciwithire: Enables creating CIs from assets using the Configuration Management Database Identification and Reconciliation Engine (IRE), applicable to hardware CI classes identified by serial number. When enabled, serial numbers are required on assets for creation and purchase order processing.
Additional System Properties
- snitamenablecacheforassetcimapping: Improves synchronization performance by caching asset-CI field mappings.
- snitamcommon.macaddresssync: Enables synchronization between assets and CIs based on MAC address instead of serial number (disabled by default).
- snitamrestrictassetread: Controls read access to asset records for users with limited roles, restricting visibility to only assets assigned or related to them (disabled by default).
CMDB Success Advisor for Hardware Asset Management (HAM)
This advisory tool helps monitor and improve hardware asset data quality within the CMDB by providing insights into data coverage, attribute completeness, and integration recommendations for hardware asset model categories.
Asset and configuration item (CI) management refers to creating assets, setting appropriate states and substates, synchronizing assets and CIs, managing consumables, and retiring assets.
Relationship between asset and CI
It’s important to manage the relationship between assets and associated CIs. Assets are tracked with the Asset Management application, which focuses on the financial aspects of owning property. Configuration items are stored in the CMDB, which is used to track items and make them available to users.
When an asset has a corresponding configuration item, the asset record and the configuration item record are kept synchronized with two business rules.
- Update CI fields on change (on the Asset [alm_asset] table)
- Update Asset fields on change (on the Configuration Item [cmdb_ci] table)
Asset-CI mapping and synchronization
The State field of asset record and Status field of CI record are synchronized so that changes made on one form trigger the same update on the corresponding form, ensuring consistent reporting.
The following diagram illustrates the concept of Asset-CI mapping and synchronization.
This synchronization and mapping is based on the following factors:
- Asset state and CI status aren’t mapped on one-to-one basis. Rather they’re mapped to the most logical counterpart on the other table. For example, for a hardware asset set to state In Stock - Pending disposal, the corresponding CI is set to In Disposition with no substate.
- This synchronization happens between the asset’s State field and the following CI fields:
- Install Status field: Install Status doesn’t have a sub status and must be used for non-hardware CIs.
- Hardware Status and Sub status field: Hardware Status is visible only for Hardware CI.
Drive changes by updating the state on the Asset form. The Asset-CI synchronization can be driven in the following ways:
- Asset to CI synchronization: Change to the asset’s status updates the logically mapped CI’s Install Status or Hardware Status and sub status.
- CI to Asset: Change to the CIs Install Status or Hardware Status updates the logically mapped asset’s states and sub states.
- For a CMDB hardware CI, if both Hardware Status and Install Status is updated, the Hardware Status change is considered for mapping the corresponding state of the asset.
- CIs Install Status and Hardware Status work independently, so the two fields aren't related. CI’s Hardware Status change doesn’t change CIs Install Status and vice versa. To avoid confusion, keeping both status for CMDB CI Hardware isn’t recommended.
List of the fields that get synced between Asset and CI
When changing any of the following fields on the asset or CI record, the same field on the corresponding record is automatically updated (except for the Cost field, which is informational-only on the CI record).
The following is a list of fields that are synchronized.
- Asset tag
- Assigned
- Assigned to
- Checked in
- Checked out
- Company
- Cost (synchronizes in only one direction: asset to CI)
- Cost center
- Delivery date
- Department
- Due in
- Due
- GL account
- Install date
- Invoice number
- Justification
- Lease id
- Location
- Managed by
- Model (model_id in CI)
- Order date
- Order received
- Ordered
- Owned by
- PO number
- Purchase date
- Purchased
- Serial number
- Support group
- Supported by
- Vendor
- Warranty expiration
Asset, CI, and IBI synchronization
Any item that is provided as a service or sold to your customer is tracked as an Install Base Item (IBI). The Model category table associates Asset, CI, and Install Base Item (IBI). The synchronization between the asset and IBI is through the CSDM Life Cycle Stage and Status fields.
- When the system property is set to false, synchronization of the CSDM Lifecycle fields is through the legacy State and Substate fields.
- When the system property is set to true, the CSDM Life Cycle Stage and Status fields are directly synchronized.
- Synchronization of updates from asset to IBI and CI
- Updates made to the State or Substate field of an asset are synchronized with the associated IBI and CI. For example, when the State field of the asset is updated to In use, synchronization happens as follows.
- The Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status of the asset are set to Operational and In use, these field values are then synchronized with Stage and Status fields of IBI asset.
- The Status and Substatus fields of the CI change to Installed and In use.
- Synchronization of updates from IBI to asset and CI
- Updates made to the Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of an IBI asset are synchronized with the legacy State and Substate fields of the asset through the CSDM fields. The legacy fields of the asset are then synchronized with the associated CI. For example, when the life Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of an IBI asset are updated
to Defective and In Stock, synchronization happens as follows.
- The Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status of the asset change to In Stock and Defective. These field values are synchronized with the State and Substate fields of the asset.
- The State and Substate fields of the asset are then synchronized with the corresponding fields of the associated CI.
- Synchronization of updates from CI to asset and IBI
- Updates made to the Status and Substatus fields of a CI are synchronized with the corresponding fields of the asset. The legacy fields of the asset are then synchronized with the Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of the IBI asset through the CSDM fields. For example, when the Status and Substatus fields of a CI are updated to Retired and Donated, the corresponding fields of the asset change. The changes from the asset are synchronized with the IBI asset and the Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields change to End of Life and Retired.
- Synchronization of updates from asset to CI and IBI
- Updates made to the legacy State and Substate fields of the asset are synchronized between the asset and CI as follows:
- The Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of the asset are updated with values corresponding to the legacy State and Substate fields of the asset.
- The State and Substate fields of the asset are then directly synchronized with the corresponding legacy fields of the associated CI.
- The Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of the asset are then directly synchronized with the corresponding CSDM fields of the associated CI.
However, synchronization of updates from asset to IBI is only through the CSDM Lifecycle fields.
- Synchronization of updates from IBI to asset and CI
- Updates made to the Life Cycle Stage and Life Cycle Stage Status fields of the IBI are synchronized as follows:
- The legacy State and Substate fields of the asset are synchronized through the CSDM fields.
- The legacy fields of the asset are synchronized with the legacy fields of the associated CI.
- The Life Cycle Stage and Status fields of the asset are directly synchronized with the corresponding CSDM fields of the associated CI.
- Synchronization of updates from CI to asset and IBI
- Updates made to the Life Cycle Stage and Status fields of a CI are synchronized as follows:
- The Life Cycle Stage and Status fields of the CI are directly synchronized with the corresponding CSDM fields of the asset.
- The legacy fields of the asset are then updated with the values corresponding to the CSDM fields.
- The legacy fields of the asset are then synchronized with the corresponding fields of the CI.
- The legacy fields of IBI are synchronized with the asset through the CSDM Lifecycle fields.
Asset and CI creation properties
- glide.create_alm_asset.async
The system property glide.create_alm_asset.async controls whether assets are created immediately when a configuration item (CI) is created, or are created after a delay. A delay in asset creation enables large numbers of CIs to be created quickly. When this property is set to true, assets are created by the Asset - Create asset delayed sync scheduled job that runs every 15 minutes. View the status of the scheduled job in the Asset Job Log table [asset_job_log]. To view assets waiting to be created and asset creation errors, navigate to . To reprocess an error, update the state from Error to Ready. The next time the scheduled job runs, it reattempts to create the asset.
When the glide.create_alm_asset.async property is set to false, assets are created immediately from CIs.Note:If you upgrade to Zurich from Orlando or earlier, the default value of this property is false. Before updating this property, review your processes that depend on an asset value present on a CI and make any necessary changes to account for delayed asset creation.- glide.asset.create_ci_with_ire
- The system property glide.asset.create_ci_with_ire enables CIs to be created from assets using the ServiceNow® Configuration Management Database (CMDB) Identification and Reconciliation engine (IRE). This property affects CI classes that have an identification rule on serial number and have no dependent relationships with other CI classes.The default value of this property is false if you upgrade to Zurich from Orlando or earlier. Before updating this property, review the customizations on the Serial number field and any integrations or flows that use an existing serial number to create an asset.Note:CIs created with the IRE are named using the formatThis property is applicable to CI classes that are extended from the hardware CI class [cmdb_ci_hardware].
Serial number - Model nameand the source isSNAssetManagement. The Serial number field is required on assets with model categories that correspond to these CI classes. Asset creation fails if its serial number is present on an existing CI or asset. The Serial number field is also required to receive purchase order line items for model categories that correspond to these CI classes. The Serial number field isn’t required to create pre-allocated assets, but the serial number must be provided when the asset is allocated.
Other Asset and CI system properties
- sn_itam_enable_cache_for_asset_ci_mapping
- The asset and CI fields are synchronized based on the mappings defined in the relevant mapping tables. Fetching these mappings on the update of an asset or CI has an impact on the performance. The
sn_itam_enable_cache_for_asset_ci_mapping system property enables you to cache the following mappings:
- Asset and CI fields
- Asset state and CI install status
- Asset state and CI hardware status
Unless there isn't any change in the mapping tables, these cached mappings are fetched during the synchronization resulting in the improved system performance.
- sn_itam_common.mac_address_sync
- The sn_itam_common.mac_address_sync system property enables you to synchronize asset and CI using the Mac address. By default, this system property is set to false. To enable synchronization through the Mac address, set the value of this system property to true in the Asset Property [asset_property] table.
Asset read access system property
- sn_itam_restrict_asset_read
- The sn_itam_restrict_asset_read system property controls read access to the Asset (alm_asset) table and its child tables for users with only the snc_internal role. When set to true, these users can only read asset records assigned to them or where they are referenced in fields such as Reserved for, Managed by, or Owned by. Users with any additional role retain full read access. By default, this system property is set to False.
CMDB success advisor for HAM
Use CMDB success advisor for Hardware Asset Management (HAM) to monitor and improve hardware asset data quality in the CMDB. The advisor dashboard provides insights into data coverage, attribute completeness, and recommended data integrations for your hardware asset model categories. For more information, see Using CMDB success advisor for HAM.