Amazon VPC Flow Log pattern-based discovery

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated May 13, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Amazon VPC Flow Log pattern-based discovery

    Amazon VPC Flow Log pattern-based discovery enables ServiceNow customers to automatically find and map Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Flow Logs within their AWS cloud environment. This capability requires the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application, which should be updated to the latest version to ensure optimal functionality.

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    By using this pattern, customers can populate relevant flow log data into both CMDB and non-CMDB tables, enhancing cloud resource visibility and management.

    Prerequisites and Setup

    • AWS discovery prerequisites: Verify that your environment meets the AWS discovery requirements as outlined in the AWS discovery using patterns documentation.
    • Resource Inclusion List: Ensure that the resources to be discovered are not listed in the Resource Inclusion List table (sacloudinventoryresourcewhitelist) to prevent duplicate discoveries.
    • Enable the pattern: The Amazon AWS - VPC Flow Log - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern is disabled by default. Activate it to start discovery. Starting with Visibility Content version 6.28.0, enabling or disabling patterns no longer counts as customization and patterns will receive updates while preserving the last active state after upgrades.

    Data Management

    Non-CMDB Tables

    When running the VPC Flow Log pattern, data is stored in non-CMDB AWS tables accessible via All > Configuration > AWS. Key fields in the cmdbawsvpcflowlog table include:

    • Name: Flow log ID used as display name
    • Object ID: Unique identifier for the flow log
    • Resource ID: ID of associated resource (VPC, subnet, or network interface)
    • Deliver Logs Status: Success or failure of log delivery
    • Flow Log Status: Indicates if the log is active
    • Configuration Item: Reference to the Cloud Resource table

    CMDB Tables

    The same pattern populates the CMDB cmdbcicmpresource table with key details such as:

    • Name and Object ID: For identifying the flow log
    • Resource Type: Set to AWS::VPC::FlowLog
    • Install Status: Defaults to Installed
    • Operational Status: Defaults to Operational

    Configuration Item Relationships and References

    The pattern establishes relationships and references to support discovery and mapping:

    • CI Relationships: Links the Cloud Resource CI to the AWS Datacenter CI via a "Hosted on" relationship.
    • CI References: Connects the AWS VPC Flow Log record to its corresponding Cloud Resource record and associates key-value tags.

    AWS Tag Discovery

    The pattern also collects AWS tags associated with VPC Flow Logs and stores them in the cmdbkeyvalue table, linking each tag’s key and value to the corresponding Cloud Resource configuration item for enhanced metadata management.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns finds Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC) Flow Logs on your cloud environment. Discovering some of these resources may require updating to the latest version of the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application from the ServiceNow Store.

    Pattern-based discovery and mapping requirements

    Verify the AWS discovery prerequisites
    For more information, see the prerequisites section in AWS discovery using patterns.
    Remove resources from the Resource Inclusion List table
    Verify that the relevant resource isn't listed in the Resource Inclusion List [sa_cloud_inventory_resource_whitelist] table to avoid duplicate discovery. For more information on removing resources from the Resource Inclusion List, see AWS Resource Inventory discovery with Patterns.
    Enable the relevant pattern
    The pattern for this service is disabled by default. Starting with Visibility Content version 6.28.0, activating or deactivating a pattern won't be considered a customization, and it will continue to receive updates. Patterns that were previously activated or deactivated will reset to the latest predefined version after upgrading while retaining the last active field value. For more information on enabling patterns, see Activate a disabled pattern.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in both CMDB and non-CMDB tables.

    Data stored in non-CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the non-CMDB table when running the Amazon AWS - VPC Flow Log - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    You can review the non-CMDB AWS tables by navigating to All > Configuration > AWS. You can also search the navigation filter for the specific pattern name.

    Table 1. AWS VPC Flow Log [cmdb_aws_vpc_flow_log]
    Field Description
    Name [name] The flow log ID, used as the display name.
    Object ID [object_id] The unique identifier of the flow log.
    Resource ID [resource_id] The ID of the resource associated with the flow log, such as a VPC, subnet, or network interface.
    Deliver Logs Status [deliver_logs_status] The status of the log delivery. The value is SUCCESS or FAILED.
    Flow Log Status [flow_log_status] The status of the flow log. The value is ACTIVE when the flow log is running.
    Configuration Item [configuration_item] References the Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] table.

    Data stored in CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the CMDB when running the Amazon AWS - VPC Flow Log - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    Table 2. Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]
    Field Description
    Name [name] The flow log ID, used as the display name.
    Object ID [object_id] The unique identifier of the flow log.
    Resource type [resource_type] Type of resource. The value is set to AWS::VPC::FlowLog.
    Install Status [install_status] Install status of the resource. Default value is Installed.
    Operational status [operational_status] Operational status of the resource. Default value is Operational.

    CI relationships

    The Amazon AWS - VPC Flow Log - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern creates the following relationships and references to support Amazon VPC Flow Log discovery. References link to records in other tables and don't appear in the CI Relationship [cmdb_rel_ci] table.

    Table 3. CI relationships
    CI Relationship CI
    Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] Hosted on::Hosts AWS Datacenter [cmdb_ci_aws_datacenter]
    Table 4. CI references
    CI Field Referenced CI
    AWS VPC Flow Log [cmdb_aws_vpc_flow_log] Configuration Item [configuration_item] Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]
    Key Value [cmdb_key_value] Configuration item [configuration_item] Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource]

    AWS Tag discovery

    The Amazon AWS - VPC Flow Log - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern collects tags and populates them in the Key Value [cmdb_key_value] table.

    Table 5. Key Value [cmdb_key_value]
    Field Description
    Key [key] Tag name.
    Value [value] Tag value.
    Configuration item [configuration_item] References the Cloud Resource [cmdb_ci_cmp_resource] table.