Smart button functions
Summarize
Summary of Smart button functions
Smart buttons in the ServiceNow mobile app enable users to quickly interact with native mobile applications such as phone, map, email, and browser apps. These buttons allow you to perform predefined actions like navigating to an address, sending emails or texts, placing phone calls, or opening URLs directly from within your instance records or globally.
Show less
Key Features
- Smart Button Types:
- Address: Opens navigation to a specified address using the mobile device’s map application, ideal for directing field technicians to locations.
- Email: Sends an email to a static or record-based recipient with optional predefined subject lines.
- Phone: Initiates a phone call or SMS to a static or record-based number, such as calling a customer from an incident record.
- URL: Opens web addresses either inside the app (relative URLs) or in the device’s default browser (external URLs).
- Context Options:
- Record Context: Uses dynamic data from the current record (e.g., caller phone number from an incident) so the button action adapts based on the record accessed.
- Global Context: Uses static information independent of any record, such as a fixed company support phone number.
- Advanced Configurations: Control button visibility based on user roles or specific conditions (e.g., hide email button if no email address is available).
- Deep Linking: Supports deep linking to third-party applications via properly formatted URIs in URL smart buttons. Administrators can control permitted external apps with the glide.sg.allowedexternaldeeplinks property.
Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers
- Streamline workflows by enabling mobile users to perform common external actions without leaving the app.
- Increase efficiency for field technicians and support agents by integrating direct calls, navigation, and communication options.
- Customize access and button visibility based on roles and record data to ensure relevant options are presented to users.
- Extend mobile app capabilities through deep linking, connecting ServiceNow workflows with third-party mobile apps securely.
Use smart buttons to interact with native applications on your mobile device, such as your phone, map, or email applications.
Smart buttons
Use smart buttons to quickly perform actions you specify outside the app. These actions can include navigating to a location on a map, sending a text message or email to a contact, placing a phone call, or opening a URL in a browser. You can choose from any of the following options.
Smart button types
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Address | Use the Address smart button type to navigate to an address on your instance using your mobile devices navigation software. For example, you can configure a button to direct your field technician to their next work location. |
Use the Email smart button type to send an email. The recipient can be a static email address, or an email address stored on a table on your instance. For example, you can configure a button to send a email with a preset subject from within an incident record. |
|
| Phone | Use the Phone smart button type to place a call or send an SMS text message. As with email, the recipient can be a static, or a number stored on an instance record. For example, you can configure a button on an incident record to call your customer. You can configure your smart button to automatically use the phone number in your customer's user record. |
| URL | Use the URL smart button to navigate to a web address. For example, you can configure a button to open your company's website. URLs can be relative or external. Relative URLs display within the app, while external URLs open in the mobile device's default browser. |
Smart button context
Context determines whether a smart button uses information in a record, or static information you define when creating the smart button.
- Record Context
- Use record context when you want to use information from the record where you have included your smart button. For example, you want to create a smart button to call the user listed in the Caller field of an incident. In this case you would select Record in the smart button's context field. The number used for the phone call is specified by selecting a table and field where the caller's phone number is stored. Using this method, the number called changes dynamically when accessing incidents with different callers.
- Global Context
- Use global context when you want to create a button that does not depend on information in the record. For example, you want to create a smart button that calls your company's support number. This number remains the same no matter where the smart button is placed in your application. When creating a smart button with the global context, you have a Phone Number field where you can input the number.
For examples of configuring smart buttons, see Configure a smart button.
Smart button advanced configurations
Use advanced configurations to control when your button appears, based on conditions or roles. You may, for example want to hide an email button for records that have no email address, or display a URL link only to your admin users.
| Configuration | Description |
|---|---|
| Display Conditions | Conditions under which the smart button is visible. |
| Roles Permission | Roles that can see the smart button. If no roles are selected, the button is visible to all users. |
Deep linking to third party applications
ServiceNow mobile supports deep linking to third party applications using the URL smart buttons. To make use of this feature, enter a properly formatted URI in the URL field. The format for a deep linking URI varies depending on the target app. For information on these URI formats, refer to deep linking documentation provided by the third party vendors.
Administrators can use the glide.sg.allowed_external_deeplinks property to define which third party apps. For details on this property, see Configure which external apps are available for deep linking.