Embedded Help internationalization

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Embedded Help internationalization

    Embedded Help internationalization enables ServiceNow customers to localize embedded help content into multiple languages to support global users. By default, embedded help content is written in English, but you can translate this content or create custom help content directly in your desired language. This feature ensures users see help content in their session language, improving usability and support effectiveness across diverse user bases.

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    Key Features

    • Language Configuration: To create or translate embedded help content, your session must be set to the target language (e.g., French for French content). The Language field on the Embedded Help Queue [sysembeddedhelpqueue] table controls which language content is displayed.
    • Localization Support: Translations are dependent on the foreign languages activated in your instance. This allows selective language deployment based on organizational needs.
    • Content Display Logic: When a user requests embedded help, the system attempts to show content in the user's session language. If unavailable, English content is shown by default unless configured otherwise via a sysproperty setting.
    • Content Prioritization: Embedded help content display prioritizes session language over roles, user-created content, and content version. For example, if French content is unavailable for a specific role, French content from a related role may be shown before defaulting to English content.

    Practical Application for ServiceNow Customers

    • Translate existing English embedded help content into languages your users require to enhance user experience and adoption.
    • Create custom embedded help content in local languages to meet specific organizational or regional requirements.
    • Configure session language settings and embedded help queues appropriately to ensure users see relevant localized help content.
    • Adjust sysproperty settings if you prefer to suppress English embedded help content in non-English sessions to maintain language consistency.

    By leveraging embedded help internationalization, you can deliver tailored, localized user assistance that aligns with your global workforce’s language preferences, increasing user satisfaction and reducing support overhead.

    Embedded Help internationalization provides the ability for you to localize your embedded help content to a variety of languages to meet global user needs. You can write your embedded help content in a language of your choice and decide what languages to display.

    Existing embedded help content records are written in English by default. You can translate the English embedded help content provided with the base system into other languages to meet your needs. You can also create custom embedded help content in the language of your choice.

    Localized Embedded Help content

    To translate English Embedded Help content into another language or to create embedded help content in a language other than English, your working session must be configured to the language in which you want to write. For example, you must be working in a French session if you want to write embedded help content in French. Refer to Localization settings for more information.

    Configure embedded help content to display in the language of your choice by accessing the Language field on the Embedded Help Queue [sys_embedded_help_queue] table. Depending on the foreign language translations activated on your instance, you can choose which language to display your embedded help content.

    If embedded help content is available in a particular language and users are working in an instance with that language, they will see available embedded help in the desired language.

    Working with localized embedded help content

    When a user requests an embedded help content record, the associated embedded help queue record populates accordingly and the language specified in the embedded help queue record is set to the current session language.

    When embedded help content is available in a user's session language, content will be shown in that same language. If embedded help content is not available in the user's session language, than English content is shown. However, if you do not want to see English content in a non-English session, you can configure the sys_property to False (default is True).

    Embedded Help content prioritization

    Displaying Embedded Help content in the user's session language takes priority over all other mechanisms, such as role, whether content is user-created, and the latest content version.

    When a user is in a non-English working session, the priority for embedded help content display is as follows:
    1. Working-session language (other than English) content displays, if available.
    2. User-created content displays when working-session language content is not available.
    3. Version-related content displays when working-session language and user-created content are not available.
    For example, if an admin user is in a French working session and requests embedded help content, but French content is not available for the admin role, the same-language content for a lower role is displayed if available.

    If there is no embedded help content for the French admin role, but there is content for the French itil role and English admin role, the French itil role takes priority over the English admin role. The French-language content will display at the itil-role level.