Configuration Management Database (CMDB) release notes

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 10 minutes to read
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    Summary of Configuration Management Database (CMDB) release notes - Zurich Release

    The ServiceNow Configuration Management Database (CMDB) application in the Zurich release offers enhanced capabilities for managing and visualizing configuration items (CIs) and their relationships. It centralizes infrastructure data, improves data certification processes, and streamlines change and data management through new features and updated role configurations.

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    Key Features

    • CMDB Workspace improvements: A new CI form provides a comprehensive view and editing capabilities for CI attributes, relationships, health reports, related services, and activities in a single location.
    • Data Certification dashboard: Available within CMDB Workspace, this dashboard offers insights into certification tasks, policies, and progress, including reports and workload charts for individuals and groups.
    • Unified Map enhancements: Users can add or remove CIs and modify CI relationships directly from the map interface, improving visual management and interaction with the CI ecosystem.
    • Identification and Reconciliation Engine (IRE) updates: The system now supports prioritizing IRE identification rules over traditional sourcename and sourcenativekey attributes for unique CI identification, enhancing accuracy and reducing duplicates.
    • Dynamic IRE: Automates CI identification for hardware classes, minimizing manual rule creation and maintenance.
    • Role and permission changes: The itil user role no longer includes sncmdbeditor, and itiladmin no longer includes sncmdbadmin. Instead, sncmdbadmin and sncmdbeditor roles have full create, update, and delete access to the Configuration Item [cmdbci] class. A scheduled job is provided to update roles post-upgrade.
    • CMDB Workspace versions: Version 8.0 introduces mandatory attribute handling in the Create CI experience, while version 7.6 introduces the new CI form and Data Certification dashboard.
    • Archival and retention policies: Certification policy execution records have distinct archival and destruction processes to support audit requirements, with specific retention periods (e.g., 2 years archival, 7 years destruction).
    • UI updates: Coral theme is now the default for portals and mobile, with a dark theme option available.
    • Performance enhancements: CMDB Query Builder queries can be run with an enhanced execution mode for better scalability and speed.
    • Agentic workflows and AI agents: Require additional role configuration, including the new requirement of the sncmdbadmin role for the Create configuration item agentic workflow.

    Important Upgrade Information

    • Post-upgrade, CIs with discovery source set to Manual via IRE must have their operational status reviewed and updated because the “Design” value was removed.
    • Administrators must manually run the scheduled job "Remove CMDB Roles from ITIL roles and Add CUD access to sncmdbadmin/sncmdbeditor roles" to update role permissions appropriately.
    • Certain functions previously accessible to itil users now require explicit sncmdbeditor or sncmdbadmin roles.

    Related Applications and Features

    • Common Service Data Model (CSDM): Provides a standardized framework for service modeling and data mapping within CMDB to ensure consistency across ServiceNow products.
    • Service Graph Connectors: Enable integration of third-party data sources, such as Microsoft SCCM, into CMDB, with tools for custom ETL mappings.
    • CMDB Workspace Store App: Offers centralized access to CMDB insights, health monitoring, and dashboards.
    • Now Assist for CMDB: Supports data quality improvement, troubleshooting, duplicate CI remediation, and CI creation assistance within CMDB.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    With the Zurich release, you can expect a more unified and user-friendly experience when managing your CMDB data. The enhanced CI form and Data Certification dashboard simplify data validation and management workflows. Role changes improve security by clearly defining permissions for CI creation and editing. The support for Dynamic IRE and prioritization of IRE rules reduces duplication and improves data accuracy. Archival policy refinements ensure compliance and audit-readiness for certification data. Additionally, UI improvements and performance optimizations facilitate smoother daily operations.

    Overall, these updates help ensure your CMDB is accurate, secure, and easier to maintain, enabling better infrastructure insights and supporting IT service management processes.

    The ServiceNow® Configuration Management Database (CMDB) application stores data about the infrastructure of your organization. CMDB was enhanced and updated in the Zurich release.

    CMDB highlights for the Zurich release

    • Access a centralized location with a comprehensive view of the configuration item (CI) details by using the new CI form in CMDB Workspace. You can view and edit the CI attributes, relationships, and data, such as the CMDB Health report for the CI, CMDB 360 data that is associated with the CI, and the CI resources, activities, and related services.
    • Access the Data Certification dashboard in CMDB Workspace to gain insights about the data certification activities and progress, examine policies and tasks, and see the reports about the certification instances, charts of the aging certification tasks, and group and individual workloads.
    • Add or remove CIs directly from a map in Unified Map. You can also add, modify, or delete CI relationships in CMDB.
    • Configure the system to use Identification and Reconciliation Engine (IRE) identification rules to uniquely identify CIs in a payload, instead of using the source_name and source_native_key attributes.
    • In zbooted instances, the itil user role no longer contains the sn_cmdb_editor user role, and the itil_admin user role no longer contains the sn_cmdb_admin user role. However, the sn_cmdb_admin and the sn_cmdb_editor user roles now have full (create, update, delete) access to the Configuration Item [cmdb_ci] class.

    See Configuration Management for more information.

    Important information for upgrading CMDB to Zurich

    Due to the removal of the Design value for the operational status attribute in a CI, after an upgrade, you must review all CIs that have the discovery source attribute set to Manual via IRE. Review the operational status attribute of those CIs and set it to a supported value in CMDB for your environment. For example, you can set the attribute to Non-Operational. For more information about the operational status values, see Life cycle of tangible/physical CIs.

    On an upgraded Zurich instance, to configure the sn_cmdb_admin and the sn_cmdb_editor user roles with the necessary permissions to perform some CMDB Workspace tasks, you must manually run the scheduled job Remove CMDB Roles from ITIL roles and Add CUD access to sn_cmdb_admin/sn_cmdb_editor roles. This scheduled job modifies the user roles as follows:

    New in the Zurich release

    CMDB Workspace v8.0:
    You can now use the Create CI experience in CMDB Workspace to create a CI with a lookup identifier entry that contains mandatory attributes. When you select a lookup identifier entry on the Required attributes page, those mandatory attributes now appear and you can set their values for proper IRE processing. For more information, see Create a CI manually in CMDB Workspace.
    CMDB Workspace v7.6:
    • Access a centralized location with a comprehensive view of CI details by using the new CI form in CMDB Workspace. The form shows the attributes (key attributes are highlighted on a Summary page), tags, resources, activities, relationships, related services, health state, performance indicators, and CMDB 360 data that is associated with the CI. While viewing, you can also modify many of those CI details. For information about all the details on a CI form, see Manage CI details in CI Form.
    • Access the Data Certification dashboard in CMDB Workspace. The Data Certification dashboard provides the insights about the data certification activities and progress, policies and tasks, reports about certification instances, charts that show the aging certification tasks, and group and individual workloads. For more information, see Data Certification Dashboard.
    • Create or manage a shared preset. Save Unified Map filter settings as shared presets that any user on the team can access. This task requires the sn_cmdb_admin, sm_admin, or admin role.
    • Access Unified Map from the main navigation panel. Access Unified Map from the main navigation panel by navigating to All > CMDB Workspace > Unified Map.
    • Archival and destroy processes of certification policy related records, are now separated from those processes for records of all other policy types. This separation facilitates the extension of the retention period of certification policy records as follows:

      • The table cleanup rule for the CMDB Data Management Policy Executions [cmdb_data_management_policy_execution] table, which is stored in the Auto Flushes [sys_auto_flush] table, now excludes certification policy execution records from recurring cleanups.

        Retaining certification policy execution records instead of deleting them after 7 days is useful in situations where those records are needed for audits and are also useful for the Data Certification Dashboard, which is populated by these records.

      • The Archive CMDB Data Management Tasks archive rule, that applied to all CMDB Data Manager policy execution records, now excludes certification policy records. At each archive run, this archive rule is configured to also automatically archive its related records in the CMDB Data Management Certification Task To Document [sn_cmdb_ws_dm_certification_task_to_document] table (Archive Related Records).
      • The archive rule, Archive Certification Instances, is added to specifically archive certification policy execution records from the CMDB Data Management Policy Execution [cmdb_data_management_policy_execution] table. This new archive rule is configured to archive certification policy execution records 2 years after creation, and to destroy those records 7 years after they are archived.
      • The archive rule, Archive Certification tasks, is added to specifically archive the certification task records from the CMDB Data Management Task [cmdb_data_management_task] table.
      • The archival of related records in the CMDB Data Management Certification Task To Document [sn_cmdb_ws_dm_certification_task_to_document] table is now moved as an Archive Related Records entry from the Archive CMDB Data Management Tasks archive rule to the new Archive Certification tasks archive rule.

    The Zurich release includes an installation of CMDB Workspace. However, you can download a newer version of CMDB Workspace so that you can use its latest features in your Zurich instance. For more information, visit the ServiceNow Store.

    Quick start tests for CMDB

    After upgrades and deployments of new applications or integrations, run quick start tests to verify that CMDB works as expected. If you customized CMDB, copy the quick start tests and configure them for your customizations.

    UI changes

    Coral theme
    Coral is now the default theme for new portal, web, and mobile experiences with Next Experience or Core UI enabled. This theme provides a fresh look and feel, featuring brand-neutral illustrations to enhance your user experience. A dark theme option is available for web and mobile experiences.

    Changed in this release

    CMDB Workspace v7.6

    • On the Published policy tile on the Data Manager policies page, the policies list view now shows the scheduled job that is associated with the policy and the user that the policy runs as.

      For more information, see Create a CMDB Data Manager policy.

    • Instead of the system automatically setting the run as attribute of the scheduled certification and attestation jobs to be the user that authored the policy, you can now set a specific user that adheres to the policies and regulations in the organization. Configure the default values for the run as user and user accounts available for run as assignees for auditing purposes when it’s important to know who initiated the changes.

      For more information, see Components related to CMDB Data Manager.

    • For certification and attestation policy tasks, choose how to assign tasks in cases where a specified task assignment field is empty for a target CI. Specify a user or a user group to assign such tasks to, or create the tasks without assigning them. An administrator can later review and assign those tasks.

      For more information, see Create a CMDB Data Manager policy.

    • View the closed tasks in the My Work view in CMDB Workspace. Select the Closed card in the Task status tile to review the (in read-only mode) details for tasks that are in the Closed Complete, Closed Canceled, Closed Incomplete, or Rejected state.

      For more information, see My Work view in CMDB Workspace.

    • New CIs in the Create CI experience no longer have their Operational status attribute set. The new CI Operational state attribute appears on the Additional attributes page of the Create CI experience. Setting it to any value is optional.

      For more information, see Create a CI manually in CMDB Workspace.

    • The itil user role now contains the sn_cmdb_user user role and no longer contains the sn_cmdb_editor user role. As a result, the following functions that were accessible to itil users now require the sn_cmdb_editor user role:
      • Create and delete the operations that are related to CMDB 360 queries.
      • Access the CMDB Retirement Definitions module by navigating to All > Configuration > CMDB Retirement Definitions.
      • Access the Create CI quick link on the Home view of CMDB Workspace.
    Containment in the itil user role
    In zBooted instances, the itil user role no longer contains the sn_cmdb_editor user role and the itil_admin user role no longer contains the sn_cmdb_admin user role. However, the sn_cmdb_admin and the sn_cmdb_editor user roles now have full (create, update, delete) access to the Configuration Item [cmdb_ci] class.
    Constraints when deleting a CMDB Data Manager retirement definition
    The same constraints that exist when deleting a retirement definition in CMDB Workspace now apply when directly accessing the CMDB Retirement Custom Definitions [cmdb_retirement_custom_definitions] table:
    • The retirement definition that you want to delete must be in an inactive mode (Active = false).
    • The retirement definition for the Configuration Item [cmdb_ci] class can't be deleted.
    Prioritize using IRE identification rules for uniquely identifying CIs

    Configure the system to prioritize the use of IRE identification rules to uniquely identify CIs in a payload, instead of using the source_name and source_native_key fields. For more information about using the glide.identification_engine.skip_sys_object_source_matching system property to control this behavior, see Properties.

    Run a query in an enhanced execution mode
    Set the execution mode for a saved CMDB Query Builder query to run using an enhanced query execution engine, which is designed for improved performance and scalability.
    Role configuration required for agentic workflows and AI agents
    Agentic workflows and AI agents included with Now Assist applications require additional security configuration. If you select Users with selected roles for your user access security controls for an agentic workflow or AI agent, you must add the installed roles, or they won't execute. Data access settings must also include these roles. See the documentation for the agentic workflow or AI agent for the specific roles you must add. After the roles are configured, users must have the specified role to invoke the agentic workflow or AI agent.
    New role required for the Create configuration item agentic workflow
    The sn_cmdb_admin role is now required to use the Create configuration item agentic workflow (was sn_cmdb_editor).

    Removed in this release

    • Common Service Data Model no longer provides Design as a value for the Operational status attribute in CIs.

    Deprecations

    • The Data Certification plugin (com.snc.certification_v2) is now deprecated and no longer supported or available for new activation. The latest experience for this functionality is included with CMDB Workspace.

    Activation information

    CMDB is a ServiceNow AI Platform feature that is active by default.

    Related ServiceNow applications and features

    Common Service Data Model (CSDM)
    Common Service Data Model (CSDM) provides prescriptive guidelines for service modeling within CMDB and is the standard for all ServiceNow products that use CMDB. CSDM provides a framework for mapping data from your IT services and other products to CMDB. Following the CSDM framework helps confirm that the required data for your ServiceNow application maps correctly to the appropriate CMDB tables.
    Service Graph Connectors
    Use predefined ServiceNow® Service Graph connectors to import data from third-party applications, such as Microsoft SCCM, into your CMDB. In addition, you can use the IntegrationHub ETL store app to create and manage custom ETL transform maps so that you can integrate third-party data into CMDB without compromising its integrity.
    CMDB Workspace store app
    Use the CMDB Workspace store app to search, explore, and gain insights into CMDB. The CMDB Workspace is a store app that provides a central place for working with CMDB. In CMDB Workspace you can examine the health and recent activity related to CMDB, and access various CMDB dashboards and tools to support the tasks in your organization.
    Now Assist for Configuration Management Database (CMDB)
    Use ServiceNow® Now Assist for CMDB to improve the quality of CMDB data, to get help as you search the CMDB, troubleshoot issues with Service Graph Connector import sets, remediate duplicate CIs, manually create CIs, and view the comprehensive summaries for CIs. For release notes, see Now Assist for CMDB release notes.