Service map: Central management of all products and services

Service Graph is the central management system for ServiceNow’s next-generation digital products and services. It implements the Common Service Data Model (CSDM) on the Now platform, and includes CMDB and related life cycle management functions.

CSDM is not a commercial product of ServiceNow, but a best practice framework for modeling, managing, and updating information about configuration objects in the CMDB. By linking the content of the CMDB with related services, users, and business processes, the CMDB can be said to be “activated”-it becomes “service-aware”. It is not just a passive “recording system”, but a part of the “action system”, which enhances its role on the one hand and helps it to be better maintained and updated on the other hand.

I introduced the ServiceNow CMDB and public service data model in more detail in this article.

Do not. It is a set of core functions of Now Platform and the foundation of all ServiceNow products. For a quick introduction to the service map, please watch this video.

The service graph extends the concept of CMDB to data types traditionally not found in CMDB, and covers the entire digital life cycle of applications and services. Although CMDB has traditionally focused on operational issues of assets, configuration items and their relationships, service graphs also include data from planning, design, application development, and deployment. To ensure that your data adds value throughout the digital life cycle, Service Graph provides design guidelines and data governance related to the Public Service Data Model (CSDM).

IT organizations are constantly evolving to adopt new agile methods and modern technologies, which require more modern methods than CMDB. Service Graph provides a natural and consistent approach to our own products, integrations, and customer data, linking planning with development, deployment, and business processes-the entire digital life cycle from cradle to grave. From applications to infrastructure, consider the entire technology stack across traditional and modern cloud/microservice environments.

Service Graph does not directly provide results, but enables existing and future ServiceNow products to provide more comprehensive and consistent results for all relevant personnel. Customers can use service maps to answer overall questions that link the company, employees, processes, technology, cost, performance, and risk. Service graphs make it easy for teams to achieve data-driven results, such as B. Application portfolio rationalization, DevOps pipeline automation, autonomous cloud operations, risk assessment and mitigation, product ROI assessment, and more.

CMDB is still a key component of the service graph. ServiceNow continues to invest in CMDB and all existing investments will remain unchanged. In a more comprehensive service graph, all existing data becomes more valuable because it is used for decision-making in areas such as planning, application development, deployment, and business processes.

Service graphs using existing CMDB functions do not require any additional work. All functions of Service Graph only require additional activation. However, because Service Graph makes it easier to create and maintain a single end-to-end system of record as a common component of the ServiceNow product, the team will see a reduction in capital expenditures over time.

Since the launch of the Paris version, Service Graph has been generally available and continues to expand. Regardless of the version released, new Service Graph connectors are regularly released to import third-party data and integrate it into CMDB classes and properties. You can find detailed information about the connector in the ServiceNow store at any time.