RPA Hub release notes
Summarize
Summary of RPA Hub Yokohama Release Notes
The ServiceNow® RPA Hub application delivers end-to-end automation capabilities for organizations, significantly enhanced in the Yokohama release. This update introduces generative AI integration, high-density robot support, new connectors, sample automations, and improved security controls. It is available through the ServiceNow Store and requires specific upgrade steps and system property configurations when migrating from earlier versions.
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Key Features
- Generative AI Integration: Use Now Assist for RPA Hub with generative AI to create and edit automations and activities via text instructions in the RPA Desktop Design Studio, accelerating development.
- High Density Robots: Run multiple unattended robots concurrently on separate Windows Server user sessions, enhancing scalability and efficiency.
- New Connectors: Includes a Secure Shell (SSH) connector for UNIX system automation and an SAP connector for automating SAP GUI workflows.
- Expanded AI Model Providers: Support for Google Gemini and Anthropic Claude on AWS, alongside existing Now LLM Service and Azure OpenAI models for RPA bot generation.
- Enhanced Access Controls: Access to the RPA bot generation skill is restricted to users with RPA developer or admin roles, enhancing security compliance.
- Sample Automations: A rich library of pre-built attended and unattended automations is now available in the RPA Desktop Design Studio to accelerate automation adoption.
- UI and Experience Improvements: New Build with Now Assist wizard, search and pagination on sample automations home page, and updated field names for clarity.
- Legal Notice Bypass: A system property enables unattended robots to bypass login legal notices, ensuring uninterrupted automation execution.
Upgrade and Compatibility
- Upgrading to Yokohama requires installing updated Microsoft Software Installers (MSIs) for RPA Desktop Design Studio, Attended Robot, Unattended Robot, and Login Agent.
- Important system property configuration is needed to avoid upgrade delays and ensure proper table restructuring.
- Older MSIs may lack new features and are not compatible with Yokohama’s latest capabilities, especially for Unattended Robot.
Hardware and Software Requirements
- Unattended Robot: Minimum 2-core CPU, 4GB RAM, 50GB disk space; recommended 4-core CPU, 8GB RAM, 100GB disk. High density robots require multiplying these by concurrent runtimes.
- Attended Robot: Minimum 1 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 20GB disk; recommended 4 vCPU, 8GB RAM, 50GB disk.
- RPA Desktop Design Studio: Minimum Core i5 CPU, 4GB RAM, 20GB disk; recommended Core i7 CPU, 8GB RAM, 50GB disk; requires 1920x1080 resolution and DPI scaling off.
- Operating Systems: Windows 10 or Windows Server 2016/2019/2022 as applicable.
- .NET Framework: Version 4.7.1 or later is required.
Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers
- Accelerate automation creation using AI-driven assistance and pre-built automation samples.
- Run multiple unattended robots concurrently on one machine to optimize resource usage and automation throughput.
- Automate complex workflows involving UNIX systems and SAP GUI with new connectors.
- Ensure security and compliance through enhanced role-based access controls for AI-driven bot generation.
- Seamless integration with Workflow Studio allows combined flow and robot process orchestration.
- Benefit from accessibility improvements and localization support to meet diverse user needs.
Next Steps
- Install or upgrade RPA Hub and related MSIs from the ServiceNow Store to access Yokohama features.
- Configure required system properties before upgrading to prevent data and functionality issues.
- Enable and configure Now Assist for RPA Hub to utilize generative AI capabilities.
- Review hardware and software prerequisites to ensure optimal performance for attended and unattended robots.
- Leverage sample automations and new connectors to quickly enhance your automation portfolio.
The ServiceNow® RPA Hub application enables end-to-end automation for your organization. RPA Hub was enhanced and updated in the Yokohama release.
RPA Hub highlights for the Yokohama release
- Use generative AI to create and edit automations, activities, and extend automation logic flow through text instructions and preview options in the RPA Desktop Design Studio.
- Run multiple unattended robots on different user sessions at the same time on the same Windows Server machine using the high-density robots feature.
- Use new sample automations that were added in the RPA Desktop Design Studio that cater to different use cases.
- Leverage the communication capabilities of the SSH protocol in the automation processes with the new Secure Shell (SSH) connector in the RPA Desktop Design Studio.
- Use the SAP connector to identify the screens and elements and to automate workflows on SAP graphical user interfaces (GUI).
- Use Google Gemini and Anthropic Claude on AWS as AI model providers for RPA bot generation skill in addition to Now LLM Service and Azure OpenAI.
- Enhanced access controls for RPA bot generation skill.
See Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Hub for more information.
Important information for upgrading RPA Hub to Yokohama
- RPA Desktop Design Studio
- Attended Robot
- Unattended Robot
- Unattended Robot Login Agent
The following upgrade information is applicable only when you’re upgrading from San Diego or Tokyo to Yokohama.
Based on the number of records in the application file table, you may experience a delay while upgrading the RPA Hub applications from Tokyo or earlier releases to Yokohama.
Before upgrading RPA Hub to Yokohama, you must set the value of the glide.rollback.blacklist.TableParentChange.change system property to false. If this property doesn't exist in the System Property [sys_properties] table, add the property and set its value to false. For more information on how to add a property, see Add a system property.
After you upgrade to Yokohama, the bot process definitions change to the new structure, which is the bot process configuration.
Although the bot process configuration doesn't replace the bot process completely, most fields are moved from the bot process to the bot process configuration. If you upgrade to Yokohama without updating the system property value, the tables don’t extend the Application File [sys_metadata] table. To update the table changes manually, see the Restructuring RPA Hub tables to sys_metadata in Utah and beyond release [KB1223629] article in the Now Support Knowledge Base.
New in the Yokohama release
- New third-party AI model provider options available for all Now Assist applications
- Google Gemini and AWS Claude are available for RPA bot generation skill in addition to Now LLM Service and Azure OpenAI.
- Enhanced ACLs for security measures
- Enhanced access controls for RPA bot generation skill for Now Assist for RPA Hub in compliance with AI security directives.
Access to RPA bot generation skill is now restricted to users with the RPA developer or RPA admin role. These roles contain the RPA Hub Admin user role (sn_nowassist_admin.user).
- RPA bot generation
-
Use the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) bot generation skill in RPA Desktop Design Studio to create and edit automations and activities through short text instructions and preview options, accelerating automation development for both new and existing users. For more information about creating automations using Now Assist, see Create an automation with Now Assist. For more information about creating activities using Now Assist, see Create an activity with Now Assist.
Enhance automation logic using the Build automation option, starting from components or from a blank canvas based on text instructions. For more information, see Build an automation with Now Assist.
- High density robots
- Enable multiple unattended robots to run simultaneously on the same Windows Server machine using the high-density robots feature. These unattended robots run automations in separate Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) sessions. For more information, see High density robots in Unattended Robot and Set up Windows Server machine for high density robots.
- Sample automations
- Use sample automations to jumpstart your automation journey with a library of pre-built automations.
The following unattended and attended sample automations were added to the Sample Explorer and home page of RPA Desktop Design Studio:
- User Creation in Badging App
- Universal Timezone Converter
- Decode Barcode and QR Code to Text
- PDF Text to Images
- PDF to Word
- HTML to CSV
- Word Operations
- Excel Operations
- Highlight Excel Rows
- City Weather Reports
- Tiff to PDF
- Add Word Footer
- Date Delta Across Apps
- File Ops: Copy, Delete, Move
- Extract Data from JSON to Excel
- Automate Offer Letters
- Summarize Sales Data
- Invoice Data Extraction to Excel
- Download File from URL
- Health Check Bot
- Secure Shell (SSH) connector
- Establish an Secure Shell (SSH) connection to a remote server and execute commands in the RPA Desktop Design Studio. In the UNIX environment, SSH is the preferred way to access remote systems. Robots often interact with remote systems such as UNIX servers.The connector comprises three methods:
- Connect: Establishes an SSH connection.
- Run Command: Executes commands over an established connection.
- Disconnect: Disconnects the session that was established using connect method.
Ensure to install the SSH plugin from the Plugins Manager as a prerequisite.
- Bypassing the legal notice
- In RPA Hub, enable the sn_rpa_fdn.bypass_legal_notice system property to authorize the unattended robot to clear the legal notice message set by the system-level policy. This property ensures that a legal notice isn't displayed during the robot's login process.
- What's New tab in the Help Center for RPA Hub
- Learn about the following newly released RPA features in your instance in the What's New tab in the Help Center for RPA Hub:
- Now Assist for RPA Hub
- High density robot
- SAP connector
- The SAP connector helps identify the screens and elements and automating workflows on the SAP GUI. For example, create and save a vendor entry. The SAP Connector is built by Bristlecone, Inc.
- New methods for Universal app connector
- In the RPA Desktop Design Studio, the following three new methods for Universal app connector are added.
- GetValue: Retrieves a value from an element.
- SetValue: Assigns a specified value into an element.
- Click: Performs a click action on an element.
UI changes
- Build with Now Assist wizard
- In the RPA Desktop Design Studio, create an automation with Now Assist by selecting the Create automation button and follow the next set of steps in the Build with Now Assist wizard.
- Create an activity with Now Assist
- In the RPA Desktop Design Studio, create an activity using Now Assist by selecting and holding (or right-clicking) Activities in the Project Explorer. Then, select the New activity using Now Assist option.
- Build an automation with Now Assist
- In the RPA Desktop Design Studio, extend the automation logic using the Build automation with Now Assist option. On the design canvas, select a component and hover over the AI icon (
). Select the AI icon () to open the Build automation with Now Assist window, you can describe the automation logic based on the selected components. - High density robots
-
In the Robot form of RPA Hub, the High Density Robot and Screen Resolution fields are added to support the high-density robot feature.
- Enhanced user experience on the Sample Automation home page
- The following options have been added to enhance user experience on the Sample Automation home page in RPA Desktop Design Studio:
- Pagination: Scroll through different pages containing sample automations using the pagination option.
- Search bar: Filter and display only the automations that contain the search keyword in their title or description using the search bar option. The search is case-insensitive and dynamically updates the list of displayed automations based on the search query.
Changed in this release
- Changed fields for the Unattended Robot application
- In the Unattended Robot dialog box, the RPA Hub field name has been changed to Instance URL.
- Embedded Task Automation in RPA Hub
- Trigger attended bot processes (attended automations) from the ServiceNow forms in the Workspace experience apart from initiating them from a classic UI or the Attended Robot application.
- Microsoft Software Installer (MSI) compatibility
- Older MSIs that are related to Attended Robot and RPA Desktop Design Studio from the RPA Hub store release versions 7.0.3 and 9.0.0 are compatible and can be used with the current store release version (12.0.X) of RPA Hub. For Unattended Robot, the latest MSI must be installed, as it is not backward compatible.
- TerminateByName component behavior change
- The TerminateByName component stops processes or applications only within the current user session.
Activation information
Install RPA Hub by requesting it from the ServiceNow Store. Visit the ServiceNow Store website to view all the available apps and for information about submitting requests to the store. For cumulative release notes information for all released apps, see the ServiceNow Store version history release notes.
Install the Now Assist for RPA Hub application to add the generative AI capability and turn on the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) bot generation skill to use generative AI to create automations. For more information about these tasks, see Configure Now Assist for RPA Hub and Turn on the RPA bot generation skill.
For cumulative release notes information on RPA Hub, see RPA Hub release notes.
For cumulative release notes information on RPA Desktop Design Studio, see RPA Plugin Bundle release notes.
For cumulative release notes information on Now Assist for RPA Hub, see Now Assist for RPA Hub release notes.
If you have previously downloaded the application from the ServiceNow Store and a new version is available, you can update it in your ServiceNow AI Platform instance at .
Additional requirements
| Resource | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | 2 cores of Intel 1.8 GHz 64-bit processor | 4 cores of Intel 2.4 GHz 64-bit processor |
| RAM | 4-GB RAM | 8-GB RAM |
| Disk space | Minimum 50-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software | Minimum 100-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software |
- 6 cores of Intel 1.8GHz 64-bit (6 cores of 1.8GHz 64-bit per runtime).
- 12 GB of RAM (4 cores per runtime).
- Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2022.
- NET framework: Windows 4.7.1 or greater.
- DPI scaling setting must be deactivated.
- Operating system: Windows Server 2022.
- NET framework: Windows 4.7.1 or greater.
- DPI scaling setting must be deactivated.
If you are upgrading to Yokohama, verify that you have the latest robot MSI from Yokohama installed. The older versions of the robots do not work.
An unattended robot is mapped to only one machine. This is applicable for standard robot.
Virtual Machines (VMs) that are used for the Unattended Robot application must be persistent and constantly on.
| Resource | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Processor (1vCPU) | Intel Processor (4vCPU) |
| RAM | 4-GB RAM | 8-GB RAM |
| Disk space | Minimum 20-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software | Minimum 50-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software |
- Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10 or Windows Server 2016 or Windows Server 2019.
- NET framework: Windows 4.7.1 or greater.
- DPI scaling setting must be deactivated.
An attended robot is mapped to only one user.
| Resource | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Processor (At least, Core i5) | Intel Processor (Core i7). |
| RAM | 4-GB RAM | 8-GB RAM |
| Disk space | Minimum 20-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software | Minimum 50-GB free disk space after installing the OS, patches, and base software |
- Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10 or Windows Server 2016 or Windows Server 2019.
- NET framework: Windows 4.7.1 or greater.
- Monitor with 1920x1080p resolution.
- DPI scaling setting must be deactivated.
Browser requirements
ServiceNow workspaces don’t support mobile devices. For more information about the list of supported browsers, see Browser support.
Accessibility information
- Accessibility improvements
- Accessibility improvements were completed to support WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance.
Localization information
RPA Hub supports international languages. For more information, see Internationalization support for RPA Hub.