ServiceNow Fluent files

You write ServiceNow Fluent code in files with the now.ts extension in the src/fluent directory of an application. You can define application metadata in a single file or as many .now.ts files as you want and organize files in subdirectories within the fluent directory. If needed, the ServiceNow Fluent source directory can be customized with the fluentDir parameter in the now.config.json file for an application.

In files with the .now.ts extension, use objects in the ServiceNow Fluent APIs to define metadata in the application. You must also include the required imports for the APIs from @servicenow/sdk/core. For objects with server-side scripts, such as the BusinessRule object, you can import and use code from JavaScript modules.

Properties specific to ServiceNow Fluent

ServiceNow Fluent APIs include some properties that are specific to the ServiceNow Fluent language rather than mapping directly to a field for the metadata defined by the API.

$id

Use the $id property to provide a unique ID for the ServiceNow Fluent object. When you build the application, this ID is hashed into a unique sys_id. For example:

$id: Now.ID['String' or Number]

The $id property is a required property in many ServiceNow Fluent APIs.

$meta

Use the $meta property to provide metadata about the application metadata. With the installMethod property, you can map the application metadata to an output directory that loads only in specific circumstances. For example:

$meta: {
 installMethod: 'demo' or 'first install'
}

The $meta property is an optional property available in all ServiceNow Fluent APIs except the Table API.

$override

Use the $override property to configure a field that's not included in a ServiceNow Fluent API or override an existing field. For example:

$override: {
 field: value, 
 ...
}

The $override property is an optional property available in all ServiceNow Fluent APIs.

Warnung:

Type safety isn't enforced for fields configured with the $override property.

Code references

Properties in ServiceNow Fluent APIs support referring to other code in multiple ways depending on the property. For information about which method a property supports, see the ServiceNow Fluent API reference documentation.

Function imports

In some ServiceNow Fluent APIs with server-side scripts, you can import functions from JavaScript modules. Import a function by providing the name of a function, a function expression, or default function exported from a JavaScript module and importing into the .now.ts file. For example:

import { BusinessRule } from '@servicenow/sdk/core'
import { FunctionExport } from '../server/scripts.js'

const BR1 = BusinessRule({
    name: 'exportedFunction',
    table: 'x_snc_table',
    when: 'after',
    action: ['update', 'delete', 'insert'],
    script: FunctionExport,
    order: 100,
    active: true,
    add_message: false,
    message: '<p>message</p>',
    abort_action: false,
    $id: Now.ID[0],
})

For information about JavaScript modules, see JavaScript modules and third-party libraries.

Now.include

With any property, you can refer to content from another file in the application instead of including the content inline using the syntax Now.include('path/to/file'). Referring to content in a different file can be helpful for records with fields that support code, such as JavaScript, HTML, and CSS, to make developing different file types easier with the appropriate syntax highlighting. For example:

import { Record } from '@servicenow/sdk/core'

export const appCategory = Record({
   table: 'sys_app_category',
   $id: Now.ID['exampleCategory'],
   data: {
      name: 'example',
      style: Now.include('./css-file.css'),
   },
})

The Now.include utility supports two-way synchronization so changes to fields from other ServiceNow AI Platform user interfaces are synced into the referenced file's source code and changes to the code are synced back to metadata across the instance.

Variable identifier

You can assign a variable to a ServiceNow Fluent object to reference it from other ServiceNow Fluent objects. For example:

import { Role, Acl } from '@servicenow/sdk/core'

const managerRole = Role({ 
   $id: Now.ID['manager_role'], 
   name: 'x_snc_example.manager' 
})

const adminRole = Role({ 
   $id: Now.ID['admin_role'], 
   name: 'x_snc_example.admin', 
   contains_roles: [managerRole] 
})

export default Acl({
    $id: Now.ID['task_delete_acl'],
    active: true,
    admin_overrides: true,
    type: 'record',
    table: 'task',
    field: 'description',
    operation: 'delete',
    roles: [adminRole, managerRole],
})

Now.ID

You can use the Now.ID of a ServiceNow Fluent object to refer to it from other ServiceNow Fluent objects. For example:

export const appMenu = ApplicationMenu({
    $id: Now.ID['my_app_menu'],
    title: 'My App Menu',
})

Record({
    table: 'sys_app_module',
    $id: Now.ID['my_record_module'],
    data: {
        application: appMenu.$id
    },
})

Code directives