---
sourceDocument: Australia Platform security
sourceDocumentLink: https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/r/de-DE/platform-security

 Release :

    - australia

ft:locale :

    - de-DE

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia Platform security

ft:clusterId :

    - psec

bundleId :

    - psec

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Tracking changes to reference fields

# Tracking changes to reference fields {#ariaid-title1}

* Freigeben Version: Australia
* 
* Aktualisiert 12. März 2026
* 
* ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 1 Minute Lesedauer

Administrators can track changes to reference field display values.

Since reference fields only store an ID value, the system can normally only audit changes when
the ID value changes. By default, the system does not audit changes when a reference field
display value changes.

Consider the following situation. A user changes their name from Jane Smith to Jane Miller.
Since the user name is the display value for the User table, any previous reference to Jane Smith
instead refers to Jane Miller. If the administrator just updates the name of the existing user
record, audit and history records will only display the new name Jane Miller. By default, the
system does not provide a way to distinguish between changes made under the original user name
versus those made with the new user name.  
If your auditing policy requires tracking user name changes, you can:

* Create a new user record for the new name and deactivate the previous user record. The system preserves audit records for the old user name and creates future audit records with the new user name.
* Create custom fields and a business rule to save the previous name and the date of the name change. The system can use this information to construct the proper names in audit and history records.
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