Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery

    Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot pattern-based discovery is part of the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application in ServiceNow, designed to identify and map AWS services within your cloud environment. This pattern enables automatic discovery of Elastic Block Store (EBS) snapshots and related metadata, populating the Configuration Management Database (CMDB) with detailed and structured information about these resources.

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    Key Features

    • Pattern Activation: The EBS Snapshot discovery pattern is disabled by default. Starting with Visibility Content version 6.28.0, enabling or disabling patterns no longer counts as customization and updates will continue. Patterns reset to the latest version on upgrade but retain their last active state.
    • AWS Prerequisites: Ensure AWS discovery prerequisites are met, including configuring AWS service accounts properly, especially for GovCloud environments where a datacenter URL must be used.
    • Resource Inclusion List: To avoid duplicate discovery, verify that EBS snapshot resources are removed from the Resource Inclusion List table ([sacloudinventoryresourcewhitelist]).
    • Data Population in CMDB: The discovery pattern populates the cmdbcistoragevolsnapshot table with snapshot details including ARN, name, state, encryption status, size, and associated volume information.
    • CI Relationships: Relationships are created linking snapshots to their AWS datacenter hosts, supporting accurate service mapping.
    • AWS Tag Collection: Tags associated with EBS snapshots are collected and stored in the cmdbkeyvalue table, capturing both tag names and values for enhanced resource identification and management.

    Data Stored in CMDB Tables

    The pattern stores detailed snapshot information in the Storage Volume Snapshot [cmdbcistoragevolsnapshot] table, with key fields such as:

    • Object ID: The unique Amazon Resource Name (ARN) for each snapshot.
    • Name: The unique identifier of the EC2 snapshot.
    • State: Snapshot status (e.g., pending, completed).
    • Encrypted: Indicates if the snapshot is encrypted.
    • Size: Snapshot size in GB and bytes.
    • Volume Name: Identifier of the associated EBS volume.
    • Description: Set to "AWS::Elastic Compute Cloud::EBS Snapshot".

    Tags are stored separately in the Key Value [cmdbkeyvalue] table with the tag name and value.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Automates discovery and mapping of AWS EBS snapshots, reducing manual effort and increasing accuracy.
    • Ensures comprehensive CMDB population with up-to-date and detailed snapshot data.
    • Supports compliance and governance by tracking encryption status and snapshot states.
    • Enables efficient cloud resource management through organized tagging and relationships.
    • Facilitates ongoing updates and maintenance through pattern version management and compatibility with AWS GovCloud.

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns finds AWS services on your cloud environment. Discovering some of these resources may require updating to the latest version of the Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application from the ServiceNow Store.

    Pattern-based discovery and mapping requirements

    Verify the AWS discovery prerequisites
    For more information, see the prerequisites section in AWS discovery using patterns.
    Remove resources from the Resource Inclusion List table
    Verify that the relevant resource isn't listed in the Resource Inclusion List [sa_cloud_inventory_resource_whitelist] table to avoid duplicate discovery. For more information on removing resources from the Resource Inclusion List, see AWS Resource Inventory discovery with Patterns.
    Enable the relevant pattern
    The pattern for this service is disabled by default. Starting with Visibility Content version 6.28.0, activating or deactivating a pattern won't be considered a customization, and it will continue to receive updates. Patterns that were previously activated or deactivated will reset to the latest predefined version after upgrading while retaining the last active field value. For more information on enabling patterns, see Activate a disabled pattern.
    Configure the Discovery schedule to support GovCloud
    Discovering AWS GovCloud (US) accounts requires using a datacenter URL when setting up an AWS service account. For more information, see Create AWS service accounts.

    Data stored in CMDB tables

    Discovery and Service Mapping Patterns application populates data in the CMDB when running the Amazon AWS - Elastic Compute Cloud EBS Snapshot - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern.

    Table 1. Storage Volume Snapshot [cmdb_ci_storage_vol_snapshot]
    Field Description
    Object ID [object_id] The Amazon Resource Name (ARN) uniquely identifying the EBS Snapshot.

    The ARN consists of the AWS region, account ID, and snapshot ID in the following format: arn:aws:ec2:<region>:<accountId>:snapshot/<snapshot_id>.
    Name [name] The unique identifier for the EC2 snapshot.
    State [state] The current state of the snapshot. For example: pending or completed.
    Install Status [install_status] Install status of the resource. Default value is Installed.
    Encrypted [is_encrypted] Indicates whether the snapshot is encrypted.
    Operational status [operational_status] Operational status of the resource. Default value is Operational.
    Description [short_description] Type of resource. The value is set to AWS::Elastic Compute Cloud::EBS Snapshot.
    Size (GB) [size] The size of the resource expressed in gigabytes (GB).
    Size bytes [size_bytes] The size of the snapshot in bytes.
    Volume Name [volume_name] The identifier of the volume associated with the snapshot.

    CI relationships

    The Amazon AWS - Elastic Compute Cloud EBS Snapshot - Extended Inventory (LP) pattern creates these relationships to support Amazon EC2 Amazon EBS Snapshot discovery.

    CI Relationship CI
    Storage Volume Snapshot [cmdb_ci_storage_vol_snapshot] Hosted on::Hosts AWS Datacenter [cmdb_ci_aws_datacenter]

    AWS tag discovery

    The pattern collects tags and populates them in the Key Value [cmdb_key_value] table.
    Table 2. Key Value [cmdb_key_value]
    Field Description
    Key [key] Tag name.
    Value [value] Tag value.