Now Assist: Fulfillment, access, and portal setting functions

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    Summarized using AI
    This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.

    Summary of Now Assist: Fulfillment, Access, and Portal Setting Functions

    Now Assist simplifies the configuration of catalog items by allowing you to set Access, Fulfillment flow, and Portal settings using plain language. This functionality enhances how you manage user interactions with catalog items in ServiceNow.

    Show full answer Show less

    Key Features

    • Access Control: Manage who can view and request items through two lists: "Available for" and "Not available for," based on User Criteria (UC) records. Now Assist automatically applies exact matches and prompts you for clarification when there are multiple matches or no matches.
    • Fulfillment Flow: Each catalog item can have one fulfillment flow, defining the request process. Similar to access control, Now Assist manages fulfillment flow selection automatically when an exact match is found and prompts for user input otherwise. If an execution plan exists, changes to the fulfillment flow are restricted.
    • Portal Settings: Update portal settings for catalog items through Now Assist, following the same user-friendly process as access and fulfillment settings.

    Key Outcomes

    By leveraging these features, ServiceNow customers can efficiently configure catalog items to meet specific access and process requirements. Awareness of template enforcement is crucial, as it may lock certain fields, leading to notifications about editable and non-editable fields during updates. This ensures clarity in the configuration process and enhances user management.

    In addition to catalogs, categories, and topics, Now Assist allows you to set three other key fields for a catalog item: Access, Fulfillment flow, and Portal settings. You can configure these simply by describing your requirements in plain language.

    Setting access

    Access controls are managed through two lists: "Available for," which specifies who can view and request the item, and "Not available for," which defines who is excluded. Both lists rely on User Criteria (UC) records. You can add multiple UC records to either list. Now Assist processes your input as follows:
    • Exact match found: The user criteria record is applied to the appropriate list automatically.
    • Multiple matches or no match found: Now Assist doesn't guess. It displays a prompt in the chat for you to search for and select or enter the correct user criteria record.
    Note:
    User criteria records define groups of users based on conditions such as role, department, or location. These records manage who can view or request a catalog item.

    Setting the fulfillment flow

    Each catalog item is limited to one fulfillment flow, which defines the process executed when a request is submitted. Now Assist handles fulfillment flow selection as follows:
    • Exact match found: The fulfillment flow is set automatically.
    • Multiple matches or no match found: Now Assist prompts you to select or enter the correct fulfillment flow in the chat.
    • Item uses an execution plan: If the catalog item already has an execution plan, Now Assist prevents a fulfillment flow from being added and explain why this field can't be changed.

    Setting portal settings

    Portal settings for a catalog item can be updated using Now Assist, following the same process as for any other field.

    When a template is in control

    If Access, Fulfillment, or Portal settings are locked due to template enforcement, these values can't be changed. When you attempt to update a locked field, Now Assist notifies you that the value is controlled by the template and is not editable.

    When some fields are locked and some are not

    If you request updates to multiple fields and some are locked by a template while others remain editable, Now Assist will:
    • Apply updates to the fields that can be changed.
    • Notify you about which fields were not updated because they are controlled by the template.
    Note:
    User criteria records define groups of users based on conditions such as role, department, or location. These records manage who can view or request a catalog item.