Definitions of life-cycle values for product entities

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  • Updated March 12, 2026
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    Summary of Definitions of life-cycle values for product entities

    This content defines the life-cycle value pairs used to represent the stages of a product model, version, or configuration within ServiceNow’s Product (Models) tables. These life-cycle values help customers track and manage the progression of products from initial ideation through to retirement, ensuring clear visibility into the status and readiness of products at each phase.

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    Life Cycle Stages and Status Values

    • Ideation Stage: Focuses on assessing new product models for feasibility and potential adoption.
      • Under Evaluation: Assessing business value, functionality, and technical viability.
      • Pilot: Testing in a controlled, small-scale deployment before wider adoption.
    • Design Stage: After approval, defining the product’s structure and features.
      • Chartered: Formal approval for development or procurement.
      • Design: Architecting specifications, features, and configurations.
      • Planning: Creating and managing planning items that convert business strategy into actionable initiatives, preparing for future work or changes not yet operational.
    • Build & Integrate Stage: Developing, testing, and preparing the product for deployment.
      • Build: Development activities from code commit to packaged deliverables ready for testing environments.
      • In Production: Final promotion and release of the product into the live environment with governance controls.
    • Operational Stage: Product is actively available and in use.
      • Available: Fully developed product ready for procurement or deployment.
      • Pending Retirement: Operational but scheduled for phase-out.
      • End of Support: No longer receiving updates or vendor support, though may still be operational and not necessarily retired.
    • End of Life Stage: Product is being retired from active use.
      • Retired: No longer available for new purchases but may exist in limited use.
      • Obsolete: Completely phased out, unsupported, and no longer in use.

    Practical Application for ServiceNow Customers

    Understanding and utilizing these life-cycle values enables ServiceNow customers to accurately track product development and operational status within their CMDB and product management processes. This visibility supports better decision-making regarding product adoption, support planning, and retirement strategies, ensuring alignment with business objectives and governance requirements.

    The product life-cycle value pairs represent the overall life cycle of a product model, a specific version, or a product configuration. The life-cycle values for the product life-cycle process are visible only in Product (Models) tables.

    Definitions of product life cycle stage and life cycle stage status values

    Relationships between CSDM stages and life cycle values.

    Ideation life cycle stage

    New product models to determine feasibility and potential adoption.

    • Under Evaluation: The product is being assessed for business value, functionality, and technical viability. 
    • Pilot: In a small-scale deployment, the product is being tested in a controlled environment before broader adoption. 
    Design life cycle stage

    After a product is approved for development or configuration, its structure and features are defined.

    • Chartered: The product model has been formally approved for development or procurement. 
    • Design: The product is being architected, including defining specifications, features, and configurations. 
    • Planning: The product is undergoing activities of creating and managing planning items that describe intended future work or change — such as new services, applications, or capabilities — and aligning them to business needs and outcomes. This represents proposed or in-progress work that is not yet live in operations. Planning ensures that business strategy (from the Ideation & Strategy domain) is converted into actionable initiatives that will shape the services and applications managed in the instance. The CSDM uses the Planning Item (from the Strategic Portfolio Management application) as the primary record type.
    Build & Integrate life cycle stage

    The product is being developed, tested, and prepared for operational deployment.

    • Build: The product is being developed, covers the activities from code commit through compiled or packaged deliverables being ready for deployment to a lower (non-production) environment.
    • In Production: Covers the final promotion and release of changes into the live, customer-facing environment, with all required governance.
    Operational life cycle stage

    The product is actively available and used within the organization.

    • Available: The product is fully developed and ready for procurement or deployment.
    • Pending Retirement: The product is still operational but is scheduled to be phased out.
    • End of Support: The product is no longer receiving updates, maintenance, or vendor support.
      Note:
      A CI might be in the Operational stage, but might no longer be supported by the vendor or publisher or third party. That doesn’t mean, however, that it can be or should be retired.
    End of Life life cycle stage

    The product is no longer in active use and is being retired.

    • Retired: The product is no longer available for new purchases or deployments but may still exist in limited use.
    • Obsolete: The product is completely phased out and is no longer supported or used.