Use application services APIs

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Use Application Services APIs

    Application services APIs enable you to create, update, and manage service instances within your organization. A service instance consists of interconnected applications and hosts configured to provide a specific service, either internally or externally. To utilize these APIs, the role ofappserviceadminis required.

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    Key Features

    • Create Service Instances: Use the createOrUpdateService POST REST API to create a service instance. This is effective if the required Configuration Items (CIs) are already present in the ServiceNow CMDB, either manually or via Discovery.
    • Retrieve CI Details: Employ the getContent GET REST API to access lists of CIs and their relationships for manually created service instances.
    • JavaScript APIs: Additional functions include:
      • addCI(): Add a CI to a service instance.
      • addManualConnection(): Establish a manual connection to a service instance.
      • migrateManualToApplicationService(): Convert a manual service to an application service.
      • populateApplicationService(): Populate a service instance with CIs from a specified entry point.
      • removeCI(): Remove a CI from a service instance.
      • removeManualConnection(): Delete a manual connection and the associated CI.

    Key Outcomes

    By leveraging these APIs, ServiceNow customers can efficiently manage their service instances, ensuring that all CIs are accurately represented and interconnected. This enhances the organization’s ability to understand and utilize their service architecture effectively.

    Application services provide APIs that let you perform operations such as creating and updating an service instance, populating it with CIs from the CMDB, and retrieving details from an existing service instance.

    Role required: app_service_admin

    A service instance is a set of interconnected applications and hosts that are configured to offer a service to the organization. Service instances can be internal, like an organization email system or customer-facing, like an organization website.

    Create an application service

    Using the createOrUpdateService - POST REST API to create an service instance suits your organization if the ServiceNow CMDB already contains the CIs making up the service. Typically, it is the case when you have manually added CIs directly into the CMDB, or used the Discovery application to discover CIs and store information about them in the CMDB. You can also use this API to create an service instance containing CIs discovered using non-ServiceNow applications.

    By default, when an service instance is created, all CI connections are of the Depends on::Used by relationship type. You can modify this default type by changing the value of the sa.it_service.manual_ci_rel_type property.

    Before creating an application service, ensure that:
    • The CMDB contains all the CIs comprising the application service.
    • You have the sys_id of each CI comprised in the application service you want to create.
    • You understand the hierarchy that the CIs form.

    The Mapped Application Service [cmdb_ci_service_discovered] table contains every service instance including services you create using APIs.

    You can also manually create an service instance using the user interface as described in Create a Service instance (application service).

    Retrieve content from an application service

    Use the getContent - GET REST API to retrieve a list of CIs and the relationships between them, for an application service that was created manually.

    Additional APIs

    The following JavaScript APIs are also available: