Domain separation and Table Builder
Summarize
Summary of Domain separation and Table Builder
Domain separation in ServiceNow enables you to logically separate data, processes, and administrative tasks into distinct domains, controlling user access and visibility across these domains. This multi-tenant architecture is essential for managing multiple customers or tenants within a single instance, allowing configuration of business logic and data parameters on a per-tenant basis. Table Builder complements this by allowing developers to configure form layouts and logic for tables within domain-separated environments, specifically when launched from UI Builder. It facilitates creating and editing forms within the same browser session while respecting domain boundaries.
Show less
Key Features
- Domain Separation Control: Enables configuration of domain-specific rules, such as requiring comments on record closure for one tenant but not others, supporting tailored business processes per domain.
- Table Builder Support for Domain Separation: Works only when launched from UI Builder, not from App Engine Studio, enabling domain-aware form customization.
- Domain Overrides: Developers can switch session domains to create overrides for form layouts, section layouts, and form logic specific to a domain. This allows customization without affecting global or other domains.
- Standardization Emphasis: Encourages maintaining common configurations across domains to ensure scalable and stable instance management, minimizing code sprawl and easing adoption of new ServiceNow features.
- Visibility and Management: In the global domain, developers can view all form views and identify those with domain-specific overrides via icons, enhancing governance and oversight.
- Limitations: System dictionary changes do not require domain overrides; however, form layout changes do. Single-section forms have special considerations where adding sections can break existing domain overrides.
- UI Policy Overrides: UI policies support domain overrides with clear indicators, allowing domain-specific behavior control.
Practical Implications for ServiceNow Customers
For ServiceNow customers managing multi-tenant or multi-domain environments, domain separation combined with Table Builder provides powerful tools to tailor forms and processes per tenant while maintaining overall instance stability. Customers should leverage domain overrides judiciously, applying domain-specific configurations only when necessary to avoid complexity and maintain a uniform user experience. Using Table Builder within UI Builder ensures domain-aware form customization, crucial for service providers and large enterprises operating shared instances. Understanding the behavior around single-section forms and overrides helps prevent configuration issues.
Domain separation enables you to separate data, processes, and administrative tasks into logical groupings called domains. You can control several aspects of this separation, including which users can see and access data.
Support level: Standard*
The support level is Standard but has some exceptions or special conditions.
- Includes all aspects of Basic level support.
- Business logic: The service provider (SP) creates or modifies processes per customer. The use cases reflect proper use of the application by multiple SP customers in a single instance.
- The instance owner must be able to configure minimum viable product (MVP) business logic and data parameters. This configuration is done per tenant, as expected for the specific application.
Sample use case: An admin must be able to make comments required when a record closes for one tenant, but not for another.
For more information on support levels, see Application support for domain separation.
Overview
Table Builder enables developers to configure the layout and logic for each form view for tables in their application. When launched from UI Builder, Table Builder supports domain separation, which is the ServiceNow instance-wide multi-tenant architecture.
Table Builder enables developers in domain-separated environments to create forms while they are in the same browser window. Domain separation in Table Builder works similarly to an application scope that helps administrators to create or edit in a multi-tenant environment.
Standardization is the key principle to maintaining a stable, healthy, and scalable ServiceNow instance, where domain separation is installed. By having standardization, you have a common configuration that most of the instance operates by. When an instance has hundreds or thousands of domains, managing them successfully requires rigorous governance. Domain-specific configurations should be done only if they are deemed necessary by the instance owners. Most instances should follow the common instance configuration to provide a more uniform experience across the instance. It also lets instance owners minimize the code sprawl that slows the adoption of new ServiceNow features that are included as part of the release upgrades.
How domain separation works in Table Builder
Table Builder enables developers to switch the session domain to create domain overrides to the form layout, section layout, and form logic. System dictionary record changes (such as field metadata for a field label) do not require domain overrides. Form layout changes require domain overrides to both the form record and the section when the change is performed at a lower domain. When creating a domain override, section labels can't be edited prior to saving the override.