PaCE policy version states
Summarize
Summary of PaCE Policy Version States
The PaCE policy version states define how policy versions are categorized and managed within the system. There are four states: Draft, Current, Archived, and Ready, which influence the versioning and usability of policies.
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Key Features
- Draft: The initial state of a new version; can be saved or published. Draft versions cannot be executed until published.
- Current: Represents the active policy version used for execution. Only one version can be Current at a time.
- Archived: Previous Current versions are moved here when a new version is published. Archived versions can be republished if needed.
- Ready: Assigned to optional policies within an application content pack that cannot be modified without creating a copy.
Key Outcomes
Understanding these states allows ServiceNow customers to effectively manage their policy versions, ensuring that only the intended policies are executed. Proper version numbering aids in tracking changes and maintaining clarity in policy management. Customers can expect streamlined policy updates and the ability to revert or republish archived versions as needed, enhancing overall policy governance.
A PaCE policy version can be in one of four states: Draft, Current, Archived, and Now-Content. The policy version state also defines the version numbering.
Only one policy version in each policy can be Current at any one time. There is no limit to the number of Draft or Archived policy versions.
| State | Description |
|---|---|
| Draft | When a version is created, its initial state is Draft. The new Draft version can be saved as a Draft for later use, or published to become the Current version. The draft versions cannot be used until they are published. |
| Current | Draft versions can be published to Current, which means the former draft version
becomes the default published version used for policy execution. Note: When publishing the version, if mapping exists, verification is performed to
confirm that all required inputs for mapping inputs were provided. If you update
the mapping inputs, you must update the inputs in the Mapping screen. If you
updated caller inputs, you must update the PaCE API call to ensure that the policy is
executed. |
| Archived | A published Current version becomes Archived when a different version is
published. Only Current versions can be Archived. If necessary, you can also republish
an Archived version. Note: When a version is published, it becomes the Current version
irrespective of its previous states. |
| Ready | The Ready state is assigned to optional policies available when an application content pack is installed. These policies cannot be modified. If you want to modify a policy, create a copy and make the required changes. |
Policy version numbering
| Identifier | Description |
|---|---|
| Version name | For Draft versions, the version name uses Draft-V{Revision number}. For Current (published) or Archived versions, V{Version} is used for the name. |
| Version | The Version number is assigned only when you publish a version. The number is
automatically created according to the existing version number. For the first
Current (published) version, the number is 1.0 and for subsequent current
versions, the number increases by +1.0. For example, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, and so on.
Current versions that have been Archived retain the original version number. Draft versions are not assigned a version number. |
| Revision number | The Revision number is derived from the version that it was created from. If
an empty new policy is created, the initial draft version is assigned 0.1. Each
subsequent draft version is assigned 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and so on. If the version was created from a published (Current or Archived) version, it inherits the Version number. For example, you can create a draft version from the Current (published) version 2.0. The draft version is assigned the revision number 2.1. |
The following image illustrates the different states and their version numbering.
As shown in the preceding image, the first draft policy version created was automatically assigned the Revision number 0.1. Each subsequent draft is assigned V0.2, V0.3, and so on. Draft version 0.2 (as indicated in the Revision number column) was published and became the Current version, with the Version name of V1.0.
A draft version of this Current version was created, with the Revision number 1.1. That draft was published to become the Current version and was assigned the Revision number 1.1. The previously Current version is now Archived, but retains the Revision number 0.2.