--- sourceDocument: Yokohama Conversational Interfaces sourceDocumentLink: https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/r/yokohama/conversational-interfaces Release : - yokohama ft:locale : - en-US ft:publication_title : - Yokohama Conversational Interfaces ft:clusterId : - convint bundleId : - convint workflow : - Platform --- # Testing NLU/Keyword topics # Testing NLU/Keyword topics {#ariaid-title1} Release version: Yokohama Updated January 30, 2025 ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 4 minutes to read Summarize ![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) 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 Testing NLU/Keyword topics This guide explains how to preview, test, and debug Natural Language Understanding (NLU) and Keyword topics within ServiceNow's Virtual Agent Designer. Testing is performed using the integrated chat test window, which simulates conversations and helps validate topic behavior before deployment. Show full answer Show less Testing can be done in the default web chat client (Service Portal) or in third-party messaging apps such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, or the Now Assist panel if integrated. This ensures your Virtual Agent topics behave correctly across all intended channels. ## Testing Process and Interface * Access testing via the **Test** button in the topic header or by selecting **Test active topics** from the NLU topics home page. * The system highlights incomplete or problematic nodes with badges and provides detailed validation issues with direct links for correction. * The chat test window features multiple tabs to assist with testing: * **Analyze Test Phrases:** Shows intent matching and entity recognition results, helping validate how utterances are interpreted. * **Variables:** Lists conversation variables (input, script, live agent, and slot-filled entities) and their values during the test. * **Context:** Allows specifying context variables to simulate different conversation contexts and control chat routing. * **Logs:** Displays runtime processing and error messages, including script outputs for troubleshooting. * The **Include Topic Discovery** option is enabled by default, allowing automatic prediction of relevant topics based on test phrases. ## Key Functionalities * **Intent and Entity Testing:** Analyze how well your NLU model predicts intents and extracts entities, and refine utterances accordingly. * **Variable Tracking:** Monitor all variables used in the conversation flow to ensure data is captured and passed correctly. * **Context Simulation:** Test conversations under different contextual scenarios to verify intent recognition and routing behavior. * **Error and Script Logging:** Use logs to troubleshoot script execution and other backend processes during testing. * **Automated Testing Support:** Integrate with ServiceNow Automated Test Framework via Assistant Designer to create automated tests that validate topic flow functionality after changes. ## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers * Ensure your Virtual Agent topics accurately understand and respond to user inputs across multiple channels before publishing. * Quickly identify and resolve issues in topic design through validation badges and detailed error reporting. * Fine-tune NLU models and utterances iteratively within Virtual Agent Designer without switching tools. * Simulate realistic conversation contexts and variable states to test complex interactions and live agent routing. * Leverage automated testing to maintain topic quality and reliability as your Virtual Agent evolves. ## Next Steps After testing, close the chat window and use the insights gained to improve your topic's utterances, entities, and context configurations. Train and retrain your NLU model as needed within Virtual Agent Designer to optimize intent recognition accuracy before publishing your topics. Use the chat test window to preview, test, and debug Natural Language Understanding (NLU)/Keyword topics. As you work on a topic in Virtual Agent Designer, you can run your conversation in a chat test window. The default test window is the web (Service Portal) chat client. If you're using the [Virtual Agent integrations with third-party messaging apps](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/kEQ89dfxesDWUWxFGIifmw "Enable users to run Virtual Agent bot conversations in supported third-party messaging apps. Use the Conversational Integration apps for Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Workplace that are available from the ServiceNow Store to configure these messaging apps on your ServiceNow instance."), elements in your conversation might appear differently in third-party messaging applications. Test your conversations in any third-party applications where you want to deploy Virtual Agent. If the Now Assist panel, Microsoft Teams application, or Slack application is configured for your environment, preview options for those channels are displayed in the Test button list. Select Preview in Now Assist panel or Preview in Microsoft Teams in the list to test your topic in those environments. ## Testing your NLU/Keyword topic in the chat test window {#va-designer-testing__section_fq4_tmj_1mb} Figure 1. Example NLU/Keyword test options To run your topic in the chat test window, select the Test option in the topic header bar. Alternatively, you can test active (published) topics by selecting Test active topics while viewing NLU topics on the home page. Note: If your topic is missing any necessary information, an incomplete badge appears in the corner of the flow diagram pane. A yellow or red warning badge also appears next to each node. The incomplete badge lists the total number of issues, while the local warning badges show how many are found in each node. Selecting Test when there are issues present opens a Validation Issues tab on the sidebar, which counts up and details all the issues needing correction. These details include a full description and a hyperlink to each incomplete node. The chat test window opens in the chat widget and displays adjoining tabs that provide details about your topic as you test it. You can use these tabs: * Analyze Test Phrases - The results for intent matching and entity recognition appear based on what you entered in the conversation. * Variables - List of all the variables used in the conversation, such as input and live agent variables. * Context - Options for specifying the context (using context variables) in which a topic is run. * Logs - A list of the processing performed. {#va-designer-testing__ul_kmv_gmf_nzb} Figure 2. Example Natural Language Understanding (NLU) chat test window and test tabs By default, the Include Topic Discovery option is enabled. This option automatically performs topic discovery and generates prediction results for NLU topics using test phrases that you enter in the test window. The conversation begins with the Virtual Agent greeting and the button for the menu of available topics. If you're using the Test Active Topics option or sub-options from the home page, topic discovery is enabled, so it's not listed as an option. Testing active topics behaves the same as testing from a topic except that test cases can't be created. ## Analyze test phrases tab {#va-designer-testing__section_gnc_cvz_hmb} For NLU enabled topics, the Analyze test phrases tab provides an analysis of the possible intents that match the test phrase (utterance) that you entered in the chat test window. The tab lists the prediction results, which include matched intents and their prediction scores, along with any entity recognition and slot-filling results. The top match is listed first. The predicted intents depend on the prediction confidence threshold set in the NLU service. Figure 3. Example Analyze test phrases tab for NLU/Keyword topics If an utterance doesn't match a current intent, you can add or change utterances in Virtual Agent Designer. For more information, see [Modify NLU utterances and entities for a Virtual Agent topic](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/U9MFu4D1pFf3FAdh9bwBjQ "View, test, and modify NLU utterances for a Virtual Agent topic on the NLU Intent tab in Virtual Agent Designer."). Make changes, train the model again, and then retest until you're satisfied with the results. When the topic is ready, you can publish both the topic and the model from Virtual Agent Designer. ## Variables tab {#va-designer-testing__section_v2p_bxw_hmb} The Variables tab displays a list of all the variables used in the conversation and the associated values captured as the conversation progresses, so that you can follow along. A conversation can have these variable types: * Input variables * Script variables * Live agent variables * Variables passed between a calling topic and topic block * "Nodeless" NLU entities declared as a slot-filled variable for the topic {#va-designer-testing__ul_dz5_vyw_hmb}The list is separated into sections by type of variable. The following example shows the Input variables section. Notice that for the static list control, both the display label and value are captured for the selected choice. Figure 4. Example list of input variables The following example shows the Input variables section for the grouped list control. This variable information appears similar to the static list control, but the variables are separated by each group of the grouped choice. Figure 5. Example list of grouped choice variables ## Context tab {#va-designer-testing__section_dqn_b4r_lpb} Use the Context tab to specify a different context for the chat. Choose a context variable from the list. These variables contain contextual information that can be used to determine topic intent or control how chats are routed to live agents. For example, you could select portal from the list of variables and enter the portal name IT Express. The Context tab is unavailable when creating test cases. For more information about defining context variables, see [Configure context variables for storing chat-related information](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/8bAn0UJ~5THSinULZ8opTg "Specify chat context variables, also called Live Agent chat variables, for storing chat-related information, such as pre-chat survey responses. These variables contain contextual information that can be used to determine topic intent or control how chats are routed to live agents. You can also define variables to capture contextual information passed in Virtual Agent topic scripts to share with live agents."). For more information about live agent variables that are included with Virtual Agent, see [Live agent chat context variables](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/fpc9jRUoIT_yF__WK0iCRw "Use chat context variables to pass certain information from the topic to share with a live agent or to control how bot conversations are routed to live agents. Virtual Agent includes some default variables, and you can define new ones."). Figure 6. Example Context tab ## Logs tab {#va-designer-testing__section_uxp_kz1_3mb} The Logs tab displays the processing and error messages that are recorded while running your conversation. If you're using scripts in Virtual Agent Designer, use `gs.log`, `gs.print`, and `gs.warn` statements in your scripts to output information in this log. Figure 7. Example Logs tab ## Next steps {#va-designer-testing__section_amq_xpr_2mb} When you're done testing your topic, close the test chat window. If needed, you can use the test information to fine-tune your conversation. For example, if the results on the Analyze test phrases tab return multiple possible matches for your utterance, you could update the utterances for your intent and NLU model on the NLU Intent tab for your topic. * **[Train and test your NLU model in Virtual Agent Designer](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/q9~8DUsQ5bl43Rp4q1f9iA)** Use the NLU Intent tab to train and try a Natural Language Understanding (NLU) model that is mapped to a topic without leaving Virtual Agent Designer. * **[Automated testing for Virtual Agent topics that use NLU topic discovery](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/F0xB6P99Ck0Ei9RHYN_WZg)** Automated testing for your Virtual Agent topic flows uses the ServiceNow Automated Test Framework product through Assistant Designer. You can create and run automated tests through the Automated Test Framework to confirm that your topic flow works after making a change.