Microsoft Exchange Online - Calendar synchronization

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 4 minutes to read
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    Summary of Microsoft Exchange Online - Calendar synchronization

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization application enables ServiceNow customers to synchronize reservations between Microsoft Exchange Online Outlook calendars and the Workplace Reservation Management application. This integration allows reservations made in the Workplace Reservation portal to appear on Microsoft Outlook calendars and vice versa, ensuring that calendar events and reservation details remain consistent across both platforms.

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    The synchronization leverages the Microsoft Graph API, which provides access to data within Microsoft 365 services. Installing the Microsoft Exchange Online Spoke in ServiceNow sets up necessary credentials and connections to facilitate this synchronization.

    Key Features

    • Bidirectional synchronization: Reservations created in Workplace Reservation Management are reflected in Outlook calendars, and Outlook events can be synchronized back to Workplace Reservation Management.
    • Microsoft Graph API integration: Uses Microsoft Graph API for secure and efficient data exchange between ServiceNow and Microsoft Exchange Online.
    • Subscriptions and webhook registry: Automatic creation of subscriptions for active reservable sync configurations to track changes in room mailboxes. Webhook registry configuration supports callback notifications for event changes.
    • Connection modes:
      • Normal mode: Standard connection setup with Microsoft Exchange Online.
      • Strict mode: Events are sent via a general email address; employees receive invites and can only modify reservations through Workplace Reservation Management.
      • Personal authentication mode: Generates user-level authentication tokens that restrict calendar modifications to authorized users through Workplace Reservation Management.
    • Sync past reservations: Allows synchronization of reservations from a specified past date/time range to ensure historical data is accurately reflected.
    • Multi-provider setup: Supports configuration of multiple connections and credentials with Microsoft Exchange Online for flexibility in managing different calendar providers.
    • 'No request' handling: Enables validation of event payloads without sending API calls to Microsoft Exchange, useful for testing and troubleshooting event data syntax.
    • Instance scan: Diagnostic tool to verify and troubleshoot synchronization configurations using a suite of checks against Microsoft Exchange Online connectivity.

    Key Outcomes

    • Seamless synchronization ensures that workspace reservations and calendar events remain up to date across ServiceNow and Microsoft Outlook.
    • Flexible connection modes (normal, strict, personal authentication) enable customers to align synchronization with their organizational policies and security requirements.
    • Subscription-based event notifications maintain real-time updates and provide administrative alerts on subscription renewals or failures.
    • Support for multi-provider configurations allows enterprises to manage multiple Exchange connections within ServiceNow efficiently.
    • Tools like 'No request' handling and instance scans empower administrators to validate configurations and troubleshoot issues without impacting live calendar data.

    Synchronize reservations between Microsoft Exchange Online and Workplace Reservation Management.

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization application provides a medium to establish a connection between your Microsoft Exchange Online Outlook calendar and the Workplace Reservation Management application. You can synchronize reservations made in the Reservation portal to the Microsoft Outlook calendar and block the date and time. Similarly, you can also synchronize the events made in the Microsoft Outlook calendar with the Workplace Reservation Management application and track the reservations and its details.

    Microsoft Graph API

    The Microsoft Graph API provides access to data stored across Microsoft 365 services. So, to synchronize reservations, the Microsoft Graph connection plays a crucial role. When you install Microsoft Exchange Online Spoke, the following credentials are installed:
    • MS Graph 1
    • MS Graph 2
    To install the Microsoft Exchange Online Spoke, refer to Create a connection with Microsoft Exchange Online spoke.

    Subscriptions

    When you activate a reservable sync configuration to synchronize reservations with Microsoft Exchange Online, a subscription is created automatically. The application notifies if a subscription renewal fails. The notification is sent to the users with the Workplace Calendar Synchronization admin [sn_wsd_rsvsync.admin] role. Subscriptions are created only for active reservable sync configurations. A subscription notifies you about the changes to events on the room mailbox. For more information about subscriptions, refer to https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/graph/api/subscription-post-subscriptions?view=graph-rest-1.0&tabs=http.

    A webhook registry contains the subscription-related details to perform a call-back. To configure a webhook registry, refer to Configure the webhook registry of Microsoft Exchange Online spoke.

    Synchronization from Workplace Service Delivery to Microsoft Exchange Online

    To synchronize reservations made using the Workplace Reservation Management application to the Microsoft Exchange Online Microsoft Outlook calendar, you must first create a connection with Microsoft Exchange Online. Depending on how you want to establish the connections, refer to the respective topics:
    Note:
    By default, Microsoft Exchange Online Spoke provides you with the MS Graph 1 and MS Graph two credentials. If you do not want to use the default connection and credential alias provided by the application, you can create your own alias.

    Synchronization from Microsoft Exchange Online to Workplace Reservation Management

    The process of synchronizing reservations made in an Microsoft Outlook calendar to the Workplace Reservation Management is performed with the help of subscriptions. A subscription is created in the calendar provider for the room (reservable sync record). The application is notified by the subscription whenever an action is performed on the room. For more information about subscriptions, refer to https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/graph/api/subscription-post-subscriptions?view=graph-rest-1.0&tabs=http.

    Strict mode

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization application enables you to configure your connections and configurations with Microsoft Exchange Online in strict mode as well. In strict mode, events are not directly created in an employee's calendar, instead, they are sent to a general email address. Employees are invited to the event. You can specify a strict mode email id through which you want to sync reservations. Employees can only make changes using the Workplace Reservation Management application.

    To configure strict mode, enable the Strict mode option while configuring the Microsoft Exchange Online as calendar provider. The requesters are considered as invitees.

    Personal authentication mode

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization application enables you to configure your connections and configurations with Microsoft Exchange Online in personal authentication mode to synchronize reservations and to restrict unauthorized access to resource calendars. In personal authentication mode, a user level authentication token is generated that enables the user to create, update, or cancel reservation to synchronize events on user outlook calendar. You need to specify a strict mode email id through which you want to sync reservations. Employees can only make changes in the Workplace Reservation Management application using the generated token.

    To configure personal authentication mode, enable the Personal mode option while configuring the Microsoft Exchange Online as calendar provider.

    Sync past reservations

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization application enables you to sync reservations that were made in the past. You can specify the duration in date and time to get those past reservations to sync with Microsoft Exchange Online or Workplace Reservation Management. You can configure the setting using the Synchronize past reservations. Specify the Sync start date time manually from the subscription record of the reservable sync record for which you are synchronizing the past reservations. In the Sync end date time, you can specify the end time as you want.

    Multi-provider setup

    The Workplace Calendar Synchronization enables you to configure a multi-provider setup with Microsoft Exchange Online. That is, configure multiple connections and credentials with Microsoft Exchange Online. For more information on how to set up a multiprovider, refer to Create single or multiple calendar providers with Microsoft Exchange Online.
    Important:
    Multi-provider is not supported or is not the same as Exchange hybrid configurations.

    'No request' handling

    No request is a mechanism to validate the generated syntax of a payload of an event created for the calendar. But, instead of sending the event to the calendar provider, it is only created. The admin can validate the payload content of the event (JSON) to ensure that is generated as expected. 'No request' ensures that the application does not make any API calls to the calendar provider when you create, update, or cancel a reservation in the Workplace Reservation Management application.

    Run instance scan

    Execute an Instance scan on your Workplace Calendar Synchronization configurations with Microsoft Exchange Online. The Instance Scan application diagnoses the configurations with the calendar provider by running a series of checks using suites.

    Refer to Run Instance scan to check Microsoft Exchange Online synchronization configuration.