Inventory Connection to ServiceNow

ServiceNow can be used as an inventory source from which you can import the raw hardware and software inventory "discovered" by ServiceNow. (In FlexNet Manager Suite, the term "discovery" refers only to finding devices on the network; but ServiceNow tends to use that term to include the collection of inventory information.)

There are two sides to the ServiceNow inventory connector:

1. ServiceNow must be configured to export the inventory details to .csv files saved on a MID server of your choice. This requires:
   • Setting up the Flexera Integration application
   • Making sure that there is a suitable account configured to run that application
   • Scheduling operation of the integration application.
2. On an inventory beacon in your FlexNet Manager Suite implementation, a simple PowerShell connector reads data from the saved .csv files on the MID server, and uploads it for import into your software asset management system.

For full details (including setup procedures), see the ServiceNow Inventory Connector section in FlexNet Manager Suite Inventory Adapters and Connectors Reference. The process below provides a high-level summary of steps in ServiceNow, and goes into more detail about configuring the connector on the inventory beacon.

Select an inventory beacon that meets these requirements:

• An installation of FlexNet Beacon 13.2.0 or later (supplied with FlexNet Manager Suite 2019 R1), with good network access to your chosen ServiceNow MID server on the one hand, and to your central application server for FlexNet Manager Suite on the other.
• PowerShell 5.1 or later is running on Windows Server 2012 or later, or Windows 7 SP1 or later
• Has the Microsoft Windows environment variable PSModulePath set to include the following path:

  %ProgramFiles%\WindowsPowerShell\Modules

To create an inventory connection to ServiceNow:

1. Obtain the Flexera Integration application:
   1. Log into the ServiceNow Store with ServiceNow HI credentials.
   2. Search for, and select, Flexera Integration, and in the right pane, click Get, and then Continue.
   3. On the purchase page, minimize costs by making the integration application available only on the specific ServiceNow instance(s) where the collection of inventory details is required.
   4. Accept the T&Cs and click Get.
2. Log into your chosen ServiceNow instance using an account with administrator privileges.
3. Complete installation of the Flexera Integration app:
   1. Navigate to the Applications list.
   2. Click the Downloads tab.
   3. Scroll to the Flexera Integration application, and click Install.
4. Create your ServiceNow integration user account:
   1. Navigate to User Administration > Users.
   2. Click New, complete the properties for your new user, and click Submit (noting the user ID and password for later use).
   3. Click the hyperlinked User ID, scroll to Roles, and click Edit.
   4. Select x_fls_flexera_fnms.admin and add to the Roles List, and click Save.
5. If you have not already done so, set up the MID server that stages the inventory data from ServiceNow:
   1. In the navigation bar, expand MID Server and click Downloads.
   2. Click the link for your platform.
   3. In the navigation bar, in the MID Server group, click Installation Instructions, and click the link appropriate to your version of ServiceNow. Step through the instructions to complete installation of your MID server (and take note of its name for later use).
   4. Use the Validate the MID Server link on the installation page.
6. Schedule the export of inventory data to your chosen MID server:
   1. Navigate to Flexera Integration > Integration Properties. Scroll down to the MID server name field, and enter the full name of your MID server.
   2. Optionally, in the Enter file path field, create an alternative location for saving the exported .csv files.
      If you do not do this, the default location is the export folder in the MID server installation folder. The inventory beacon must have access rights to your chosen folder (file share), so that it can read the data from the saved .csv files.
   3. Click Save.
   4. Navigate to Flexera Integration > Advanced > Scheduled Data Exports.
   5. In turn, select each of the following jobs, and change the Run field to your desired schedule:
      • Flexera Scheduled Computer Export
      • Flexera Scheduled Software Export
      • Flexera Scheduled Software Install Export.

      As exported files may grow quite large (depending on the volume of inventory collected by ServiceNow), do not schedule more frequently than really required. A weekly export is commonly sufficient in a stable environment.
   6. Click Update to save changes, and repeat for remaining jobs.
   7. On the Scheduled Script Execution page, click Execute Now to test each export. Monitor progress in ServiceNow by navigating to Flexera Integration > Export History > Export Runs.
   8. Check the .csv files saved on the MID server.
7. Ensure that your ServiceNow configuration includes at least the Discovery plugin, and preferably also the SAM plugin (for example, use the navigation Search field to search for "Discovery", and so on). You can then log out of ServiceNow.
8. In the FlexNet Beacon interface, ensure that you have your preferred schedule for imports from Salesforce set on the appropriate inventory beacon:
   1. Log into the inventory beacon interface as an administrator (for example, in the Windows Start menu, search for FlexNet Beacon, right-click it, and select Run as administrator).
      Tip: Remember that you must run the inventory beacon software with administrator privileges.
   2. From the Data collection group in the navigation bar, choose Scheduling.
   3. If there is not already a suitable schedule in the list, click New... and complete the details (see the online help for that page for more information). Otherwise, identify the schedule you will use.
      Tip: A custom schedule may be helpful, particularly if you have chosen weekly exports of inventory data from ServiceNow. There is no point in scheduling repetitive uploads of unchanged .csv files, as these just create unnecessary system load. A useful schedule triggers shortly after the last of the ServiceNow export tasks, and sufficiently ahead of that night's central inventory import and license compliance calculations to allow for data collection, upload to the application server, and import to the staging tables.
9. Select the Inventory Systems tab (in the same navigation group).
10. To create a new connection, click the down arrow on the right of the New split button, and choose Powershell.
11. Complete (or modify) the values for the following required fields:
    • Connection Name: Enter a name for the inventory connection. The name may contain alphanumeric characters, underscores or spaces, but must start with either a letter or a number. Making the name meaningful within the first few characters helps when it is displayed in narrow columns. When the data import through this connection is executed, the data import task name is same as the connection name.
    • Source Type: Select ServiceNow from this list.

    On inventory beacon versions 16.0.0 and later, two additional sets of controls (for test mode, and filter for overlapping records) appear in the lower part of the same dialog. (The proxy server settings remain disabled, as these cannot apply for this connector.)
12. Ensure that the Source Folder field contains the absolute path to the folder on the MID server where the .csv files are saved (refer back to step 6 for the folder name).
13. If your inventory beacon is version 16.0.0 or later, in the Overlapping Inventory Filter section, choose what action the importer should take if inventory for the same server(s) is returned from another source as well as from ServiceNow.
14. When all data is complete, click Test connection.
    You cannot save the connection details if the connection test fails. Either:

    • If the Test connection fails and displays an error message:
      1. Click OK to close the message.
      2. Review and correct the connection details.
      3. Retest the connection (and repeat until your changes are successful, in which case click OK and resume from the next step).
      4. If you cannot get the connection test to succeed, click Cancel to cancel the addition of these connection details, and seek further assistance.
    • If the inventory beacon can successfully access the MID server folder using the details supplied, a Test connection succeeded message displays. Click OK to close the message, so that your new connector is displayed in the underlying list of connectors.
15. In the FlexNet Beacon PowerShell Source Connection dialog, click Save to save the connection.
16. Select your new connection from the displayed list, and click Schedule....
17. In the dialog that appears, select the name of your chosen schedule for inventory collection through this connection, and click OK.
18. At the bottom of the FlexNet Beacon interface, click Save, and if you are done, also click Exit.

To validate your configuration, wait until after the next scheduled execution of the ServiceNow export through the Flexera Integration application. Then:

1. On the ServiceNow MID server, use the File Explorer to check the contents of the output folder (by default, the export folder under the MID Server software installed directory, although you may have customized this location). You should see three .csv files (these file are not cleaned up between exports, and are over-written next time):
   • flexera_computer_export.csv
   • flexera_software_export.csv
   • flexera_software_install_export_set.csv
     Tip: If you are not using the SAM plugin with ServiceNow, this exported flexera_software_install_export_set.csv file will be empty.
   The presence of these well-formed .csv files confirms that all the configuration elements on the ServiceNow side are correct.
2. After the overnight inventory import and license consumption calculations, navigate in FlexNet Manager Suite to the All Inventory page, and apply a simple filter to the Last inventory source column, where the column contains ServiceNow.

   The first-time appearance of even one entry with that value means that the export from ServiceNow, the collection by the inventory connector, the upload from the inventory beacon to the application server, the import, and the compliance calculations have all succeeded. Remember that some servers which were in fact discovered by ServiceNow may not be visible in your filtered list – if they were also inventoried by a higher priority inventory source (such as a locally-installed FlexNet Inventory Agent), they will be listed against that higher-priority source (and may, for example, display FlexNet Manager Suite).