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ServiceNow Incidents

The ServiceNow Incidents Integration allows you to automatically create ServiceNow incidents based on high-level BigPanda incidents. Synchronization between BigPanda and ServiceNow is maintained for the lifetime of the incidents.

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Supported Versions

Type

Authentication Type

Rome, Quebec, Paris, Orlando, New York, Madrid, London, Kingston, Jakarta, Istanbul

API

API Key and Bearer Token

The ServiceNow integration enables you to synchronize ServiceNow incidents with corresponding incidents in BigPanda. Incidents are kept up-to date in both platforms allowing you to continue working in ServiceNow while benefitting from BigPanda’s tools. The integration allows you to configure parameters on the Configuration page for customization of the integration.

Key Features

  • Bidirectional updates: Changes in either BigPanda or ServiceNow are synchronized within the other platform. By default, information is updated every 15 seconds reducing latency synchronization to less than 5 minutes. As a result, you are provided with an up-to-date view of incidents at real-time.

  • On-premise support: The ServiceNow Application pulls updates from the cloud, simplifying integrations with on-premise ServiceNow servers.

  • Incident resolution and reopening capabilities: You can configure settings that when an incident is resolved in BigPanda, the corresponding incident is resolved in ServiceNow, and vice-versa. In addition, you can enable that a reopened BigPanda incident reopens the corresponding ServiceNow incident or creates a new one.

  • Customization options: Customize the transformation of shared data, and implement custom logic within the ServiceNow workflow. See a full list of optional logic and updating fields in the ServiceNow Incidents - Advanced Customization documentation.

  • Retry Logic: If a request to the ServiceNow API fails, BigPanda will retry up to 6 times with 15 minutes in between each attempt. If the 6th attempt fails, BigPanda support will be notified.

Installing the Integration

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Required Migration (October 2021)

If you are attempting to upgrade an installation of the ServiceNow application and your integration was set up before October 2021, you may need to migrate your installation to support future updates.

To verify your migration status, navigate to System Applications > My Company Applications, find and select BigPanda and, in the subsequent menu screen, pay attention to the top left part of the menu. If your screen says "Store Application - BigPanda", please perform the migration linked above. If it says "Custom Application - BigPanda" or you do not have a BigPanda application installed, you are free to proceed with the installation.

Download the BigPanda application Update Set from the ServiceNow Developer Portal or Right Here.

  1. Navigate to System Update Sets > Retrieved Update Sets
  2. Under Related Links, click on Import Update Set from XML
  3. Once imported the application should now be available from the Navigation Pane and Scope

Configuring the Integration in BigPanda

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Ensure you complete step #4 or the integration will not work.

Skip step #3 if you are using ServiceNow on-premises.

  1. Create a new ServiceNow integration in BigPanda and give it a name
  2. Follow the instructions for Create a BigPanda ServiceNow User below.
  3. In the BigPanda under the Configure Integration Webhook section add the headers below.
  4. Click Configure Webhook.

Headers to Add

Key

Value

x-bp-config-servicenowUrl

Your ServiceNow dashboard URL, eg. https://bigpanda.service-now.com

x-bp-api-key

An authorized User API Key

x-bp-config-servicenowUsername

Username of the BigPanda account created in ServiceNow, eg. bigpanda

x-bp-config-servicenowPassword

Password of the BigPanda account created in ServiceNow

Configuring the Integration in ServiceNow

Create a BigPanda ServiceNow User

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Skip this section if you are using ServiceNow on-premises

  1. In ServiceNow, under User Administration > Users, click on New
  2. Fill out the New User form (make sure to include the following fields):
    • User ID - bigpanda
    • First name - BigPanda
    • Password - create a password of your choosing and save for later
  3. Make sure that the Active checkbox is checked
  4. Click on Submit
  5. Find the user by writing bigpanda in the filter box above the User ID column
  6. Go to Roles section (the first section) and click on Edit
  7. Filter for x_bip_panda_user on the left table and then double click on it to move it to the right table
  8. Click Save

Disable Polling Script

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Skip this section if you are using ServiceNow on-premises

  1. In ServiceNow from the left sidebar navigate to BigPanda > Incidents > Retrieve Incidents Scheduled Job
  2. Uncheck the Active box
  3. Click Update to save your settings

Configure the Incidents Module in the BigPanda Application

  1. In the ServiceNow application, navigate to BigPanda > Configuration.
  2. In the General section, enter the appropriate keys provided in the BigPanda Console Integration instructions.

Field

Description

Bearer Token

Enter the BigPanda organization key here.

API Key

Enter the BigPanda API key here.

Incidents App Key

Enter the ServiceNow Incidents App Key here. You can obtain it from the BigPanda ServiceNow Incidents integration module.

Change API

Enter the BigPanda Change API here.

Telemetry Enabled

Select this checkbox to enable exporting logging data in the integration and to receive troubleshooting and diagnostic assistance by BigPanda.

Telemetry Endpoint

Provide a URL for the telemetry option.

  1. Configure the Incidents section.

Parameter

Description

Active

Select this checkbox to enable configuring the integration settings.

Assignment Group

A group to which BigPanda assigns new ServiceNow incidents. For example, define “DevOps” as the assignment group.

Caller ID Email

A default email associated with a ServiceNow user calling in the incident. BigPanda searches for the caller’s details and populates the Caller ID field.

Opened By Email

A default email associated with a ServiceNow user who created the incident.

BigPanda searches for the user's details and populates the Opened By field.

CMDB CI Field

Provide an alert tag representing the physical server of your system, such as host, hostID, hostname. BigPanda searches for this tag in the payload and defines it as your configuration item.

For example, if you define the CMDB CI field as “host” then every time a new BigPanda incident is created, BigPanda searches for the host tag and populates this value in the configuration item field.

Resolved By Email

The email address of the ServiceNow user that resolved the incident.

Primary Alert

A single alert can be defined as the Primary Alert of the BigPanda incident. Provide a list of criteria for the alert you wish to be defined as the Primary Alert. BigPanda searches all alerts according to these values, in an order of preference from left to right, to find the Primary Alert.
For example, the following default values:
“status=critical, startedOn” classifies the Primary Alert as being the oldest alert having a critical status.

By default, values are sorted in ascending order, specifying the oldest alerts. If you want the Primary Alert to be the newest alert negate the field name to: “-startedOn.”
Equality sorting criteria may use wildcards (*) when searching for matching values.
Alerts are sorted in an order of preference. The values: “Status=critical, status=warning, startedOn” places all critical status alerts first followed by warning status.

Resolve ServiceNow Incident

Select this checkbox to automatically resolve ServiceNow incident when a corresponding incident is resolved in BigPanda.

Resolve BigPanda Incident

Select this checkbox to automatically resolve the corresponding BigPanda incident when a ServiceNow incident is resolved.

Send Closure Code

Select this checkbox if you want to send closure information about a resolved ServiceNow incident as a comment in the BigPanda incident.

Re-open Resolved

Select this checkbox to enable a ServiceNow incident to be reopened when a BigPanda incident is reopened.
Disable if you want to create a new ServiceNow incident when a BigPanda incident is reopened.

Re-open Window

If you enabled the Re-open Resolved field, you can set the timeframe during which the ServiceNow incident can be reopened. Default time window is 30 minutes.

Update Fields

Provide a list of all ServiceNow fields you want to be updated when a ServiceNow incident is created in BigPanda. For example, list the description field as an update field in ServiceNow in order to see the description information provided by BigPanda.

Retrieval Count

The number of BigPanda incidents you want to retrieve at once can be adjusted. Default Retrieval Count is 20.

Retrieval Endpoint

Provide a URL where ServiceNow can retrieve BigPanda incidents.

Callback Endpoint

Provide a URL where ServiceNow can respond to a corresponding BigPanda incident.

Incident Tag Mapping

A table of BigPanda Incident Tags and ServiceNow Incident fields to sync

Note: For the ServiceNow Incident Fields, make sure to use the underlying field name and not the field label

Ex: assignment_group

For a complete list of available fields, see ServiceNow Advanced Customization.

If you have not been granted Administrator access to the ServiceNow integration system, you can modify the integration through custom headers. To learn more, see Custom Headers.

Upgrading the BigPanda ServiceNow Application

If you are currently using a version of the BigPanda ServiceNow application from the ServiceNow Store, you'll need to switch to the latest version. Follow the instructions on the Migrating from the ServiceNow Store to the Update Set page to move to the latest version.

If you are upgrading from a version of 1.x to 2.x, please follow the ServiceNow App Migration Guide

Before you can use the integration, you must first configure it in both BigPanda and ServiceNow systems.

Updated about 2 months ago

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