Guided configuration item class creation in a remote network management platform

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11108635-B2
Application number	US-202016989703-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 10, 2020
Priority date	Oct 4, 2017
Publication date	Aug 31, 2021
Grant date	Aug 31, 2021

Abstract

A system may include a database disposed within a remote network management platform, a server device disposed in the platform, and a client device. The database may contain representations of configuration items, such as computing devices and software applications associated with the managed network. The server device may provide a graphical user interface including a sequence of panes to the client device. The sequence of panes may include an identifier pane, an identification rules pane, and a reconciliation pane. Each pane may include data entry fields that are operable to define a new class of configuration item. The server device may receive, by way of the graphical user interface, a definition of the new class that uniquely identifies configuration items of a particular type using at least the attributes. The server may store, in the database, the definition of the new class.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising computer readable code, that when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving, via a first pane of a graphical user interface (GUI), identification information defining a new class of configuration items (CIs) and specifying a plurality of CI attributes for the new class of CIs, wherein the plurality of CI attributes are used to uniquely identify one or more CIs as belonging to the new class of CIs;
receiving, via a second pane of the GUI, specification of:
a first data source permitted to modify a first set of CI attributes of the plurality CI attributes; and
a second data source permitted to modify the first set of CI attributes, wherein the second data source has a higher priority than the first data source; and

storing the new class of CIs in a configuration management database (CMDB), wherein the first data source is restricted from overriding or modifying a modification by the second data source to the first set of CI attributes based on the second data source having the higher priority than the first data source.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein the first pane and the second pane are arranged in a sequence of panes, wherein the first pane precedes the second pane.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein the operations comprise:
receiving, via the GUI and from a data source of a plurality of data sources, an other modification to the new class of CIs;
verifying that the data source has authority to modify the new class of CIs based on a relative priority of authority of the data source; and
storing the other modification in the CMDB in response to verifying that the data source has the authority to modify the new class of CIs.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein the operations comprise receiving, via the GUI, a selection of a position within a CI class hierarchy for which the new class of CIs is to be assigned.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein the operations comprise:
presenting, via the GUI, a third pane comprising a plurality of existing classes of CIs and corresponding existing CIs within the plurality of existing classes of CIs, arranged in a hierarchy; and
receiving, via the GUI, selection of a position within the hierarchy for which the new class of CIs is to be assigned.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of CI attributes comprise an authority precedence level of a first CI attribute associated with the new class of CIs, wherein the first CI attribute takes priority over a second CI attribute with a lower authority precedence level.

7. A system, comprising:
one or more hardware processors; and
a non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors, cause the one or more hardware processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving, via a first pane of a graphical user interface (GUI), identification information defining a new class of configuration items (CIs) and specifying a plurality of CI attributes for the new class of CIs, wherein the plurality of CI attributes are used to uniquely identify one or more CIs as belonging to the new class of CIs;
receiving, via a second pane of the GUI, specification of:
a first data source permitted to modify a first set of CI attributes of the plurality CI attributes; and
a second data source permitted to modify the first set of CI attributes, wherein the second data source has a higher priority than the first data source; and

storing the new class of CIs in a configuration management database (CMDB), wherein the first data source is restricted from overriding or modifying a modification by the second data source to the first set of CI attributes based on the second data source having the higher priority than the first data source.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the first pane and the second pane are arranged in a sequence of panes, wherein the first pane precedes the second pane.

9. The system of claim 7 , wherein the operations comprise:
receiving, via the GUI and from a data source of a plurality of data sources, an other modification to the new class of CIs;
verifying that the data source has authority to modify the new class of CIs based on a relative priority of authority of the data source; and
storing the other modification in the CMDB in response to verifying that the data source has the authority to modify the new class of CIs.

10. The system of claim 7 , wherein the operations comprise receiving, via the GUI, a selection of a position within a CI class hierarchy for which the new class of CIs is to be assigned.

11. The system of claim 7 , wherein the operations comprise:
presenting, via the GUI, a third pane comprising a plurality of existing classes of CIs and corresponding existing CIs within the plurality of existing classes of CIs, arranged in a hierarchy; and
receiving, via the GUI, selection of a position within the hierarchy for which the new class of CIs is to be assigned.

12. The system of claim 7 , wherein the plurality of CI attributes comprise an authority precedence level of a first CI attribute associated with the new class of CIs, wherein the first CI attribute takes priority over a second CI attribute with a lower authority precedence level.

13. The system of claim 7 , wherein the operations comprise presenting, via the GUI, a fourth pane, wherein the new class of CIs is associated with a parent class of CIs, wherein the fourth pane comprises indications of a plurality of parent CI attributes associated with the parent class of CIs, and wherein the fourth pane allows specification of one or more of the plurality of parent CI attributes that, in combination with the one or more CI attributes, are operable to identify CIs of the new class of CIs.

14. A method, comprising:
receiving, via a first pane of a graphical user interface (GUI), identification information defining a new class of configuration items (CIs) and specifying a plurality of CI attributes for the new class of CIs, wherein the plurality of CI attributes are used to uniquely identify one or more CIs as belonging to the new class of CIs;
receiving, via a second pane of the GUI, specification of:
a first data source permitted to modify a first set of CI attributes of the plurality CI attributes; and
a second data source permitted to modify the first set of CI attributes, wherein the second data source has a higher priority than the first data source; and

storing the new class of CIs in a configuration management database (CMDB), wherein the first data source is restricted from overriding or modifying a modification by the second data source to the first set of CI attributes based on the second data source having the higher priority than the first data source.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the first pane and the second pane are arranged in a sequence of panes, wherein the first pane precedes the second pane.

16. The method of claim 14 , comprising:
receiving, via the GUI and from a data source of a plurality of data sources, an other modification to the new class of CIs;
verifying that the data source has authority to modify the new class of CIs based on a relative priority of authority of the data source; and
storing the other modification in the CMDB in response to verifying that the data source has the authority to modify the new class of CIs

Assignees

• Servicenow Inc

Inventors

• Tero Vivian
• Polinati Chinna
• Puvvada Madhavi
• Amradkar Purushottam
• Gupta Manish
• Trudel Brandon
• Yakhmi Guarav
• Castro Cisneros Jesus Antonio
• Shah Viral

Classifications

• G06Q10/06314 Primary

  Calendaring for a resource · CPC title

• H04L41/0859 Primary

  by keeping history of different configuration generations or by rolling back to previous configuration versions · CPC title

• H04L67/55

  Push-based network services · CPC title

• H04L67/60

  Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources (admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70) · CPC title

• G06F21/53

  by executing in a restricted environment, e.g. sandbox or secure virtual machine · CPC title