Delegated development and deployment

Delegated development allows designated users without a system admin role to develop or deploy applications on the Now Platform.

Application administrators or system admins can delegate application development to designated developers. Development tasks are delegated to specific users at the application level.

Delegated deployment tasks

You can also delegate deployment tasks (application publishing, first-time installation, or update) to developers or non-admin users, such as Change Management personnel. You delegate deployment tasks to specific users at the application level, or through assignment of specific user roles at the instance level.


Assignment Method	Applies to	Available options
Setting deployment permissions in Manage Developers.	Specific applications	Publishing and upgrades of specific applications. Publishing options include the application repository, ServiceNow Store, and update sets.
Assignment of deployment user roles to specific persons. See Instance-specific deployment user roles.	Local non-production instance (for example, Development or QA)	First-time installations and upgrades of all applications that contain the same company as the current instance. For example, applications for ABC Company and XYZ Company display on the Application Client page. A user with this role can only install XYZ Company applications when logged in to a XYZ Company instance. The user cannot install applications for ABC Company.

Application-specific permissions

Developer and deployment permissions are application-specific. For example, a developer who has permission to access all file types for one application does not necessarily have any developer permissions for another application. Administrators must set developer (and optionally deployment) permissions for each application. Administrators must be familiar with application files and the system table structure to set developer permissions. For example, a developer expected to create advanced business rules needs both the All File Types and Allow Scripting developer permissions.

Important: If Application administration is enabled, only an application administrator for the target application can delegate developers for an application. Application administrators do not have system admin privileges. To enable a delegated developer to perform the functions granted in the developer permissions, the delegated developer must also be given the application administrator role.

Setting each permission grants one or more system-managed delegated development roles, allowing system admins to retain control over the system. System admins no longer have to elevate developers (or users who deploy applications) to the system admin role to enable them to develop or deploy applications.

Developer and deployment permissions example

As a system administrator, you want to assign Abel Tuter certain developer and deployment permissions for a specific application in your Development instance. For more details on developer and deployment permissions, see Delegate development and deployment personnel.

Delegated development and deployment

Delegated development allows designated users without a system admin role to develop or deploy applications on the Now Platform.

Application administrators or system admins can delegate application development to designated developers. Development tasks are delegated to specific users at the application level.

Delegated deployment tasks


Assignment Method	Applies to	Available options
Setting deployment permissions in Manage Developers.	Specific applications	Publishing and upgrades of specific applications. Publishing options include the application repository, ServiceNow Store, and update sets.
Assignment of deployment user roles to specific persons. See Instance-specific deployment user roles.	Local non-production instance (for example, Development or QA)	First-time installations and upgrades of all applications that contain the same company as the current instance. For example, applications for ABC Company and XYZ Company display on the Application Client page. A user with this role can only install XYZ Company applications when logged in to a XYZ Company instance. The user cannot install applications for ABC Company.

Application-specific permissions

Developer and deployment permissions example

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Delegated development and deployment

Delegated development and deployment

Delegated deployment tasks

Application-specific permissions

Developer and deployment permissions example

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Delegated development and deployment

Delegated development and deployment

Delegated deployment tasks

Application-specific permissions

Developer and deployment permissions example

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