Getting started with Remote Process Sync
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- UpdatedJan 30, 2025
- 16 minutes to read
- Yokohama
- Data and Automation
Learn the basics of setting up a Remote Process Sync integration in order to link the automated processes among two or more ServiceNow® instances together.
Before getting started with your Remote Process Sync integration
- Building your integration, and
- Managing your integration
Building your integration involves creating and configuring a process sync definition and its related records. For more information on how to get started with building your Remote Process Sync integration, either step through an example of how to Build your first Remote Process Sync integration, or learn about Process sync definitions.
Managing your integration involves monitoring the outbound and inbound queues and checking for errors related to any triggered process sync definitions. For more information on how to monitor and check for errors with your Remote Process Sync integration, see Outbound queues and inbound queues and Monitoring and troubleshooting your integration. You may also want to periodically evaluate the outbound and inbound flows that run automatically for your integration and determine whether to make any changes to these flows in Workflow Studio.
Process sync definitions
- Capture Definitions
- Process Events
- Remote Systems
- Outbound Flows
- Inbound Flows
Capture definitions
A capture definition specifies when your instance should send data to a remote instance and what data your instance should send. A capture definition contains the configurations for your process sync definition's trigger and captured fields. The trigger specifies what record operation, such as creating, updating, or deleting a record, causes your instance to send data to a remote instance. When a Capture Definition is triggered, it creates an object from a source record, which contains captured fields. Then, the outbound flow starts running and correlates the captured fields from the source record to fields in a related record on the remote system.
A Capture Definition record has the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Process Event | In the Capture Definition form, use the lookup using list icon ( ) to choose the Process Event record that you want to associate with this
capture definition. If no process event exists yet, enter a name for your process
event, and the system automatically creates a Process Event record and associates
the record with your capture definition. For more information, see Process Events. |
| State | Choose Active to activate this capture definition so that the parent process sync definition triggers when the conditions you set in this form's Trigger section are met. |
| Order | Enter a value for the order in which you want your capture definition to trigger relative to other capture definitions. Lower order values are honored before higher order values. |
| Application | Automatically set to your current application scope. |
| Domain | If your process relates to a specific domain, choose a domain other than global. For more information, see Domain separation for service providers. |
In the Trigger section, choose an authorized source table whose records you want to trigger your process sync definition. You can also add field conditions that, when met, cause your process sync definition to trigger. When the conditions are met for the trigger specified in your capture definition, any outbound flows associated with your process sync definition start running. For more information, see Outbound flows and inbound flows.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Source Table Name | Choose an authorized table whose records will trigger your process sync definition every time the records are created, updated, and deleted. |
| Filter | Use the condition builder to add conditions that, when met, will trigger your process sync definition. For example, selecting causes your process sync definition to trigger every time a record in your selected table's State is updated to Work In Progress. |
Lastly, in the Capture section, add fields to the Selected list that you want to include in the payload for your outbound flow.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Include fields | Add fields to the Selected list which you want to sync with fields in the
remote instance every time your process sync definition triggers. Use the add item
icon ( ) to add fields from the Available list to the Selected list.Note:
|
| Include Attachments | If selected, any attachments that are associated with triggering records on your local instance will sync with attachments in correlated records on the remote instance. For more information, see |
Process events
A process event specifies which part of your business process begins in your local instance and ends in the remote instance. The Process Event record in your local instance and in the remote instance should have the same name because the process event signifies the link between these instances that allows them to share parts of the same business process. A Process Event record has the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Enter a name that describes the part of your business process that begins in
your local instance and ends in the remote instance. For example, if users in your
instance request software that will be provisioned in the remote instance, you can
name the process event User requests software. Note: An
administrator for the remote instance, or remote instances, must also create a
process event with the same name that you use here. Creating these process
events in separate instances creates the logical link that allows you to
integrate data among multiple instances. |
| Application | Automatically set to your current application scope. |
| Domain | If your process relates to a specific domain, choose a domain other than global. For more information, see Domain separation for service providers. |
Remote systems
A remote system contains the configurations for the outbound and inbound connections related to another ServiceNow instance. A Remote System record has the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Enter a name that describes the remote instance. For example, if the instance is managed by one of your customers, Customer A, enter Customer A's Instance in the name field. |
| Description | Optionally, enter more details that describe the remote instance's general purpose in your business process. |
| External ID | Enter the Sys ID for the Remote System record that shares the same process
event with your instance. To get a record's Sys ID, select Copy
sys_id from the context menu ( ) in the record's form view. For example, if your Remote Process Sync
integration spans two instances, Instance A and Instance B, use the Sys ID from
Instance A's Remote System record as the External ID in Instance B and vice-versa.
Connecting the Sys IDs and External IDs in this way helps multiple instances know
which instance to connect to when the automated outbound and inbound flows
run. |
| Application | Automatically set to your current application scope. |
| Domain | If your process relates to a specific domain, choose a domain other than global. For more information, see Domain separation for service providers. |
| Error Subflow | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose a subflow that you want to run when the connection to
the remote instance fails. The subflow that you select will run whenever your
local instance can't connect to the remote instance after your process sync
definition triggers. You can view remote systems that your instance fails to
connect to by navigating to . |
| Connection Alias | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose a Connection & Credential Alias record that you
want to use to authenticate with the remote instance. If you haven't set up a
Connection & Credential Alias record for this purpose yet, create a new record
with Connection and Credential in the Type field. For more information, see Create a Connection and
Credential alias. |
| Outbound State | Set to Disabled by default. You can change this field's value to Active by selecting the Validate and Activate Remote System related link in this Remote System record's form view after you finish creating the record. |
| Inbound API User | User who can connect to the remote instance. This user must have credentials that match those of the user with the ih_process_sync_api role in the remote instance. |
| Run Inbound Flows as | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose a user that you want to run the inbound flow for the
associated process event. Option to specify the user that runs the flow. You can select the system user or the user who initiates the session. Select the user who initiates the session option when updates should come from
the user who triggered the flow. For example, use this option when you want the incident record comments to come from the user who started the flow. Settings for the Run as option in a flow don't apply to child
subflows. |
| Inbound State | Set to Disabled by default. You can change this field's value to Active by selecting the Validate and Activate Remote System related link in this Remote System record's form view after you finish creating the record. |
After creating a Process Event record and a Remote System record, you can then associate Workflow Studio subflows with these records so that automated actions run whenever your process sync definition triggers.
Outbound flows and inbound flows
- Process local data, as fields captured in the capture definition, that will be sent to the remote instance
- Correlate this data with data on the remote instance
- Send this data to the remote instance
An Outbound Flow record has the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Process Event | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Process Event record that you want to associate
with this outbound flow. The process event that you select should logically relate
to the automated actions that the outbound flow will run when your process sync
definition triggers. For example, if your outbound flow maps fields from a Service
Catalog Item Request record submitted by users in your local instance to related
fields in the remote instance, then choose a process event related to users making
Service Catalog item requests. |
| Outbound Subflow | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Workflow Studio subflow that you
want to run whenever your process sync definition triggers. Your instance provides
you with a Remote Process Sync Outbound Flow Template - Basic subflow that you can
use as a template in any Outbound Flow record. However, you can customize the
Remote Process Sync Outbound Flow Template - Basic subflow so that it meets the
needs of your business process. You can customize this subflow using the Remote
Process Sync outbound actions. For more information, see Build your first Remote
Process Sync integration. |
| Remote System | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Remote System record that you want to connect to
when your outbound flow runs automated actions that require authenticating with
the remote instance. The Remote System record you choose should be the remote
instance that handles the inbound part of your Remote Process Sync
integration. |
| Application | Automatically set to your current application scope. |
| Domain | If your process relates to a specific domain, choose a domain other than global. For more information, see Domain separation for service providers. |
- Correlate data on the local instance with the data sent from the remote instance
- Map fields sent from the remote instance to fields on the local instance
- Process data sent from the remote instance to the local instance
An Inbound Flow record has the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Process Event | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Process Event record that you want to associate
with this inbound flow. The process event that you select should logically relate
to the automated actions that the inbound flow will run when your local instance
is ready to handle the payload sent by the remote instance. For example, if your
inbound flow maps fields from a Service Catalog Item Request record that users in
the remote instance submitted to related fields in your local instance, then
choose a process event related to users making Service Catalog item
requests. |
| Inbound Subflow | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Workflow Studio subflow that you
want to run whenever your instance handles data sent by a remote instance. Your
instance provides you with a Remote Process Sync Inbound Flow Template - Basic
subflow that you can use as a template in any Inbound Flow record. However, you
can customize the Remote Process Sync Inbound Flow Template - Basic subflow so
that it meets the needs of your business process. You can customize this subflow
using the Remote Process Sync inbound actions. For more information, see Build your first Remote
Process Sync integration. |
| Remote System | Select the lookup using list icon () to find and choose the Remote System record that you want to connect to
when your inbound flow runs automated actions that require authenticating with the
remote instance. The Remote System record you choose should be the remote instance
that handles the outbound part of your Remote Process Sync integration. |
| Application | Automatically set to your current application scope. |
| Domain | If your process relates to a specific domain, choose a domain other than global. For more information, see Domain separation for service providers. |
Before simply choosing the system-provided Remote Process Sync Outbound Flow Template - Basic or Remote Process Sync Inbound Flow Template - Basic subflows for your process sync definition, you may want to customize these subflows in Workflow Studio.
Syncing attachments
- The first time that a record in your integration syncs, all attachments are sent in the outbound payload. Subsequent syncs can send either changes to attachments or all attachments.
- Attachment metadata is always sent with the outbound payload. This metadata includes an encrypted synthetic key, hash, file name, content type, and size.
- The remote instance decides which attachments to receive by comparing each hash and
file name from the inbound payload to those on the instance. Then, the following process
occurs:
- The originating system validates the key and pushes attachments to the correlation record.
- The originating system notifies the remote system that the attachments are complete.
- The remote system moves the attachments from the correlation record to the target record.
Syncing comments and work notes
In your integration, comments and work notes are synced among instances only when changes occur to those journal fields. Change metadata is included in payloads so that remote systems can identify which user created the comment or work note and when it was created.
Outbound queues and inbound queues
After building your Remote Process Sync integration by creating and configuring the records mentioned in the previous sections, you can then manage your integration by monitoring the outbound queue and inbound queue in your instance.
An outbound queue contains the status, error information, retry data, and flow context information for outbound subflows that ran for data that was sent out of your instance. To view the records in your outbound queue, navigate to .
An Outbound Queue State record has the following fields:
An inbound queue contains the status, processing sequence, and correlation information for inbound subflows that ran for data that was sent from a remote instance to your local instance. To view the records in your inbound queue, navigate to .
An Inbound Queue record has the following fields:
Monitoring and troubleshooting your integration
- Connection errors
- Outbound connection errors automatically retry several times before setting the Remote System record's Outbound State to Error. If errors keep occurring for an outbound connection, confirm that nothing has changed with the Remote System's Inbound API User, such as a change in the user's credentials. Then, validate and activate the Remote System record again.
- Data processing errors
- Data processing errors typically occur as a result of errors in an outbound flow or inbound flow. To troubleshoot these errors, you can add error handling actions to your flow, such as a Log action or Send Email action, when the flow's State changes to Error. You can also add actions that reprocess or skip processing of records in the Outbound Queue or Inbound Queue tables if an error with the flow occurs.