ServiceNow Connector for PowerShell In this article you will learn how to integrate ServiceNow data in PowerShell without coding in just a few clicks (live / bi-directional connection to ServiceNow). Allows the reading and writing of incidents, attachments, and more in ServiceNow without coding! The ZappySys ServiceNow API Connector provides easy-to-use, high-performance API access.. Using ServiceNow Connector you will be able to connect, read, and write data from within PowerShell. Follow the steps below to see how we would accomplish that. Download Documentation The driver mentioned above is part of ODBC PowerPack which is a collection of high-performance Drivers for various API data source (i.e. REST API, JSON, XML, CSV, Amazon S3 and many more). Using familiar SQL query language you can make live connections and read/write data from API sources or JSON / XML / CSV Files inside SQL Server (T-SQL) or your favorite Reporting (i.e. Power BI, Tableau, Qlik, SSRS, MicroStrategy, Excel, MS Access), ETL Tools (i.e. Informatica, Talend, Pentaho, SSIS). You can also call our drivers from programming languages such as JAVA, C#, Python, PowerShell etc. If you are new to ODBC and ZappySys ODBC PowerPack then check the following links to get started. ODBC PowerPack - System Requirements and Installation Getting Started - Using ODBC PowerPack ODBC API Driver Help File

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Create ODBC Data Source (DSN) based on ZappySys API Driver

Step-by-step instructions

To get data from ServiceNow using PowerShell we first need to create a DSN (Data Source) which will access data from ServiceNow. We will later be able to read data using PowerShell. Perform these steps:

1. Install ZappySys ODBC PowerPack.

2. Open ODBC Data Sources (x64):
   

3. Create a User Data Source (User DSN) based on ZappySys API Driver

   ZappySys API Driver

   
   You should create a System DSN (instead of a User DSN) if the client application is launched under a Windows System Account, e.g. as a Windows Service. If the client application is 32-bit (x86) running with a System DSN, use ODBC Data Sources (32-bit) instead of the 64-bit version.

4. When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "ServiceNow" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "ServiceNow" is not present in the list, then click "Search Online" and download it. Then set the path to the location where you downloaded it. Finally, click Continue >> to proceed with configuring the DSN:

   ServiceNowDSN

   ServiceNow

   

5. Now it's time to configure the Connection Manager. Select Authentication Type, e.g. Token Authentication. Then select API Base URL (in most cases, the default one is the right one). More info is available in the Authentication section.

    Basic Auth [Http]

   Authenticate using ServiceNow instance username and password

   Steps to get ServiceNow Credentials
   

   To get your Instance name, Username and Password:

   1. Log in into your ServiceNow and go to https://developer.servicenow.com/dev.do.
   2. Click on your profile icon.
   3. Select your instance.
   4. Click on "Manage instance password" or similar link.
   5. In the opened page you should see Instance name, Username and Password.

   Fill in all required parameters and set optional parameters if needed:

   ServiceNowDSN

   ServiceNow

   Basic Auth [Http]

   https://[$InstanceName$].service-now.com/api/now

   Required Parameters
   InstanceName	Fill in the parameter...
   User name	Fill in the parameter...
   Password	Fill in the parameter...
   ApiVersion	Fill in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   RetryMode	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryStatusCodeList	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryCountMax	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	Fill in the parameter...

   

    OAuth [OAuth]

   Authenticate using ServiceNow instance username, password and clientid, clientsecret [API Help..]

   Steps to get ServiceNow Credentials
   

   To get your OAuth client ID / ClientSecret perform the below steps:

   1. Login to your instance https://{your-instance-id}.service-now.com/.
   2. Click on All > System OAuth > Application Registry (or just search for "Application Registry" under All menu)
   3. You can also Navigate to "Application Registry" using this link (Replace your instance-id in link) https://{your-instance-id}.service-now.com/now/nav/ui/classic/params/target/oauth_entity_list.do.
   4. Click on "New" button (see top-right corner for most user) and select "Create an OAuth API endpoint for external clients".
   5. Fill out the form according to your requirement and click "Submit". If you are unsure then populating the "Name" field will suffice. Please note down the "Client ID" and "Client Secret" as they will be used later.
   6. Go back to Connection UI and enter your UserName, Password and ClientID, Secret.
   7. To create new User you can go to All > Organization > Users
   8. Click Test Connection.

   Fill in all required parameters and set optional parameters if needed:

   ServiceNowDSN

   ServiceNow

   OAuth [OAuth]

   https://[$InstanceName$].service-now.com/api/now

   Required Parameters
   InstanceName	Fill in the parameter...
   User name	Fill in the parameter...
   Password	Fill in the parameter...
   Client ID	Fill in the parameter...
   Client Secret	Fill in the parameter...
   ApiVersion	Fill in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   RetryMode	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryStatusCodeList	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryCountMax	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	Fill in the parameter...

   

6. Once the data source has been configured, you can preview data. Select the Preview tab and use settings similar to the following to preview data:
   

7. Click OK to finish creating the data source.

Video instructions

Read ServiceNow data in PowerShell

Sometimes, you need to quickly access and work with your ServiceNow data in PowerShell. Whether you need a quick data overview or the complete dataset, this article will guide you through the process. Here are some common scenarios:

• Quickly peek at ServiceNow data
• Monitor data constantly in your console

• Export data to a CSV file so that it can be sliced and diced in Excel
• Export data to a JSON file so that it can ingested by other processes
• Export data to an HTML file for user-friendly view and easy sharing
• Create a schedule to make it an automatic process

• Store data internally for analysis or for further ETL processes
• Create a schedule to make it an automatic process

• Integrate data with other systems via external APIs

In this article, we will delve deeper into how to quickly view the data in PowerShell terminal and how to save it to a file. But let's stop talking and get started!

Reading individual fields

1. Open your favorite PowerShell IDE (we are using Visual Studio Code).
2. Then simply follow these instructions:
   "DSN=ServiceNowDSN"

   

   For your convenience, here is the whole PowerShell script:

   # Configure connection string and query
   $connectionString = "DSN=ServiceNowDSN"
   $query = "SELECT * FROM Customers"
   
   # Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
   $adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
   $table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable
   
   # Fill the table with data
   $adapter.Fill($table)
   
   # Since we know we will be reading just 4 columns, let's define format for those 4 columns, each separated by a tab
   $format = "{0}`t{1}`t{2}`t{3}"
   
   # Display data in the console
   foreach ($row in $table.Rows)
   {
       # Construct line based on the format and individual ServiceNow fields
       $line = $format -f ($row["CustomerId"], $row["CompanyName"], $row["Country"], $row["Phone"])
       Write-Host $line
   }
   

   Access specific ServiceNow table field using this code snippet:

   $field = $row["ColumnName"]

   You will find more info on how to manipulate DataTable.Rows property in Microsoft .NET reference.
   For demonstration purposes we are using sample tables which may not be available in ServiceNow.
3. To read values in a console, save the script to a file and then execute this command inside PowerShell terminal:
   You can also use even a simpler command inside the terminal, e.g.:

   . 'C:\Users\john\Documents\dsn.ps1'

Retrieving all fields

However, there might be case, when you want to retrieve all columns of a query. Here is how you do it:

"DSN=ServiceNowDSN"

Again, for your convenience, here is the whole PowerShell script:

# Configure connection string and query
$connectionString = "DSN=ServiceNowDSN"
$query = "SELECT CustomerId, CompanyName, Country, Phone FROM Customers"

# Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
$adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
$table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable

# Fill the table with data
$adapter.Fill($table)

# Display data in the console
foreach ($row in $table.Rows) {
    $line = ""
    foreach ($column in $table.Columns) {
        $value = $row[$column.ColumnName]

        # Let's handle NULL values
        if ($value -is [DBNull])
        {
            $value = "(NULL)"
        }
        $line += $value + "`t"
    }
    Write-Host $line
}

SELECT * FROM Customers LIMIT 10

Using a full ODBC connection string

In the previous steps we used a very short format of ODBC connection string - a DSN. Yet sometimes you don't want a dependency on an ODBC data source (and an extra step). In those times, you can define a full connection string and skip creating an ODBC data source entirely. Let's see below how to accomplish that in the below steps:

1. Open ODBC data source configuration and click Copy settings:
   

   ZappySys API Driver - ServiceNow

   Allows the reading and writing of incidents, attachments, and more in ServiceNow without coding! The ZappySys ServiceNow API Connector provides easy-to-use, high-performance API access.

   ServiceNowDSN

   
2. The window opens, telling us the connection string was successfully copied to the clipboard:
3. Then just paste the connection string into your script:
4. You are good to go! The script will execute the same way as using a DSN.

Limitations of using a full connection string

Despite using a full ODBC connection string may be very convenient it comes with a limitation: it's length is limited to 1024 symbols. It usually happens when API provider generates a very long Refresh Token when OAuth is at play. If it happens you use such API, you may get this error:

"Connection string exceeds maximum allowed length of 1024"

But there is a solution to this by storing the Refresh Token in a file instead of directly in ODBC connection string. Follow the steps below to achieve this.

1. Open your ODBC data source
2. Hit Advanced tab and enter a file path:
   

   ZappySys API Driver - ServiceNow

   Allows the reading and writing of incidents, attachments, and more in ServiceNow without coding! The ZappySys ServiceNow API Connector provides easy-to-use, high-performance API access.

   ServiceNowDSN

   
   If you cannot find the Advanced tab, try looking for Click to Configure link in Properties tab, under URL text box. Click it, and then configure the file path in OAuth Grant Options tab.
3. Then click Copy settings button to copy a full connection string and paste it into your script.
4. Proceed by pasting the connection string into your C# code as an argument when calling the OdbcConnection object's constructor.
5. Before using it we still have to shorten it manually like this:
6. Our troubles are over, now you should be able to execute the script with no problems.

Write ServiceNow data to a file in PowerShell

Save data to a CSV file

Export data to a CSV file so that it can be sliced and diced in Excel:

# Configure connection string and query
$connectionString = "DSN=ServiceNowDSN"
$query = "SELECT * FROM Customers"

# Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
$adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
$table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable

# Fill the table with data
$adapter.Fill($table)

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Csv -NoTypeInformation -Delimiter "`t" | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.csv" -Force

Save data to a JSON file

Export data to a JSON file so that it can ingested by other processes (use the above script, but change this part):

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Json | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.json" -Force

Save data to an HTML file

Export data to an HTML file for user-friendly view and easy sharing (use the above script, but change this part):

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Html | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.html" -Force

Advanced topics

Create Custom Stored Procedure in ZappySys Driver

You can create procedures to encapsulate custom logic and then only pass handful parameters rather than long SQL to execute your API call.

Steps to create Custom Stored Procedure in ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders anywhere inside Procedure Body. Read more about placeholders here

1. Go to Custom Objects Tab and Click on Add button and Select Add Procedure:
   

2. Enter the desired Procedure name and click on OK:
   

3. Select the created Stored Procedure and write the your desired stored procedure and Save it and it will create the custom stored procedure in the ZappySys Driver:
   Here is an example stored procedure for ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders anywhere inside Procedure Body. Read more about placeholders here
   

   CREATE PROCEDURE [usp_get_orders]
       @fromdate = '<<yyyy-MM-dd,FUN_TODAY>>'
    AS
       SELECT * FROM Orders where OrderDate >= '<@fromdate>';
   

   
   

4. That's it now go to Preview Tab and Execute your Stored Procedure using Exec Command. In this example it will extract the orders from the date 1996-01-01:
   

   Exec usp_get_orders '1996-01-01';

   
   

5. Let's generate the SQL Server Query Code to make the API call using stored procedure. Go to Code Generator Tab, select language as SQL Server and click on Generate button the generate the code.
   As we already created the linked server for this Data Source, in that you just need to copy the Select Query and need to use the linked server name which we have apply on the place of [MY_API_SERVICE] placeholder.
   

   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_API_SERVICE], 'EXEC usp_get_orders @fromdate=''1996-07-30''')

   
   

6. Now go to SQL served and execute that query and it will make the API call using stored procedure and provide you the response.
   

Create Custom Virtual Table in ZappySys Driver

ZappySys API Drivers support flexible Query language so you can override Default Properties you configured on Data Source such as URL, Body. This way you don't have to create multiple Data Sources if you like to read data from multiple EndPoints. However not every application support supplying custom SQL to driver so you can only select Table from list returned from driver.

If you're dealing with Microsoft Access and need to import data from an SQL query, it's important to note that Access doesn't allow direct import of SQL queries. Instead, you can create custom objects (Virtual Tables) to handle the import process.

Many applications like MS Access, Informatica Designer wont give you option to specify custom SQL when you import Objects. In such case Virtual Table is very useful. You can create many Virtual Tables on the same Data Source (e.g. If you have 50 URLs with slight variations you can create virtual tables with just URL as Parameter setting.

1. Go to Custom Objects Tab and Click on Add button and Select Add Table:
   

2. Enter the desired Table name and click on OK:
   

3. And it will open the New Query Window Click on Cancel to close that window and go to Custom Objects Tab.

4. Select the created table, Select Text Type AS SQL and write the your desired SQL Query and Save it and it will create the custom table in the ZappySys Driver:
   Here is an example SQL query for ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders also. Read more about placeholders here
   

   SELECT
     "ShipCountry",
     "OrderID",
     "CustomerID",
     "EmployeeID",
     "OrderDate",
     "RequiredDate",
     "ShippedDate",
     "ShipVia",
     "Freight",
     "ShipName",
     "ShipAddress",
     "ShipCity",
     "ShipRegion",
     "ShipPostalCode"
   FROM "Orders"
   Where "ShipCountry"='USA'

   
   

5. That's it now go to Preview Tab and Execute your custom virtual table query. In this example it will extract the orders for the USA Shipping Country only:
   

   SELECT * FROM "vt__usa_orders_only"

   
   

6. Let's generate the SQL Server Query Code to make the API call using stored procedure. Go to Code Generator Tab, select language as SQL Server and click on Generate button the generate the code.
   As we already created the linked server for this Data Source, in that you just need to copy the Select Query and need to use the linked server name which we have apply on the place of [MY_API_SERVICE] placeholder.
   

   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_API_SERVICE], 'EXEC [usp_get_orders] ''1996-01-01''')

   
   

7. Now go to SQL served and execute that query and it will make the API call using stored procedure and provide you the response.
   

Actions supported by ServiceNow Connector

ServiceNow Connector Examples for PowerShell Connection

This page offers a collection of SQL examples designed for seamless integration with the ZappySys API ODBC Driver under ODBC Data Source (36/64) or ZappySys Data Gateway, enhancing your ability to connect and interact with Prebuilt Connectors effectively.

SELECT * FROM incident 

--Using Primary Key				
--SELECT * FROM any_table_here WHERE sys_id='109562a3c611227500a7b7ff98cc0dc7' --Primary Key in WHERE clause

--Using Filter Expression
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001') --Equal condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number!=INC0000001') --Not equal condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberININC0000001,INC0000002,INC0000003') --IN condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^state=7') --AND condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^ORnumber=INC0000002') --OR condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberLIKE0001') --LIKE condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberSTARTSWITHINC00') --StartWith condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberENDSWITH0001') --StartWith condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^state=7^NQORnumber=INC0000002') --AND / OR MIXED using NQ (NewQuery Operator)  -- (number=INC0000001 and state=7) OR (number=INC0000002)

--more information about filter here https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/utah-platform-user-interface/page/use/common-ui-elements/reference/r_OpAvailableFiltersQueries.html


-- To read all available tables execute this query:
-- SELECT * FROM Tables

-- Other common tables:
-----------------------
-- SELECT * FROM sys_db_object
-- SELECT * FROM sys_dictionary
-- SELECT * FROM sys_user
-- SELECT * FROM sys_user_has_role
-- SELECT * FROM sys_user_grmember
-- SELECT * FROM task
-- SELECT * FROM task_sla
-- SELECT * FROM incident
-- SELECT * FROM incident_sla
-- SELECT * FROM change_request
-- SELECT * FROM cmdb_ci_computer
-- SELECT * FROM cmdb_ci_outage
-- SELECT * FROM cmdb_ci
-- SELECT * FROM sn_customerservice_case
-- SELECT * FROM kb_knowledge
-- SELECT * FROM kb_use
-- SELECT * FROM sc_req_item
-- SELECT * FROM sc_request
-- SELECT * FROM sc_task

SELECT * FROM incident
WHERE sys_id = 'SYS_ID_GOES_HERE'

SELECT number,name FROM incident WITH (Fields='number,name') --Setting Fields parameter will speed up the query

--STEP#1 returns incident number and related company (sys_id)
SELECT number,company FROM incident

--STEP#2 find related table for company field
select name,reference from get_table_columns order by 1 WITH(TableName='incident')

--STEP#3 query related table with sys_id returned in step#1
select sys_id, name  from core_company where sys_id='31bea3d53790200044e0bfc8bcbe5dec'

SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001') --Equal condition

--syntax (single condition)
--sysparm_query=<col_name><operator><value>

--syntax (multiple conditions)
--sysparm_query=<col_name><operator><value>[<operator><col_name><operator><value>]

--more info check below links
--  https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/rome-application-development/page/integrate/inbound-rest/concept/c_TableAPI.html#title_table-GET
--  https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/utah-platform-user-interface/page/use/common-ui-elements/reference/r_OpAvailableFiltersQueries.html
  
--More examples				
--SELECT * FROM any_table_here WHERE sys_id='109562a3c611227500a7b7ff98cc0dc7' --Primary Key in WHERE clause
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001') --Equal condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number!=INC0000001') --Not equal condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberININC0000001,INC0000002,INC0000003') --IN condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^state=7') --AND condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^ORnumber=INC0000002') --OR condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberLIKE0001') --LIKE condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberSTARTSWITHINC00') --StartWith condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='numberENDSWITH0001') --StartWith condition
--SELECT * FROM incident WITH(Query='number=INC0000001^state=7^NQORnumber=INC0000002') --AND / OR MIXED using NQ (NewQuery Operator)  -- (number=INC0000001 and state=7) OR (number=INC0000002)

INSERT INTO incident(incident_state, severity, category, cause)
VALUES (3, 1, 'software', 'Missing a software feature.')

UPDATE incident
SET cause = 'A bug in the software'
   ,severity = 3
   ,incident_state = 2
WHERE sys_id = 'SYS_ID_GOES_HERE'

DELETE incident
WHERE sys_id = 'SYS_ID_GOES_HERE'

SELECT * FROM Tables

SELECT * FROM SystemTables

SELECT * FROM UserTables

SELECT * FROM get_table_columns
where name = 'TableNameGoesHere'

SELECT * FROM get_table_columns_admin --requires readonly permissions on sys_dictionary and sys_db_object tables

SELECT *
FROM generic_request
WITH(
	Url='/v2/table/incident?sysparm_limit=10000&sysparm_query=numberLIKE0001^ORDERBYsys_created_on',
	Filter='$.result',
	Meta='sys_id:string;number:string;business_stc:int', --//comment this to see all columns (SLOW)
	PagingMode='ByResponseHeaderRfc5988',
  --Method='GET',
  --Body='{your POST body}'  
)

-- Request URL should be partial like this one:
-- /v2/some_table?some-parameter=somevalue1&some-parameter=somevalue2

Conclusion

In this article we discussed how to connect to ServiceNow in PowerShell and integrate data without any coding. Click here to Download ServiceNow Connector for PowerShell and try yourself see how easy it is. If you still have any question(s) then ask here or simply click on live chat icon below and ask our expert (see bottom-right corner of this page).

Download ServiceNow Connector for PowerShell Documentation 

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