Govern · Topic 5 of 6
CMDB Workspace and the Data Foundations Dashboard
CIS-DF CMDB Workspace: when to use it, its Management view tools and roles, and how the CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard indicators and playbooks fix data.
- 5 min
- CMDB Workspace is the central CMDB working area: search, health, tasks and management tools.
- The Management view needs sn_cmdb_admin and groups tools as Manage, Optimize, Visualize and Create.
- The CMDB Health Dashboard is opened from CMDB Workspace in current releases.
What it is
CMDB Workspace is the central place to work with the CMDB: search and explore CIs, check health and recent activity, and open the CMDB dashboards and management tools. It replaces hunting through separate modules in the classic interface.
The CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard is one of the tools reached from it. It scores how well the CMDB follows ServiceNow's recommended practices and links each low score to a remediation playbook that explains how to fix it.
How it works
When to use CMDB Workspace
Use it whenever the job is CMDB work rather than process work. A configuration manager reviewing health, an administrator creating a Data Manager policy, or an analyst working attestation and de-duplication tasks all start here.
Key capabilities:
- Search: find CIs, including natural language search in newer releases, and refine results with filters.
- CMDB 360: compare the values each source reported for a CI and spot gaps and conflicts between sources.
- Health: in current releases the CMDB Health Dashboard is opened from CMDB Workspace.
- Tasks: attestation tasks from Data Manager, de-duplication tasks and tasks raised by failed health tests.
The Management view
The Management view requires sn_cmdb_admin. Its tools are grouped by purpose:
| Group | Tools |
|---|---|
| Manage | CI Class Manager, Data Manager, De-duplication Template Library, De-duplication Dashboard, CMDB Groups, Dynamic CI Groups |
| Optimize | CMDB Health, CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard, CSDM Data Foundations Dashboard, De-duplication Tasks, CMDB Remediation Rules |
| Visualize | Dependency Views (the older map; Unified Map is the newer one), Query Builder |
| Create | New technical service |
Each tool also has its own role. For example, Query Builder needs cmdb_query_builder to build queries (cmdb_query_builder_read only runs saved ones), and the Data Foundations Dashboard needs sn_cmdb_admin, itil_admin, admin or asset.
The CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard
The dashboard is a Store application. Its indicators are grouped into tabs:
| Tab | Example indicators |
|---|---|
| Best Practices | Hardware CIs with Serial Numbers, Services with Owners |
| Customizations | Custom CMDB Tables Using Standard Naming, Use of Custom Attributes |
| Data Management Practices | CIs Processed via IRE, Handled Duplicate CIs, Servers with Location, Active CIs Updated in Last 90 days |
| ITSM Processes | Incidents Referencing a CI, Changes Referencing a CI |
Each indicator has a priority from 1 (Critical) to 5 (Low) and a percentage score. Most scores compare compliant records with the total. Some drop to zero below a threshold, for example Hardware CIs with Serial Numbers scores 0 if fewer than 70% comply.
Improving data quality with it
- Start with the Critical indicators; they affect the most processes.
- Drill into the indicator to see the records that fail.
- Open the remediation playbook link, a Now Support knowledge article that explains the impact and the fix.
- Fix the cause: route the source through the IRE, add serial numbers, assign service owners, or reference CIs on incidents.
- Check the score after the next daily collection.
Scores come from scheduled jobs that run daily by default, such as CMDB Get Well Metric Collection. The dashboard shows data only after the first run.
Data Foundations Dashboard versus CMDB Health
| CMDB Health | CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard | |
|---|---|---|
| Question | Is the data in each class complete, correct and compliant? | Is the CMDB set up and used the recommended way? |
| Driven by | Your class rules and audits | Fixed indicators from ServiceNow |
| Fix guidance | Tasks and remediation rules | Remediation playbooks |
Use both. Health shows record level quality; Data Foundations shows practice level gaps, such as data loaded outside the IRE.
How the exam asks about this
- "An administrator needs one place to manage Data Manager, CI Class Manager and de-duplication templates." Use the Management view of CMDB Workspace.
- "A low score shows CIs are not processed through the IRE; how do you learn the fix?" Open that indicator's remediation playbook on the Data Foundations Dashboard.
- "The Data Foundations Dashboard is empty after installation." The metric collection job has not run yet.
What to remember for the exam
- CMDB Workspace is the central CMDB working area: search, health, tasks and management tools.
- The Management view needs sn_cmdb_admin and groups tools as Manage, Optimize, Visualize and Create.
- The CMDB Health Dashboard is opened from CMDB Workspace in current releases.
- Data Foundations indicators have priorities from 1 Critical to 5 Low and link to remediation playbooks.
- Indicators are grouped as Best Practices, Customizations, Data Management Practices and ITSM Processes.
- Scores refresh from daily collection jobs.
The Data Foundations Dashboard reports and guides; it does not change data. The fix is always made in the source, the rules or the records.
Common mistakes
Fixing the records but not the practice. Cleaning CIs that a direct import keeps recreating only helps until the next load. The playbook usually points to the source process.
Treating the two dashboards as the same. CMDB Health scores class data against your rules. Data Foundations scores practices against ServiceNow's recommendations.
Expecting every user to see the Management view. It requires sn_cmdb_admin, and individual tools have their own roles.
Check yourself
Which role is needed for the Management view of CMDB Workspace?
sn_cmdb_admin.
What does a remediation playbook on the Data Foundations Dashboard give you?
A Now Support knowledge article that explains the indicator's impact and the steps to fix it.
Why might the Data Foundations Dashboard show no data?
Its scheduled metric collection job has not run yet; the dashboard fills only after the first run.
Topic 5 of 6 in Govern
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