Insight · Topic 4 of 4
CMDB and CSDM Data Foundations Dashboards
CMDB and CSDM Data Foundations Dashboards for the CIS-DF exam: tabs, metrics, priority, results, roles and when to follow the remediation playbook.
- 5 min
- The dashboards come from the free CMDB and CSDM Data Foundations Dashboards Store app.
- CMDB tabs: Best Practices, Customizations, Data Management Practices, ITSM Processes.
- CSDM tabs follow Foundation, Crawl, Walk, Run, Fly.
What it is
The CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard and the CSDM Data Foundations Dashboard measure whether your data follows ServiceNow best practice. They come from the free CMDB and CSDM Data Foundations Dashboards app on the ServiceNow Store.
Each metric shows how much of the measured data is compliant and links to a playbook: a Now Support knowledge article that explains why the metric matters and how to fix it. The dashboard tells you where to look; the playbook tells you what to do.
How it works
Two dashboards, two lenses
| Dashboard | Focus | Tabs |
|---|---|---|
| CMDB Data Foundations | CMDB best practice, customizations, data management and how ITSM uses CIs | Best Practices, Customizations, Data Management Practices, ITSM Processes |
| CSDM Data Foundations | Progress through the CSDM adoption stages | Foundation, Crawl, Walk, Run, Fly |
Open the CSDM dashboard from All > Configuration > CSDM Data Foundations Dashboard, or in CMDB Workspace from Management, under the Optimize section. A change dashboard icon switches between the CSDM and CMDB dashboards.
Access needs the sn_cmdb_admin, admin, itil_admin or asset role. Some drill-downs need extra roles for the tables behind them.
Example CMDB metrics
| Tab | Example metrics |
|---|---|
| Best Practices | Hardware CIs with Serial Numbers, Services with Owners |
| Customizations | Use of Custom Attributes, Base System CMDB Relationship Types Usage |
| Data Management Practices | Active CIs Updated in Last 90 days, CIs Processed via IRE, Handled Duplicate CIs, Servers with Location, Unique Locations |
| ITSM Processes | Incidents Referencing a CI, Changes Relating to both a Service and a CI |
The CSDM tabs follow the stages: Foundation covers base data tables, Crawl the base CMDB tables used by ITSM, Walk the infrastructure and applications technical teams support, Run the link between technology and the business that consumes it, and Fly near complete CSDM.
Result and priority
The result is the percentage of measured items that comply. Priority combines the metric's weight with how severe the score is, from 1 (Critical) to 5 (Low), and the list is sorted by it. Work from the top: a critical metric on a weighted area moves the overall picture more than a low one.
Where the numbers come from
Metric details are collected by scheduled jobs, such as CMDB Get Well Metric Collection, which runs daily by default. Separate Performance Analytics jobs populate the widgets and the trend over time. The dashboard shows data only after the first run, so an empty dashboard on a new install usually means the jobs have not run yet.
Metrics are defined in the CMDB/CSDM Get Well Metrics sn_getwell_metric table, where an expensive metric can be deactivated or reactivated.
Using the playbook
When a metric is low, the remediation flow is:
- Open the metric and read its list view and playbook link.
- Drill into the tile to see the non-compliant records.
- Follow the playbook steps to fix the data at its source.
- Let the next job run confirm the improvement.
| Scenario | Playbook direction |
|---|---|
| Unique Locations is low | Review the duplicate location records, point CIs at the correct one, then clean up the duplicate |
| Hardware CIs are missing serial numbers | Find the affected classes and fix the source or import that should supply the serial number |
| Business service offerings lack service instance relationships | Service owners add the missing relationships so impact is complete |
Benefits
- One view of CMDB and CSDM health against ServiceNow benchmarks, not a custom scorecard.
- Trend data shows whether governance work is actually improving the data.
- Priorities focus effort where impact is highest.
- Playbooks give repeatable, documented remediation instead of ad hoc fixes.
- The CSDM tabs show which adoption stage the data supports today.
How the exam asks about this
- "The Unique Locations result on the CMDB Data Foundations Dashboard is low. What should the administrator do?" Follow the playbook: review the duplicate locations, move CIs to the correct one and clean up the duplicate.
- "A team wants structured guidance to fix hardware CIs without serial numbers." Use the playbook linked from the Hardware CIs with Serial Numbers metric.
- "The dashboard shows no data on a new instance." The metric collection jobs must run first.
What to remember for the exam
- The dashboards come from the free CMDB and CSDM Data Foundations Dashboards Store app.
- CMDB tabs: Best Practices, Customizations, Data Management Practices, ITSM Processes.
- CSDM tabs follow Foundation, Crawl, Walk, Run, Fly.
- Priority runs from 1 (Critical) to 5 (Low) and combines weight with severity.
- Every metric links to a playbook in Now Support with context and remediation steps.
- Data appears only after the scheduled collection jobs have run.
Do not raise a score by excluding records or switching a metric off. The playbook fixes the underlying data; hiding the problem leaves every consuming process exposed.
Common mistakes
Treating the dashboard as the fix. It measures and prioritizes. The remediation happens in the data, guided by the playbook, and often in Data Manager or deduplication tasks.
Confusing it with CMDB Health. CMDB Health scores completeness, correctness and compliance for your CI classes. The Data Foundations dashboards check alignment with ServiceNow best practice and CSDM stages.
Starting at the bottom of the list. Priority 1 metrics carry the most weight and severity. Fixing low-priority items first improves little.
Check yourself
When should an administrator open a metric's playbook?
When the metric's result is low and the team needs to know why it matters and how to fix it. The playbook gives structured remediation steps for that metric.
How are the CSDM Data Foundations Dashboard tabs organized?
By CSDM adoption stage: Foundation, Crawl, Walk, Run and Fly.
A newly installed dashboard shows no data. What is the likely reason?
The scheduled metric collection jobs have not run yet. Data appears only after their first run.
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