Upgrades and patching
Quick answer
Family releases, patches, skipped records and how to plan an upgrade that does not eat a month.
Key takeaways
- Upgrades are routine, plan them into the calendar
- Skipped records are decisions, not noise
- Automated tests pay for themselves at upgrade time
- Rollback means restore, so test thoroughly before production
Release cadence
ServiceNow ships two family releases a year plus regular patches and hotfixes. Instances must stay within supported versions, so upgrades are routine work rather than projects.
Skipped records
During upgrade the platform keeps your customisation of any record you changed and marks the shipped version as skipped. Reviewing skipped records is the real work of an upgrade: for each one, decide whether to keep your version or take the new one.
A workable plan
Upgrade sub production first and give testers a fixed window.
- Upgrade dev, review skipped records, then upgrade test
- Run ATF suites before and after so regressions surface early
- Prioritise skipped records on high traffic tables and on anything security related
- Schedule production for a low volume window and keep the rollback conversation honest, rollback means restore from backup
Want to learn this properly?
Our live, instructor-led ServiceNow Training covers this hands-on, with real projects and a certification path.
Check your understanding
Where do you review changes the upgrade did not apply?
- A. Update sets
- B. Skipped records list
- C. System logs
- D. Clone history
Show answer
B. Skipped records list
The upgrade monitor lists skipped records for review.
What reduces upgrade effort the most over time?
- A. More admins
- B. Fewer customisations and good test coverage
- C. Larger instance
- D. Longer freeze windows
Show answer
B. Fewer customisations and good test coverage
Customisation volume drives skipped record review effort.