Allocating your custom tables to a subscription entitlement
This article is based on the ServiceNow documentation article. See the original article on the ServiceNow doc site: ServiceNow: Allocating your custom tables to a subscription entitlement.
Allocate custom tables you create in production instances to subscriptions that include custom table entitlements. Performing this task on a consistent basis enables you to track custom table subscription compliance over time.
Custom table entitlements
A custom table is defined as any non-ServiceNow provided table that you create or install on the Now Platform. Some tables are exempted from being classified as a custom table.
For a detailed description of custom table use rights, and a listing of exempt ServiceNow provided tables, see the Custom Table Guide on http://www.servicenow.com/upgrade-schedules.html.
You can freely create or install custom tables on a non-production instance. However, creation or installation of custom tables on a production instance requires a custom table entitlement that is granted with the purchase of a product subscription. For example, a single subscription might include a total entitlement of 50 custom tables.
A custom table entitlement is an individual component of a subscription, but is not a type of subscription itself. Standard licensing metrics, such as fulfiller, requester, and unrestricted, and the subscription types, such as Per-User and Capacity, still apply to subscriptions with custom table entitlements. To learn more about licensing metrics and subscription types, see:
Allocating custom tables to custom table entitlements
After you finalize the purchase of a subscription with a custom table entitlement, the entitlement is delivered, with related subscription data, to your production instance. The subscription and custom table entitlement data appear in a subscription record in Subscription Management.
As your developers create and deploy new custom tables on your production instance, you use the Subscription form to allocate them to individual subscriptions. You can use Subscription Management dashboards to monitor the current table allocations and their compliance statuses, and take corrective action as needed. To learn more about how this allocation process works, see:
Example: Custom table entitlements
Scenario: Your organization has purchased three subscriptions and each has differing table entitlements.
For example, Subscription 1 has an entitlement of 100 fulfillers and a total entitlement of 50 custom tables. Subscription 2 has 20 fulfillers and a total entitlement of 25 custom tables. Subscription 3 has 5000 users and a total entitlement of five custom tables. In total, you can manually allocate up to 80 custom table to these three subscriptions as you create them in your production instance.
| Subscription | User/custom table entitlements | Can manually allocate up to entitlement quantity of |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100 fulfillers/50 custom tables | 50 |
| 2 | 20 fulfillers/25 custom tables | 25 |
| 3 | 5000 users/5 custom tables | 5 |
Allowing grandfathered tables on an instance
Sometimes an extra subscription with a grandfathered table entitlement may be delivered to your production instance. This type of subscription triggers an automatic allocation of grandfathered tables to the grandfathered entitlement, up to its specified maximum limit. This one-time process ensures that custom tables that currently exist in a production instance do not count against custom table entitlements for a new ServiceNow subscription. You can not manually allocate these grandfathered tables to a subscription entitlement.
Once a grandfathered table is auto-allocated to a subscription that has a grandfathered entitlement, this mapping is permanent. Deleting a grandfathered custom table does not free up a custom table entitlement.
Example: Allowing grandfathered tables on an instance
Scenario: You purchased three new subscriptions, with a total of 80 custom table entitlements. An extra subscription with an entitlement for 23 grandfathered tables has also been delivered to your instance. The grandfathered tables are visible within Subscription Management. This subscription triggers an automatic allocation of the custom tables that currently exist in your production instance, up to its 23 table limit. These subscriptions result in a total custom table entitlement of 103, of which you can manually allocate the remaining 80 as you create custom tables in your production instance.
| Subscription | Custom table entitlements | Can manually allocate up to entitlement quantity of |
|---|---|---|
| Legacy subscription | Up to 23 legacy tables auto-allocated upon subscription arrival | 0 (legacy tables auto-allocated) |
| New Subscription 1 | 50 | 50 |
| New Subscription 2 | 25 | 25 |
| New Subscription 3 | 5 | 5 |
Custom table subscription allocation life cycle
The life cycle begins with the purchase of a subscription, and it continues with the allocation of custom tables. The cycle ends with the monitoring of custom table allocations over time.
- Purchase subscription, receive custom table entitlement.
- A subscription that contains a custom table entitlement is delivered to your production instance.
- Sometimes an extra subscription with a grandfathered table entitlement may also be delivered that triggers an automatic allocation of legacy custom tables to the entitlement.
- Subscription Management records are automatically updated to reflect the new subscription and grandfathered table entitlement. The subscription is ready for you to administer.
- Allocate custom tables to custom table entitlements.
- As new custom tables are deployed on a production instance, you allocate them to the relevant custom table entitlement from the subscription record.
- Tables can be allocated to any subscription with a custom table entitlement, up to the entitlement limit.
- Monitor custom table allocation over time.
- Reports provide the current usage of each custom table entitlement, as well as usage over time.
Allocate specific custom tables to subscriptions that include a custom table entitlement. You perform this allocation process to maintain and track custom table compliance over time. Tracking custom table compliance ensures that your organization does not run out of custom table entitlements and enables you to plan your future subscription purchases.
