Add CIs to alerts

Resolve incidents faster by adding Configuration Item (CI) metadata to Cloud Observability alerts. This page is intended for ServiceNow IT Operations Management (ITOM) Event Management users.

Overview

In ServiceNow, CIs make up the Configuration Management Database (CMDB). CIs represent resources, such as computers, database instances, or services. Using the Service Graph Connector (SGC) for OpenTelemetry, you can import cloud, application, and Kubernetes CIs.

How it works

Cloud Observability recognizes some CIs via attributes. For example, service.name, cloud.provider, and k8s.cluster.name. The recognized attributes are determined by and match OpenTelemetry standards.

To map alert events to specific CIs, include the recognized attributes in alert queries. When those alerts trigger, Cloud Observability sends the recognized attributes to ITOM Event Management. The relevant CIs then turn red in ServiceNow’s Dependency Views map, helping you identify the incident’s scope, severity, and your next steps.

Before you begin

Set up the following before completing the steps below:

Include CI metadata in alerts

Follow these steps to create an alert with attributes mapping to CIs. For general guidance on creating Cloud Observability alerts, visit Create alerts.

  1. Review the attribute keys listed in the Resource Attributes column.

  2. Configure an alert:

    1. In Cloud Observability, click Alerts > Create an alert.

    2. Add the attributes you identified above to the query’s filter section, group by section, or both.

      For example, this alert query includes three attributes that map to CIs (cloud.region, service.name, and k8s.pod.name):

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       metric container.cpu.utilization
 | filter cloud.region == "us-central1" && service.name == "crouton"
 | latest 2m
 | group_by ["k8s.pod.name"], sum
    3. For queries with group by attributes: Under Alert configuration, click a single notification and select separate notifications.
    4. Finish configuring your alert and click Save to activate it.

  3. When your alert triggers, view the following:

    • Recognized attributes in ITOM Event Management’s Additional Information section. The attributes use the resource_ prefix, for example, "resource_cloud.region": "us-central1".
    • Red CIs in ServiceNow’s Dependency Views map.

You’re all set. Next, learn more about alerts and using Cloud Observability with the CMDB.

See also

Create alerts

Manage notification destinations

Send data to the ServiceNow CMDB

Updated Nov 6, 2023