| name | email-notifications |
| description | Create ServiceNow sysevent_email_action notifications — templates with substitution variables, mail scripts for dynamic content/recipients/attachments, custom events, weights, and digest configuration. |
| license | Apache-2.0 |
| compatibility | Designed for Snow-Code and ServiceNow development |
| metadata | {"author":"serac","version":"1.0.0","category":"servicenow"} |
| tools | ["snow_email_notification_manage","snow_create_email_config","snow_query_table","snow_artifact_manage","snow_execute_script"] |
Email Notifications for ServiceNow
ServiceNow notifications are triggered by events and send emails, SMS, or other alerts to users.
Notification Components
| Component | Table | Purpose |
|---|
| Notification | sysevent_email_action | Main notification record |
| Email Template | sysevent_email_template | Reusable email layouts |
| Event | sysevent | Triggers notifications |
| Event Registration | sysevent_register | Defines custom events |
| Email Script | sys_script_email | Dynamic content scripts |
Creating Notifications
Basic Notification Structure
Notification: Incident Assigned
├── When to send
│ ├── Table: incident
│ ├── When: Record inserted or updated
│ └── Conditions: assigned_to changes AND is not empty
├── Who will receive
│ ├── Users: ${assigned_to}
│ └── Groups: (optional)
├── What it will contain
│ ├── Subject: Incident ${number} assigned to you
│ ├── Message: HTML body with ${field} references
│ └── Email Template: (optional)
└── Advanced
├── Weight: 0 (priority)
└── Send to event creator: false
Notification Conditions
assigned_to CHANGES
priority = 1
state = 6
(function() {
var caller = current.caller_id.getRefRecord();
return caller.vip == true;
})()
(function() {
if (current.sys_mod_count > 100) return false;
var ci = current.cmdb_ci.getRefRecord();
return ci.used_for == 'Production';
})()
Email Templates
Template Variables
${number}
${caller_id.name}
${opened_at.display_value}
${URI}
${URI_REF}
${mail_script:script_name}
${mailto:assigned_to}
Template Example
<html>
<body style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
<h2>Incident ${number} - ${short_description}</h2>
<table border="0" cellpadding="5">
<tr>
<td><strong>Priority:</strong></td>
<td>${priority}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>Caller:</strong></td>
<td>${caller_id.name}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>Assigned to:</strong></td>
<td>${assigned_to.name}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>Description:</strong></td>
<td>${description}</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>
<a href="${URI}">View Incident</a>
</p>
${mail_script:incident_history}
</body>
</html>
Email Scripts
Basic Email Script
;(function runMailScript(current, template, email, email_action, event) {
var html = "<h3>Recent Activity</h3><ul>"
var history = new GlideRecord("sys_journal_field")
history.addQuery("element_id", current.sys_id)
history.addQuery("name", "incident")
history.orderByDesc("sys_created_on")
history.setLimit(5)
history.query()
while (history.next()) {
html += "<li><strong>" + history.sys_created_on.getDisplayValue() + "</strong>: "
html += history.value.substring(0, 200) + "</li>"
}
html += "</ul>"
template.print(html)
})(current, template, email, email_action, event)
Email Script with Attachments
;(function runMailScript(current, template, email, email_action, event) {
var gr = new GlideRecord("sys_attachment")
gr.addQuery("table_sys_id", current.sys_id)
gr.addQuery("table_name", "incident")
gr.query()
while (gr.next()) {
email.addAttachment(gr)
}
})(current, template, email, email_action, event)
Dynamic Recipients
;(function runMailScript(current, template, email, email_action, event) {
var group = current.assignment_group
if (!group.nil()) {
var members = new GlideRecord("sys_user_grmember")
members.addQuery("group", group)
members.query()
while (members.next()) {
var user = members.user.getRefRecord()
if (user.email) {
email.addAddress("cc", user.email, user.name)
}
}
}
})(current, template, email, email_action, event)
Custom Events
Registering a Custom Event
;(function executeRule(current, previous) {
if (current.escalation > previous.escalation) {
gs.eventQueue(
"x_myapp.incident.escalated",
current,
current.escalation.getDisplayValue(),
current.assigned_to.name,
)
}
})(current, previous)
Notification on Custom Event
Notification: Escalation Alert
├── When to send
│ ├── Send when: Event is fired
│ └── Event name: x_myapp.incident.escalated
├── Who will receive
│ └── Users/Groups: Escalation Managers
└── What it will contain
├── Subject: Escalation: ${number} - ${event.parm1}
└── Message: Incident escalated. Assigned to: ${event.parm2}
Recipient Types
Who Will Receive
| Type | Description | Example |
|---|
| Users | Specific users | ${assigned_to}, ${caller_id} |
| Groups | User groups | Service Desk, CAB |
| Group Managers | Group manager field | ${assignment_group.manager} |
| Event Parm 1/2 | From event parameters | ${event.parm1} |
| Additional Recipients | Email addresses | External emails |
Recipient Script
;(function getRecipients(current, event) {
var recipients = []
if (!current.caller_id.nil()) {
recipients.push(current.caller_id.email.toString())
}
var caller = current.caller_id.getRefRecord()
if (caller.vip == true && !caller.manager.nil()) {
recipients.push(caller.manager.email.toString())
}
return recipients.join(",")
})(current, event)
Notification Weight
Priority system for multiple matching notifications:
| Weight | Use Case |
|---|
| 0 | Default priority |
| 1-99 | Higher priority (lower weight = higher priority) |
| -1 to -99 | Lower priority |
| 100+ | Rarely used |
Digest Notifications
Configuring Digest
Notification: Daily Incident Summary
├── Digest: Checked
├── Digest Interval: Daily
├── Digest Time: 08:00
└── Content: Summary of all incidents
Digest Email Script
;(function runMailScript(current, template, email, email_action, event) {
var count = 0
var html = '<table border="1" cellpadding="5">'
html += "<tr><th>Number</th><th>Description</th><th>Priority</th></tr>"
while (current.next()) {
count++
html += "<tr>"
html += "<td>" + current.number + "</td>"
html += "<td>" + current.short_description + "</td>"
html += "<td>" + current.priority.getDisplayValue() + "</td>"
html += "</tr>"
}
html += "</table>"
html += "<p>Total: " + count + " incidents</p>"
template.print(html)
})(current, template, email, email_action, event)
Outbound Email Configuration
Email Properties
glide.email.smtp.active
glide.email.smtp.host
glide.email.smtp.port
glide.email.default.sender
glide.email.test.user
Testing Notifications
var gr = new GlideRecord("incident")
gr.get("sys_id_here")
gs.eventQueue("incident.assigned", gr, gr.assigned_to.getDisplayValue(), gs.getUserDisplayName())
gs.info("Event queued for incident: " + gr.number)
Best Practices
- Use Templates - Reuse layouts across notifications
- Test Thoroughly - Use test user property during development
- Consider Digests - For high-volume notifications
- Weight Carefully - Prevent duplicate emails
- ES5 Only - All scripts must be ES5 compliant
- Limit Recipients - Don't spam large groups
- Include Context - Provide enough info to act without login
- Mobile-Friendly - Keep HTML simple for mobile clients
Common Issues
| Issue | Cause | Solution |
|---|
| Email not sent | Event not fired | Check business rule fires event |
| Wrong recipients | Script error | Debug recipient script |
| Missing content | Template variable wrong | Check field names |
| Duplicate emails | Multiple notifications | Check weights and conditions |
| Delayed emails | Email job schedule | Check sysauto_script |
