Getting a Deeper Look at Your IBM® Z and IBM i Data in ServiceNow

A well-maintained ServiceNow Configuration Management Database (CMDB) is critical for effective IT service delivery, reducing costs and increasing overall efficiency.

ServiceNow® Discovery can populate the CMDB automatically by discovering physical and virtual devices such as laptops, desktops, servers (physical and virtual), switches, routers, storage, and applications, as well as the dependent relationships between them. However, it can be hard to integrate specific resources from IBM Z and IBM i systems to get a complete, single source of truth on your entire IT infrastructure.

We have been working to integrate these platform-specific items more deeply into the CMDB to improve IT visibility, have a more complete view of your infrastructure, and reduce the risk of ineffective troubleshooting because you don’t have the view of everything you need.

Join us to learn:

Why less frequent changes on these IBM systems doesn’t mean discovery isn’t critical
What specific resources we are adding to the CMDB
How these new resources will impact the hierarchy within the CMDB

1. Getting a Deeper Look at Your IBM Z ® and IBM i Data in ServiceNow Bill Hammond | Director, Product Marketing Ian Hartley | Senior Director, Product Management

2. Today’s Topics 2 An accurate CMDB is critical Is your CMDB missing something? What is Ironstream? Updates and improvements

3. An accurate CMDB is critical

4. 4 Terminology What is the ServiceNow CMDB Configuration Management Database, is a cloud-based system that serves as a single system of record for infrastructure and service data within an organization. Helps organizations understand their IT environment, particularly in areas such as business service impact analysis, asset management, compliance, and configuration management. Maintains current and accurate data to support business-critical processes and allows for visualization of complex data to drive better decisions What is Discovery ServiceNow Discovery automatically populates the CMDB by discovering physical and virtual devices, including laptops, desktops, servers, switches, routers, storage, and applications, along with their dependent relationships. This helps create a complete, up-to-date single source of truth for the entire IT infrastructure

5. A ServiceNow CMDB is important for several reasons Visibility and Control Streamlined Service Management It provides a single source of truth Clear picture of your IT infrastructure Better asset tracking, informed decision-making, and optimized resource allocation. A ServiceNow CMDB integrates with other ServiceNow modules designed for ITSM processes Enables functions like incident and change management to be more efficient and effective Reduced Risk Better Asset Management Proactively identify and mitigate risks associated with changes or potential issues Ensures smoother operations and minimize downtime. Helps track IT assets through their lifecycle, including details like ownership, maintenance history, and warranties Allows for optimized asset utilization, improved cost control, and better planning for upgrades/replacements. 5

6. Risks without an up-to-date CMDB 6 Security vulnerabilities An outdated CMDB creates blind spots in your IT infrastructure. You might miss critical assets, leaving them unpatched and exposed to security breaches. Hackers could exploit these unknown devices to gain access to your network Inefficient incident resolution If the CMDB doesn't reflect the current state of your IT environment, troubleshooting incidents becomes a guessing game. It takes longer to identify the root cause of problems and restore normal operations Poor decision-making Without a reliable source of information about your IT assets and their configurations, making accurate decisions is difficult Problems with resource allocation, capacity planning, or future investment decisions are less reliable

7. Risks without an up-to-date CMDB 7 Compliance issues Outdated CMDB data can make it challenging to meet industry regulations or internal IT governance standards. More regulations are encompassing an organization's ability to recover from an IT problem Loss of trust If IT teams can't rely on the CMDB for accurate information, they'll resort to manual workarounds, increasing the risk of human error and further data inconsistencies This loss of trust can be with internal stakeholders, executive management, customers and business partners Missed opportunities An up-to-date CMDB allows you to identify areas for optimization and improvement within your IT infrastructure. Without this data, you might miss opportunities to streamline processes, reduce costs, or improve service delivery Inaccurate data can lead to purchasing unnecessary hardware or software licenses, or wasting resources on maintaining assets that are no longer in use

8. Keeping CMDB Updated without Discovery 8 Manual Entry Time-consuming and error-prone for a large number of CIs (Configuration Items). This method requires detailed information about each CI, including its type, attributes, and relationships with other CIs Import Can be done from CSV or Microsoft Excel Efficient for bulk updates. ServiceNow provides tools to import this data into the CMDB, allowing for quicker updates of multiple CIs. Manual Integration You can integrate ServiceNow with other IT management tools that collect configuration data. Includes CMDBs from other vendors or homegrown scripts that gather information from your IT infrastructure. Self-service portal Create a user interface within ServiceNow where authorized users can submit information about new CIs or request updates to existing ones This can be a good option for a limited number of devices and CIs APIs For advanced users and developers, ServiceNow offers APIs that allow programmatic access to the CMDB. Requires developing and updating scripts or tools to update CIs directly,

9. 9 Requires strong, clear procedures for data validation and approval All updates will need an audit trail Will need a good understanding of the number of CIs needing updates on an ongoing basis Assigning of the resources and potentially developing some level of in-house automation BOTTOM LINE : These alternative methods can keep your CMDB populated but they can be resource and process intensive Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should…

10. Is your CMDB missing something?

11. Why ServiceNow CMDB and Discovery? Configuration Management Database (CMDB) Creates a Single Source of Truth Centralizes accurate , reliable information about digital services and infrastructure Enables visibility, context and topology for your IT. Prevents business service outages – especially those caused by unplanned changes and misconfiguration. Allows diagnosis and correction of costly service problems faster Instant access to the necessary information (relationships, service topologies, change histories and software versions) Reduces overall service maintenance and delivery costs Maximizes ROI: applications, IT and people Accelerates time-to-market for new services Inaccurate CMDB is risky Manual population takes too much effort and time No accurate picture or status of your IT (audits, problem diagnosis, etc.) Discovery must be complete, repeatable, automated 11

12. IBM i and mainframe blind spots can be costly  *Gartner estimates IT outages cost (on average) **Uptime Institute How quickly would you be able to identify and resolve an incident in ServiceNow if it happened in your IBM i or mainframe environments? How effective are you in terms of proactively forecasting and predicting incidents?  Consider the cost  Gartner estimates that IT outages cost $5600 per minute*    More than 60% of outages will have a cost greater than $100,000**    15% of outages will cost > $1 million**   IBM i and mainframes continue to be strategically important to companies like yours.  However, because these systems can be segregated and managed separately, they pose a greater challenge to your ability to quickly identify and resolve incidents. Ask yourself:  © 2023 ServiceNow, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Confidential. 12

13. ServiceNow Discovery 13 ServiceNow itself doesn't natively handle discovery of Configuration Items (CIs) from mainframes like IBM Z or IBM i These systems are still crucial for many organizations, especially in sectors like finance, healthcare and government Having an accurate record of these mainframe CIs in the CMDB is essential for effective IT operations management (ITOM) Faster incident resolution by understanding how a mainframe system impacts other parts of the IT infrastructure [5]. Improved service availability by proactively identifying potential issues with mainframe components [5]. More informed decision making by having a complete picture of the IT landscape

14. ServiceNow lacks native Mainframe and IBM i integration 14 Distributed and Cloud environments Mainframe and IBM i Systems Online services Storage Online Shopping Cart Servers Desktops Web clickstreams Security Networks Telecoms Call detail records GPS location Messaging Databases RFID Web services Packaged applications APP Custom apps Energy meters Smartphones and devices On- premises Private cloud Public cloud IBM Z Platform IBM i

15. Ironstream for Discovery Deliver a single view of entire infrastructure to enable smarter IT decisions Rapidly configure and launch secure discovery of the mainframe and IBM i resources and their relationships Automated relationship mapping that includes mainframe and IBM i Record changes made to mainframe and IBM i systems in the CMDB without manual intervention 15

16. What is Ironstream? Think… Data integration layer for IT infrastructure, log and machine data (often called “the IT glue”) 16

17. Others… Google Security Operations Send data to Google SecOps to use its modern threat detection, investigation and hunting facilities. Source. Target. Action! Easy as… Select a source Add one or more targets Complete connection info Start pipeline Targets are licensed Others… 17

18. Ironstream: For Today and Tomorrow 18 Connect a Source and Target For example: IBM i to QRadar Data Pipelines Simple set-up and maintenance Easily implementation for data delivery Optional mid-stream “processes” for data reduction etc. Easy switch to another supported target 2024

19. Windows or Linux (or container) High-level Architecture Collectors, etc. MID Server 19 Sources Target

20. IBM Z or IBM i LPAR Windows or Linux (or container) High-level Architecture Ironstream Agent Ironstream Hub Configuration determines Agent collection 20 Sources Processes Targets IBM Z IBM i Sources Targets MIMIX HealthLink

21. On the ServiceNow Store 21 Search for “Ironstream” Today, 6 apps 3 x IBM Z 3 x IBM i Discovery Service Mapping Event Management …and more to come

22. Common scenarios What do you have? Impossible to know without a fully populated CMDB Make audits a breeze with full visibility What changed? How do you know without an accurate CMDB Assess change impact What is critical to your business? What will be affected? Easily see relationships and dependencies 22

23. Updates and improvements 23

24. Left at the Front Door? Out of the box, ServiceNow provides limited IBM platform support Takes you to the front door…but cannot tell you anything about what is inside: Layout How many rooms Dimensions Contents 24 IBM logo copyright and a registered trademark of IBM Corp. in the United States and other countries.

25. Adding IBM Platforms to ServiceNow Precisely and ServiceNow working on CMDB alignment Available from the ServiceNow Store Attributes added for Mainframes and LPARs: cmdb_ci_ibm_mainframe cmdb_ci_mainframe_lpar cmdb_ci_ibm_frame cmdb_ci_lpar_instance 25

26. More to Come CMBD Phase 2 Further IBM platform additions CICS, Db2, MQ, IMS, etc. Plus… Improved Software Discovery (with or without Software Asset Management) Further Discovery enhancements Exciting updates for Service Mapping …and more! 26

27. Q & A