Jira ServiceNow integration

Easily integrate Jira and Jira Service Management with ServiceNow for enhanced workflow efficiency. You can ensure data consistency by bridging the gap between IT teams (using ServiceNow) and software development teams (relying on Jira). The integration provides a unified workspace where users can manage Jira incidents, problems, changes, and service requests within ServiceNow, and vice versa. Set up the Jira-ServiceNow integration using the application available in the Atlassian Marketplace (for cloud customers), the Data Center apps, or the On-Premise version of Getint. This bi-directional integration allows you to send ServiceNow incident events to Jira Service Management and vice versa. Enjoy cross-functional collaboration, streamlined processes, and a cohesive view of your tickets across platforms.

Requirements to build your integration:

• A Jira instance with a dedicated user, and an API token for that user.

• A ServiceNow instance with a dedicated user. For testing purposes, you can create a developer instance here:ServiceNow Developers

For a detailed guide on how to create a ServiceNow user, please visit the following link: How to create a ServiceNow user.

• For Jira Cloud customers, download the corresponding app from the Atlassian Marketplace, and launch it. Please note that we support both Jira Software and Jira Service Management.

• For Jira Data Center, please click your profile icon at the top right corner of your Jira instance, click Atlassian Marketplace, and use the option Find new apps to search for our Jira ServiceNow integration app by Getint (similar to the apps found below).

Setting up your ServiceNow integration

1. Accessing Getint:

• Launch the app, and click Create integration or Migration.

2. Token generation for Jira Cloud:

• For Jira Cloud, generate a Jira token. This token will act as your password.

• Go to Atlassian Account Settings.

• Navigate to Security and generate an API token, then use this token as the password for Jira integration.

3. Establishing a Connection with Jira:

• Ensure you’re logged in as a user with admin rights, click on Connect App, and select Jira. Choose Create New to set up a fresh connection with your Jira instance and input the URL of your Jira instance.

• After establishing the connection, select the Jira project you want to connect to from the dropdown menu.

4. Establishing a Connection with ServiceNow:

• Connect to ServiceNow. If no connection is established yet, create a new one.

You can find your credentials within the settings in your ServiceNow instance.

It is crucial to grant specific access permissions to your ServiceNow user; otherwise, the connection will fail. You can find the full list of required permissions here.

5. Type mapping:

• Quick Build (Beta): You can use the Quick Build feature to automatically map fields and types between your apps. It’s a convenient way to make the process easier.

• Manual Mapping: If you prefer more control, you can manually map the types yourself. This allows you to customize the mapping based on your specific requirements.

• Mapping ServiceNow Projects: Projects in ServiceNow are part of the Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM) module. This module must be installed so that project mappings appear as an option in the dropdown list when pairing your type mappings. You can find more information about this module here.

Project mapping in Jira ServiceNow integration

• After enabling this module, you can start syncing ServiceNow projects from your Project workspace.

• These will sync just like any other ServiceNow table, such as incidents, change requests, and more. Consequently, any new project from ServiceNow can be seamlessly transferred as a new task in Jira.

6. Field mapping:

• Review or manually map which fields to integrate and sync within the mapped types, including title, description, assignees, custom fields, and more.

Example of automatic field mappings with Quick Build where you can also add fields manually while using Quick Build.

7. Assignees:

• Map Assignees according to your user pairing requirements.

Assignees in Jira (left). Assigned to in ServiceNow (right)

8. How to Manage Comments & Attachments:

• Check the Comments & Attachments tab. These are activated by default, but you’re free to modify them depending on your organization’s needs.

• For ServiceNow integrations, there’s an option to further customize how comments are created under Customize comments creation. It can be incredibly helpful to make specific comments that either go Public or Private or be skipped completely.

• You can also choose the sync direction for attachments: both ways, only to App A (left), or only to App B (right). This feature adds an extra layer of customization to meet your organizational needs.

You can disable comments and attachments entirely if they are not needed or are restricted in your organization.

9. How to Map Statuses:

• Map Statuses. Ensure you’re using the correct fields that represent the statuses for each app.

10. Finishing your Integration

• Name your project and click Create at the top right corner to finish the integration setup.

11. UI Filtering

• After finalizing your integration, you may also add filters to each app. Select the filter icon adjacent to the app icon within your integration. This action will affect the corresponding side of the integration.

• Define Filter Rules:

  • ALL items filters: Rules will be verified for every item before synchronization.

  • NEW items filters: Rules will be verified only for newly created items that have not yet been synced.

  • SYNCED items filters: Rules will be verified for items that were already synced in the past.

For more information about this feature, please visit Items Filtering.

• You can also use custom queries to synchronize tickets only when the Assignment Group is set to a specific value. For example:

A custom query to sync ServiceNow tickets by the Assignment Group ID

12. Case Scenario for Items Filtering:

• For example, If you want to integrate Jira Project A with ServiceNow Incidents that belong to Assignment Group A, use the filter items feature. In Getint, you can configure the connection by mapping the types and fields between ServiceNow and Jira, ensuring that fields like Assignee and Assignment Group are correctly synchronized.

• On a separate integration, you can set up (or duplicate the existing integration) to integrate Jira Project B with ServiceNow Incidents that belong to Assignment Group B. Here, different filtering will be needed. You can define filter rules in Getint to control which items are synchronized, specifying criteria such as status or priority to ensure only relevant items are synced. This helps manage data efficiently and avoids unnecessary clutter. Remember to save the integration once the filters are applied to ensure they are active.

Filtering items by Assignment Group

13. Test your integration:

• Ensure you aren’t experiencing any errors and that your integration is running smoothly. Create test scenarios to validate the functionality of your setup.

ServiceNow ticket created for testing purposes

A new Jira ticket was created on the other end as a result of the integration

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can easily integrate Jira with ServiceNow, ensuring efficient synchronization of tasks, issues, and workflows across both platforms. This configuration promotes collaboration and streamlines project management processes. Please contact our Support Team or Schedule a Demo, if you require further assistance.

Start your integration journey. Schedule a free consultation with our Getint Integration Expert today!