Build a Laptop Request Workflow

Build a service request workflow in ServiceNow with approvals and automation.

Introduction

30 Second Summary

Every company has processes that run on email chains and spreadsheets. Someone needs a new laptop, so they email IT, who emails their manager, who eventually replies "approved" three days later.

In this project, you will build a complete laptop request workflow in ServiceNow that collects the right information from employees, dynamically adjusts the form based on their selections, and automatically routes the request for manager approval.

What You'll Build

A "Request New Laptop" catalog item in ServiceNow's Service Catalog with dynamic form behavior and an automated approval workflow built in Flow Designer.

By the end of this project, you'll have:

A free Personal Developer Instance (sandbox) configured and ready for building.
A working catalog item with multiple form fields that dynamically show and hide based on user selection.
An automated approval workflow that routes requests to a manager and creates fulfillment tasks for IT once approved.
Secret Mission: Add a rejection path that automatically closes the request and notifies the employee with the reason for denial.

Are there any prerequisites?

None. This project includes setup for everything you need. All you need is a web browser (Chrome or Edge) and a free ServiceNow Developer Program account, which you will create in Step 1.

Before We Start

Before We Start...

Set Up Your ServiceNow Developer Account and Instance

Before you can build anything in ServiceNow, you need a sandbox environment to work in. ServiceNow provides free Personal Developer Instances for exactly this purpose.

In this step, you will create a free developer account and spin up your own Personal Developer Instance (PDI). This gives you full admin access to a real ServiceNow environment where you can build and test without affecting any production system.

In this step, get ready to:

Create a free ServiceNow Developer Program account.
Request and provision a Personal Developer Instance.
Verify admin access to the Service Catalog.

Create your free ServiceNow Developer Program account

The ServiceNow Developer Program is free to join and gives you access to your own instance of the platform. You will use a personal email address to avoid conflicts with company Single Sign-On systems.

Open your web browser and navigate to developer.servicenow.com.
Click Sign Up on the page.
Fill in the registration form using a personal email address.
Complete the email verification step by clicking the link sent to your inbox.
Sign in to the Developer Site with your new credentials.

Use a personal email

Work or corporate emails can trigger Single Sign-On (SSO) flows that block registration. A personal Gmail, Outlook, or similar address avoids this issue.

Not receiving the verification email?

Check your spam or junk folder. If using a work email, your company's mail filters may have blocked it. Try again with a personal email address.

Ask for help: Why am I not receiving my ServiceNow Developer Program verification email?

Request a Personal Developer Instance

Your developer account gives you access to the Developer Site, but you still need your own ServiceNow instance to build in. A PDI is a fully functional ServiceNow environment provisioned just for you.

Once signed in to the Developer Site, click the Request Instance button in the header.
In the Request an Instance dialog, select the latest available release (Australia).
Click Request.

Provisioning takes approximately 5-10 minutes. When your instance is ready, the page updates with your instance details.

Click Manage my Instance to view your instance URL and credentials.
Note your instance URL. It follows the format https://devNNNNN.service-now.com where NNNNN is your unique instance number.
Click Start Building to open your PDI in a new browser tab.

You are now logged in as admin. This is your sandbox for the rest of the project.

What is a Personal Developer Instance?

A PDI is a full copy of the ServiceNow platform running in the cloud, provisioned just for you. It comes pre-loaded with demo data and gives you admin-level access to configure anything.

Your PDI is completely free. The only catch is that it gets reclaimed after 10 days of inactivity on the Developer Site. Sign in to developer.servicenow.com at least once every 10 days to keep it active.

Instance taking longer than 10 minutes?

Provisioning can occasionally take longer during high-traffic periods. Refresh the page after a few minutes to check the status. If it still shows as provisioning after 15 minutes, try releasing the instance and requesting a new one.

Ask for help: My ServiceNow PDI is stuck provisioning. What should I do?

Explore the interface and verify access

Now that your PDI is running, you need to confirm that you have admin access to the Service Catalog modules. The filter navigator (also called the All menu) is how you find anything in ServiceNow.

In your PDI, locate the All menu in the left sidebar. This is the filter navigator.
Type Service Catalog in the filter navigator search field.
Confirm that Service Catalog modules appear in the filtered results.

What is the filter navigator?

The filter navigator is the search bar at the top of the left sidebar menu. It lets you quickly find any module, table, or configuration page in ServiceNow by typing keywords. You will use it constantly throughout this project.

Now verify that you can access the catalog management area where you will build your laptop request item.

In the filter navigator, type Maintain Items.
Click Service Catalog > Catalog Definition > Maintain Items from the results.
Confirm you can see the list of existing catalog items on the page that opens.

You should see a list view populated with pre-loaded catalog items from the demo data. Your instance URL (https://devNNNNN.service-now.com) is visible in your browser address bar.

Don't see Service Catalog modules?

Make sure you are logged in as admin. Check the user avatar in the top-right corner of your PDI. If it shows a different user, sign out and sign back in using the admin credentials shown on the Manage my Instance page of the Developer Site.

Ask for help: I cannot see Service Catalog modules in my ServiceNow filter navigator. How do I fix this?

Your ServiceNow sandbox is ready. Next up, you will create the "Request New Laptop" catalog item and add form fields to collect information from employees.

Create the "Request New Laptop" Catalog Item

Your developer instance is ready. Now it is time to build something employees will actually use.

Every IT department handles laptop requests. The problem is that most teams use email, spreadsheets, or chat messages to track them. Things get lost, forgotten, or stuck in someone's inbox. A Service Catalog item solves this by giving employees a structured form and giving IT a trackable record.

In this step, get ready to:

Create a new catalog item called "Request New Laptop" in the Service Catalog.
Add four variables (form fields) that collect laptop request information.
Test the catalog item to confirm all fields display correctly.

Create a new catalog item

A catalog item is the form that employees see and fill out when they want to request something. You will create one for laptop requests.

Return to the Maintain Items page in your PDI (All > Service Catalog > Catalog Definition > Maintain Items).
Click New at the top of the list to create a new catalog item.
In the Name field, type Request New Laptop.
In the Catalogs field, select Service Catalog.
In the Category field, select Hardware.
In the Short description field, type Request a new laptop for work use.
Click Submit to save your new catalog item.

What is a catalog item?

A catalog item is a single requestable service or product in the Service Catalog. Think of it like an item in an online store. Employees browse the catalog and "order" what they need.

Each catalog item has its own form, approval rules, and fulfillment workflow. You are building the form now and will add the approval workflow in a later step.

After clicking Submit, your catalog item is created. You should land on a list page showing your new item.

Don't see the New button?

Make sure you are on the Maintain Items list view, not the Service Catalog storefront. Use the filter navigator on the left and type Maintain Items to find the correct module.

Help me find the New button on the Maintain Items page

Add variables to collect request information

Variables are the form fields that appear when someone opens your catalog item. You will create four variables to collect the information IT needs to fulfill a laptop request.

Open your newly created Request New Laptop item from the Maintain Items list.
Scroll down to the related lists at the bottom of the form.
Find the Variables tab and click New.

You will now create your first variable. Fill in the form with the following values:

Set Type to Select Box.
In the Question field, type Laptop Type.
In the Name field, type laptop_type.
Set Order to 100.
Click Submit.

Now you need to add the dropdown choices for this Select Box variable.

Open the laptop_type variable you just created (click on it in the Variables related list).
Scroll down and find the Question Choices related list.
Click New to add your first choice.
In the Text field, type Standard Laptop.
In the Value field, type standard_laptop.
Click Submit.
Click New again to add the second choice.
In the Text field, type Developer Laptop.
In the Value field, type developer_laptop.
Click Submit.
Click New again to add the third choice.
In the Text field, type Executive Laptop.
In the Value field, type executive_laptop.
Click Submit.

What are Text and Value?

The Text field is what the user sees in the dropdown (e.g., "Developer Laptop"). The Value field is what gets stored in the database (e.g., "developer_laptop").

Using a lowercase, underscore-separated value makes it easier to reference in conditions and automation later.

Now return to the catalog item and add the remaining three variables. For each one, navigate back to your Request New Laptop item, find the Variables tab, and click New.

Create Variable 2 with these settings:

Set Type to Multi Line Text.
In the Question field, type Business Justification.
In the Name field, type business_justification.
Set Order to 200.
Check the Mandatory checkbox to make this field required.
Click Submit.

Create Variable 3 with these settings:

Set Type to Select Box.
In the Question field, type Urgency.
In the Name field, type urgency.
Set Order to 300.
Click Submit.

Open the urgency variable and add three choices in the Question Choices related list:

Click New.
In the Text field, type Low.
In the Value field, type low.
Click Submit.
Click New again.
In the Text field, type Medium.
In the Value field, type medium.
Click Submit.
Click New again.
In the Text field, type High.
In the Value field, type high.
Click Submit.

Create Variable 4 with these settings:

Set Type to Multi Line Text.
In the Question field, type Special Software Requirements.
In the Name field, type special_software.
Set Order to 400.
Leave the Mandatory checkbox unchecked (this field is optional).
Click Submit.

Why is Order important?

The Order value controls the top-to-bottom position of each field on the form. Lower numbers appear higher on the page. Using increments of 100 (100, 200, 300, 400) leaves room to insert new fields between existing ones later without renumbering everything.

Can't find your catalog item after submitting a variable?

After clicking Submit on a variable, ServiceNow takes you away from the catalog item. Navigate back using All > Service Catalog > Catalog Definition > Maintain Items and click on Request New Laptop to return to it.

Help me navigate back to my catalog item

Test the catalog item in Service Portal

Now that all four variables are in place, you can preview the catalog item the way an employee would see it.

In the filter navigator on the left, type Service Catalog.
Navigate to All > Self-Service > Service Catalog.
Find and click your Request New Laptop item.
Verify that all four fields appear on the form: Laptop Type (dropdown), Business Justification (text area), Urgency (dropdown), and Special Software Requirements (text area).

You should see all four fields displayed in order. The two Select Box variables (Laptop Type and Urgency) appear as dropdowns with the choices you defined.

Missing fields on the form?

If fewer than four fields appear, return to Maintain Items, open your catalog item, and check the Variables related list. Make sure each variable has Active checked (this is enabled by default, but worth confirming).

Help me troubleshoot missing catalog item variables

Your catalog item is live and collecting the right information. Next up, you will make the form smarter by showing and hiding fields based on the user's selections.

Add Dynamic Form Behavior with a UI Policy

Your catalog item now collects all the information an employee needs to submit. But there is a problem. The "Special Software Requirements" field shows up for everyone, even though it only applies to Developer Laptop requests.

In this step, you will use Catalog UI Policies to control field visibility based on user selections. This is how ServiceNow admins build dynamic forms without writing any code.

In this step, get ready to:

Create a UI Policy that hides the special software field by default.
Create a second UI Policy that shows the field when Developer Laptop is selected.
Test the dynamic form behavior in the Service Catalog.

Create a Catalog UI Policy to hide "Special Software Requirements" by default

A Catalog UI Policy lets you change how form fields behave (visible, mandatory, read-only) based on conditions. Your first policy will hide the special_software field whenever the form loads.

Navigate to All > Service Catalog > Catalog Definition > Maintain Items.
Open your Request New Laptop catalog item from the list.
Scroll down to the related lists at the bottom of the form.
Click the Catalog UI Policies tab.
Click New.

Fill in the following fields on the UI Policy form:
Set Short description to Hide special software by default.
Leave Catalog Conditions empty. No conditions means this policy applies to everyone.
Check the On load checkbox.
Check the Reverse if false checkbox.
Click Submit.

What does Reverse if false do?

When a UI Policy's conditions are true, the specified actions are applied. When the conditions become false, "Reverse if false" automatically undoes those actions.

This is what makes the form feel dynamic. Without it, once a field is hidden, it stays hidden even if the user changes their selection.

Now you need to add the action that tells ServiceNow what this policy actually does.

Open the UI Policy you just created from the Catalog UI Policies list.
In the Catalog UI Policy Actions related list, click New.
Set Variable name to special_software.
Set Mandatory to Leave alone.
Set Visible to False.
Set Read Only to Leave alone.
Click Submit.

What does this policy do?

This policy runs every time the form loads (On load is checked) with no conditions. It sets the Special Software Requirements field to invisible. Since there are no conditions to evaluate as true or false, the field simply stays hidden until another policy overrides it.

Create a second UI Policy to show the field when "Developer Laptop" is selected

Your first policy hides the field for everyone. Now you need a second policy that overrides the first one when a user picks "Developer Laptop" from the dropdown.

Return to the Request New Laptop catalog item.
Click the Catalog UI Policies tab in the related lists.
Click New.

Fill in the following fields:
Set Short description to Show special software for Developer Laptop.
Set Catalog Conditions to: laptop_type is Developer Laptop.
Check the Reverse if false checkbox.
Click Submit.

Setting the condition

In the Catalog Conditions section, use the condition builder to select the laptop_type variable from the dropdown. Set the operator to "is" and the value to "Developer Laptop".

Now add the action for this policy.

Open the UI Policy you just created.
In the Catalog UI Policy Actions related list, click New.
Set Variable name to special_software.
Set Mandatory to True.
Set Visible to True.
Set Read Only to Leave alone.
Click Submit.

How do these two policies work together?

Policy 1 always hides the field on load. Policy 2 watches the laptop_type variable. When the user selects "Developer Laptop", Policy 2's condition becomes true, so it makes the field visible and mandatory.

When the user switches away from "Developer Laptop", the condition becomes false. Because "Reverse if false" is checked, ServiceNow automatically undoes the action, hiding the field again.

Test the dynamic behavior

Both policies are in place. Time to verify the form behaves dynamically when a user interacts with it.

Navigate to All > Self-Service > Service Catalog.
Find and click Request New Laptop.
Verify that the "Special Software Requirements" field is hidden. You should see only Laptop Type, Business Justification, and Urgency.
Select Developer Laptop from the Laptop Type dropdown.
Verify that the "Special Software Requirements" field appears and shows a mandatory indicator.
Switch to Standard Laptop and verify the field hides again.

Field not hiding or showing?

Make sure both UI Policies have Reverse if false checked. Without this, the visibility change will not revert when conditions change.

Also confirm the condition on your second policy uses the variable name laptop_type with the value Developer Laptop. The value must match your Select Box choice exactly.

Help me figure out why my Catalog UI Policy isn't working.

Your form now responds to user input in real time. Next up, you will build an automated approval flow that triggers when this request is submitted.

Build an Automated Approval Flow

Your catalog item now collects structured data and responds dynamically to user choices. That handles the request side of the workflow. But once someone submits a laptop request, what happens next?

Right now, nothing. The request just sits there with no routing, no approval, and no task for IT. In this step, you will build an automated flow that sends every laptop request to a manager for approval and then creates a fulfillment task for the IT team.

In this step, get ready to:

Open Flow Designer and create a new flow.
Configure a Service Catalog trigger and an approval action.
Add a fulfillment task that gets created after approval.

Open Flow Designer and create a new flow

Flow Designer is ServiceNow's no-code automation builder. You will use it to define what happens after a catalog request is submitted.

In the filter navigator (left sidebar), type Flow Designer.
Click Process Automation > Flow Designer.
Flow Designer opens in a new browser tab.

Why a new tab?

Flow Designer runs as a separate application from the main ServiceNow interface. This is normal. You will switch between the two tabs throughout the rest of this project.

On the Flow Designer landing page, click New.
Select Flow from the dropdown.
In the Flow name field, enter Laptop Request Approval.
In the Description field, enter Routes laptop requests to manager for approval.
Click Submit.

The flow editor opens with an empty canvas. You will now add a trigger and actions to define the automation logic.

Don't see Flow Designer in the navigator?

Make sure you are logged in as admin. If the module still does not appear, try typing the full path Process Automation in the filter navigator.

Help me find Flow Designer in my instance.

Set the trigger and add an approval action

A trigger tells the flow when to run. A Service Catalog trigger fires automatically whenever someone submits a catalog item that is linked to this flow.

In the flow editor, click Add a trigger.
Select Service Catalog from the trigger list.

The trigger is now set. Next, you will add an approval action so every request goes to the submitter's manager before IT fulfills it.

Under Actions, click Add an Action.
Search for Ask for Approval and select it.

What is Ask for Approval?

Ask for Approval is a built-in Flow Designer action that pauses the flow until a designated approver responds. The flow only continues once the approver clicks Approve or Reject.

In the Ask for Approval configuration, find the Record field.
Set it to Trigger > Requested Item Record by dragging the data pill from the right panel or clicking the field and selecting the path.
Under Approvers, select the Anyone in this field option.
Set the approver to Requested Item Record > Requested for > Manager.
Click Done on the action.

What does this approver path mean?

The path Requested Item Record > Requested for > Manager tells ServiceNow to look up the person who submitted the request, then find that person's manager in the system. The approval is routed dynamically based on the org chart.

Can't find the Manager field in the approver path?

Make sure you first select Requested Item Record, then expand Requested for to reveal the Manager field. You may need to click the expand arrow next to each data pill.

Help me configure the approver in Flow Designer.

Add a fulfillment task for IT after approval

After the manager approves, IT needs to know there is a laptop to prepare. You will add a Create Task action that generates a Catalog Task for the fulfillment team.

After the Ask for Approval action, click Add an Action.
Search for Create Task and select it.
In the Table field, select Catalog Task [sc_task].
In the Short description field, enter Fulfill laptop request.
In the Assignment group field, search for and select Hardware. If Hardware is not available, select Service Desk.
Click Done on the action.

Your flow now has a trigger, an approval gate, and a fulfillment task in sequence. Time to activate it.

Click Activate in the top right corner of the flow editor.
Once activated, click Publish.

Your flow status should now show as Active. The canvas displays the Service Catalog trigger, then Ask for Approval, then Create Task in a top-to-bottom sequence.

Activate button is greyed out?

Check that both actions (Ask for Approval and Create Task) show green checkmarks. A greyed-out Activate button usually means an action is incomplete. Click into each action and confirm all required fields are filled.

Help me activate my flow in Flow Designer.

Your approval automation is live. In the next step, you will wire this flow to your catalog item and test the full lifecycle from request to fulfillment.

Connect the Flow and Test End-to-End

Your approval flow is built, activated, and ready to route requests. Now it's time to wire everything together and prove the full lifecycle works from start to finish.

In this step, you'll link your flow to the catalog item, submit a real test request, and walk through the entire approval process. Each piece of the chain (request, approval, fulfillment task) should trigger automatically.

In this step, get ready to:

Link the "Laptop Request Approval" flow to the catalog item.
Submit a test request through the Service Catalog.
Approve the request and verify a fulfillment task is created.

Link the flow to your catalog item

Your flow exists in Flow Designer, but your catalog item doesn't know about it yet. You need to point the catalog item at the flow so it triggers automatically when someone submits a request.

Switch back to your main ServiceNow browser tab (not the Flow Designer tab).
In the filter navigator on the left, type Maintain Items.
Click Service Catalog > Catalog Definition > Maintain Items.
Open your Request New Laptop item from the list.
Scroll down to the Process Engine section of the form.
In the Flow field, search for and select Laptop Request Approval.
Click Update to save the change.

What does linking the flow do?

The Flow field in the Process Engine section tells ServiceNow which automation to run when this catalog item is requested. Without this link, submitting the form would create a request but skip your approval logic entirely.

Don't see the Process Engine section?

Make sure you opened the catalog item record itself (by clicking on Request New Laptop in the list), not the Service Catalog storefront view. The Process Engine section only appears on the backend catalog item form.

If the Flow field is empty and your flow doesn't appear in the dropdown, confirm that the flow's status is Active in Flow Designer.

Still stuck? Help me find the Process Engine section on my catalog item form.

Submit a test request

Now you'll act as an employee requesting a laptop. This tests both your form variables and your dynamic UI policy at the same time.

In the filter navigator, type Service Catalog.
Click Self-Service > Service Catalog.
Find and click Request New Laptop.
In the Laptop Type dropdown, select Developer Laptop.
Confirm that the Special Software Requirements field appears. Your UI policy from Step 3 is working.
In Business Justification, type Need upgraded hardware for development work.
In Urgency, select Medium.
In Special Software Requirements, type Visual Studio, Docker.
Click Order Now to submit the request.

You should see a confirmation page showing your request was submitted successfully. A request number will appear at the top.

Form won't submit?

If you see a mandatory field error, make sure Business Justification is filled in. When Developer Laptop is selected, Special Software Requirements also becomes mandatory due to your UI policy.

Need more help? My catalog request form won't submit and shows a validation error.

Verify the approval was created and process the request

Submitting the request should have triggered your flow behind the scenes. The flow created an approval record and routed it to the requester's manager. Since you're logged in as admin, you can approve it yourself and watch the final piece (the fulfillment task) appear.

In the filter navigator, type My Requests.
Click Self-Service > My Requests to see your submitted request.
Click into the request record to open it.
Click the Request Item (RITM) number in the related list to open the Requested Item record.
Check the Approvers tab in the related lists at the bottom. You should see an approval record that was created by your flow.

What is an RITM?

When someone submits a catalog request, ServiceNow creates a Request (REQ) record as a container. Each individual item within that request gets its own Requested Item (RITM) record. The RITM is where the actual approval and fulfillment activity happens.

Now navigate to All > Approvals > My Approvals using the filter navigator.
Find the approval record for your laptop request.
Click Approve to approve the request.

Approving triggers the next action in your flow, which creates a Catalog Task for IT fulfillment.

Navigate back to your RITM record (use Self-Service > My Requests, open the request, and click the RITM number again).
Look in the related lists for a Catalog Tasks tab.
Verify that a new catalog task with the short description Fulfill laptop request was created.

The full lifecycle is now confirmed. A request was submitted, an approval was generated and routed, and after approval a fulfillment task appeared for IT to action.

No approval record showing up?

If the Approvers tab on your RITM is empty, your flow may not have triggered. Return to your catalog item in Maintain Items and confirm the Flow field in the Process Engine section shows Laptop Request Approval.

Also check that your flow is still Active in Flow Designer. If you accidentally deactivated it, reactivate and publish, then submit a new test request.

Need help? My flow doesn't seem to be triggering when I submit the catalog request.

No catalog task after approving?

If the approval went through but no task appeared, open your flow in Flow Designer and confirm the Create Task action is configured with Table set to sc_task (Catalog Task). If it points to a different table, the task may have been created somewhere else.

Still stuck? I approved the request but no catalog task was created. Help me debug my flow.

Secret mission

Add a Rejection Path

Your flow currently handles approvals, but what happens when a manager says no? Right now, the request just sits there with no resolution. In this secret mission, you'll add conditional branching so rejected requests are automatically closed and the employee is notified with a reason.

Clean Up Your Resources

This project runs entirely on a free ServiceNow Personal Developer Instance, so there are no ongoing costs. Decide whether to keep your resources running, pause them to come back later, or delete them entirely.

Resources you used:

ServiceNow Personal Developer Instance (contains your "Request New Laptop" catalog item, two Catalog UI Policies, and the "Laptop Request Approval" flow).

Keep everything running

No action needed. Choose this if you are still actively building or plan to expand your catalog item with more features.

Sign in to developer.servicenow.com at least once every 10 days to keep your PDI active.
Your instance is completely free and will not incur any charges.
All configurations (catalog item, UI policies, flow) remain intact and ready to use.

Pause - I'll come back to this later

Your PDI will automatically hibernate when idle. All data is preserved and the instance wakes up when you sign back in.

No manual steps required to pause.
Sign in to developer.servicenow.com at least once every 10 days to prevent the instance from being reclaimed.
When you return, your catalog item, UI policies, and flow will be exactly as you left them.

Delete - I don't want to use this again

Remove your Personal Developer Instance entirely and return it to the pool. This permanently deletes all configurations you built in this project.

Go to developer.servicenow.com and sign in.
Click Manage my Instance.
Click Actions, then select Release instance to return it to the pool.
This deletes your catalog item, UI policies, flow, and all other data in the instance.
You can request a new PDI at any time if you want to start fresh.

What about my Developer Program account?

Your ServiceNow Developer Program account is free and separate from the PDI. Keep it active so you can request new instances for future projects.

Nice Work!

You just built a complete end-to-end service request workflow in ServiceNow. From a blank sandbox to a fully automated laptop request process, you proved you can configure the platform to solve real business problems without writing a single line of code.

Here's what you accomplished:

Set up a free Personal Developer Instance and configured it for platform administration.
Created a "Request New Laptop" catalog item with dynamic form behavior powered by Catalog UI Policies that show and hide fields based on user selection.
Automated the full request lifecycle using Flow Designer to route approvals to a manager and create fulfillment tasks for IT.
Secret Mission: Added conditional branching to handle rejections with automatic notification to the requester.

Ready to quiz yourself?