Upgrades! Who does not like them? Here at The Cloud People, we eat upgrades for breakfast. All kidding aside, this crucial part of the product support lifecycle is both fascinating and intriguing. When done responsibly, it brings new features and helps seamlessly introduce them to legacy configurations and customizations. When done hastily, upgrades end up with orphaned, skipped features, or even worse - colliding solutions.
Without further ado, here is a short list of the features provided within the latest ServiceNow Yokohoma release that might interest current and future platform owners, along with our commentary. I will be leaving additional sources of information for each of the bullet points.
Alphabet almost complete
Time really flies, doesn’t it? It was only a few years ago that the first alphabetical upgrade - Aspen - was released. One blink, and 13 years have passed, during which ServiceNow grew into - in my opinion - the best modular platform for utilizing Platform-as-a-Service capabilities. And what a ride it has been, just look at our Success Stories!
Yokohama general availability is targeted for the first quarter of 2025, however Personal Developer Instances can already enjoy the upgrades to - at the moment of writing - Release Candidate 2 version.
BUT WAIT
Connected to above, is our recommendation: While a new release means new exciting products, modules and enhancements, we have to agree that the sheer size of the tool and deadline for twice-a-year release of a new release makes it impossible to smoothen everything out on the first attempt. Also taking into consideration all the new quirks and migrated fixes to past defects that are in the pipeline.
This is why we recommend holding up the upgrade until at least Patch 2 of a particular family release. Obviously, the most diplomatic answer would be: it depends. It all boils down to requirements, but that is a safe bet. By all means, if you need to immediately see the features packed up within the main release of a new upgrade, please go wild with your own Personal Development Instance first.
Bonus developer post expanding on the above:
Features, features, features
What else could we start with? AI. And GenAI. It is here to stay. Adapting it into the daily workflows as just another helpful resource, is the way to go. However, we are very happy to see the governance tools being shared with platform owners, developers and administrators, as the next example shows:
AI GUARDIAN
Or instead “Now Assist Guardian”, this one is definitely something that could not have come sooner, seeing as validation of received output is needed now more than ever. So what comes inside?
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Protection against harmful content
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Detection of attempts at bypassing the original instructions
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Subject filtering
More at:
Take a look also at the AI Governance Center, to grab the bigger picture:
EXPORT DASHBOARD TO PDF
Switching from innovation to a finally provided, long-awaited solution, proud Yosemite adopters are blessed with an option to share their precious, chiseled groups of widgets and counters in a one, nicely formatted document to pass over. Say goodbye to just screenshotting the pages or sharing the whole dashboard if just a snapshot is requested.
UPGRADE MANAGEMENT
Back on track for welcoming new features, we are happy to see something directly connected to the subject of this very article. You cannot get from a lower release into Yokohama without starting the upgrade, and what better place to prepare for it than the Upgrade Management!
Following a similar layout akin to previously-provided Admin Center, Subscription Management, Clone Center and Security Center, this command center of sorts serves as a good preview of things to come to the very platform you are governing. All the vital information, tools and links needed to start the process in one place? Sign us up.
More at:
UPGRADED IDE
Yes, we know - this has been released in Xanadu, so why are we highlighting this one? Simple, the Integrated Development Environment is now updated way past teething troubles and we can wholeheartedly recommend giving it a look. Our own experiences tell us it is past the early adopters’ curse.
You keep hearing “no-code”, “low-code”, but let us be honest - this means you might not be utilising the potential of supported coding languages to the fullest. We are here to remedy this, by providing streamlined solutions of a varying scale and depth. Do not just take our word for it - talk to us and see the Clouds!
More at:
Bonus community content, a further deep dive into the feature:
FLOW DEBUGGER
Let us be frank, we all still miss some of the features never ported from Workflow Editor into the Flow Designer. But happy thoughts, everyone! Yokohama brings something developers and low-code admins should be more than happy to include in their flowbuilding routines.
Not only does it elevate customization above simple trial-and-error attempts, it is also useful in both expanding and sometimes even replacing expected UAT tasks. Say goodbye to endless cycles of changing, saving and publishing, say hello to breakpoints!
More at:
Bonus community post:
MFA UPDATE
Moving back and forth between the new and the upgraded, now is the time to address a very beneficial enhancement. Starting with the discussed release, Multi-factor Authentication becomes enforced by default. Administrators will have the ability to modify the MFA policy to extend the enrollment window or exempt specific users, roles, or groups from the MFA requirement, if necessary.
But wait, there’s more! Our precious Personal Development Instances are also affected immediately after the upgrade or when requesting a fresh instance. If you already were using Single-Sign-On, you were not affected - same for the integration accounts - but for e.g. delegated developers, accustomed to using direct login or a side door, this is a good heads-up call not to get caught locked out of the agreed deliveries.
More in the Knowledge Article, with a long FAQ:
https://support.servicenow.com/kb?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB1700938
EMAIL RECOMMENDATION
We started with AI, what else could we end our list up with? Yes, again - this was initially released within Xanadu, but that release was so packed in features, we bet some of you missed at least parts of it. And Yokohama brings enhancements here as well! Specifically, it is now available with ITSM workflows as well, expanding from being a CSM-only feature previously.
Writing emails is most often the tedious part of the day. Why not get a little help? Our customers have been asking for it, the wait is finally over and we could not be happier to configure, customize and streamline the usage. Do not wait, contact us, we could schedule you a demo, seeing is believing.
More at:
Bonus, release notes specifically for Now Assist
Almost final words - and links
While presenting the list of features, we pride ourselves to give you more than just a bulletpoint aggregator. Here at The Cloud People, we do - and will - give you more! By which we mean, of course, a greater aggregation of correlated data. We hope you noticed the amount of links throughout the article - they all serve a purpose, so that once you find this article on the Internet, you will instantly recognize that when it comes to Yokohama, this is the One Article To Rule Them All.
Here we go:
Release notes summaries for Yokohama features
Yokohama security and notable fixes
Enable AI Experiences - general homepage for all things AI
Releases: Yokohama || Knowledge & Troubleshooting Resources
Deprecation information for all Yokohama features and products
Known Error Portal for Yokohama (NowSupport account and login required)
TechNow EP 99 | Your Yokohama ServiceNow Release (podcast)
ServiceNow Versions / Release - aggregated history and FAQ
Final words
Well, that was a trip through the features, as well as cities! And we are almost here, at the end of an alphabet. Fear not, because it is not the end of an era, as next in line is a new series of codenames, from what we have heard - based on countries.
While some of the above features have been highlighted based on their prominence in the ServiceNow community and official documentation, we also wanted to make sure it is not only about bringing new, but also to learn from enhancing the old, keeping up with the legacy or even from browsing the Knowledge Base. Because let us be frank - the platform is big, it is bigger than ever, its growth is a fact, and you can be a part of it.
The train to the station Upgrade to Yokohama is nearly upon us! All aboard? If you are on the fence, come talk to us, see if we could run that upgrade for you. We take no detours, while taking you straight to the Clouds!