SNOW-CAD Designing interfaces and user experiences Practice Question
A company uses Service Portal for employee self-service. One widget displays a list of open requests from the sc_request table. The widget uses a server script that queries all records without a filter. As the request table grows, users experience slow loading times. The widget configuration allows client-side filtering but not server-side pagination. The developer must improve performance without changing the user experience. What should the developer do?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse client-side filtering with server-side optimization, assuming that filtering on the client reduces server load, when in fact the entire dataset must still be fetched from the database.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Implement pagination in the server script and modify the widget to load data in chunks.
Implementing server-side pagination reduces the amount of data retrieved from the database in a single query, which directly addresses the performance bottleneck caused by loading all records from the sc_request table. By modifying the server script to return only a subset of records (e.g., 25 per page) and updating the widget to request subsequent pages as the user scrolls or clicks, the developer improves load times without altering the user experience. This approach leverages ServiceNow's GlideRecord query efficiency and avoids the overhead of transferring and rendering large datasets on the client.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Increase the server timeout value to allow more time for the query to complete.
Why it's wrong here
Increasing timeout does not reduce the data volume; it only postpones errors.
- ✓
Implement pagination in the server script and modify the widget to load data in chunks.
Why this is correct
Pagination reduces the amount of data sent per request, improving initial load time.
- ✗
Add a client-side filter to the widget to display only a subset of records.
Why it's wrong here
Client-side filtering still loads all records, so performance remains poor until the filter is applied.
- ✗
Use a UI Policy to hide the widget for users with many requests.
Why it's wrong here
Hiding the widget does not solve the performance issue for users who still need to use it.
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