SNOW-CSA Database Administration and CMDB Practice Question
A company has a custom application that automatically updates the CMDB via web services. After a recent update, several CI records were incorrectly modified, causing incorrect relationships. The administrator does not know exactly which web service calls caused the issue. What is the best way to identify the source of the incorrect updates and prevent future occurrences?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse the 'Data Integrity' feature with auditing or logging, assuming it captures change history, when in fact it only validates data quality rules and does not record transactional changes.
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
✓
Review the cmdb_ci table audit history to see changes.
The cmdb_ci table audit history captures detailed records of all changes made to CI records, including the source of the update (e.g., web service call, user, or script). By reviewing this audit trail, the administrator can identify which specific web service calls modified the CIs incorrectly, even without prior logging enabled. This approach leverages ServiceNow's built-in auditing for CMDB tables, which is enabled by default for critical CI tables.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Enable the 'Data Integrity' feature to log all web service updates.
Why it's wrong here
ServiceNow's Data Integrity module is for data quality, not for logging web service calls.
- ✗
Revert the CMDB to a previous state using a backup.
Why it's wrong here
Restoring from backup does not reveal the root cause and may lose legitimate changes.
- ✓
Review the cmdb_ci table audit history to see changes.
Why this is correct
Audit logs capture who or what changed each field, enabling identification of the problematic web service calls.
- ✗
Restrict web service access to only necessary roles and review logs.
Why it's wrong here
Restricting access is preventive but does not help identify the source of past incorrect updates.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SNOW-CSA practice question is part of Courseiva's free ServiceNow certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the SNOW-CSA exam.