CSA domain - 10% of the exam

Instance Configuration

Instance Configuration is 10% of the ServiceNow Certified System Administrator (CSA) exam. These are the objectives it covers, each with practice questions, with every answer explained.

Objectives in this domain

Sample question from this domain

Free sampleInstance Configurationmedium

An administrator must add a capability to an instance and is weighing two delivery mechanisms: a plugin listed in All Available Applications and an application obtained from the ServiceNow Store. Which statement describes how the two differ?

  • AA plugin is downloaded from an external repository each time it is switched on, whereas a Store application ships inside the base platform build and only needs activating.
  • BA plugin can be switched on only by ServiceNow personnel in response to a request, whereas a Store application can be installed directly by any user who holds the itil role on the instance.
  • CA plugin is functionality already delivered with the instance that an administrator switches on from All Available Applications, whereas a Store application is obtained from the ServiceNow Store and installed onto the instance. Correct
  • DA plugin can add tables, roles and business logic to the instance, whereas a Store application supplies only reports and dashboards that read tables the platform already provides.
Distinguish a plugin, which is dormant functionality delivered with the instance, from a Store application, which is obtained and installed from the ServiceNow Store. The two mechanisms differ in where the functionality comes from. A plugin is shipped with the platform in an inactive state, so activation simply enables tables, roles and logic that are already present. A Store application is published separately, so the instance must retrieve and install it before any of its artefacts exist locally.

Why A is wrong: Tempting because both mechanisms end with new functionality appearing on the instance, but the description is the wrong way round: the plugin is the part already delivered with the platform and the Store application is the part retrieved from outside the instance.

Why B is wrong: Tempting because some plugin actions do involve ServiceNow, but an administrator activates most plugins themselves, and installing a Store application is an administrative action rather than something the itil role grants.

Why C is correct: Correct because a plugin is dormant platform functionality that activation makes available, while a Store application is separately published content that must be brought onto the instance before it can be used.

Why D is wrong: Tempting because plugins do add tables and logic, but the limit placed on Store applications is invented: a Store application can also deliver tables, roles and server logic of its own.

Other domains in this exam

See also the CSA cert hub, the study guide, and the cheat sheet.

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