ServiceNow MCP Server

Instructions

Implementation Reference

• src/servicenow_mcp/tools/workflow_tools.py:592-646 (handler)

  Core handler function that executes the tool: unwraps params, authenticates, PATCHes the wf_workflow table to set active=true, returns workflow details or error.

  def activate_workflow(
      auth_manager: AuthManager,
      server_config: ServerConfig,
      params: Dict[str, Any],
  ) -> Dict[str, Any]:
      """
      Activate a workflow in ServiceNow.
      
      Args:
          auth_manager: Authentication manager
          server_config: Server configuration
          params: Parameters for activating a workflow
          
      Returns:
          Dict[str, Any]: Activated workflow details
      """
      # Unwrap parameters if needed
      params = _unwrap_params(params, ActivateWorkflowParams)
      
      # Get the correct auth_manager and server_config
      try:
          auth_manager, server_config = _get_auth_and_config(auth_manager, server_config)
      except ValueError as e:
          logger.error(f"Error getting auth and config: {e}")
          return {"error": str(e)}
      
      workflow_id = params.get("workflow_id")
      if not workflow_id:
          return {"error": "Workflow ID is required"}
      
      # Prepare data for the API request
      data = {
          "active": "true",
      }
      
      # Make the API request
      try:
          headers = auth_manager.get_headers()
          url = f"{server_config.instance_url}/api/now/table/wf_workflow/{workflow_id}"
          
          response = requests.patch(url, headers=headers, json=data)
          response.raise_for_status()
          
          result = response.json()
          return {
              "workflow": result.get("result", {}),
              "message": "Workflow activated successfully",
          }
      except requests.RequestException as e:
          logger.error(f"Error activating workflow: {e}")
          return {"error": str(e)}
      except Exception as e:
          logger.error(f"Unexpected error activating workflow: {e}")
          return {"error": str(e)}

• src/servicenow_mcp/tools/workflow_tools.py:76-80 (schema)

  Pydantic model defining input parameters: requires workflow_id (str). Used for validation in the handler.

  class ActivateWorkflowParams(BaseModel):
      """Parameters for activating a workflow."""
      
      workflow_id: str = Field(..., description="Workflow ID or sys_id")

• src/servicenow_mcp/utils/tool_utils.py:578-584 (registration)

  MCP tool registration in get_tool_definitions(): maps 'activate_workflow' to its handler, schema, description, etc.

  "activate_workflow": (
      activate_workflow_tool,
      ActivateWorkflowParams,
      str,
      "Activate a workflow in ServiceNow",
      "str",  # Tool returns simple message
  ),

• src/servicenow_mcp/tools/__init__.py:78-91 (registration)

  Imports and exposes activate_workflow from workflow_tools.py for use across the tools module.

  from servicenow_mcp.tools.workflow_tools import (
      activate_workflow,
      add_workflow_activity,
      create_workflow,
      deactivate_workflow,
      delete_workflow_activity,
      get_workflow_activities,
      get_workflow_details,
      list_workflow_versions,
      list_workflows,
      reorder_workflow_activities,
      update_workflow,
      update_workflow_activity,
  )

• src/servicenow_mcp/tools/workflow_tools.py:126-136 (helper)

  Helper function to normalize input params to dict, used at the start of activate_workflow.

  def _unwrap_params(params: Any, param_class: Type[T]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
      """
      Unwrap parameters if they're wrapped in a Pydantic model.
      This helps handle cases where the parameters are passed as a model instead of a dict.
      """
      if isinstance(params, dict):
          return params
      if isinstance(params, param_class):
          return params.dict(exclude_none=True)
      return params