Optimizing a ServiceNow Backup Service

This article discusses available methods for reducing the duration of a ServiceNow backup. Please note, any changes to configurations do not take effect until the next backup.

API Consumption

• Limit the number of records for each API request. The default value is 4,000. Increase the limit to 6,000 and allow another backup to run. Check the backup to determine if the duration has improved and continue the process of increasing the limit while monitoring the duration of backups. Please be aware that there is a greater risk of timeout errors as this limit is increased. If performance issues occur, abort the backup and decrease the limit.
• Limit the maximum number of tables to process in parallel. The default value is 6. Increase the limit to 8 and allow another backup to run. Check the backup to determine if the duration has improved and continue the process of increasing the limit while monitoring the duration of backups. If performance issues occur, abort the backup and decrease the limit.

​Attachments​

• Limit the number of attachments downloaded in each backup. The default value is 5,000. Determine how many total attachments exist in the ServiceNow instance and increase the limit accordingly. The maximum number of attachments per backup is 50,000.

Backup & Application Exclusions​

• Excluding tables and applications may reduce the time required to backup data. It is recommended that non-critical tables and applications be excluded. Please contact Support if any assistance is required in gathering the most relevant list of tables and applications for exclusion.