InServiceNow,User Impersonationallows anadmin or a user with the appropriate roleto temporarily act as another userwithout needing their password. This is mainly used fortesting and visibility, helping administrators and developers verify user permissions, role-based access, and UI experiences.
Testing Permissions & Roles
Ensures thatusers have the correct access rights(e.g., verifying ITIL user permissions for incident management).
Helps testUI Policies, Business Rules, and ACLs (Access Control Rules)by viewing the system from the perspective of different roles.
Debugging & Troubleshooting
Identifies why a usercannot access certain records or modules.
Helps inresolving permission-related issueswithout affecting live users.
Experience Validation
Ensures userssee the correct menus, fields, and optionsbased on their assigned roles.
Useful when developingnew applications, workflows, or Service Catalog items.
Admins and authorized userscan impersonate by clicking on their name in the top-right corner and selectingImpersonate User.
Once impersonated, all actions are logged for security and compliance.
Primary Functions of User Impersonation:How to Use Impersonation:
(A) Testing and visibility – Correct
The primary function ofuser impersonationis totest and verify what different users can see and doin the system.
It helps withdebugging UI, role-based access, ACLs, and workflow execution.
(B) Activate verbose logging – Incorrect
Verbose loggingis used fordetailed debugging and performance monitoring, butimpersonation does not enable logging features.
(C) View custom perspectives – Incorrect
ServiceNow doesnotuse the term "custom perspectives" in the context of impersonation.
Impersonationshows what a specific user sees based on their roles, but it doesnot create custom perspectives.
(D) Unlock Application master list – Incorrect
There isno such featureas an "Application Master List" that requires impersonation to unlock.
Application access is controlled byroles and permissions, not impersonation.
Explanation of Each Option:
Never impersonate a user without permission, especially in production environments.
All impersonation actions are loggedin the system for security and auditing purposes.
Use impersonation in a sub-production (development or test) instancebefore making changes to production.
Admins should use impersonation instead of logging in with test user accountsto maintain security and accountability.
Additional Notes & Best Practices:
ServiceNow Docs: Impersonating Users
https://docs.servicenow.com
ServiceNow Community: Best Practices for User Impersonation
https://community.servicenow.com
References from Certified System Administrator (CSA) Documentation:
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