How to Load Only Filters Without Records in a ServiceNow List View

When working with extensive tables in ServiceNow, such as sys_audit or syslog_transaction, users often encounter delays or even timeouts when loading the entire list view before applying any filters. Loading a massive dataset unnecessarily can degrade performance significantly. To mitigate this issue, ServiceNow provides an excellent feature: a URL parameter that allows users to load only the filter bar without retrieving any data initially. This article explains clearly what this feature is, why it's useful, and how to implement it effectively in your ServiceNow instance.

Understanding the Issue and Its Impact

Navigating directly to a large table, such as sys_audit, through the ServiceNow interface can result in performance bottlenecks because it tries to load potentially thousands or millions of records upfront. This can be particularly problematic if you only intend to apply filters to access specific records. It wastes time and resources, affecting your overall system performance and productivity.

The Solution: sysparm_filter_only Parameter

ServiceNow offers a convenient solution with the sysparm_filter_only URI parameter. By adding this parameter to the URL, you instruct ServiceNow to load the list view with only the filter bar visible, preventing immediate loading of records. Records only load after the filter criteria have been explicitly set and executed by the user.

Step-by-Step Implementation

Here's how to use the sysparm_filter_only parameter:

1. Open your ServiceNow instance in your web browser.

2. Modify the URL to include the parameter as follows:

https://your-instance.service-now.com/sys_audit_list.do?sysparm_filter_only=true

Replace your-instance with your actual ServiceNow instance name and sys_audit with any other table you wish to filter initially.

For example, if you are working with the transaction log table (syslog_transaction), your URL should look like:

https://your-instance.service-now.com/syslog_transaction_list.do?sysparm_filter_only=true

Alternative Navigation Method

If you prefer using the application navigator, you can directly input the table name followed by .filter to achieve a similar result without manually editing URLs. For example, typing incident.filter in the filter navigator directly opens the Incident table's filter bar without loading records.

Important Considerations

While the sysparm_filter_only=true parameter is highly useful, there is a caveat:

• This parameter is not supported in List v3 interfaces. If you use List v3, it will not function correctly. A recommended workaround is disabling List v3 for specific problematic tables through List Control settings.

  
  

Conclusion

Loading the ServiceNow list view with only the filter bar provides significant performance improvements, particularly with large tables. Using sysparm_filter_only=true or navigating via the .filter shortcut ensures efficient filtering without the unnecessary overhead of loading extensive datasets.

By leveraging this parameter strategically, ServiceNow administrators and developers can greatly enhance performance, streamline workflows, and improve user experience. Next steps for readers include identifying large or frequently accessed tables in their instance and implementing this filtering technique to optimize ServiceNow performance effectively.