Squid - No-Code ServiceNow Data Integration Hero banner for Squid documentation. Displays the tagline "Squid is Your No-Code ServiceNow Data Integration Tool"
with a decorative gradient accent bar on the left side. The design uses the arc46 brand purple (#5956FF) as the
primary accent color against a subtle off-white background.
Squid is Your
No-Code ServiceNow
Data Integration Tool
What does Squid do?
Squid exports data from ServiceNow as structured JSON — including references , relations , and nested entities — in a single API call. No scripting. No client-side assembly. Just configuration.
How Squid Works: From Request to Response Diagram showing how Squid delivers complete, structured JSON from ServiceNow in a single HTTP request.
The flow has three stages: Request, Squid processing, and Response.
STAGE 1 — HTTP REQUEST: A single HTTP GET request with three components:
- Configuration name (e.g., cmdb_ci_pc_hardware_full_inline) — selects a predefined or custom configuration
- encodedQuery parameter — filters which records to retrieve
- relations parameter (optional) — specifies which relations to include (e.g., used_by_service, network_ports_inline)
STAGE 2 — SQUID: Squid processes the request using the selected configuration. Three key capabilities:
- Automatic Reference Resolution: All references are resolved recursively — referenced entities can
have their own references, and Squid follows them all automatically.
- Relations Included: Requested relations are resolved and included in the response. Squid supports
100+ predefined configurations for common ServiceNow tables.
- Single Round-Trip: Everything is returned in one response — no client-side assembly, no additional
requests, no custom scripting required.
STAGE 3 — JSON RESPONSE: A single structured JSON response with four sections:
- metadata: Request information and configuration details
- data[]: Array of root entities with resolved references
- relations: Related entities organized by root entity sysId
- referenced: Deduplicated entities referenced across multiple root records
KEY BENEFIT: What would require 11+ separate API calls with ServiceNow's TableAPI — plus client-side
logic to parse links, extract sysIds, and assemble the data — is accomplished with a single Squid
request. The response arrives complete and ready to use. HTTP Request
Single Request
/api/x_a46gh_squidx/v1/data/
cmdb_ci_pc_hardware_full_inline
? encodedQuery = base_name=w010y7 & relations = used_by_service,network_ports_inline Squid
Configuration-Driven Processing
Reference Resolution
All references resolved
automatically and recursively
refs within refs within refs...
Relations Included
Requested relations resolved
and included in the response
100+ predefined configurations
Single Round-Trip
Everything returned in one
response, ready to use
No scripting. No assembly.
JSON Response
Complete Data
metadata
request + config info
data[]
entities + resolved refs
relations
by root entity sysId
referenced
deduplicated entities
Includes:
asset, assigned_to, location, manufacturer, model_id, used_by[], network_ports[]
+ nested:
assigned_to.location, model_id.manufacturer — all resolved automatically
Why Squid?
ServiceNow's Table API returns raw table data without resolving references or relations. Getting complete, connected data requires multiple requests and custom logic on the consuming side.
Squid changes that.
Squid vs TableAPI Comparison This diagram compares how Squid and ServiceNow TableAPI handle the same data request: retrieving comprehensive laptop data with all related entities including asset, assigned_to, location, manufacturer, model, used_by services, and network ports.
SQUID (Left Panel - 1 Request):
Squid accomplishes this with a single HTTP GET request to /api/x_a46gh_squidx/v1/data/cmdb_ci_pc_hardware_full_inline with encodedQuery and relations parameters. The response includes all data in one JSON: asset, assigned_to, location, manufacturer, model_id, used_by[], network_ports[], plus nested references like assigned_to.location and model_id.manufacturer.
Advantages of Squid:
- Zero client-side logic required
- Recursive reference resolution
- Single network round-trip
- Pre-built configurations
TABLEAPI (Right Panel - 11 Requests):
ServiceNow TableAPI requires 11 separate requests plus client-side logic:
1. Initial Request to cmdb_ci_pc_hardware
2. Asset lookup to alm_hardware
3. Assigned To lookup to sys_user
4. User Location lookup to cmn_location
5. CI Location lookup to cmn_location
6. Manufacturer lookup to core_company
7. Model lookup to cmdb_model
8. Relations query to cmdb_rel_ci
9. Parent CI lookup to cmdb_ci
10. Service lookup to cmdb_ci_service_auto
11. Network Ports query to cmdb_ci_network_adapter
Challenges with TableAPI:
- Client must parse and extract links from each response
- Multiple network round-trips add latency
- Must know relation sys_ids in advance
- Manual table targeting required
BOTTOM LINE COMPARISON:
- Squid: 1 request, 0 client logic operations
- TableAPI: 11 requests, 10+ parse operations
Score: Squid:1 — TableAPI:11
Retrieving comprehensive laptop data with all related entities
1 Squid Single Request HTTP GET Request /api/.../data/cmdb_ci_pc_hardware_full_inline ?encodedQuery=...&relations=used_by,network_ports Complete JSON Response ✓ asset ✓ assigned_to ✓ location ✓ manufacturer ✓ model_id ✓ used_by ✓ network_ports ✓ user_location + Nested: assigned_to.location, model_id.manufacturer Advantages • Zero client-side logic • Recursive reference resolution • Single network round-trip • Pre-built configurations One request. All data. Zero complexity. 11 TableAPI Multiple Requests 1 Initial Request cmdb_ci_pc_hardware 2 Asset alm_hardware 3 Assigned To sys_user 4 User Location cmn_location 5 CI Location cmn_location 6 Manufacturer core_company 7 Model cmdb_model 8 Relations cmdb_rel_ci 9 Parent CI cmdb_ci 10 Service cmdb_ci_service_auto 11 Network Ports cmdb_ci_network_adapter Challenges • Parse and extract links • Multiple network round-trips • Must know relation sys_ids • Manual table targeting 1 Squid Requests 11 TableAPI Requests 0 Client Logic (Squid) 10+ Parse Ops (TableAPI) Where TableAPI needs 11 requests plus client logic, Squid delivers the same data in 1 request — fully resolved and ready to use.
See the detailed comparison →
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