Which SAM role must be a trained ServiceNow administrator?

The samadmin role is responsible for the comprehensive setup, configuration, and maintenance of the Software Asset Management application. This includes managing system properties, configuring integrations with external data sources (like SCCM or Jamf), and overseeing data import and reconciliation jobs. These tasks often require elevated platform-level permissions and a thorough understanding of the ServiceNow platform's architecture, which are the core competencies of a trained ServiceNow administrator. Assigning this role to a platform administrator ensures that the foundational and technical aspects of the SAM application are managed effectively, preventing configuration issues that could impact the entire instance.

B. samdeveloper: This role is for users who write scripts and create development artifacts specifically for the SAM application, not for its overall administration or configuration.
C. discoveradmin: This role manages the Discovery application, which is a separate process that provides data to SAM. It is not a core SAM role.
D. entitlementmanager: This is a process-focused role responsible for managing software license records (entitlements) and contracts, not the technical setup of the SAM application.
E. modelmanager: This is a process-focused role responsible for managing software models, normalization, and lifecycle data, which is distinct from technical platform administration.

1. ServiceNow Product Documentation - Software Asset Management roles: The official documentation describes the samadmin role as having "access to all Software Asset Management application features

including properties and content setup." The setup and configuration of properties are administrative tasks.

Source: ServiceNow Product Documentation

Washington DC Release

"Components installed with Software Asset Management

" Section: "Roles installed with Software Asset Management."

2. ServiceNow Training Courseware - SAM Fundamentals: The official ServiceNow training materials for Software Asset Management explicitly define the persona for the SAM Administrator. This persona is expected to be a ServiceNow System Administrator who is responsible for the technical implementation and ongoing maintenance of the SAM application.

Source: ServiceNow Training

"Software Asset Management (SAM) Fundamentals" course materials

Module: "SAM Personas and Responsibilities." (Note: Specific courseware is proprietary

but this is the official guidance provided in ServiceNow training programs).

3. ServiceNow Product Documentation - Set up Software Asset Management: The initial setup steps for the SAM application

such as activating plugins and configuring core system properties

must be performed by a user with the admin role. This directly links the administrative responsibilities of SAM to the platform administrator role.

Source: ServiceNow Product Documentation

Washington DC Release

"Set up Software Asset Management

" Section: "Tasks for setting up Software Asset Management."