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Release: Australia · Updated: 2026-03-12 · Official documentation · View source

Hyper-V discovery

The ServiceNow Discovery application finds Microsoft Hyper-V hypervisors in your environment.

Hyper-V is a hypervisor developed by Microsoft that enables you to create and manage virtual machines (VMs) on a physical server or computer. It enables hardware virtualization, enabling multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical machine while sharing the underlying hardware resources, such as CPU, memory, storage, and networking.

Note: See the knowledge article KB0687582 for information on model_id and manufacturer.

Hyper-V supports the following functionality:

Failover clustering: Failover is managed with Failover Cluster Manager.
Live migration: Virtual machines can be moved between failover cluster nodes without bringing down the virtual machine.

Note: For information on Probe to Pattern migration see the knowledge article KB0694477.

Supported versions

Discovery is supported for Hyper-V running on the following Windows Server versions:

2008
2012
2012 R2
2016
2019
2022
2025

Important: Discovery of Hyper-V running on Windows starting from version 2016 supports pattern discovery only. If you upgraded and are still using probes and sensors for discovery, see KB0694773 for instructions on configuring Hyper-V probes.

Hyper-V data models

There are 2 types of Hyper-V:

Hyper-V on Windows Server: This model, installed as a server role on Windows Servers, is designed for enterprises needing both virtualization and other server roles (for example: file servers, Active Directory, web servers) on the same machine.
Hyper-V Server (Standalone): A free, lightweight version of Windows Server specifically designed for virtualization. It includes only the Hyper-V hypervisor and no graphical user interface (GUI) or additional server roles.

Discovery supports identifying and mapping both types of Hyper-V environments. However, the CMDB data models differ between the two deployment types.

Image omitted: MMASSET0020901-hyper-v-data-model-horizontal.png
Key differences between Windows Server with Hyper-V role and Hyper-V Server using a VM with Windows OS example

Key aspects	Windows Server with Hyper-V role	Hyper-V Server
Hyper-V Server CI	Name of the CI includes the @Hyper-V Server suffix. For example: hyperv1@Hyper-V Server. The Windows Host field references the parent Windows Servers table, which represents the physical host of the Hyper-V Server.	Name of the CI is the Hyper-V Server.
Hyper-V Cluster has Members::Member of relationship with Hyper-V Server	YesThe Hyper-V Server table: Has Is virtual field set to true Doesn't have software installation	YesThe Hyper-V Server table: Has Is virtual field set to false Doesn't have software installation
Hyper-V Server has Runs on::Runs relationship with Windows Server	YesThe Windows Server table: Represents the physical host Has Is virtual field set to false Has Windows Server software installation	No
Operating system (OS) installed on the VM has Virtualized by::Virtualizes relationship with Hyper-V Server	YesThe OS table (for example: Windows Server/Linux Server): Represents the individual virtual machines (VMs) Has Is virtual field set to true Has OS software installation, such as Windows or Linux Server Has other software installations deployed on the VM	YesThe OS table (for example: Windows Server/Linux Server): Has Is virtual field set to true Has OS software installation, such as Windows or Linux Server Has other software installations deployed on the VM
OS installed on the VM has Instantiates::Instantiated by relationship with Hyper-V Virtual Machine Instance	Yes	Yes
CPU cores count	Is identical between the physical Windows Server host and the Hyper-V Server	The parent Windows Servers table reflects the physical cores, while the Hyper-V Server table displays the virtual cores

Credentials

Configure Windows credentials with Domain administrator rights. You should also Enable PowerShell for the MID Server used to discover Hyper-V servers and instances.

Classifier, probes, and pattern

Classifier	Probes	Pattern
Hyper-V ServerThe classification applies to standalone Hyper-V servers only \(servers NOT running on Windows 2008\).	- Horizontal discovery probe: Launches patterns - Windows - ADM^ - Windows - Installed Software^ - Hyper-V - Cluster\* - Hyper-V - Resource Pools\* - Hyper-V - Virtual Machines\* - Hyper-V - Virtual Networks\* - Several other Windows probes also run, such as Windows - Identity, Windows - software, and so on.\*	Hyper-V Server

*These probes aren't active on the classifier, as Discovery uses patterns by default for these discoveries.

^These probes remain active by default, even when Discovery uses pattern discovery.

To use patterns, verify that the correct pattern is specified in the horizontal pattern probe on the classifier. See Add the Horizontal Pattern probe to a classifier for instructions.

Data collected by Discovery during horizontal discovery

Label	Field Name	Data Description	Stored in Table
Object ID ^	object\_id	ID	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`
Name^	name	name	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`
State	state	- On - Off	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
CPUs	cpus	Count	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
Memory	memory	Quantity in MB	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
Network adapters	nics	Count	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
Disks	disks	Count+	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
Disks size	disks\_size	Capacity in GB+	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance` \*
Virtual Base Board Serial Number	baseboard\_serial	Virtual serial number	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`
BIOS Serial Number	bios\_serial	Virtual serial number	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`
Chassis Serial Number	chassis\_serial	Virtual serial number	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`
BIOS GUID	bios\_guid	Globally unique identifier \(GUID\)	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance`

*Attributes that are put in the cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance table when using the Hyper-V Server pattern. For upgrades, probes and sensors continue to put these attributes in the cmdb_ci_vm_instance table.

^Newly discovered attribute when using the Hyper-V Server pattern.

+Discovery can only return this information if the virtual machine is running.

Label	Field	Store in table
Name	name	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
Chassis type	chassis_type	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
Description	short_description	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
OS Address Width (bits)	os_address_width	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
Operating System	OS	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
Host name	hostname	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
IP Address	ip_address	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
OS Version	os_version	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
OS Service Pack	os_service_pack	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`
Is virtual	virtual	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server`

Label	Field Name	Data Description	Stored in Table
Name	name	Name of the virtual network	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_network` *
ID	object_id	Globally unique identifier (GUID)	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_network` *

*Attributes that are put in the cmdb_ci_hyper_v_network table when using the Hyper-V Server pattern. For upgrades, probes and sensors continue to put these attributes in the cmdb_ci table (name) and the cmdb_ci_vm_object table (object_id).

Label	Field Name	Data Description	Stored in Table
Name^	name	Name of the resource pool.	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_resource_pool`
ID	object_id	Globally unique identifier (GUID)	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_rpool_comp`
Capacity	capacity	Maximum amount of the appropriate allocation unit	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_rpool_comp`
Allocation units	allocation_units	Units of measurement used (for example, MB or GB)	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_rpool_comp`
Resource type	resource_type	Type of resource discovered (for example, memory, or hard drive space)	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_rpool_comp`

Label	Field Name	Data Description	Stored in Table	Reference Table
Windows Cluster	name	Reference field displaying the Windows Cluster on which the Hyper-V cluster resides.	`cmdb_ci_hyper_v_cluster`	`cmdb_ci_win_cluster`

Relationships

Discovery creates records in the CMDB for the host machine, the parent partition running Windows Server 2008, and all the virtual machines running on the Hyper-V server. Discovery finds the stored templates and maps all the relationships between components.

The instance modifies these tables for use with multiple virtualization products:

Table	Purpose
Virtualization Server \[cmdb\_ci\_virtualization\_server\]	Contains data on all discovered virtualization servers.
Virtual Machine Instance \[cmdb\_ci\_vm\_instance\]	Contains data on all discovered virtual machine instances.
Virtual Machine Object \[cmdb\_ci\_vm\_object\]	Contains data about various objects associated with a Hyper-V server, such as partitions, networks, resource pools, and clusters.

Parent table	Relationship	Child table
Hyper-V Virtual Machine Instance [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance]	Registered on::Has registered	Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]
Hyper-V Virtual Machine Instance [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance]	Connected by ::Connects	Hyper-V Network [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_network]
Hyper-V Network [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_network]	Provided::Provides	Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]
Hyper-V Resource Pool [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_resource_pool]	Defines resources for:Gets resources from	Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]
Hyper-V Resource Pool Components [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_rpool_comp]	Contained by::Contains	Hyper-V Resource Pool [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_resource_pool]
Hyper-V Cluster [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_cluster]	Members::Member of	Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]
Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]	Runs on::Runs	Windows Servers [cmdb_ci_win_server]
Windows Servers [cmdb_ci_win_server]	Instantiates::Instantiated by	Hyper-V Virtual Machine Instance [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_instance]
Windows Servers [cmdb_ci_win_server]	Virtualized by::Virtualizes	Hyper-V Server [cmdb_ci_hyper_v_server]

Parent Topic:Operating systems discovery

Clone Hyper-V virtual machines

When importing (cloning) Hyper-V virtual machines, make sure each virtual machine has a unique ID. Discovery identifies virtual machines with duplicate IDs as the same machine.

Export the virtual machine from the Hyper-V server.
Import the virtual machine into a different server, making one of the these choices:
- Move or restore the virtual machine: This selection clones the image, using the same ID, and moves it to another server. The original image remains on the Hyper-V server.
- Copy the virtual machine: This selection copies the virtual machine, using a different ID, and moves it from the Hyper-V server. This is the best selection and does not require any further action before you run Discovery.
If you import the Hyper-V clone using the Move or restore selection, be sure to delete the original image from the Hyper-V server.

When Discovery encounters two virtual machines with the same equivalent serial numbers, it creates only one configuration item (CI).