Docs

Usage

This skill wraps the sn-docs CLI which mirrors the official servicenow/servicenowdocs repo. Cache is opt-in -- the skill works in either mode. (The peek-before-read rule is stated once at Step 3.)

Step 1 -- Check cache state (always first)

powershell.exe -NoProfile -File sn-docs.ps1 status

(Shorthand: a bare sn-docs in Steps 2-5 below ALWAYS means powershell.exe -NoProfile -File sn-docs.ps1 . A .ps1 is not directly executable from a bash block, so never run sn-docs ... literally -- always wrap it. Replace sn-docs.ps1 with its full path if it is not yet on PATH.)

Branch on the cache_present: line in stdout:

• cache_present: yes -- use the fast path: search -> peek -> read, all local.
• cache_present: no -- use the fallback path: list for discovery via GitHub API, peek/read will auto-fetch from raw.githubusercontent.com per file. After answering, surface this one-line opt-in suggestion at most once per session: "For faster offline lookup, run /sn-toolkit:docs-setup once to mirror the docs locally (~150 MB)."

Step 2 -- Discover candidate paths

With cache: ripgrep is fast and exhaustive.

sn-docs search "" [-Area ]

Returns path:lineno:snippet -- review the snippets to pick the right doc.

Without cache: narrow by area first (cheap), then peek individual files.

sn-docs list                    # see all 50 product areas
sn-docs list              # list .md files under that area

Common areas: now-platform, api-reference, platform-administration, it-service-management, application-development.

Step 3 -- Peek before reading

sn-docs peek 

Returns the first 30 lines + H2 outline. Verbatim rule (from now-sdk-explain): "Never open a full topic without first viewing the summary via peek -- this prevents wasting context space."

If the peek looks irrelevant, go back to step 2 with a different search/path. Do NOT call read until peek confirms relevance.

Step 4 -- Read full only when relevant

sn-docs read 

Returns the full markdown. Use the content to answer the user's question.

Step 5 -- Cite the source

When answering, link to the GitHub source so the user can open the canonical doc. The repo's default branch is australia (release family), NOT main: https://github.com/servicenow/servicenowdocs/blob/australia/

The peek output's source: line gives you this URL pre-built -- copy it directly.

What to search for

• Platform APIs -- GlideRecord, GlideAjax, GlideForm, GlideUser, GlideSystem
• Security -- ACL, evaluation order, before query business rule, domain separation
• Server-side -- business rule, script include, scheduled job, flow designer
• Client-side -- client script, UI policy, UI action, catalog client script
• REST/integrations -- Table API, Scripted REST API, OAuth, MID Server
• UX framework -- UI Builder, now experience, workspace, record producer

If the CLI errors

• cache_present: no after attempting search -> instruct user to run /sn-toolkit:docs-setup, OR fall through to list/peek/read which work without the cache.
• git: command not found -> git is required for sync; user needs git on PATH.
• ripgrep (rg) not found -> rg ships with Claude Code; if missing the user's install is incomplete.
• HTTP errors during webfetch -> network/proxy issue or the path is wrong; double-check via sn-docs list .

Important constraints

• The repo is updated daily via automated builds, but THIS SKILL NEVER auto-syncs. Cache refresh is user-initiated only via /sn-toolkit:docs-sync. Stale cache (>30 days) is reported by sn-docs status but never acted on -- a cache that's a few weeks old is fine for almost all platform topics.
• Output is ASCII-clean. Do not paste raw doc content into ServiceNow scripts/work-notes (it may contain non-ASCII -- per project rule #1, all SN-bound content must be ASCII).

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: chrisp28103
• Source: chrisp28103/sn-toolkit
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.