GlideRecord.initialize() — ServiceNow API

initialize()→ void

intermediateTested on Xanadu

What It Does

The initialize() method completely resets a GlideRecord object to its initial state, as if you had just created a new instance. It clears all field values that have been set, removes any query conditions that were added, and resets the internal state to prepare for a fresh operation. This is particularly important because GlideRecord objects retain field values even after calling insert() or completing other operations.

Internally, ServiceNow clears the object's field value cache, resets the row state indicators, and removes any query filters or ordering that was previously applied. The GlideRecord maintains its table reference but loses all data context. This reset is more thorough than simply setting individual fields to empty values because it also clears internal flags that track which fields have been modified.

The method returns void and never fails. There are no error conditions because it's simply clearing memory structures rather than performing database operations. The operation is instantaneous and always succeeds, making it safe to call at any time without error handling.

One edge case involves extended tables with inherited fields. The initialize() method clears all field values including those from parent tables, but the GlideRecord still maintains its table context. If you had a GlideRecord pointing to the incident table, after initialize() it will still be an incident GlideRecord, just with no field values set.

The method differs from newRecord() in that initialize() works on an existing GlideRecord object, while newRecord() immediately creates a new database record. Both prepare for inserts, but initialize() is purely a memory operation.

When to Use This

Use initialize() when you're reusing a GlideRecord object for multiple insert operations, especially inside loops. Without calling initialize(), field values from previous iterations will carry over to subsequent inserts, creating records with unintended data. This is the primary use case and the reason most developers encounter this method.

Avoid initialize() when you're only performing a single insert operation—just create a new GlideRecord instance instead. Don't use it to 'reset' a GlideRecord for queries; create a new GlideRecord object for query operations. A common mistake is calling initialize() before every operation as a 'safety measure'—this adds unnecessary overhead when you could simply instantiate new objects.

Return Value

The method returns void (undefined in JavaScript), meaning it doesn't return any value. The method modifies the existing GlideRecord object in place rather than returning a new object or status indicator. You don't need to capture or check any return value from this method.

Since the method cannot fail, there's no error state to handle. The operation always succeeds and leaves the GlideRecord object in a clean, predictable state ready for new field assignments and subsequent insert operations.

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Platform Behavior & Side Effects

No Business Rules, ACLs, or workflows are triggered since this is purely a client-side memory operation
No database operations occur—nothing is written to or read from the database
Extremely fast performance—only clears memory structures with no I/O operations
No audit trail entries are created since no data changes occur on the platform
Behaves identically across all server-side contexts—Business Rules, Script Includes, Scheduled Jobs
Clears any pending insert operations that were prepared but not yet executed

⚠️

Field values are cleared completely, not set to default values. After initialize(), all fields return empty/null values regardless of any default values defined on the table.

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Code Examples

Basic usage — reusing GlideRecord in a loopbasic

// Creating multiple incidents from an array of data
var incidentData = [
  {short_description: 'Server down', priority: 1},
  {short_description: 'Network slow', priority: 3},
  {short_description: 'Printer offline', priority: 4}
];

var inc = new GlideRecord('incident');

for (var i = 0; i < incidentData.length; i++) {
  inc.initialize(); // Clear previous values
  inc.short_description = incidentData[i].short_description;
  inc.priority = incidentData[i].priority;
  inc.caller_id = gs.getUserID();
  inc.insert();
  
  gs.info('Created incident: ' + inc.getDisplayValue());
}

Without initialize(), the second incident would inherit the short_description from the first, and the third would inherit values from both previous iterations. The initialize() call ensures each iteration starts clean.

Conditional inserts — avoiding field contaminationintermediate

// Processing service catalog requests with optional fields
var gr = new GlideRecord('sc_req_item');
var requests = [
  {item: 'laptop', justification: 'New hire', cost_center: 'IT001'},
  {item: 'monitor', cost_center: 'HR002'}, // No justification
  {item: 'software', justification: 'Project requirement'} // No cost center
];

for (var i = 0; i < requests.length; i++) {
  gr.initialize(); // Prevent field carryover
  
  gr.cat_item = requests[i].item;
  
  // Only set optional fields if they exist
  if (requests[i].justification) {
    gr.justification = requests[i].justification;
  }
  if (requests[i].cost_center) {
    gr.cost_center = requests[i].cost_center;
  }
  
  gr.insert();
}

This pattern shows how initialize() prevents optional fields from the previous iteration contaminating the current record. Without it, the monitor request would inherit the laptop's justification.

The classic mistake — unnecessary initializationadvanced

// WRONG: Over-using initialize() for single operations
function createSingleIncident(description, priority) {
  var inc = new GlideRecord('incident');
  inc.initialize(); // Unnecessary - new object is already clean
  inc.short_description = description;
  inc.priority = priority;
  return inc.insert();
}

// RIGHT: Skip initialize() for single-use GlideRecord
function createSingleIncident(description, priority) {
  var inc = new GlideRecord('incident');
  inc.short_description = description;
  inc.priority = priority;
  return inc.insert();
}

// WRONG: Using initialize() for queries
var user = new GlideRecord('sys_user');
user.initialize(); // Wrong method for queries
user.addQuery('active', true);

The first example wastes cycles calling initialize() on a fresh object. The third example shows a common confusion—initialize() is for inserts, not queries. New GlideRecord objects are already in a clean state.

Gotchas

Field values are completely cleared, not reset to table defaults, so default value business rules will fire on subsequent inserts as if fields were never set.

The method clears all fields including system fields like sys_id, so you cannot use initialize() to 'refresh' an existing record loaded from the database.

Reference fields cleared by initialize() return null, not empty strings, which can cause null pointer exceptions if you don't check before calling methods on them.

Calling initialize() after loading a record with get() or query() destroys all the loaded data permanently—there's no way to restore it without re-querying.

The GlideRecord retains its table context, so initialize() on an incident GlideRecord still points to the incident table, just with no field values set.

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