Serac
AI-powered ServiceNow development with 400+ MCP tools. Works with Claude, GPT, Gemini, Ollama & 75+ providers. Deploy widgets, manage incidents, automate workflows - all through natural language. Open-source Build Agent alternative.
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What is Serac?
Serac is an open-source AI build agent specifically designed for ServiceNow developers. It reads user stories, plans the work, and ships update sets through natural language conversations. Developers bring their own approved LLM keys (Claude, GPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, or local Ollama), point Serac at their ServiceNow instance, and build scoped apps, business rules, widgets, and flows without leaving their terminal.
Key features include 385+ MCP tools across 80 functional domains covering all ServiceNow capabilities, a built-in Terminal User Interface (TUI) for interactive development, support for 75+ AI providers via Models.dev, automatic update set creation for clean deployments, ES5 JavaScript validation to prevent runtime errors, and specialized agents (Build and Plan) for different tasks. Serac also offers GitHub integration for issue triage and PR submissions, IDE integration with VS Code/Cursor/Windsurf, session management with undo/redo capabilities, and enterprise features like Jira/Azure DevOps/Confluence integrations.
Serac is for ServiceNow developers who want AI-assisted development while retaining full control over their code and credentials. It suits teams who understand and can support AI-generated code, developers working in ServiceNow Studio or their preferred IDE, organizations requiring self-hosted solutions with their own LLM keys, and teams following DTAP/OTAP workflows who need proper update set management and audit trails.
Serac pricing
Pricing model: Freemium
Serac core is open-source and free under Elastic License v2. The CLI is free to install via npm with no cost for the base build agent functionality. Enterprise features are available through a paid subscription at serac.build/pricing, which includes Jira integration, Azure DevOps integration, Confluence integration, stakeholder seats for read-only non-developer access, and team license management at dashboard.serac.build. Specific module catalogue, prices, and feature mapping are documented at the pricing page and may change as new modules ship. The free tier includes full access to 385+ MCP tools, 75+ AI provider support, TUI, update set management, and ES5 validation.
Serac pros
- Open-source with Elastic License v2
- 385+ MCP tools covering 80 ServiceNow domains
- Supports 75+ AI providers including Claude, GPT, Gemini, DeepSeek
- Local Ollama support for 100% free offline operation
- Built-in Terminal User Interface (TUI) for interactive development
- Automatic update set creation for clean deployments
- ES5 JavaScript validation prevents ServiceNow runtime errors
- Bring your own LLM keys - credentials stay yours
- Code stays in your repo with full control
- Two specialized agents: Build and Plan
- GitHub integration for issue triage and PR submissions
- IDE integration with VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf
- Session management with undo/redo using Git
- Enterprise integrations: Jira, Azure DevOps, Confluence
- Read-only stakeholder seats for non-developers
- 5-tier permission model for granular access control
- Automatic OAuth token refresh and secure credential storage
- Custom agents and commands via markdown files
- Theme customization with 8+ built-in themes
- HTTP server API for programmatic access
Serac cons
- Requires Node.js 18+ and npm 8.0+
- Requires ServiceNow instance with OAuth setup
- Requires admin role to use Build Agent features
- ServiceNow only supports ES5 JavaScript (legacy Rhino engine)
- Must review and actively participate in AI-generated code
- Not a one-shot vibe coding tool - requires participation
- Trial limit: 100 prompts per instance per 30-day cycle
- PDIs limited to 25 prompts per instance per cycle
- Enterprise features require separate paid subscription
- Learning curve for TUI keyboard shortcuts and commands
- OAuth credentials must be carefully managed
- Some advanced features require Git for undo/redo
- Configuration requires understanding of .mcp.json
- Not available on CRAN (different from R package serac)
- Requires internet for cloud LLM providers (unless using Ollama)
Frequently asked questions about Serac
What is Serac?
Serac is the open-source AI build agent for ServiceNow developers. It reads user stories, plans the work, and ships update sets through natural language conversations. You bring your approved LLM (Claude, GPT, DeepSeek, or local Ollama), point it at your ServiceNow instance, and build scoped apps, business rules, and update sets. Your keys stay yours and your code stays in your repo.
Is Serac free?
Yes, Serac core is open-source and free under Elastic License v2. You can install the CLI via npm for free and access all 385+ MCP tools, 75+ AI providers, the TUI, and update set management. Enterprise features like Jira, Azure DevOps, and Confluence integrations plus stakeholder seats require a paid subscription.
Which AI models does Serac support?
Serac supports 75+ AI providers via Models.dev including Claude (Anthropic), GPT-4 (OpenAI), Gemini (Google), DeepSeek, Groq, OpenRouter, Azure OpenAI, GitHub Copilot, Together AI, Fireworks AI, Mistral AI, xAI (Grok), and local Ollama. You configure your preferred provider via environment variables or the TUI /auth command.
How do I authenticate with ServiceNow?
Serac uses OAuth 2.0 for secure ServiceNow authentication. Create an OAuth application in ServiceNow at System OAuth → Application Registry, configure the redirect URL as http://localhost:3005/callback, and copy the Client ID and Client Secret. Then run /auth in the TUI to authenticate. Credentials are stored securely at ~/.local/share/serac/auth.json and automatically refreshed.
What is the TUI?
The TUI (Terminal User Interface) is Serac's built-in interactive AI development experience. Run serac to start it. The TUI provides conversational development with slash commands like /auth, /agents, /models, /undo, /redo, /export, /sessions, keyboard shortcuts using ctrl+x as leader key, file references with @, shell command execution with !, and theme selection.
Does Serac work with my existing IDE?
Yes, Serac works with any IDE that has a terminal. It has specific integrations for VS Code, Cursor, and Windsurf. When you run serac in the integrated terminal, the extension installs automatically. Serac also generates .mcp.json configuration that can be copied to Claude Desktop, Cursor (.cursor/mcp.json), Windsurf (mcp_config.json), or Continue.dev configs.
How does update set management work?
Serac automatically creates isolated update sets for each task, ensuring clean deployments and easy rollbacks. Before making changes, create an update set with snow_update_set_manage action 'create'. As you develop, changes are automatically tracked in the update set. Complete the update set when done. Serac uses a service account for API calls and auto-switches the update set as current by default.
Why ES5 JavaScript validation?
ServiceNow runs on Mozilla Rhino from 2009, which only supports ES5 JavaScript. ES6+ features like const, let, arrow functions, template literals, classes, and destructuring will cause runtime errors. Serac automatically validates all scripts for ES5 compliance before deployment to prevent these crashes. Use var instead of const/let and function instead of arrow functions.
What permissions do I need?
Serac follows least privilege with a 5-tier model. Tier 1 (Read Only) needs snc_read_only + rest_api_explorer for ~100 tools. Tier 2 (ITSM Write) needs itil + catalog_admin + asset + cmdb_write for ~55 tools. Tier 3 (Development Artifacts) needs admin + flow_designer + report_admin for ~130 tools. Tier 4 (Script Execution) and Tier 5 (System Administration) require admin role. Currently only admins have permissions to use Build Agent.
How do I get help or report issues?
You can get help through GitHub Issues at github.com/serac-labs/serac/issues, join the Discord at discord.gg/serac, check the documentation at docs.serac.build, or run serac with --log-level DEBUG for detailed logs. Log files are at ~/.local/share/serac/log/ on macOS/Linux or %USERPROFILE%\.local\share\serac\log\ on Windows.