Tag: ai

Zip It! Native Apex Zip Library Now Generally Available in Salesforce!

Exciting news for Salesforce developers! The Apex Zip library is now generally available, thanks to the amazing feedback from the IdeaExchange community!

This powerful feature, found within the Compression namespace, allows you to:

Compress and Extract:

Seamlessly compress blobs into Zip archives and extract Zip files directly to blobs within Apex.Optimize Compression: Gain granular control with customizable compression methods and levels.

Handle Multiple Files: Easily zip multiple attachments or documents into a single archive.

Selective Extraction: Extract specific data without unzipping the entire archive.

Key API methods include:

addEntry(String name, Blob data) & addEntry(compression.ZipEntry prototype): for detailed entry creation.- setMethod(compression.Method method): for compression method selection.

– getArchive(): to generate the zipped archive as a blob.Imagine the possibilities! Streamlining document management, simplifying data transfers, and much more.

For example, you can now effortlessly compress email attachments into a single, manageable file.This update empowers developers to build more efficient and robust Salesforce applications.

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Simplify Feature Discovery and Setup with Salesforce Go

Discover and quickly set up features available in your Salesforce edition from one centralised location in Setup with the new Salesforce Go!

Easily assign user permissions, complete prerequisites and required configuration steps, and even monitor feature usage. Explore the potential of unused and new features with helpful resources.

Key Features:

• Find and set up features within your Salesforce edition from a single Setup location.
• Assign user permissions and manage prerequisites directly within Salesforce Go.
• Monitor feature usage to understand adoption and impact.
• Access videos, interactive tours, Trailhead modules, and Salesforce Help articles for guidance.
• Purchase add-on licences for some features directly (if your Account app is enabled).

How To Use It:

1. Navigate to Setup by clicking the gear icon.

2. Select Salesforce Go.

3. Explore feature sets based on your business goals or search for specific features.

4. Follow the guided steps to turn on and configure selected features.

Available in: Lightning Experience in Pro Suite, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions.

View requires “View Setup and Configuration”; enabling features requires “Customise Application”.

Learn more here: Read more

Streamlined Removal of Relationships Before Custom Object Deletion

Deleting custom objects with existing relationships is now more straightforward. When attempting to delete a custom object referenced by lookup fields in other standard objects, custom objects, or Data Cloud data model objects (DMOs), you’ll see a detailed page listing these relationships.

Key Features:

• Clear visibility of objects with lookup fields referencing the object you want to delete.
• Displays the Object API Name (hyperlinked for direct navigation) and the Field API Name of the referencing lookup field.
• Direct link to the related object to easily remove the relationship.
• Provides a help link for removing relationships from Data Cloud DMOs.

How To Use It:

1. Attempt to delete a custom object that has lookup relationships with other objects.

2 Review the detailed page listing the referencing objects and fields.

3. Click the hyperlinked Object API Name to navigate to the related object. Locate and remove the relevant lookup field.

4. For Data Cloud DMO relationships, follow the provided help link.

Available in: Lightning Experience, Salesforce Classic (not available in all orgs), and all versions of the mobile app in all editions.

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Decoding Salesforce Buzzwords

Ever felt like Salesforce speak is its own language? You’re not alone.

Whether you’re new to the platform or just tired of nodding along in meetings (we see you), here’s a quick decoder for some of the most common Salesforce terms:

• Object = Just a fancy word for a table (like Leads, Accounts, or that custom one your admin built at 2am).
• Record = A single row in that table. Like one customer, or one sales deal.
• Field = A column. First name, email, budget, etc.
• Flow = Point-and-click automation that does things so you don’t have to.
• Lightning = No, not weather. It’s the modern UI (user interface, what you see and click on when you use a digital tool) – think fast, sleek, more clicks.
• Apex = Salesforce’s programming language. (Basically, what devs do when Flows can’t handle it.)
• Sandbox = Your practice playground. Where you (hopefully don’t) break things before they go live.
• Trigger = A bit of code that fires when something changes. Like “if X happens, do Y.”
• AppExchange = The App Store, but for Salesforce tools and add-ons.
• Admin = The superhero who makes Salesforce work for everyone else.

A helping hand for Developers

Github Copilot is a generative AI tool that can offer coding suggestions based on comments in the code, plus auto completion for current lines and entire blocks of code.

Copilot can offer multiple suggestions which can be manually accepted or rejected, boosting your development speed and precision.

The Visual Studio Code extension for Github Copilot allows you to use all of this within the editor itself, and with the Github Copilot chat extension (which uses GPT-4) and Copilot, you can use “@workspace” at the beginning of your search, allowing it to scan your local project to provide suggestions or help locate specific pieces of code, as well as clarifying error messages in the console!

Benefits of Universal API Management

Universal API Management (UAPIM) on an Anypoint Platform provides users with a set of capabilities which empower them to manage the full lifecycle of their APIs.

Below are the main benefits of using UAPIM:

ACCELERATE APPLICATION DELIVERY: Compose services using any API across the enterprise — built by any team, for any purpose, for any audience.

• API DESIGN CENTER: Build APIs for any purpose.
• ANYPOINT EXCHANGE: Reuse APIs built anywhere.
• API EXPERIENCE HUB: Publish APIs to any audience.
• IMPLEMENT ANY ARCHITECTURE: Manage and secure any service at scale — from monolith to micro-service.
• FLEX GATEWAY: Secure any service or micro-service.
• API MANAGER: Manage users and services in one place.
• API GOVERNANCE: Operationalise API governance.
• OPERATE IN ANY ENVIRONMENT: Securely deploy and monitor your services across any cloud or environment with a consistent experience.
• MULE RUNTIME SERVICES: Deploy to any environment.
• ANYPOINT MONITORING: Monitor your operations consistently.
• ANYPOINT SECURITY: Apply advanced security automatically.

Explaining Open API

The strength of Salesforce lies in its seamless integration with a variety of tools and applications.

Utilising OpenAPI can significantly simplify this process. But what exactly does this mean?

Think of OpenAPI as a standardised recipe for APIs. Similar to how a recipe guides you in preparing a dish, OpenAPI provides clear instructions on how to structure and implement an API.

It is a specification that ensures APIs adhere to consistent rules and documentation standards, serving as a blueprint.

This ensures that developers can easily understand, implement, and integrate their software with a specific service, platform, or system. Using OpenAPI to establish connections is akin to following a recipe to create a 5 star meal!

It is essential to note that in order to create your own connections in Salesforce using Open API, you must have the Enterprise Salesforce license at minimum!

Rescue your org from risks

Did you know that every few years, OWASP makes a top 10 list of the top security issues in development?

They most recently published a Top 10 web application security risks in 2021, which includes among other flaws broken access control, cryptographic failures, and injection.

In 2023, they published a Top 10 API security list which includes broken object level authorisation, broken authentication, and broken property level authorisation as the top 3 security vulnerabilities in API development.

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Transform your app development

Custom Metadata Types in Salesforce offer a transformative approach for app developers, enabling the seamless storage and management of application configurations.

Unlike their counterpart, Custom Settings, Custom Metadata records stand out for their deployability, packageability, and upgradeability. This distinction is particularly beneficial in the context of managed package development.

Furthermore, one standout feature of Custom Metadata is its ability to expose configuration directly to Admins, eliminating the need for code modifications. Thus, Admins can effortlessly customise app behaviour to align with specific business requirements by simply updating Custom Metadata used in the application.

This flexibility allows developers to craft applications that are not only more dynamic, but also highly adaptable. Said adaptability is extremely powerful for enhancing an application’s utility and scalability.

Salesforce Inspector Reloaded

Salesforce Inspector Reloaded is an extension for Chrome and Firefox which is built upon the original Salesforce Inspector extension and is a drop-in replacement for the original version. It improves it with several additional features for improved controls and security.

With this extension you can:

• Export data to JSON, Excel, or CSV using SOQL Queries
• Import data from JSON, Excel, or CSV into Salesforce
• view org limit usage stats from one page
• Download Metadata quickly and easily
• Explore available Salesforce APIs on your org
• Send REST requests to API endpoints on your Salesforce org
• Supports GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, and Delete
• Quickly search for specific config items such as flows from the Shortcut tab

Enable use with API Client Whitelisting/API Access Control by setting up a connected app allowing for restricting access to specific users

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