Visual Workflow Guide

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Visual Workflow Guide
Index

Visual Workflow

Guide

Version 39.0, Spring ’17

@salesforcedocs

Last updated: April 3, 2017

as are other names and marks. Other marks appearing herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

CONTENTS

Visual Workflow Guide .................................................1

Which Automation Tool Do I Use? ...........................................2

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow ..................................4

Limits for Visual Workflow .............................................5

Flow Best Practices ................................................12

Considerations for Designing Flows .....................................13

Considerations for Managing Flows .....................................26

Considerations for Running Flows ......................................28

Flow Accessibility .................................................29

Create a Flow .......................................................29

Flow Building Blocks ...............................................30

Cloud Flow Designer ...............................................31

Common Flow Tasks ...............................................35

Flow Reference ...................................................56

Sample Flows ...................................................134

Manage Your Flows ..................................................142

Flow and Flow Version Fields .........................................143

Open and Modify a Flow ............................................144

Test a Flow .....................................................144

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version ...................................145

Delete a Paused or Waiting Flow Interview ................................145

Delete a Flow Version ..............................................146

Let Users Pause Flows .............................................146

Distribute Your Flow ..................................................146

Distribute a Flow to Internal Users .....................................147

Distribute a Flow to External Users .....................................165

Launch a Flow Automatically .........................................166

Deploy a Flow to Other Organizations ...................................172

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail? ..........................................175

Emails About Flow Errors ............................................175

Limitations of Emails About Flow Errors (Beta) ..............................176

Add Temporary Elements to a Flow .....................................177

Troubleshoot Flow URLs ............................................178

Visual Workflow Terminology ............................................179

Index ............................................................181

VISUAL WORKFLOW GUIDE

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Automate business processes by building applications, known as flows, that collect, update, edit,

and create Salesforce information. Then make those flows available to the right users or systems.

Flows can either require user interaction—perhaps a wizard or guided UI for data entry—or run in

the background on their own—perhaps something that automatically transfers records when a

user’s role changes.

IN THIS SECTION:

Which Automation Tool Do I Use?

Salesforce provides multiple tools to automate your organization’s repetitive business processes:

Approvals, Process Builder, Workflow, and Visual Workflow.

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

When designing, managing, and running flows, consider the permissions, use limits, and data issues.

Create a Flow

Once you understand the process that you want to automate, design a flow in the Cloud Flow Designer for that process.

Manage Your Flows

Use the flow detail page to do anything with your flow outside of designing it—such as activating a flow, testing it, or viewing its

properties.

Distribute Your Flow

Once you’ve designed and tested your flow, it’s time to put it to work! Flows can be executed in several ways, depending on who

the flow is designed for. Internal users, external users, or systems can run a flow, or a flow can be deployed for another organization.

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

To troubleshoot a failed flow interview, use the flow fault email. You can also set up temporary Screen or Send Email elements to

identify the problem.

Visual Workflow Terminology

Which Automation Tool Do I Use?

EDITIONS

Available in: Lightning

Experience and Salesforce

Classic

Processes are available in:

Professional, Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Flows, approvals, and

workflow are available in

Enterprise, Performance,

Unlimited, and Developer

Editions

Salesforce provides multiple tools to automate your organization’s repetitive business processes:

Approvals, Process Builder, Workflow, and Visual Workflow.

The best automation tool for your needs depends on the type of business process that you’re

automating.

•How a record gets approved

Example: Managers approve their direct reports’ requests for vacation.

•What to do when a record has certain values

Example: Notify the account owner when a related case is escalated.

•Collecting information from users or customers and then doing something with that information

Example: Customer support uses a wizard to step through a call script, and cases are created

based on the information that they enter.

How a Record Gets Approved

For example, when an employee requests time off, that time has to be approved by the employee’s manager. You need to ensure that

when a time-off request is submitted for approval, the right person (the employee’s manager) receives the request.

To automate your organization’s processes for approving records, create approval processes.

What to Do When a Record Has Certain Values

Three of our tools can address this use case: Workflow, Process Builder, and Visual Workflow. Respectively, these tools create workflow

rules, processes, and flows.

We recommend starting with Process Builder, especially for business processes that can be simplified to if/then statements. For example:

if a case is escalated, then notify the account owner.

Process Builder includes almost all the functionality that’s available in workflow rules, and more. In fact, a single process can do what it

would normally take multiple workflow rules to do. The only thing you can do with workflow that you can’t do with processes is send

outbound messages without code. However, you can work around this limitation by calling Apex code from a process.

If the process is too complicated for the Process Builder or requires more advanced functionality, create a flow by using the Cloud Flow

Designer. For example, create a flow to:

•Use complex branching logic (if certain conditions are true, evaluate for further conditions)

Example: First, check whether a case is escalated. If the case is escalated, check the account’s region and route the case accordingly.

•Sort through, iterate over, and operate on several records

Example: After an opportunity is closed and won, calculate the opportunity’s discount. Then apply that discount to all the related

opportunity products.

Which Automation Tool Do I Use?Visual Workflow Guide

Getting Information from Users or Customers and Then Doing Something

with It

If you need to build a wizard to collect information, Visual Workflow is the tool for you. Create a flow that displays information to and

requests information from a user. Then take the information that they enter and perform actions in Salesforce with it.

For example, create a flow that walks customer support representatives through a call script. The flow uses information that the

representative entered, such as the caller’s name and account number, to create a case that’s assigned to the right person.

You can add more complexity to the flow to match your business process. For example:

•Route the representative to different screens, depending on earlier choices. This prevents the representative from doing things like

trying to upsell a product to a customer who already bought that product.

•Check whether the reported problem is blocking the customer’s business and the account is high-value. If so, the flow notifies the

region director.

Automation Tool Features

Here’s the breakdown of all the features and actions that are supported in each of our automation tools. Use it to figure out which tool

is best for your business needs.

ApprovalsWorkflowVisual WorkflowProcess Builder

A single if/then statementA single if/then

statement

ComplexMultiple if/then

statements

Complexity

Visual designer

AllAllAll (Safari not recommended)All (Chrome

recommended)

Browser support

Record is changedStarts when •User clicks button or link

•• User clicks button or linkRecord is

changed •• Process or flow starts that

includes a Submit for

Approval action

User accesses custom tab

•Invoked by

another process

•Process starts

•Apex is called

Supports

time-based

actions

Supports user

interaction

Supported Actions

Call Apex code

Tasks onlyTasks onlyCreate records

Invoke processes

Delete records

Which Automation Tool Do I Use?Visual Workflow Guide

ApprovalsWorkflowVisual WorkflowProcess Builder

Launch a flow

(Pilot)1

Post to Chatter

Send email

(Email alerts only) (Email alerts only)(Email alerts only)

Send outbound

messages without

code

Submit for

approval

The record or its parentThe record or its

parent

Any recordAny related recordUpdate fields

1The Process Builder has superseded flow trigger workflow actions, previously available in a pilot program. Orgs that are using flow

trigger workflow actions can continue to create and edit them, but they aren’t available for new orgs.

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When designing, managing, and running flows, consider the permissions, use limits, and data issues.

IN THIS SECTION:

Limits for Visual Workflow

When using Visual Workflow, keep flow limits and Apex governor limits in mind.

Flow Best Practices

Before you begin building and distributing flows, understand the best practices.

Considerations for Designing Flows

When you design flows, keep certain guidelines in mind.

Considerations for Managing Flows

When managing flows, consider the administration and activation limits.

Considerations for Running Flows

When you run or test a flow, keep the limits and guidelines in mind.

Limits and Considerations for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Accessibility

Visual Workflow is 508-compliant with a few exceptions.

SEE ALSO:

Cloud Flow Designer

Considerations and Limitations for Flows in Lightning Pages (Beta)

Limits for Visual Workflow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When using Visual Workflow, keep flow limits and Apex governor limits in mind.

50Maximum number of versions per flow

2,000Maximum number of executed elements at run time

500Maximum number of active flows and processes per org

1,000Maximum number of flows and processes per org

30,000Maximum number of flow interviews or groups of scheduled actions (from

processes) that are waiting at one time

1,000Maximum number of flow interviews that are resumed or groups of scheduled

actions that are executed per hour

20,000Maximum number of relative time alarms defined in flow versions or

schedules based on a field value in processes

IN THIS SECTION:

Apex Governor Limits that Affect Flows

Salesforce strictly enforces limits to ensure that any runaway flows don’t monopolize shared resources in the multitenant environment.

Per-transaction limits, which Apex enforces, govern flows. If an element causes the transaction to exceed governor limits, the system

rolls back the entire transaction. The transaction rolls back even if the element has a defined fault connector path.

Flows in Transactions

Each flow interview runs in the context of a transaction. A transaction represents a set of operations that are executed as a single

unit. For example, a transaction can execute Apex triggers and escalation rules in addition to a flow interview. If one interview in a

transaction fails, all the interviews in the transaction are rolled back, as well as anything else the transaction did. The transaction

doesn’t retry any of the operations—including the flow interview.

Flow Bulkification in Transactions

Programmers can design their code so that similar actions are performed together in one batch. For example, one operation to

create 50 records rather than 50 separate operations that each create one record. This process is called bulkification, and it helps

your transaction avoid governor limits. If you’re working with flows, you don’t even have to think about bulkification. Flow interviews

bulkify actions for you automatically.

SEE ALSO:

Visual Workflow

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

Apex Governor Limits that Affect Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Salesforce strictly enforces limits to ensure that any runaway flows don’t monopolize shared resources

in the multitenant environment. Per-transaction limits, which Apex enforces, govern flows. If an

element causes the transaction to exceed governor limits, the system rolls back the entire transaction.

The transaction rolls back even if the element has a defined fault connector path.

Per-Transaction Limit1

Description

100Total number of SOQL queries issued

(Record Update, Record Delete, Record Lookup,

and Fast Lookup element executions)

50,000Total number of records retrieved by SOQL

queries

(across all Record Update, Record Delete, Record

Lookup, and Fast Lookup elements executed in

all interviews in the transaction)

150Total number of DML statements issued

(Record Create, Record Update, Record Delete,

Fast Create, Fast Update, and Fast Delete

executions)

10,000Total number of records processed as a result

of DML statements

1Autolaunched flows are part of the larger transaction through which they were launched. For example, flows launched from a process

are executed with the process actions as part of the larger transaction. Flows with Screen elements can span multiple transactions. A

new transaction begins each time the user clicks Next in a screen. Flows with Wait elements span multiple transactions. A transaction

ends when a flow interview begins to wait for an event. When the flow interview resumes, a new transaction begins. Everything after

the Wait element is executed as part of a batch transaction that includes other resumed interviews.

SEE ALSO:

Apex Developer Guide: Execution Governors and Limits

Limits for Visual Workflow

Flows in Transactions

Each flow interview runs in the context of a transaction. A transaction represents a set of operations that are executed as a single unit.

For example, a transaction can execute Apex triggers and escalation rules in addition to a flow interview. If one interview in a transaction

fails, all the interviews in the transaction are rolled back, as well as anything else the transaction did. The transaction doesn’t retry any

of the operations—including the flow interview.

In each transaction, Salesforce enforces governor limits to prevent shared resources from being depleted. Because multiple Salesforce

organizations share the same resources, Salesforce prevents one organization from depleting all the resources and leaving the other

organizations high and dry. It’s similar to an apartment building that uses one cache of water to service every tenant. If your neighbor

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

uses all the water, you can’t take a shower. (It’s trite, but hopefully you get the idea.) Per-transaction governor limits help prevent such

things from happening.

IN THIS SECTION:

When Does a Flow’s Transaction Start?

Depending on how the flow was distributed, a transaction that runs an interview for that flow starts in different ways.

When Does a Flow’s Transaction End?

When a transaction ends depends on whether the flow contains certain elements and whether it originally started because a record

was changed.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Bulkification in Transactions

When Does a Flow’s Transaction Start?

Depending on how the flow was distributed, a transaction that runs an interview for that flow starts in different ways.

Transaction starts when...Distribution Method

A record is created or updated.Process Builder1

The URL is accessed.Flow URL

The button or link is clicked.Custom button or link

The page is accessed.Visualforce page

If the method starts via a before or after trigger, the

transaction starts when a record is created or updated.

Otherwise, the transaction starts when the method (or a parent

method) is invoked.

Interview.start() method

The start() method shares its limits with other operations in

the transaction and other methods in the class.

When the REST call is made. Depending on how the REST call is

implemented, the limits can be shared with other operations.

REST API (Custom Actions or Flows resource)

1The same also applies if the flow is distributed through a workflow rule. The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed.

If you've already enabled the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you didn't enable

the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

Note: When a Screen or Wait element is executed, the existing transaction ends and a new one begins.

When Does a Flow’s Transaction End?

When a transaction ends depends on whether the flow contains certain elements and whether it originally started because a record

was changed.

The transaction ends when:

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

•A Screen or Wait element is executed

•The order of execution has completed—if the flow was triggered when a record was created or updated

•All the interviews in the transaction have finished

Tip: If you think that a flow’s interview is likely to hit governor limits within its transaction, consider adding a Wait element or a

Screen element.

If the interview is one of many things being done in a given transaction, that interview shares the transaction’s governor limits with the

other operations.

Example: You update 100 cases through Data Loader. Due to the order of execution in a transaction and the customizations in

your organization, here’s what happens.

SOQL Query

Used

DML Statement

Used

Transaction Operation

Cases are saved to the database, but aren’t committed yet.1

Case assignment rules are executed. Each case’s owner is updated.2

Case escalation rules are executed. If any case has been open for 10 days, an

email is sent to the owner.

Process is started.4

Process looks up the case’s account.5

If the account is hot, process uses Chatter to notify the account owner that there’s

a new case associated with the account.

Process launches a flow interview.7

Flow interview looks up the parent account and how many cases it has.8

Flow interview checks whether the account has more than five open cases.9

If it does, flow interview looks up the account’s division manager then posts on

the account’s Chatter feed to notify the division manager and account owner.

If it doesn’t, flow interview posts on the account’s Chatter feed to notify only the

account owner.

SEE ALSO:

Apex Developer Guide: Triggers and Order of Execution

Flow Bulkification in Transactions

Programmers can design their code so that similar actions are performed together in one batch. For example, one operation to create

50 records rather than 50 separate operations that each create one record. This process is called bulkification, and it helps your transaction

avoid governor limits. If you’re working with flows, you don’t even have to think about bulkification. Flow interviews bulkify actions for

you automatically.

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

IN THIS SECTION:

How Does Flow Bulkification Work?

Interview operations are bulkified only when they execute the same element. That means that the interviews must all be associated

with the same flow.

Which Flow Elements Can Be Bulkified?

Flows can bulkify any element that performs a DML statement or SOQL query or does something else external to the flow, like

sending an email.

Example of Flow Bulkification

This example demonstrates how operations are bulkified for a flow when 100 cases are updated through Data Loader.

SEE ALSO:

Flows in Transactions

How Does Flow Bulkification Work?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Interview operations are bulkified only when they execute the same element. That means that the

interviews must all be associated with the same flow.

When multiple interviews for the same flow run in one transaction, each interview runs until it

reaches a bulkifiable element. Salesforce takes all the interviews that stopped at the same element

and intelligently executes those operations together. If other interviews are at a different element,

Salesforce then intelligently executes those operations together. Salesforce repeats this process

until all the interviews finish.

If, despite the bulkification, any interview hits a governor limit, all the interviews in the transaction

fail. Any operations that the interviews performed are rolled back, and the transaction doesn’t try

to perform the operations again.

Example: When you upload 100 cases, the flow MyFlow_2 triggers one interview for each case.

•50 interviews stop at Record Create element Create_Task_1.

•The other 50 interviews stop at Record Create element Create_Task_2.

The result? At least two groups of bulk operations to execute.

•One for the 50 interviews that execute Create_Task_1

•One for the 50 interviews that execute Create_Task_2

Which Flow Elements Can Be Bulkified?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Flows can bulkify any element that performs a DML statement or SOQL query or does something

else external to the flow, like sending an email.

Elements that create, update or delete records

When a record is created, updated, or deleted, the transaction performs a DML statement.

•Create elements (Record Create, Fast Create)

•Update elements (Record Update, Fast Update)

•Delete elements (Record Delete, Fast Delete)

•Quick Action elements

•Post to Chatter elements

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

•Submit for Approval elements

•Apex elements—depending on your organization (invocable Apex only)

Elements that look up records

When fields on a record are looked up, the transaction performs a SOQL query.

•Lookup elements (Record Lookup, Fast Lookup)

•Record Update elements

•Record Delete elements

•Apex elements—depending on your organization (invocable Apex only)

Elements that send emails

•Send Email elements

•Email Alert elements

•Apex elements—depending on your organization (invocable Apex only)

Note:

•Unlike invocable Apex, Apex Plug-in elements aren’t bulkified.

•Although invocable Apex is bulkified, the flow has no way of knowing what the invoked methods’ operations are. If you want

those operations to also be bulkified, make sure the code follows bulkification best practices.

SEE ALSO:

Apex Developer Guide: Running Apex within Governor Execution Limits

Example of Flow Bulkification

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

This example demonstrates how operations are bulkified for a flow when 100 cases are updated

through Data Loader.

The Associated Flow

You’ll understand the concepts better if you understand the design of the associated flow.

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

The flow:

1. Looks up the case’s parent account and how many open cases that account has.

2. Checks whether the account has more than five cases open.

3. If the account has more than five open cases:

a. Looks up the division manager for the account.

b. Posts on the account’s Chatter feed to notify the division manager and the account owner.

4. If the account has five or fewer open cases, posts on the account’s Chatter feed to notify only the account owner.

The Bulkified Interviews

When you update the records, one flow interview is created for each case simultaneously. All of the interviews are associated with the

same flow. Each interview runs until it gets to a bulkifiable element.

The first interview goes through the Record Lookup element (1). Because Record Lookups can be bulkified, the interview waits there

until all the other interviews have done the same. Then, Salesforce executes all the Record Lookup operations together (because they’re

all for the same element in the same flow). Instead of 100 SOQL queries, the transaction issues one SOQL query.

The first interview is evaluated by the Decision element (2). The account has six cases, so the interview is routed down the “More than

5” path. The interview proceeds to the second Record Lookup element (3a). Because it’s a bulkifiable element, the interview waits there.

The second interview is evaluated by the Decision element (2). This account has one case, so the interview is routed down the “5 or

fewer” path. The interview proceeds to the Post to Chatter element (4). This element is also bulkifiable, so the interview waits there.

After all the interviews have been processed, 30 are waiting to execute the second Record Lookup element (3a) and the remaining 70

are waiting to execute the Post to Chatter element (4).

Salesforce executes all the Record Lookup (3a) operations for the first 30 interviews together. Instead of 30 separate SOQL queries, the

transaction issues one.

Limits for Visual WorkflowVisual Workflow Guide

Next, the transaction returns to the Post to Chatter element (4), where the 70 interviews are ready to execute their Post to Chatter

operations. Remember, these are the interviews whose accounts don’t have more than five cases. Salesforce executes the Post to Chatter

operations together. Instead of 100 separate DML statements to create each Chatter post, the transaction issues one DML statement to

create all 100 posts at one time. Because the Post to Chatter element isn’t connected to a subsequent element, those 70 interviews

finish.

The 30 interviews—which looked up the relevant division manager—proceed to the final Post to Chatter element (3b). When all 30

interviews are ready, Salesforce executes all 30 Post to Chatter operations together. Instead of issuing 30 separate DML statements for

the individual Chatter posts, it issues one. Because the Post to Chatter element isn’t connected to another element, those 30 interviews

finish.

Flow Best Practices

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Before you begin building and distributing flows, understand the best practices.

Plan out your flow before you start building.

Write or draw out all the details of your business process. That way, you have a clear idea of

what information you need, where you’re getting that information from, and what logic and

actions to perform. Doing so makes building the corresponding flow much easier.

Build your flows in a test environment—like a sandbox or Developer Edition org.

The last thing you want to do is accidentally change records in your company’s production org.

Build your flows in a separate environment. That way, you can enter fake data and test various

permutations of your flow without worrying about changing or deleting data that your users

actually need.

Never hard-code Salesforce IDs.

IDs are org-specific, so don’t hard-code new or existing IDs. Instead, let Salesforce create the IDs, and pass them into variables when

the flow starts. You can do so, for example, by using merge fields in URL parameters or by using a lookup element.

Wait until the end of the flow to make changes to the database.

Have you heard about flow limits? Because flows operate under Apex governor limits, the sky is not the limit. To avoid hitting those

limits, we recommend bunching all your database changes together at the end of the flow, whether those changes create, update,

or delete records.

Control when running users can navigate backward.

If the flow commits changes to the database between two screens, don't let users navigate from the later screen to the previous

screen. Otherwise, the flow can make duplicate changes to the database.

Provide an error handler.

Sad to say, but sometimes a flow doesn’t perform an operation that you configured it to do. Perhaps the flow is missing crucial

information, or the running user doesn’t have the required permissions. By default, the flow shows an error message to the user and

emails the admin who created the flow. However, you can control that behavior. See Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

for more information and recommendations.

Save early and often.

Sometimes the Cloud Flow Designer falls victim to unexpected problems, like losing Internet access. Salesforce doesn’t save your

changes automatically, so it’s up to you to save your work. Save as often as possible, so that you don’t accidentally lose a few hours’

worth of work.

Test as many permutations of your flow as you possibly can.

As with all customizations in Salesforce, it’s important to test your work. This is especially true if your flow uses branching or other

complex logic. Make sure that you test as many possibilities as you can think of before you distribute the flow to your users.

Flow Best PracticesVisual Workflow Guide

Considerations for Designing Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you design flows, keep certain guidelines in mind.

Deleting Variables

If you delete an sObject variable or sObject collection variable, any variable assignments that

use the deleted variable are set to null.

Manipulating Percentage Values

Test your flows carefully if they use sObject variables to manipulate percentage values. When

you insert a value into an sObject variable’s percentage field and then reference that field in a

formula, the value is automatically divided by 100.

For example, an opportunity’s Probability field is set to 100. If you assign that value to sObject

variable {!Opportunity.Probability}, the value is still 100. But if you create a

formula whose expression is {!Opportunity.Probability}, the value is 1.

Referring to Blank Fields or Resources

If you leave any field or resource value blank, that value is null at run time. To treat a text value as an empty string instead of

null, set it to {!$GlobalConstant.EmptyString}.

Boolean Types Treat null Differently than false

Flow treats null as a different value than false. For example, if you try to find a record whose checkbox field is set to null,

no records are returned. Instead, look for records where the checkbox field is set to false. If you’re using a variable (such as

myCheckbox = {!varBoolean}), make sure that the variable isn’t set to null before you reference it in your record filter or

condition.

Setting the Record Type

To set the record type for a record, use the ID of the record type. Look up the record type by its name and then store its ID in the

flow.

For example, use a Record Lookup element to find the RecordType record whose Name is “Reduction Order”. Then store that record

type’s ID in a variable. You can then use the variable to set the Order Record Type field on an order record.

Working with Person Accounts

If your org uses person accounts, reference Contact.Salutation instead of Account.Salutation.

External Objects

External objects aren't supported in flows.

IN THIS SECTION:

Considerations for the Cloud Flow Designer

When you create a flow in the Cloud Flow Designer, familiarize yourself with its limitations and behaviors. For example, it supports

a handful of locales and can’t open flows from managed packages.

Guidelines for Working with Large Flows

Business processes can be complex. When your flow is too large for the canvas, control the zoom, search in the Explorer tab, or

collapse the left side panel.

Considerations for Two-Column Flows

If your org has Lightning runtime enabled, you can control whether a flow displays in one column or two columns. Before you use

this feature, understand how the flow layout currently behaves.

Limitations for Multi-Select Choice Fields

Multi-select checkboxes and multi-select picklist fields let flow users select multiple choices in a screen field. Before you start using

multi-select choice fields, understand how they work in flows, both when you design the flows and when your users run them.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Limitations for Flow Formulas

When you create a formula resource or add validation to a screen input field, understand the formula limitations in Visual Workflow.

Limitations for Time-Based Flows

Before you design flows that contain one or more Wait elements, understand the limitations and guidelines.

Flow Operations and Read-Only Fields

Understand when flows have read-only access to field values. You can control the behavior when a flow tries to update a read-only

field and remove read-only field values from flow operations.

SEE ALSO:

Create a Flow

Flow Operators

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Considerations for the Cloud Flow Designer

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you create a flow in the Cloud Flow Designer, familiarize yourself with its limitations and

behaviors. For example, it supports a handful of locales and can’t open flows from managed packages.

•At run time, time zones for date/time values can differ from what you see in the Cloud Flow

Designer. During run time, date/time values reflect the running user's time zone settings in

Salesforce. In the Cloud Flow Designer, date/time values reflect the time zone set on your

computer. The Cloud Flow Designer appends the GMT offset to your date/time value.

•The Cloud Flow Designer doesn't support UTF-8 encoding for text in user input fields.

•The Cloud Flow Designer contains embedded fonts for all locales it supports. The supported

locales are:

–English (US)

–French (France)

–German (Germany)

–Spanish (Spain)

–Japanese (Japan)

–Chinese (Traditional)

–Chinese (Simplified)

If you enter unsupported characters for a supported locale, they’re displayed using system fonts instead of the embedded fonts.

In unsupported locales, your system font settings are used to display all characters in the Cloud Flow Designer.

•The Cloud Flow Designer can’t open flows that are installed from managed packages.

•Don’t enter the string null as the value of a text field in the Cloud Flow Designer.

•The Cloud Flow Designer has access to information that exists when you open it. If you modify data or metadata in your organization

and need to refer to it in a flow, close and reopen the Cloud Flow Designer. For example, if you add a custom field or modify an Apex

class with the Cloud Flow Designer open, close and reopen the Cloud Flow Designer.

•The Cloud Flow Designer uses the permissions and locale assigned to the current user.

•If you open a flow that was last opened in Winter ’12 or earlier, each Boolean decision is converted to a multi-outcome Decision

element that:

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Uses the same name as the old decision.

–

–Takes the unique name of the old decision, appended with “_switch”.

–Has an outcome labeled “True”. This outcome’s unique name matches that of the old decision, and its conditions are migrated

from the True outcome of the old decision.

–Has a default outcome labeled “False”.

Guidelines for Working with Large Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Business processes can be complex. When your flow is too large for the canvas, control the zoom,

search in the Explorer tab, or collapse the left side panel.

Zoom

To zoom in and out of your flow, use the + and - buttons on the right side of the canvas.

Search in the Explorer tab

Looking for a specific element or resource? Search for it in the Explorer tab.

•To find an element with a specific name, type in the search box.

•To find all instances of a certain element or resource, click the magnifying glass and select the type.

Once you find the right resource in the Explorer tab, see which elements are using the resource. In the Description pane, click the

Usage tab.

Once you find the right element in the Explorer, find that element in your canvas. Hover over the element, and click the magnifying

glass.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

The element is highlighted in green in your canvas.

If the element wasn’t in view, the Cloud Flow Designer automatically scrolls to show the element.

Collapse the left side panel

To hide the Palette, Resources, and Explorer tabs from your view, click the left arrow next to the side panel. That way, you get even

more space in the canvas.

Considerations for Two-Column Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

If your org has Lightning runtime enabled, you can control whether a flow displays in one column

or two columns. Before you use this feature, understand how the flow layout currently behaves.

Granularity

The layout setting is applied at the flow level. So you can’t control the layout at the screen or

field level. If you set a flow to use two columns, every screen in that flow displays in two columns.

Order of Fields

You can’t manually control which fields go in which columns. If the flow is set to display two

columns, the fields alternate in each column. The odd fields (first, third, fifth, and so on) are

placed in the left column. The even fields (second, fourth, sixth, and so on) are placed in the

right column.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

If your users navigate screens with the TAB key, they’ll tab through all the fields in the left column and then all the fields in the right

column. You can’t configure the fields to tab left-to-right.

Responsiveness

The flow layout isn’t responsive to the user's screen dimensions. It uses the same layout whether the user’s screen is one inch wide

or twenty inches wide.

Tip: Don’t apply two-column layout to a flow if users will run it from a phone or small tablet.

SEE ALSO:

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Embed a Flow in a Lightning Page (Beta)

Considerations and Limitations for Flows in Lightning Pages (Beta)

Render Two-Column Screens from a Flow URL

Limitations for Multi-Select Choice Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Multi-select checkboxes and multi-select picklist fields let flow users select multiple choices in a

screen field. Before you start using multi-select choice fields, understand how they work in flows,

both when you design the flows and when your users run them.

Configuring a Multi-Select Resource Field

•A multi-select choice field can have only one default value.

•A dynamic record choice resource can be configured to assign field values from a

user-selected record to variables in the flow. When a multi-select choice field uses a dynamic

record choice, only values from the last record that the user selects are stored in the flow

variables. If multiple multi-select choice fields on one screen use the same dynamic record

choice, the variable assignments obey the first of those fields.

Using Values from a Multi-Select Resource Field

•At run time, a multi-select field’s value is a concatenation of the user-selected choice values, separated by semicolons. If any of

the selected choices’ values included semi-colons, those semi-colons are removed.

•If you referenced multi-select choice fields in flow conditions, follow these best practices.

–Configure a stored value for each choice that you use in multi-select choice fields.

–Don’t use the same choice in multiple multi-select choice fields on the same screen.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Limitations for Flow Formulas

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you create a formula resource or add validation to a screen input field, understand the formula

limitations in Visual Workflow.

•Flow formulas can’t contain more than 3,000 characters.

•A formula returns null if:

–The value that the formula returns doesn’t match its data type.

–The formula contains an unsupported function.

For example, if your formula resource has a data type of Number, the output must be numeric.

•These functions aren’t supported in a flow formula.

–GETRECORDIDS

–IMAGE

–INCLUDE

–ISCHANGED

–ISNEW

–PARENTGROUPVAL

–PREVGROUPVAL

–PRIORVALUE

–REQUIRE SCRIPT

–VLOOKUP

For a complete list of operators and functions for building formulas in Salesforce, see Formula Operators and Functions.

•In a flow, the CONTAINS function checks all characters within its parentheses. For cross object field references, CONTAINS works

like it does in the rest of Salesforce. It checks only the first 250 characters in the reference.

Here’s an example. varContract refers to an sObject variable that contains the values of a contract record. This formula expression

checks only the first 250 characters.

CONTAINS({!varContract.Account.Description}, "description")

This formula expression checks all characters in the field.

CONTAINS({!varContract.Description}, "description")

•If a Display Text screen field contains an invalid formula resource, the flow displays an empty string at run time.

•If a formula expression has an error at run time, it resolves to null.

•If a flow contains an invalid formula resource, you can’t activate the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Formula Resource

Flow Resources

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Limitations for Time-Based Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Before you design flows that contain one or more Wait elements, understand the limitations and

guidelines.

•After you deactivate a flow or flow version, the associated waiting interviews continue as usual.

You can’t delete a flow or flow version if it has associated waiting interviews.

•An interview can execute only one event path per Wait element. After one of its events is

processed, the remaining events are removed from the queue.

•An organization can process up to 1,000 events per hour. When an event is processed, the

interview that it’s associated with is resumed and any other events for that interview are removed

from the queue. If an organization exceeds this limit, Salesforce processes the remaining events

in the next hour.

For example, an organization has 1,200 events scheduled to be processed between 4:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Salesforce processes 1,000

events between 4:00 PM and 5:00 PM and the additional 200 events between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM.

•An organization can have up to 30,000 interviews waiting at a given time.

•If the user who started the interview is deactivated when Salesforce tries to execute an event path, the interview fails to resume.

Transactions and Waiting Interviews

A transaction ends as soon as a flow interview begins to wait for an event. When the flow interview resumes, a new transaction begins.

Everything after the Wait element is executed as part of a batch transaction that includes other resumed interviews.

Interviews aren’t resumed independently. They’re grouped into a single batch that starts resuming within one hour after the first interview

enters the batch. Any actions that fire as a result of those grouped interviews are also executed in that transaction. This behavior can

cause you to exceed your Apex governor limits if the resumed interview executes DML operations or SOQL queries through:

•Flow elements such as Record Create or Fast Lookup

•Apex Plug-in elements

•Apex triggers

•Immediate workflow actions

For details on Apex governor limits, see Limits for Visual Workflow on page 5.

If a Wait element precedes any flow elements that execute DML operations or SOQL queries:

•Ensure that your flows don’t perform more DML operations or SOQL queries between Wait elements than the Apex governor limits

allow.

•Consider using multiple Wait elements so that the DML operations and SOQL queries are performed in multiple transactions.

•Add fault paths for those elements so that the flow returns to the Wait element if the fault message contains:

Too many SOQL queries

Too many DML operations

If an interview fails after it’s resumed:

•Prior interviews in that batch’s transaction are successful.

•Operations that the interview executed before it waited are successful.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

•If a fault connector handles the failure, operations that the interview executed between when it resumed and when it failed are

successful. The operation that caused the interview to fail isn’t successful.

•If a fault connector doesn’t handle the failure, operations that the interview executed between when it resumed and when it failed

are rolled back. The operation that caused the interview to fail isn’t successful.

•The remaining interviews in that batch are tried.

Limitations for General Alarms

•Alarms don’t support minutes or seconds.

•If an interview is waiting for an event that’s set for a time in the past, Salesforce resumes the interview within one hour.

For example, a flow is configured to email an opportunity owner seven days before the close date. An interview is started for an

opportunity with the close date set to today. Salesforce resumes the interview within an hour.

Limitations for Absolute Time Alarms

•Absolute time alarms are evaluated based on the time zone of the user who created the flow.

Limitations for Relative Time Alarms

•Relative time alarms are evaluated based on the organization’s time zone.

•Across all your flow versions, your organization can have up to 20,000 defined relative time alarms.

•Alarms can’t reference the following:

–DATE or DATETIME fields that contain automatically derived functions, such as TODAY or NOW.

–Formula fields that include related-object merge fields.

•If you change a date field that’s referenced by an unexecuted relative time alarm in a waiting interview, Salesforce recalculates the

events associated with the interview.

For example, a flow is configured to email an opportunity owner seven days before the opportunity close date and the close date

is 2/20/2014. The following things could happen.

–The close date isn’t updated before the interview resumes. Result: Salesforce resumes the interview on 2/13/2014 and sends

the email.

–The close date is updated to 2/10/2014 before the interview resumes. Result: Salesforce reschedules the relative time alarm and

the interview resumes on 2/3/2014.

–The close date is updated to a date in the past. Result: Salesforce recalculates the relative time alarm and resumes the interview

shortly after you save the record.

•If a relative time alarm references a null date field when the interview executes the Wait element, Salesforce resumes the interview

within an hour.

•If a relative time alarm references a date field that’s that has a non-null value when the flow interview executes the Wait element

and it’s updated to null before the alarm is processed, Salesforce resumes the interview within an hour after the date field is

updated.

•If a waiting interview has a relative time alarm and the referenced record or object is deleted, the alarm is removed from the queue.

If the interview has no other events to wait for, the interview is deleted.

•You can’t archive a product or price book that’s referenced in a relative or absolute time alarm in a waiting interview.

•Lead Convert Limitations

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

You can’t convert a lead that has associated relative time alarms in waiting interviews.

–

–If Validation and Triggers from Lead Convert is enabled, existing operations on leads after a Wait element aren’t executed during

lead conversion.

–If a campaign member based on a lead is converted before a waiting interview that’s associated with that record finishes,

Salesforce still executes the interview.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations for Designing Flows

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Operators in Flow Conditions

Flow Wait Element

Flow Operations and Read-Only Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Understand when flows have read-only access to field values. You can control the behavior when

a flow tries to update a read-only field and remove read-only field values from flow operations.

IN THIS SECTION:

Which Fields Are Inaccessible When a Flow Creates or Updates Records?

A flow can perform an operation only if the running user has permission to do so. When a flow

tries to create or update records, fields that the running user can’t edit are considered inaccessible,

or read only. A field can be inaccessible because the user hasn’t been granted permission to

edit the field or because it’s a system field that’s always read only.

Control What Happens When a Flow Tries to Set Values for Read-Only Fields

When creating or updating records, the flow sets values for specific fields. But what happens if the running user doesn’t have edit

access to all those fields? For Fast Create and Fast Update elements, that’s up to you. To control the behavior, select or deselect the

Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow Requests preference.

Remove Read-Only Fields from an sObject Variable

If a flow tries to update fields that the running user can’t edit and Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow

Requests is not enabled for your org, the flow fails. If your sObject variable includes read-only fields and you can’t grant your

running users “Edit” permissions for those fields, remove the fields from the sObject variable. Use a Record Create or Record Update

element instead of a Fast Create or Fast Update element, or copy the writable field values into a new sObject variable.

Which Fields Are Inaccessible When a Flow Creates or Updates Records?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A flow can perform an operation only if the running user has permission to do so. When a flow tries

to create or update records, fields that the running user can’t edit are considered inaccessible, or

read only. A field can be inaccessible because the user hasn’t been granted permission to edit the

field or because it’s a system field that’s always read only.

To determine which fields are system fields, see the Object Reference for Salesforce and Force.com.

To determine which other fields aren’t editable, review the running user’s permissions.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

How Did Read-Only Fields Get in My sObject Variable?

The Variable Includes ...If the Variable Is Populated by ...

Id and any other read-only fields that you choose to include.A Fast Lookup element

Any read-only fields that you choose to include.An Assignment or Record Lookup

element

All the object’s system fields and any fields that the running user doesn’t have permission

to edit. The variable includes every field for the object by default.

A process or a workflow rule

What Do I Do When My sObject Variable Includes Read-Only Fields?

For each read-only field that’s stored in your sObject variable:

1. Determine whether the flow uses that field anywhere. If it doesn’t, update the flow so that it doesn’t store a value for that field. This

suggestion applies only if the variable is populated by an element in the flow, like Fast Lookup.

For example, a Fast Lookup element stores CreatedByDate, but no other elements reference that field. You update the Fast

Lookup so that it’s no longer storing CreatedByDate.

2. If the read-only field is referenced in the flow, give the running users the permissions needed for the flow to execute its operations.

3. If you can’t give the running users the needed permissions for a field, update the flow so that it doesn’t try to update that field.

Example: Using a Fast Update element, a flow updates several fields on an account. While your users can edit Description

and Account Rating, they can’t edit Owner ID or LastModifiedDate. To prevent the flow from failing at runtime:

•Give your users “Edit” permission for Owner ID.

•Copy only the writable field values (Description, Account Rating, and Owner ID) from the original sObject

variable into a new sObject variable. Reference the new sObject variable in the Fast Update element.

Copying only the writable field values ensures that the flow doesn’t try to set a value for LastModifiedDate at runtime.

SEE ALSO:

Remove Read-Only Fields from an sObject Variable

Control What Happens When a Flow Tries to Set Values for Read-Only Fields

Object Reference for Salesforce and Force.com: System Fields

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Control What Happens When a Flow Tries to Set Values for Read-Only Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To edit process automation

settings:

•“Customize Application”

When creating or updating records, the flow sets values for specific fields. But what happens if the

running user doesn’t have edit access to all those fields? For Fast Create and Fast Update elements,

that’s up to you. To control the behavior, select or deselect the Filter Inaccessible

Fields from Flow Requests preference.

A flow request is when a flow tries to perform an operation, such as create or update records.

When Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow

Requests is

Not Selected

(Recommended)

Selected

The operation fails.

No fields in the operation are

updated. The flow executes the

fault path if there is one.

The operation partially

succeeds.

The flow filters read-only fields

out of the operation. The fields

that the user can edit are

Result when the running

user doesn’t have edit access

to all fields

updated. The fields that the

user can’t edit aren’t updated.

The flow doesn’t execute the

fault path.

The admin receives a flow error

email with full details.

No notification is sent to the

user or admin to indicate that

some fields weren’t updated.

Notification when one or

more fields aren’t updated

ConsistentInconsistentCompared to Record Create

and Record Update

elements

Tip: We recommend disabling this preference so that you always know when a flow doesn’t set all expected field values.

1. From Setup, enter Automation in the Quick Find box, then select Process Automation Settings.

2. Select or deselect Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow Requests.

If your org was created in Winter ’17 or earlier, the preference is enabled by default. Otherwise, the preference is disabled by default.

Example: Using a Fast Update element, a flow updates several fields on an opportunity. At runtime, the flow tries to update the

Acme account on behalf of your user. The user can edit Stage and Close Date but not Amount. As a result, the flow

doesn’t have permission to update Amount.

•If Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow Requests is selected, the flow successfully updates the account,

but it only updates Stage and Close Date. The flow doesn’t notify anybody that Amount wasn’t updated.

•If Filter Inaccessible Fields from Flow Requests is not selected, the flow fails to update the account.

The admin receives a flow error email. The email includes this error.

INVALID_FIELD_FOR_INSERT_UPDATE: Unable to create/update fields: Amount

That's API-speak for “The running user doesn’t have permission to edit the Amount field.”

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Warning: If you change your org’s selection for this preference, use a sandbox to test how the change impacts your flows.

Consider following the same process as you would for a critical update.

SEE ALSO:

Which Fields Are Inaccessible When a Flow Creates or Updates Records?

Remove Read-Only Fields from an sObject Variable

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

If a flow tries to update fields that the running user can’t edit and Filter Inaccessible

Fields from Flow Requests is not enabled for your org, the flow fails. If your sObject

variable includes read-only fields and you can’t grant your running users “Edit” permissions for those

fields, remove the fields from the sObject variable. Use a Record Create or Record Update element

instead of a Fast Create or Fast Update element, or copy the writable field values into a new sObject

variable.

Note: If the read-only fields are populated in the sObject variable in a Fast Lookup or

Assignment element, consider updating those elements so that they don’t populate that

field at all.

IN THIS SECTION:

Copy Field Values from One sObject Variable to Another

sObject variables and sObject collection variables can have values set for fields that the running user can’t edit. However, you can

use the other values to create or update records with Fast Create or Fast Update elements. To do so, map the writable values from

the original sObject variable into a new sObject variable.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Record Create Element

Flow Record Update Element

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Copy Field Values from One sObject Variable to Another

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

sObject variables and sObject collection variables can have values set for fields that the running

user can’t edit. However, you can use the other values to create or update records with Fast Create

or Fast Update elements. To do so, map the writable values from the original sObject variable into

a new sObject variable.

Note: With sObject collection variables, use loops to map the field values to a new collection.

1. Add an Assignment element to your flow. Make sure that the flow executes this element after

the original sObject variable has been populated but before the Create or Update element.

2. For each writable field in the original sObject variable, add a row.

•Variable—Select {!sObjectVar2.field}, where sObjectVar2 is the name of

the new variable and field is the field on that variable.

•Operator—Select equals.

•Value—Select {!sObjectVar1.field}, where sObjectVar1 is the name of

the original variable and field is the field on that variable.

Note: If you plan to reference the variable in a Fast Update element, include the record’s

ID in the new sObject variable. Although Id is read only, the flow uses the value to

determine which records to update.

Example: You have a case sObject variable called {!myCaseVar_all}. It stores values for some read-only fields, so you

can’t use it in a Fast Update element. You copy the fields that you want to update to a new sObject variable: IsEscalated

and Status. You also copy Id, because it’s required for an update operation.Here’s what those assignment rules look like.

ValueOperatorVariable

{!myCaseVar_original.Id}equals{!myCaseVar_final.Id}

{!myCaseVar_original.IsEscalated}equals{!myCaseVar_final.IsEscalated}

{!myCaseVar_original.Status}equals{!myCaseVar_final.Status}

The same example works for an sObject collection variable. However, because you can’t directly change the values of a collection

variable, you use a loop.

Considerations for Designing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

1. Using a Loop element, the flow passes each item’s values into a loop variable ({!myCaseLoopVar_original}).

2. For each iteration, an Assignment element copies the Id, IsEscalated, and Status fields from the loop variable to

another sObject variable ({!myCaseLoopVar_final}).

3. The flow then adds the {!myCaseLoopVar_final} variable’s values to a new collection. The second Assignment

element includes this rule.

ValueOperatorVariable

{!myCaseLoopVar_final}add{!myCaseColl_updated}

After the flow has iterated over every item in the original collection, it exits the loop.

SEE ALSO:

Which Fields Are Inaccessible When a Flow Creates or Updates Records?

Control What Happens When a Flow Tries to Set Values for Read-Only Fields

Flow Assignment Element

Considerations for Managing Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When managing flows, consider the administration and activation limits.

Activating Flows

When you activate a new version of a flow, the previously activated version (if one exists) is

automatically deactivated. Any running flow interview continues to run using the version with

which it was initiated.

Deleting Flows

To delete an active flow version, first deactivate it. If a flow has any paused or waiting interviews,

it can’t be deleted until those interviews are finished or deleted. Flows that have never been

activated can be deleted immediately.

Flow Properties

The properties for a given flow’s versions automatically match the active version’s properties by default. In other words, if you have

three versions and you activate version 2, Salesforce updates the properties for versions 1 and 3 to match version 2. However, if you

edit the properties for an inactive version, that version’s properties are no longer automatically updated to match the active version.

The flow's active (or latest) version determines the flow's type. For example, if a flow's active version contains a screen, its type is

Flow. It can't be implemented through a system-based method, like the Process Builder.

IN THIS SECTION:

Considerations for Installed Flows

Keep these considerations in mind when you distribute, upgrade, or remove a flow that you installed from a package.

SEE ALSO:

Manage Your Flows

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Considerations for Managing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Considerations for Installed Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Keep these considerations in mind when you distribute, upgrade, or remove a flow that you installed

from a package.

•The Cloud Flow Designer can’t open flows that are installed from managed packages.

•If you install a package that contains multiple flow versions in a fresh destination organization,

only the latest flow version is deployed.

•If you install a flow from a managed package, error emails for that flow’s interviews don’t include

any details about the individual flow elements. The email is sent to the user who installed the

flow.

•If you install a flow from an unmanaged package that has the same name but a different version

number as a flow in your organization, the newly installed flow becomes the latest version of

the existing flow. However, if the packaged flow has the same name and version number as a flow already in your organization, the

package install fails. You can’t overwrite a flow.

Status

An active flow in a package is active after it’s installed. The previous active version of the flow in the destination organization is

deactivated in favor of the newly installed version. Any in-progress flows based on the now-deactivated version continue to run

without interruption but reflect the previous version of the flow.

Distributing Installed Flows

•When you create a custom button, link, or Web tab for a flow that’s installed from a managed package, include the namespace

in the URL. The URL format is /flow/namespace/flowuniquename.

•When you embed a flow that’s installed from a managed package in a Visualforce page, set the name attribute to this format:

namespace.flowuniquename.

Upgrading Installed Flows

Upgrading a managed package in your organization installs a new flow version only if there’s a newer flow version from the developer.

After several upgrades, you can end up with multiple flow versions.

Removing Installed Flows

•You can’t delete a flow from an installed package. To remove a packaged flow from your organization, deactivate it and then

uninstall the package.

•You can’t delete flow components from Managed - Beta package installations in development organizations.

•If you have multiple versions of a flow installed from multiple unmanaged packages, you can’t remove only one version by

uninstalling its package. Uninstalling a package—managed or unmanaged—that contains a single version of the flow removes

the entire flow, including all versions.

SEE ALSO:

Flows in Change Sets and Packages

Considerations for Deploying Flows with Packages

Install a Package

Considerations for Managing FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Considerations for Running Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you run or test a flow, keep the limits and guidelines in mind.

•Be careful when testing flows that contain delete elements. Even if the flow is inactive, it triggers

the delete operation.

•At run time, time zones for date/time values can differ from what you see in the Cloud Flow

Designer. During run time, date/time values reflect the running user's time zone settings in

Salesforce.

•Interviews don’t perform actions—such as sending emails or creating, editing, or deleting

records—until the associated transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element. Record and Fast

elements aren’t the only ones to create or update records. Post to Chatter, Submit for Approval,

and Quick Actions elements do, as well.

•Don't use your browser's Back or Forward buttons to navigate through a flow. Doing so can result in inconsistent data between the

flow and Salesforce.

•A single flow can have up to 50 different versions. When you run a flow, you see the active version, but your admin could have a

more recent version.

•For flows that interact with the Salesforce database, make sure that your users have permission to create, read, edit, and delete the

relevant records and fields. Otherwise, users receive an insufficient privileges error when they try to launch a flow. For example, a

flow looks up and updates a case record’s status. The flow users must have “Read” and “Edit” permissions on the Status field of

the Case object.

•When you distribute a flow, don’t pass a currency field value from a Salesforce record into a flow Currency variable with a URL

parameter. When a currency field is referenced through a merge field (such as {!Account.AnnualRevenue}), the value

includes the unit of currency’s symbol (for example, $). Flow variables of type Currency can accept only numeric values, so the flow

fails at run time. Instead, pass the record’s ID to a flow Text variable with a URL parameter. Then in the flow, use the ID to look up

that record’s value for the currency field.

Lightning Runtime Limitations

When Lightning runtime is enabled for your org, flows in Lightning Experience don’t load in:

•Web tabs

•List buttons that are set to display an existing window with or without a sidebar

When Lightning runtime is enabled for your org, flows in Salesforce Classic don’t load in:

•Web tabs

•Custom buttons or links that are set to display in an existing window with or without a sidebar

Users can’t enter more than 16 digits, including digits before and after a decimal point.

SEE ALSO:

Test a Flow

Flow Interviews

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Flow Runtime Experiences

Considerations for Running FlowsVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Accessibility

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Visual Workflow is 508-compliant with a few exceptions.

•The title of the screen doesn’t change when you click Next or Previous, so you might not realize

you're on a new page.

•Radio button fields don’t have labels. Screen readers can't distinguish between questions.

•Questions without defined prompts can read incorrectly.

•Errors are not noted when reading the fields.

SEE ALSO:

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Create a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Once you understand the process that you want to automate, design a flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer for that process.

Tip: Before you start creating your flow, plan it out. It’s much easier to automate a business

process by using Visual Workflow when you fully understand the details of your business

process.

If you’re new to the Cloud Flow Designer, we recommend walking through one or more of the flow

projects in the Automate Your Business Processes trail on Trailhead. They’re a great way to learn

about the tool and discover how it works.

1. Open the Cloud Flow Designer. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then

select Flows, and then click New Flow.

2. Drag the appropriate elements onto the canvas.

Tip: If you’re not sure which element you need for a node, add a Step element as a

placeholder until you figure it out. You can always replace the Step later.

3. Connect the elements together so that it’s clear what the order of the elements is.

4. Identify which element the flow should start with when it runs.

5. Save any changes that you made to the flow.

6. Test the flow to make sure it’s working as you expect it to.

7. Activate the flow so that users can run it.

8. Distribute the flow to the appropriate users.

SEE ALSO:

Manage Your Flows

Considerations for Designing Flows

Flow Accessibility

Flow Building Blocks

Flow AccessibilityVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Building Blocks

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Use combinations of elements, connectors, and resources to build flows.

•Each element (1) represents an action that the flow can execute. Examples include reading or writing Salesforce data, displaying

information to and collecting data from flow users, executing logic, or manipulating data.

•Each connector (2) defines an available path that the flow can take at run time.

•Each resource (3) represents a value that you can reference throughout the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Flow Resources

Flow Connectors

Flow Building BlocksVisual Workflow Guide

Cloud Flow Designer

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

The Cloud Flow Designer lets you design flows without writing any code.

Watch a Demo: Visual Workflow Cloud Flow Designer Overview

For a collection of useful resources, including videos and sample flows, open the Cloud Flow Designer

and click Get Started.

IN THIS SECTION:

Requirements for the Cloud Flow Designer

To use the Cloud Flow Designer, you need an up-to-date browser and Adobe® Flash® Player.

Tour the Cloud Flow Designer User Interface

Before you use the Cloud Flow Designer to design flows, understand the tool's main components.

Search Within a Flow

As a flow grows and becomes more complex, it becomes more challenging to find things within it. The Cloud Flow Designer offers

tools for quickly finding flow elements and resources.

Search Within the Palette

As you add more flows, actions, and Apex classes to your organization, it becomes more challenging to find a specific item in the

Palette. You can, however, search in the Palette to quickly find the right element for your flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Flow Resources

Requirements for the Cloud Flow Designer

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

To use the Cloud Flow Designer, you need an up-to-date browser and Adobe® Flash® Player.

We recommend:

•Windows® Internet Explorer® versions 8 through 11, Google® Chrome™, or Mozilla® Firefox®.

Internet Explorer 6 and 7 are not supported.

•Adobe® Flash® Player version 10.1 and later. The minimum version required to run the Cloud

Flow Designer is 10.0.

•A minimum browser resolution of 1024x768.

Tour the Cloud Flow Designer User Interface

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Before you use the Cloud Flow Designer to design flows, understand the tool's main components.

Cloud Flow DesignerVisual Workflow Guide

Button Bar (1)

Manage your flow as you build it.

•Run runs the most recent saved version of the flow that you have open. If the flow contains subflow elements, each subflow

runs the active version of its referenced flow. If the referenced flow has no active version, then the subflow element runs the

latest version of its referenced flow.

•The status indicator on the right side displays whether:

–The flow is active or not

–The latest changes to the flow are saved or not

–There are any warnings or errors in the last saved version of the flow

To see a list of the warnings or errors, click the indicator.

Canvas (2)

The canvas is the working area, where you build a flow by adding elements. As you add elements to the canvas and connect them

together, you see a visual diagram of your flow.

Palette Tab (3)

Add new elements, like Screens and Record Creates, to your flow from the Palette tab.

Resources Tab (4)

Create resources, like a variable or formula, to use in your flow from the Resources tab.

Cloud Flow DesignerVisual Workflow Guide

Explorer Tab (5)

The Explorer tab is a library of all elements and resources that you’ve added to the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Properties

Manage Flow Elements, Resources, and Connectors

Search Within the Palette

Search Within a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

As a flow grows and becomes more complex, it becomes more challenging to find things within

it. The Cloud Flow Designer offers tools for quickly finding flow elements and resources.

Open the flow in the Cloud Flow Designer. Then find an element or resource in the flow by using

one or more of the following options.

•On the Explorer tab, enter search text.

The Explorer tab displays only the elements and resources whose properties contain the entered

text.

•Filter the Explorer tab contents to one type of element or resource by clicking .

To remove the filter, click and select SEARCH ALL.

•Dim all visible elements on the canvas other than the results by selecting Highlight Results

on Canvas.

•Zoom in and out as desired using the controls near the top right corner of the canvas area.

•To see the location of an Explorer item on the canvas, complete one of the following procedures.

If the Explorer item is a canvas-visible element or a screen field:

1. Hover over the item on the Explorer tab.

2. Click .

If the Explorer item is a resource that doesn’t appear on the canvas:

1. Click the item on the Explorer tab.

2. Click the Usage tab in the Description pane.

3. Hover over an element listed on the Usage tab.

4. Click its .

The canvas shifts to display the element and momentarily highlights it.

SEE ALSO:

Tour the Cloud Flow Designer User Interface

Cloud Flow DesignerVisual Workflow Guide

Search Within the Palette

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

As you add more flows, actions, and Apex classes to your organization, it becomes more challenging

to find a specific item in the Palette. You can, however, search in the Palette to quickly find the right

element for your flow.

From the Palette tab, use the following options to find a specific item.

•Next to , enter search text.

The Palette displays only the items that contain the entered text.

•To filter the Palette tab contents to one type of element, click and select what you want to

see.

•To remove the filter, click and select SEARCH ALL.

SEE ALSO:

Tour the Cloud Flow Designer User Interface

Set a Flow’s Start Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Before you can save a flow, indicate which element to execute first.

1. Hover over the starting element in your flow.

2. Click .

SEE ALSO:

Save a Flow

Set a Flow’s Start ElementVisual Workflow Guide

Save a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

After you create a flow in the Cloud Flow Designer, you have some options for saving the flow.

Initial save

When you save a new flow for the first time, a dialog box appears. Enter values for each of the

flow’s properties. Once you save the flow, the unique name can’t be changed.

Quick save

After you’ve saved a flow once, the Save button works as a quick-save, overwriting your previous

work. However, the Save button doesn’t work when editing active flows. To save your changes

as a new version or new flow, use Save As.

Save As

After you’ve saved your flow once, this button is enabled with two options:

•Save as new flow opens a dialog box where you can input a new name, unique name,

and description, then save your changes as an entirely new flow.

•Save as new version saves the flow as a new version of the current flow. Use this option

if you want to change a flow and keep the old configuration as a backup.

Each flow can have up to 50 versions. You can’t update the unique name when you save

a new version.

When saving a flow or flow version:

•If you have the flow detail page open in one browser tab, then edit a version in another tab, before you run the edited version:

1. Save the version.

2. Close the Cloud Flow Designer.

3. Refresh the flow detail page in the first tab.

•If you’ve changed the flow properties and for some reason the flow fails to save, the flow properties don’t revert to the previous

values.

SEE ALSO:

Cloud Flow Designer

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version

Common Flow Tasks

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A handful of tasks are common to multiple flow use cases. For example, you can define conditions

in both Decision and Wait elements.

IN THIS SECTION:

Manage Flow Elements, Resources, and Connectors

Customize your flow by adding, editing, or removing elements, resources, and connectors.

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

The real power of a flow is that it can automate updates to your organization’s records. In a

flow, you can automatically look up values from records, create records, update records, delete

records—the whole shebang!

Save a FlowVisual Workflow Guide

Validate Users’ Inputs with Flow Formulas

Just like with regular validation rules, you can validate what users enter in flow screens.

Define Flow Conditions

Control when a flow takes a specific decision outcome or waits for a specific wait event.

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Identify which elements the flow executes and in what order by connecting the elements on your canvas together.

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

If your flow contains an element that interacts with the Salesforce database—such as a Record Update or Submit for Approval

element, it can fail. Modify the default behavior by adding fault paths to all elements that can fail.

Manage Flow Elements, Resources, and Connectors

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Customize your flow by adding, editing, or removing elements, resources, and connectors.

RemoveEditAdd

Hover over it and click .

Double-click, or hover over

it and click .

Drag from the Palette tab

and drop it on to the

canvas.

Element

From the Explorer tab,

hover over it and click .

From the Explorer tab,

double-click or hover over

it and click .

From the Resources tab,

double-click.

Resource

Select it and press the

DELETE key.

n/aClick the node at the

bottom of an element on

the canvas and drag a line

anywhere onto the target

element.

Connector

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Flow Resources

Flow Connectors

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

The real power of a flow is that it can automate updates to your organization’s records. In a flow,

you can automatically look up values from records, create records, update records, delete

records—the whole shebang!

For each of those operations, the Cloud Flow Designer offers at least two elements to choose from.

Review the following topics to understand the differences between those elements and decide

which one is best for your use case.

Tip: Be familiar with the API names for the objects and fields that you want to work with.

The Cloud Flow Designer displays API names instead of labels.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

IN THIS SECTION:

Pull Values from Salesforce Records into a Flow

Before you can use information from your Salesforce records in a flow, pull that information into variables in your flow. Use either a

Record Lookup element or a Fast Lookup element. The right element depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Create Salesforce Records from a Flow

To create Salesforce records, use either the Record Create, Quick Action, or Fast Create element. The right element depends on what

the rest of your flow is doing.

Update Salesforce Records from a Flow

To update field values on existing Salesforce records, use either the Record Update, Quick Action, or Fast Update element. The right

element depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Delete Salesforce Records from a Flow

To delete Salesforce records, use either the Record Delete or Fast Delete element. The right element depends on what the rest of

your flow is doing.

Pull Values from Salesforce Records into a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Before you can use information from your Salesforce records in a flow, pull that information into

variables in your flow. Use either a Record Lookup element or a Fast Lookup element. The right

element depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Alternatively, pass values in from an element that interacts with the Salesforce database—such as

the ID of the post created by a Post to Chatter element.

Example: You need to email a given account’s owner. To do so, the flow needs to know

the email address and name of that user.

To pull values into a flow from records in your organization, use either the Record Lookup or Fast

Lookup element in the Cloud Flow Designer.

How do I choose between flow lookup elements?

The two flow lookup elements are pretty similar. This table summarizes the two main differences between them.

Number of records it

looks up

To map field values to flow variables ...Can store values

in ...

Exactly one.Record

Lookup 1.

•Identify each field that you want to store.Variables

•sObject

variables

2. For each field, identify a flow variable to store that specific

value in.

Because you directly map each field value to a variable, you get

more granularity with this element. However, with more

granularity comes more clicking.

If an sObject variable: one.

If an sObject collection

variable: at least one.

Fast Lookup 1.

•Identify the flow variable in which you want to store all field

values.

sObject

variables

•sObject

collection

variables

2. Identify the fields whose values you want to store in that flow

variable.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Unless you want to map each field to a variable with fewer mouse clicks, it can be hard to choose between the two elements. To choose

the right lookup element, figure out what type of variable you need to store the values in.

•To store the values in a single-value non-sObject variable, use the Record Lookup element.

•To store the values in an sObject collection variable, use the Fast Lookup element.

•To store the values in a single-value sObject variable, it’s your choice. (Fast Lookup might save you some clicks!)

Tip: It’s best practice to use Fast elements whenever possible, so that you save your org’s limits. For more information, see Flow

Bulkification in Transactions.

Example: Here’s how you’d store a user’s email and name by using each of the lookup elements.

Record Lookup

Fast Lookup

SEE ALSO:

Flow Fast Lookup Element

Flow Record Lookup Element

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Create Salesforce Records from a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

To create Salesforce records, use either the Record Create, Quick Action, or Fast Create element.

The right element depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Example: When the customer’s satisfaction score drops below a certain number,

automatically create a case.

To create one or more Salesforce records, your flow:

1. Identifies the field values for the new records.

2. Saves those changes to the Salesforce database. (In other words, until the changes are saved

to the database, the changes exist only within the flow.)

How do I choose between flow elements that create records?

The main difference between create elements lies in how many records the element can create and how it knows the field values to

apply.

I need to create more than one record at a time.

To create more than one record at a time, use a Fast Create element with an sObject collection variable. It’s best practice to use Fast

elements whenever possible, so that you stay within your org’s limits. For more information, see Flow Bulkification in Transactions.

Record Create and Quick Action elements can create only one record at a time. Fast Create elements can create either one record

(if using an sObject variable) or multiple records (if using an sObject collection variable).

I need to create exactly one record.

If you’ve already populated an sObject variable with the values you want your record to have, use a Fast Create element.

If you want to use a combination of the values from an sObject variable and values from other resources (like single-value variables

or screen input fields), use either a Record Create or Quick Action element. Those two elements differ in these ways.

•Which fields are available in the elements

•Whether the element provides any required fields for the object

•Whether the element lets you store the new record’s ID

Storing the ID is useful, for example, if you create an account and then want to create a contact that's associated with that

account (which you obviously need the ID for).

New Record IDRequired FieldsField Availability

Lets you store the ID of the created

record to use later in your flow.

Not indicatedEvery field on the object. You manually

select the object and every field you

want to have a value.

Record Create

Doesn’t let you store the created

record's ID for use later.

Indicated

Requiredness is based on what's

marked required in the quick

action layout.

Only fields that are included in the Quick

Action layout.

If you supplied default values for certain

fields when you created the quick action,

those values are used when the record

is created.

Quick Action

(of type

Create)

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Tip: Use the Quick Actions element when all these statements are true.

1. The action is of type Create.

2. The action’s layout includes all the fields that you want to update.

3. You don't need to reference the new record's ID later in the flow.

Otherwise, use the Record Create element.

Example: Here’s how you’d create a case when a customer’s satisfaction score is too low by using each of the create elements.

You can set any field on the record, but the Record Create element doesn’t know which fields are required

for this object.

Record Create

Assumes {!svarCase} is already populated with the right fields.

Fast Create

These four fields are the only fields that you can set for this element, because they’re the only ones available

from the action layout. Contact ID is required by the associated action layout, so it’s required in this element.

Quick Action (of

type Create)

SEE ALSO:

Flow Fast Create Element

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

Flow Quick Action Element

Flow Record Create Element

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Update Salesforce Records from a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

To update field values on existing Salesforce records, use either the Record Update, Quick Action,

or Fast Update element. The right element depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Example: On an opportunity record, when a user clicks the “Won” button, a flow updates

the opportunity’s stage.

To update fields on one or more existing Salesforce records, your flow:

1. Identifies the records to update.

2. Identifies the new field values for those records.

3. Saves those changes to the Salesforce database. (In other words, until the changes are saved

to the database, the changes exist only within the flow.)

How do I choose between flow elements that update records?

The main difference between the elements lies in these areas: how it knows which records to update, how it knows the new field values

to apply, and how many records it can update.

Quick Action elements can update only one record at a time, while Record Update and Fast Update elements can update multiple

records.

Number of records

it updates

To identify new field values for the recordsTo identify records to update

At least one.In the same element, map each field that should be

updated with a variable or other resource.

All resources are supported, so long as the resource’s

data type matches the selected field’s data type.

In the same element, use filter

criteria.

Record

Update

Exactly one.In the same element, map each field that should be

updated with a variable or other resource.

All resources are supported, so long as the resource’s

data type matches the selected field’s data type.

Populate a single-value variable with

the ID in another element. Use this

ID for the Related Record ID

parameter.

Quick Action

If an sObject variable:

one.

If an sObject collection

variable: at least one.

In another element, such as an Assignment element,

update the values in the sObject variable or sObject

collection variable.

Populate an sObject variable or

sObject collection variable in another

element

Fast Update

If the following statement is true, use a Fast Update element:

•You’ve already populated an sObject variable or sObject collection variable with the values you want:

Tip:

–You can always update the field values in an sObject variable or sObject collection variable by using an Assignment element.

–It’s best practice to use Fast elements whenever possible, so that you save your org’s limits. For more information, see Flow

Bulkification in Transactions.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

If all the following statements are true, use a Quick Action element:

•You need to update exactly one record

•You’ve already populated a variable with the record’s ID

•The Quick Action’s layout includes all the fields you need to update

If any of those statements aren’t true, use a Record Update element.

Example: Here’s how you’d update an opportunity’s stage by using each of the update elements.

You can update any field on the record, but the Record Update element doesn’t know which fields are

required for this object.

Record Update

Assumes {!svarOpportunity} is already populated with the right fields.

Fast Update

These three fields are required by the associated action layout, so they’re required in this element. Related

Record ID identifies which opportunity to update.

Quick Action (of

type Update)

SEE ALSO:

Flow Fast Update Element

Flow Record Update Element

Flow Quick Action Element

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Delete Salesforce Records from a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

To delete Salesforce records, use either the Record Delete or Fast Delete element. The right element

depends on what the rest of your flow is doing.

Example: When a customer accepts a quote, automatically delete the remaining quotes

from the opportunity.

To delete one or more records, your flow:

1. Identifies the records that to delete.

2. Saves those changes to the Salesforce database. (In other words, until the changes are saved

to the database, the changes exist only within the flow.)

How do I choose between flow elements that delete records?

The main difference between elements lies in how the element knows which records to delete.

To identify records to delete

In the same element, use filter criteria.Record Delete

In another element, populate an sObject variable or sObject collection variable with the ID of the record to be

deleted.

Fast Delete

If you’ve already populated an sObject variable or sObject collection variable with the records you want to delete, use a Fast Delete.

(sObject collection variables are supported for record deletion only with a Fast Create element.) It’s best practice to use Fast elements

whenever possible, so that you save your org’s limits. For more information, see Flow Bulkification in Transactions.

If you haven’t yet identified which records to delete or you’ve stored the IDs in non-sObject resources—such as a single-value variable—use

a Record Delete element. sObject collection variables aren’t supported for this element.

Example: Here’s how you’d delete remaining quotes from an opportunity by using each of the delete elements.

The flow finds all quotes that are associated with a specific opportunity and haven’t been approved, and

then deletes them.

Record Delete

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Assumes {!svarQuotesUnnecessary} is already populated with the IDs of the quotes to delete. The flow

deletes all records whose IDs are included in that variable.

Fast Delete

SEE ALSO:

Flow Fast Delete Element

Flow Record Delete Element

Working with Salesforce Records in a Flow

Validate Users’ Inputs with Flow Formulas

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Just like with regular validation rules, you can validate what users enter in flow screens.

•The formula expression must return a Boolean value (TRUE or FALSE).

•If the expression evaluates to TRUE, the input is valid. If the expression evaluates to FALSE,

the error message is displayed to the user.

•If the user leaves the field blank and the field isn’t required, the flow doesn’t validate the field.

When you configure a screen input field:

1. In the Input Validation section, select Validate.

2. Define the values allowed for the field by entering a Boolean formula expression.

Note:

•The formula expression must return a Boolean value.

•If the formula expression evaluates to TRUE, the input is valid.

•If the formula expression evaluates to FALSE, the error message is displayed to the

user.

•If the user leaves the field blank, and the field is not required, the flow doesn’t validate.

3. Customize the error message that appears if the user’s input fails validation.

Click to switch between the plain text editor and the rich text editor. Using the rich text editor saves the content as HTML.

Example:

•Validate the format of an email address:

REGEX({!Email_Address},"[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+\\.[a-zA-Z]{2,4}")

•Validate the format of a zip code:

REGEX({!Zipcode},"\\d{5}(-\\d{4})?")

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Define Flow Conditions

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Control when a flow takes a specific decision outcome or waits for a specific wait event.

Before you begin, create the Decision or Wait element to add conditions to. To add conditions to

a wait event, select Wait for this event only if additional conditions are met.

1. Set up the conditions.

At run time, the conditions are evaluated in the order you specify.

DescriptionColumn Header

Flow resource whose value you want to evaluate.Resource

The available operators depend on the data type selected for

Resource. For details, see Operators in Flow Conditions on page

114.

Operator

The Variable and Value in the same row must have compatible

data types.

Options:

Value

•Select an existing flow resource, such as a variable, constant, or

user input.

•Select CREATE NEW to create a flow resource.

•Manually enter a literal value or merge field.

Note: When you add or subtract a number from a date value,

the date adjusts in days, not hours.

2. Identify the logic between the conditions.

DescriptionOption

If one of the conditions is false, the flow evaluates the next outcome’s conditions.All conditions must

be true (AND)

If one of the conditions is true, the flow immediately takes this outcome’s path.One condition must

be true (OR)

Custom logic.

When you select this option, provide the customized Logic by entering a text string. Use:

Advanced logic

(Combination of

ANDs and ORs) •Numbers to refer to each condition

•AND or OR to identify whether all or just one of the conditions must true

•Parentheses to group parts of the string together

Tip: If you enter AND, it’s the same as if you selected All conditions must be true (AND).

If you enter OR, it’s the same as if you selected One condition must be true (OR). If you

enter any other logic, make sure that you include a number for each condition.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionOption

For example, for 1 AND (2 OR 3), the flow evaluates whether the first condition is true and

either the second or third condition is true.

SEE ALSO:

What Are Waiting Conditions?

Flow Wait Element

Flow Decision Element

Send Email from a Flow

To send email from your flow, either call an email alert workflow action or create the email in the flow.

Email Alert element

Sends an email by using a workflow email alert to specify the email template and recipients. The flow provides only the record ID.

Send Email element

Sends an email by manually specifying the subject, body, and recipients in the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Invoke Apex Code from a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

The Cloud Flow Designer comes with a lot of functionality, but sometimes your flow needs to do

more than the default elements allow. In that case, call an Apex class from your flow by using one

of two flow elements: Apex Plug-in and Call Apex.

Developers have two options when they’re trying to make an Apex class available for a flow.

Tip: We recommend using the @InvocableMethod annotation instead of the

Process.Plugin interface.

While the Process.Plugin interface supports customizing how the class appears in the

palette, the @InvocableMethod annotation provides more functionality. The following table

describes the features supported by each option.

@InvocableMethod AnnotationProcess.Plugin Interface

Doesn’t support:Doesn’t support:Apex data type

support •Generic Object

•Blob

•Collection •Generic sObject

•Sets

•sObject

• • MapsTime

•Enums

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

@InvocableMethod AnnotationProcess.Plugin Interface

The Cloud Flow Designer doesn’t support mapping an

Apex method’s input or output parameters to an

sObject collection variable.

SupportedNot supportedBulk operations

Class nameClass name or the value of the name property.Element name in

the Cloud Flow

Designer

Classes with this annotation implemented are available

in:

Classes with this interface implemented are available

in flows

Reusability

•Flows

•Processes

•Rest API

ApexApex Plug-in or the value of the tag property.Section in the Cloud

Flow Designer

InvocableMethod Annotation and

InvocableVariable Annotation

Passing Data to a Flow Using the

Process.Plugin Interface

More Details in the

Force.com Apex

Code Developer’s

Guide

Example: To illustrate the difference between these two implementation methods, here are two classes that do the same thing:

get an account name from a flow and return that account’s ID.

This class implements the @InvocableMethod annotation.

global class lookUpAccountAnnotation {

@InvocableMethod

public static List<String> getAccountIds(List<String> names) {

List<Id> accountIds = new List<Id>();

List<Account> accounts = [SELECT Id FROM Account WHERE Name in :names];

for (Account account : accounts) {

accountIds.add(account.Id);

}

return accountIds;

}

This class implements the Process.Plugin interface.

global class lookUpAccountPlugin implements Process.Plugin {

global Process.PluginResult invoke(Process.PluginRequest request) {

String name = (String) request.inputParameters.get('name');

Account account = [SELECT Id FROM Account WHERE Name = :name LIMIT 1][0];

Map<String,Object> result = new Map<String,Object>();

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

result.put('accountId', account.Id);

return new Process.PluginResult(result);

}

global Process.PluginDescribeResult describe() {

Process.PluginDescribeResult result = new Process.PluginDescribeResult();

result.Name = 'Look Up Account ID By Name';

result.Tag = 'Account Classes';

result.inputParameters = new

List<Process.PluginDescribeResult.InputParameter>{

new Process.PluginDescribeResult.InputParameter('name',

Process.PluginDescribeResult.ParameterType.STRING, true)

};

result.outputParameters = new

List<Process.PluginDescribeResult.OutputParameter>{

new Process.PluginDescribeResult.OutputParameter('accountId',

Process.PluginDescribeResult.ParameterType.STRING)

};

return result;

}

Notice that lookupAccountAnnotation is less than half the length (11 lines) of lookupAccountPlugin (28 lines).

In addition, because the annotation supports bulk operations, lookupAccountAnnotation performs one query per batch

of interviews. lookupAccountPlugin performs one query per interview.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

View Inputs and Outputs of Other Referenced Flow Versions

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

While configuring a subflow element, view the variables of a specified version of the referenced

flow. Doing so lets you configure draft master and referenced flows at the same time.

From a subflow element, you can assign values to only the referenced flow’s variables that allow

input access. Similarly, you can assign values from only the referenced flow’s variables that allow

output access. The Input/Output Type of the variable determines this access. To change

the variable’s Input/Output Type, open the referenced flow to edit the variable.

By default, this drop-down list contains the variables of the currently active version of the referenced

flow. If the referenced flow has no active version, the drop-down list contains the variables of the

latest version of the referenced flow.

To populate the drop-down lists with the variables of another version of the referenced flow,

complete the following steps. Do the same to view the descriptions of the referenced flow’s variables.

1. On the subflow overlay, expand the Input/Output Variable Assignments section.

2. Click View input/output of other versions.

3. Use one or more of the following options.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionOption

The Inputs and Outputs tabs display the variables in the selected version of the

referenced flow.

Select a Version number in the left pane.

The tab displays:Select the Inputs tab or the Outputs tab.

•The variables available for input or output assignment in the selected

Version of the referenced flow.

•The data type of each variable.

•The description, if any, of each variable.

The subflow overlay’s drop-down lists for selecting the referenced flow’s variables

are populated with the variables of the selected Version of the referenced

flow.

Click OK.

When you configure subflow input and output assignments, you can specify variables from any version of the referenced flow. This way,

you can develop both the master flow and referenced flow in parallel, while keeping another version of the referenced flow active for

its users. When you save the master flow, however, the Cloud Flow Designer validates against the currently active version of the referenced

flow. If that flow doesn’t have an active version, the latest version is validated. If you see validation messages about variables that couldn’t

be found or that were configured differently in the referenced flow, you can still save the flow. Nevertheless, resolve all validation errors

before you activate the master flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Subflow Element

Clone Records with a Fast Create Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

A flow can clone records in your org. First, populate an sObject variable with an existing record’s

values. Identify fields that the running user can’t edit, and map all remaining fields to another sObject

variable. Then use the second sObject variable in a Fast Create element to clone the record.

Before you begin, review Which Fields Are Inaccessible When a Flow Creates or Updates Records?

1. Populate an sObject variable with the values from the existing record.

For example:

•Look up the record with a Fast Lookup element.

•Obtain the record from a Flows action in a process.

2. In an Assignment element, copy the writable field values to a new sObject variable.

Note: Make sure that Id isn’t set in the new variable.

3. Add a Fast Create element to your flow. Select the new sObject variable to populate the values

of the new clone record.

SEE ALSO:

Copy Field Values from One sObject Variable to Another

Flow Fast Create Element

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Add Values to a Collection Variable

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

After you create a collection variable, populate it with values to reference throughout your flow.

You can’t use a Record Lookup or Fast Lookup element to populate a collection variable, but there

are some workarounds.

To use values from outside the flow, set the collection variable’s Input/Output Type to

“Input” and then use URL parameters, Visualforce controllers, or subflow inputs. When the values

are coming from outside the flow, the values can be set only at the start of the flow interview.

For more informationDo this...To add values that are

stored in...

Add the field’s entered or

stored value to a collection

A screen field •Choice fields

•Input fields

variable by using an

Assignment element •Output fields

•Assignments

Add the variable’s stored value

to a collection variable by using

an Assignment element

A variable •Variables

•Assignments

Add one of the sObject

variable’s stored field values to

An sObject variable •sObject variables

•Assignments

a collection variable by using

an Assignment element

Loop through the sObject

collection variable. Within the

An sObject collection variable •sObject collection variables

•Loops

loop, add one of the loop

•Assignments

variable’s stored field values to

a collection variable by using

an Assignment element

SEE ALSO:

Flow Collection Variable Resource

Sample Flow That Populates a Collection Variable

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Identify which elements the flow executes and in what order by connecting the elements on your

canvas together.

1. On the canvas, find the node at the bottom of the source element.

2. Drag the node onto the target element.

3. If prompted, select which outcome to assign to the path.

SEE ALSO:

Remove Connectors from a Flow

Flow Connectors

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Remove Connectors from a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

You can’t modify a connector’s target or source elements, so to change a path, delete the connector

and then add a new one.

If you delete a connector for a specific outcome, the outcome isn’t deleted from the source element.

However, if you delete an outcome from a decision element, the outcome’s connector is also

deleted.

1. In your flow, select the connector to delete.

When you select a connector, its color changes from gray to green. If you’re having trouble

selecting a connector, click and drag an area on the canvas that includes the connector.

2. Press DELETE.

SEE ALSO:

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Connectors

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

If your flow contains an element that interacts with the Salesforce database—such as a Record

Update or Submit for Approval element, it can fail. Modify the default behavior by adding fault

paths to all elements that can fail.

IN THIS SECTION:

What Happens When a Flow Fails?

When you’re deciding whether to customize the error handling in your flow, consider how a

failed flow behaves by default.

Configure Every Fault Path to Send You an Email (Best Practice)

As a best practice, we recommend configuring the fault connectors in your flow so that you always receive an email when a flow

fails. In the email, include the current values of all your flow’s resources. The resource values can give you insight into why the flow

failed.

Customize the Error Message for Running Flow Users (Best Practice)

As a best practice, we recommend displaying a better message to your user than “An unhandled fault has occurred in this flow”. Do

this only if the distribution method you’re using supports flows that contain screens. In other words, don’t do it if your flow is

distributed through a process.

Other Examples of Error Handling in Flows

Examples of using fault connectors to handle flow errors include requesting corrections from the user and bypassing the error.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Connectors

Flow Elements

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

What Happens When a Flow Fails?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you’re deciding whether to customize the error handling in your flow, consider how a failed

flow behaves by default.

Here’s what happens by default.

•This error message displays to the running user—the user who was running the flow.

An unhandled fault has occurred in this flow

An unhandled fault has occurred while processing

the flow. Please contact your system administrator

for more information.

•The running user can’t proceed with the flow or return to a previous part of the flow.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

•The admin who created the flow receives a fault email. The email details the element that failed, the error message from that element,

and which elements were executed during the failed interview. Here’s an example error message that can appear in a fault email.

An error occurred at element Fast_Delete_1.

DELETE --- There is nothing in Salesforce matching your

delete criteria.

SEE ALSO:

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Configure Every Fault Path to Send You an Email (Best Practice)

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

As a best practice, we recommend configuring the fault connectors in your flow so that you always

receive an email when a flow fails. In the email, include the current values of all your flow’s resources.

The resource values can give you insight into why the flow failed.

1. Create a text template that includes the values of all the flow resources.

Doing so lets you see the exact values of flow variables when the interview failed. Also, if the

flow contains screens, you see exactly what the user entered and selected.

Here’s an example text template for the Customer Satisfaction Survey flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer Workbook.

Error: {!$Flow.FaultMessage}

RESOURCE VALUES

Customer Response: {!Customer_Response}

Value of Decision's Yes outcome: {!Yes}

Company: {!Company_Name}

Satisfaction Choice Field: {!Satisfaction}

Service Choice Field: {!Service}

Other Comments:

{!OtherComments}

2. Configure a Send Email element. Use the text template as the body and your email address as the recipient.

In this example, Body is set to the text template we created: {!allVariableValues}.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

3. From each element that can fail, draw a fault connecter to the Send Email element.

In this example, Record Create is the only element that supports fault connectors.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Text Template Resource

Flow Send Email Element

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Customize the Error Message for Running Flow Users (Best Practice)

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

As a best practice, we recommend displaying a better message to your user than “An unhandled

fault has occurred in this flow”. Do this only if the distribution method you’re using supports flows

that contain screens. In other words, don’t do it if your flow is distributed through a process.

1. Create a text template that contains a friendlier error message.

Something went wrong with this flow.

Your admin has received an email about this error.

2. Add a Screen element. In a Display Text field, reference the text template.

3. For every element that can fail, draw a fault connector to the Screen element.

In this example, Record Create is the only element that supports fault connectors. After the flow displays the better error message

to the user, it sends an email to the admin with debugging information.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element: Display Text Fields

Flow Text Template Resource

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Other Examples of Error Handling in Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Examples of using fault connectors to handle flow errors include requesting corrections from the

user and bypassing the error.

Request Corrections from Users

Draw a fault connector to a Screen element, where users can verify the values that they entered,

make corrections, and proceed.

Common Flow TasksVisual Workflow Guide

Display the Error Message

If the flow is used only internally, such as at a call center, use the fault path to display the error message to the running user. In the

same Screen element, ask the user to report the error to the IT department. To do so, draw the fault connector to a Screen element

with this Display Text field.

Sorry, but you can’t read or update records at this time.

Please open a case with IT and include this error message:

{!$Flow.FaultMessage}

Create a Case

When an error occurs, automatically create a case that includes the error message and assign it to your IT department. Assign the

created case’s ID to a Text variable ({!caseId}, for example). Then, in a Screen, display this message to the running user.

Sorry, but you can’t read or update records at this time.

We filed a case for you.

Ignore Errors

To bypass errors for a given element in your flow, draw the fault connector to the same element as the normal connector.

SEE ALSO:

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Flow Reference

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Bookmark this page for quick access to information about flow elements, resources, events, and

more.

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow Elements

Each element represents an action that the flow can execute. Examples of such actions include

reading or writing Salesforce data, displaying information and collecting data from flow users,

executing business logic, or manipulating data.

Flow Resources

Each resource represents a value that you can reference throughout the flow.

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

When building a flow, you can reference fields for records that are related to the values that are stored in an sObject variable. To do

so, manually enter the references.

Flow Connectors

Connectors determine the available paths that a flow can take at run time. In the Cloud Flow Designer canvas, a connector looks like

an arrow that points from one element to another.

Flow Operators

Operators behave differently, depending on what you’re configuring. In Assignment elements, operators let you change resource

values. In flow conditions and record filters, operators let you evaluate information and narrow the scope of a flow operation.

Flow Event Types

Event Type drives the fields that you use to define an event in a flow Wait element. The available event types are both alarms,

which consist of a date/time value—the base time—and an optional offset from that time.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Types

A flow or flow version’s type determines which elements and resources are supported, as well as the ways that the flow can be

distributed.

Flow Properties

A flow’s properties consist of its name, description, interview label, and type. These properties drive the field values that appear on

a flow or flow version’s detail page. The properties of a flow and its flow versions are separate.

Flow Elements

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Each element represents an action that the flow can execute. Examples of such actions include

reading or writing Salesforce data, displaying information and collecting data from flow users,

executing business logic, or manipulating data.

In the Cloud Flow Designer, the canvas and Explorer tab display the elements that exist in the flow.

The Palette tab displays the available element types that you can add to the flow by dragging them

onto the canvas.

IN THIS SECTION:

General Settings for Flow Elements

Every flow element has three settings in common: name, unique name, and description.

Flow Apex Plug-In Element

Calls an Apex class that implements the Process.Plugin interface. If you used the Tag property in the

PluginDescribeResult class, the Apex class appears under a customized section. Otherwise, it appears under the Apex

Plug-ins section.

Flow Assignment Element

Sets or changes values in variables, collection variables, sObject variables, and sObject collection variables.

Flow Call Apex Element

Calls an Apex class’s invocable method.

Flow Decision Element

Evaluates a set of conditions and routes users through the flow based on the outcomes of those conditions. This element performs

the equivalent of an if-then statement.

Flow Email Alert Element

Sends an email by using a workflow email alert to specify the email template and recipients. The flow provides only the record ID.

Flow Fast Create Element

Creates Salesforce records using the field values from an sObject collection variable. Or creates one Salesforce record using the field

values from an sObject variable.

Flow Fast Delete Element

Deletes Salesforce records using the ID values that are stored in an sObject collection variable. Or deletes one Salesforce record using

the ID value that’s stored in an sObject variable.

Flow Fast Lookup Element

Finds Salesforce records to assign their field values to an sObject collection variable. Or finds one Salesforce record to assign its field

values to an sObject variable.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Fast Update Element

Updates Salesforce records using the field values from an sObject collection variable. Or updates one Salesforce record using the

field values from an sObject variable. If a record’s ID is included in the variable, its field values are updated to match the other values

that are stored in the variable.

Flow Loop Element

Iterates through a collection one item at a time, and executes actions on each item’s field values—using other elements within the

loop.

Flow Record Create Element

Creates one Salesforce record by using individual field values that you specify.

Flow Record Delete Element

Deletes all Salesforce records that meet specified criteria.

Flow Record Lookup Element

Finds the first Salesforce record that meets specified criteria. Then assigns the record’s field values to individual flow variables or

individual fields on sObject variables.

Flow Record Update Element

Finds all Salesforce records that meet specified criteria and updates them with individual field values that you specify.

Flow Quick Action Element

Calls an object-specific or global quick action that’s already been configured in your organization. Only “Create,” “Update,” and “Log

a Call” actions are supported.

Flow Post to Chatter Element

Posts a message to a specified feed, such as to a Chatter group or a case record. The message can contain mentions and topics, but

only text posts are supported.

Flow Screen Element

Displays a screen to the user who is running the flow, which lets you display information to the user or collect information from the

user.

Flow Send Email Element

Sends an email by manually specifying the subject, body, and recipients in the flow.

Flow Step Element

Acts as a placeholder when you’re not sure which element you need.

Flow Submit for Approval Element

Submits one Salesforce record for approval.

Flow Subflow Element

Calls another flow in your organization. Use this element to reference modular flows and simplify the overall architecture of your

flow.

Flow Wait Element

Waits for one or more defined events to occur, which lets you automate processes that require a waiting period.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Cloud Flow Designer

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

General Settings for Flow Elements

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Every flow element has three settings in common: name, unique name, and description.

DescriptionField

Helps you identify the element on the canvas.Name

Automatically populated if empty when you fill out the Name field and press

TAB.

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the current

flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided they are used

in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric

Unique

Name

characters. It must begin with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an

underscore, and not contain two consecutive underscores.

Appears after you click Add Description.Description

Flow Apex Plug-In Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Calls an Apex class that implements the Process.Plugin interface. If you used the Tag property

in the PluginDescribeResult class, the Apex class appears under a customized section.

Otherwise, it appears under the Apex Plug-ins section.

Tip:

•Apex classes appear in the palette as Apex plug-ins only if the Process.Plugin

interface has been implemented.

•If you have many plug-ins in your organization, ask your developer to use the tag

property. The class appears under a special section header in the palette. Otherwise, the

class appears with all the other Apex plug-ins.

•If your developer hasn’t already implemented the Process.Plugin interface on the

desired class, we recommend using the @InvocableMethod annotation instead.

Unlike the Process.Plugin interface, the @InvocableMethod annotation

supports sObject, Collection, Blob, and Time data types and bulkification. It’s also much

easier to implement. To see a complete comparison between the interface and the

annotation, see Invoke Apex Code from a Flow on page 46.

Inputs

Pass information from the flow to the invoked Apex method. The method determines the available input parameters and their data

types.

Outputs

Pass information from the invoked Apex method to the flow. The method determines the available output parameters and their data

types.

The flow assigns the values to the specified variables when the code is executed.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Usage

Note: If the Apex class creates, updates, or deletes a record, the action isn’t performed until the interview’s transaction completes.

Transactions complete either when the interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Invoke Apex Code from a Flow

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Apex Developer Guide: Process Namespace

Flow Assignment Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Sets or changes values in variables, collection variables, sObject variables, and sObject collection

variables.

In each row, specify the Variable whose value you want to change and the new Value for

that variable. At run time, the variable assignments occur in the order you specify.

DescriptionColumn Header

Variable whose value you want to change.Variable

The available operators depend on the data type selected for the

Variable.

Operator

The Variable and Value in the same row must have compatible

data types.

Options:

Value

•Select an existing flow resource, such as a variable, constant, or user

input.

•Select CREATE NEW to create a flow resource.

•Manually enter a literal value or merge field.

Example: Change the value of a customer’s credit score based on how the customer answered questions in the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Operators in Flow Assignment Elements

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Resources

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Call Apex Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Calls an Apex class’s invocable method.

Important: To use this element to call an Apex class from a flow, ask your developer to

annotate one of the class’s methods with @InvocableMethod. For details, see

“InvocableMethod Annotation” in the Force.com Apex Code Developer’s Guide.

Inputs

Pass information from the flow to the invoked Apex method. The method determines the available

input parameters and their data types.

Outputs

Pass information from the invoked Apex method to the flow. The method determines the available output parameters and their data

types.

The flow assigns the values to the specified variables when the method is executed.

Usage

Note: If the invoked method creates, updates, or deletes a record, that action isn’t performed until the interview’s transaction

completes. Transactions complete either when the interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Invoke Apex Code from a Flow

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Decision Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Evaluates a set of conditions and routes users through the flow based on the outcomes of those

conditions. This element performs the equivalent of an if-then statement.

Outcomes

Create the outcomes for the decision. To rename the path that the flow takes when none of the

other outcome conditions are met, click [Default Outcome]. Set up the conditions.

DescriptionField

Identifies the connector for this outcome on the canvas.Name

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the current

flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided they are used

Unique

Name

in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric

characters. It must begin with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an

underscore, and not contain two consecutive underscores.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Determines whether the flow takes this outcome’s path.Conditions

Example: Using a Decision element, determine whether:

•To give customers a return shipping address (because an item is definitely faulty) or instructions on how to resolve the problem

•To offer a customer a loan or not (based on results of a credit scoring formula)

Tip: Configure your flow so that it does different things based on which option a user selected for a screen’s drop-down

list. To do so, add a decision after the screen to create the branches of the flow based on the choices available in that

drop-down list. Then you can represent each choice in your decision and connect it to a branch of your flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Define Flow Conditions

Operators in Flow Conditions

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Email Alert Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Sends an email by using a workflow email alert to specify the email template and recipients. The

flow provides only the record ID.

Before you begin:

•Make sure that the email alert you want to call from your flow exists. If not, create the email

alert.

•Understand the daily limits for emails sent from email alerts.

•Store the ID for the record that you want to reference in this email, such as by using a Fast

Lookup element. If the email alert has any merge fields, the referenced record is the starting

point for those fields.

The unique name for each email alert is prefixed with its object. The object type of the referenced record must match the object type

of the email alert. For example, if you have an email alert with unique name “Owner_Changed” for accounts, that email alert appears in

the Palette as Account.Owner_Changed. Because the email alert is associated with the Account object, it can reference only an

account record.

DescriptionField

Select a variable that contains the ID for the record that you want the email to reference. If the email alert uses

any merge fields, this record is the starting point for those merge fields.

This field accepts single-value variables of any type. The value is treated as text.

Record ID

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Usage

Note: At run time, the email isn’t sent until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the interview

finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Send Email from a Flow

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Fast Create Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Creates Salesforce records using the field values from an sObject collection variable. Or creates one

Salesforce record using the field values from an sObject variable.

To create a single record with field values from regular variables and other flow resources, such as

constants, formulas, and screen fields, use Record Create.

DescriptionField

The sObject variable or collection that you want to use to create the record

or multiple records. The object types must match, and each ID field must

not have a value.

This field accepts any sObject variable or sObject collection variable.

Variable

Example: Take a collection of new cases and use a Fast Create element to create records for each case in the collection. Make

sure that your flow populates the sObject variable or collection with all required field values before executing the Fast Create

element.

Usage

If you used an sObject variable to create a single record, the sObject variable’s ID field is updated with the new record’s ID value. If you

used an sObject collection to create multiple records, the ID field of each collection item is updated with its matching new record ID

value.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Note: At run time, records aren’t created until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Create Salesforce Records from a Flow

Clone Records with a Fast Create Element

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Flow Fast Delete Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Deletes Salesforce records using the ID values that are stored in an sObject collection variable. Or

deletes one Salesforce record using the ID value that’s stored in an sObject variable.

Tip: Make sure that the sObject variable or collection is populated with ID values before

using the Fast Delete element.

DescriptionField

Identifies the sObject variable or collection that you want to use to delete records.

The variable must include the IDs of the records that you want to delete.

This field accepts any sObject variable or sObject collection variable.

Variable

Usage

Warning:

•Be careful when testing flows that contain delete elements. Even if the flow is inactive, it triggers the delete operation.

•To prevent deleting records by mistake, be as specific in your filter criteria as possible.

•Records are deleted from your organization the moment the flow executes the delete element.

•Deleted records are sent to the Recycle Bin and remain there for 15 days before they are permanently deleted.

•Flows can delete records that are pending approval.

To delete one or more records that meet filter criteria specified by regular variables and other flow resources, such as constants, formulas,

and screen fields, use Record Delete.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Note: At run time, the records aren’t deleted until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Delete Salesforce Records from a Flow

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Flow Fast Lookup Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Finds Salesforce records to assign their field values to an sObject collection variable. Or finds one

Salesforce record to assign its field values to an sObject variable.

DescriptionField

Identifies the object whose records you want to look up.Look up

Narrows down the scope of records that the flow looks up. Specify the filter

criteria for selecting the record from the database.

Filter criteria

Tip: Make sure that your filter criteria sufficiently narrows the search. If

you use an sObject variable to store the results, the Fast Lookup element

returns only the first record from the filtered results.

Value must be compatible with the selected field’s data type.

Sorts the filtered results before storing records in the variable. If selected, also

select the field that you want to sort the results by and the sort order. Only

sortable fields are available.

Sort

results

by:

The variable to contain the returned field values.

This field accepts any sObject variable or sObject collection variable.

Variable

•To contain the field values for the first returned record, use an sObject

variable.

•To contain the field values for all returned records, use an sObject collection

variable.

Sets the variable to null if no records meet the filter criteria. By default, the

variable’s values are left unchanged.

Assign

null to

the

variable

if no

records

are found.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Identifies which fields on the records that meet the filter criteria to store in the variable. Values for unselected

fields are set to null in the variable.

Specify which

of the

record’s

fields to save

in the

variable.

Example:

•Look up a product’s name and description by using the bar code on its product tag.

•Look up all customers who live in a particular city.

•Look up customer transactions on a particular day.

Considerations for Defining Filter Criteria

•When you define multiple filters, the filter logic usually defaults to AND. However, if multiple filters have the same field selected and

use the equals operator, the filters are combined with OR.

For example, your filters check whether a case’s Type equals Problem (1), Type equals Feature Request (2), and Escalated equals true

(3). At runtime, those filters are combined to (1 OR 2) AND 3.

•The available filter operators depend on the data type of the selected fields. For details, see Operators in Flow Record Filters.

Usage

To get a single record and store specified field values in regular variables and sObject variables, use Record Lookup.

SEE ALSO:

Pull Values from Salesforce Records into a Flow

Flow Elements

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Fast Update Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Updates Salesforce records using the field values from an sObject collection variable. Or updates

one Salesforce record using the field values from an sObject variable. If a record’s ID is included in

the variable, its field values are updated to match the other values that are stored in the variable.

DescriptionField

Identifies the sObject variable or collection that you want to use to update

records.

This field accepts any sObject variable or sObject collection variable.

Variable

Example: You're designing flows for a call center. To automatically update Salesforce with data collected from callers, such as

new addresses or product preferences, use a Fast Update element. Have your flow populate the sObject variable or collection

before using the Fast Update element. Then make sure that the sObject variable or sObject values within the collection contain

the ID for the records that are being updated.

Usage

To update one or more records with field values from regular variables and other flow resources, such as constants, formulas, and screen

fields, use Record Update.

Note: At run time, records aren’t updated until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Update Salesforce Records from a Flow

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Flow Loop Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Iterates through a collection one item at a time, and executes actions on each item’s field

values—using other elements within the loop.

A collection is a list of items that contain, for example, field values from Salesforce records. A loop

uses an sObject variable, referred to as the loop variable, to contain the values for the current item

in the collection. Once the loop finishes examining an item, it copies the field values for the next

item into the loop variable. Then the loop examines those values. The loop variable must have the

same object type as the collection. For example, if your collection contains field values from accounts,

your loop variable must also be of type Account.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

The collection that you want to loop through.

This field accepts any sObject variable or sObject collection variable.

Loop through

Ascending begins at the start of the collection and moves to the end, while Descending begins at the

end and moves to the start.

Order

The variable that the flow uses to contain the current item’s values during a loop iteration.Loop Variable

•If Loop through is set to a non-sObject collection variable, this field accepts a single-value variable

with the same data type.

•If Loop through is set to an sObject collection variable, this field accepts an sObject variable with the

same object type.

Usage

After you add a Loop element and the elements that you want the loop to include, from the Loop element:

•Determine which element to execute first when a new item’s values are copied into the loop variable by adding a “Next element”

connector.

•Determine which flow element to execute after the loop has processed all the items in the collection by adding an “End of loop”

connector.

SEE ALSO:

Sample Flow That Loops Through a Collection

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Elements

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Flow Record Create Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Creates one Salesforce record by using individual field values that you specify.

DescriptionField

The object for which you want to create a recordCreate

Identifies the field values for the new record. Each value must be compatible

with the selected field’s data type.

Field values

Important: Ensure that all required fields are populated with values;

otherwise the flow fails at run time. If you don’t know which fields are

required, check the object definition.

Assigns the ID of the new record to a variable so you can reference it later in

the flow.

This field accepts only single-value variables of type Text.

Variable

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Example: A user enters a name and address into the flow. Verify that a matching user exists by using the Record Lookup element.

If a matching contact doesn’t exist, create a record for that user by using the Record Create element.

Usage

To create a single record with all field values from one sObject variable, or multiple records with all field values from an sObject collection,

use Fast Create.

Note: At run time, the record isn’t created until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Create Salesforce Records from a Flow

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Elements

Flow Record Delete Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Deletes all Salesforce records that meet specified criteria.

DescriptionField

Identifies the object whose records you want to delete.Delete

Narrows down the scope of records that the flow deletes.Filter Criteria

Considerations for Defining Filter Criteria

•When you define multiple filters, the filter logic usually defaults to AND. However, if multiple

filters have the same field selected and use the equals operator, the filters are combined with OR.

For example, your filters check whether a case’s Type equals Problem (1), Type equals Feature Request (2), and Escalated equals true

(3). At runtime, those filters are combined to (1 OR 2) AND 3.

•The available filter operators depend on the data type of the selected fields. For details, see Operators in Flow Record Filters.

Usage

Warning:

•Be careful when testing flows that contain delete elements. Even if the flow is inactive, it triggers the delete operation.

•To prevent deleting records by mistake, be as specific in your filter criteria as possible.

•Records are deleted from your organization the moment the flow executes the delete element.

•Deleted records are sent to the Recycle Bin and remain there for 15 days before they are permanently deleted.

•Flows can delete records that are pending approval.

To delete a single record identified by the ID in one sObject variable, or delete multiple records identified by the IDs in an sObject

collection, use Fast Delete.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Note: At run time, the record isn’t deleted until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Delete Salesforce Records from a Flow

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Elements

Flow Record Lookup Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Finds the first Salesforce record that meets specified criteria. Then assigns the record’s field values

to individual flow variables or individual fields on sObject variables.

DescriptionField

Identifies the object whose records you want to look up.Look up

Narrows down the scope of records that the flow looks up. Specify the filter

criteria for selecting the record from the database. Value must be compatible

with the selected field’s data type.

Filter criteria

Tip: Make sure that your filter criteria sufficiently narrows the search.

The Record Lookup element returns only the first record from the filtered

results.

Sorts the filtered results before storing records in the variable. If selected, also

select the field that you want to sort the results by and the sort order. Only

sortable fields are available.

Sort

results

by:

Select fields from the returned record, and assign the values to variables in the

flow.

The values must be compatible with each selected field.

Assign the

record’s

fields to

variables

reference

them in

your flow.

Sets the variables to null if no records meet the filter criteria. By default, the

variable’s values are left unchanged.

Assign

null to

the

variable(s)

if no

records

are found.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Example: Use a Record Lookup element to:

•Input (or read) a bar code from a product tag. Use the code to find out the product name or description from the database.

•Look up item details to check your stock for availability.

•Look up a customer record to verify a caller’s identity.

Considerations for Defining Filter Criteria

•When you define multiple filters, the filter logic usually defaults to AND. However, if multiple filters have the same field selected and

use the equals operator, the filters are combined with OR.

For example, your filters check whether a case’s Type equals Problem (1), Type equals Feature Request (2), and Escalated equals true

(3). At runtime, those filters are combined to (1 OR 2) AND 3.

•The available filter operators depend on the data type of the selected fields. For details, see Operators in Flow Record Filters.

Usage

Use a Fast Lookup element to find:

•A single record and store specified field values in an sObject variable

•Multiple records and store specified field values in an sObject collection

SEE ALSO:

Pull Values from Salesforce Records into a Flow

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Record Update Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Finds all Salesforce records that meet specified criteria and updates them with individual field values

that you specify.

DescriptionField

Identifies the object whose records you want to update.Update

Narrows down the scope of records that the flow updates.Filter criteria

Important: Configure at least one filter, or the flow updates all the

records for the object.

Value must be compatible with the selected field’s data type.

Identifies which fields to update on the records that meet the filter criteria, as

well as the new values.

The values must be compatible with each selected field.

Update record

fields ...

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Example: Automatically update Salesforce with data collected from customers, such as new addresses or product preferences.

Considerations for Defining Filter Criteria

•When you define multiple filters, the filter logic usually defaults to AND. However, if multiple filters have the same field selected and

use the equals operator, the filters are combined with OR.

For example, your filters check whether a case’s Type equals Problem (1), Type equals Feature Request (2), and Escalated equals true

(3). At runtime, those filters are combined to (1 OR 2) AND 3.

•The available filter operators depend on the data type of the selected fields. For details, see Operators in Flow Record Filters.

Usage

Use Fast Update to:

•Update a single record with all field values from an sObject variable

•Update multiple records with all field values from an sObject collection

Note: At run time, the record isn’t updated until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the

interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Update Salesforce Records from a Flow

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Elements

Flow Quick Action Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Calls an object-specific or global quick action that’s already been configured in your organization.

Only “Create,” “Update,” and “Log a Call” actions are supported.

The unique name for each object-specific action is prefixed with the object it’s associated with. The

unique name for each global action has no prefix.

DescriptionField

Only for object-specific actions. The ID of the record from which the action

executes.

For example, the action creates a case that’s associated with a given account.

Assign the ID for that account to Related Record ID.

Record ID

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is

treated as text.

Varies for each action.

The action layout determines which parameters are required. Required

parameters appear by default and can’t be removed. If a required field has a

Input

Parameter

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

default or predefined value, that field is optional in object-specific and global actions in the flow. If you later

remove the field’s default or predefined value and you didn't set a value in the flow, the interview fails at run

time.

The value must be compatible with the parameter.

Example: Your organization has an object-specific action that creates a case record on an account. The flow calls that action at

run time and uses input assignments to transfer data from the flow to the action.

Note: At run time, the record isn’t created or updated until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either

when the interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Create Salesforce Records from a Flow

Update Salesforce Records from a Flow

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Post to Chatter Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Posts a message to a specified feed, such as to a Chatter group or a case record. The message can

contain mentions and topics, but only text posts are supported.

Inputs

DescriptionInput

Parameter

ID of a community to post to.

Valid only if Salesforce Communities is enabled. Required if posting to a user or

Chatter group that belongs to a Salesforce.com Community.

Community

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is

treated as text.

The text that you want to post.Message

•To mention a user or group, enter @[reference], where reference

is the ID for the user or group that you want to mention. The reference can

be a literal value, a merge field, or a flow resource. For example:

@[{!UserId}].

•To add a topic, enter #[string], where string is the topic that you

want to add. For example: #[Action Required].

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionInput Parameter

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text and is limited to

10,000 characters.

Reference to the user, Chatter group, or record whose feed you want to post to.Target Name

or ID •To post to a user’s feed, enter the user’s ID or Username. For example: jsmith@salesforce.com

•To post to a Chatter group, enter the group’s Name or ID. For example: Entire Organization

•To post to a record, enter the record’s ID. For example: 001D000000JWBDx

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Required only if Target Name or ID is set to a username or a Chatter group name.

The type of feed that you want to post to. Valid values are:

Target Type

•User—If Target Name or ID is set to a user’s Username, enter this value.

•Group—If Target Name or ID is set to a Chatter group’s Name, enter this value.

Specifies whether this feed item is available to all users or internal users only.

Valid only if Salesforce Communities is enabled. Valid values are:

Visibility

•allUsers

•internalUsers

Outputs

DescriptionOutput Parameter

Assigns the created post’s ID to a resource in the flow.

This parameter accepts any single-value variables of type Text, Picklist, or Picklist (Multi-Select).

Feed Item ID

Usage

Note: At run time, the Chatter post isn’t created until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when

the interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Screen Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Displays a screen to the user who is running the flow, which lets you display information to the

user or collect information from the user.

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow Screen Element: General Info

Identifies which navigation buttons are available for a given screen, as well as whether help

text is available to the flow user.

Flow Screen Element: User Input Fields

Lets users manually enter information. A flow user input field is a text box, long text area, number,

currency, date, date/time, password, or checkbox in a Screen element.

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Lets users select from a set of choices. A flow choice field is a radio button, drop-down list, multi-select checkbox, or multi-select

picklist in a Screen element.

Flow Screen Element: Display Text Fields

Displays information to users while they’re running the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Screen Element: General Info

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Identifies which navigation buttons are available for a given screen, as well as whether help text is

available to the flow user.

Navigation Options

DescriptionField

Determines which navigation buttons display for this screen. At run time, the

system automatically determines which buttons are relevant, depending on

whether any screens precede or follow the screen in the flow path. To restrict

the screen from displaying either the Previous or the Finish button, use the

drop-down list.

Drop-down list

•No navigation restrictions—(Default) The system displays all relevant

navigation buttons on the screen.

•Don’t show Previous button—Select this option if revisiting the previous

screen triggers an action that must not be repeated, such as a credit card

transaction.

•Don’t show Finish button—Select this option if you need the user to go

back to a previous screen to continue or complete the flow.

For example, suppose the flow prompts the user to enter information to

identify an existing contact. The flow then looks up the user-entered

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

information in the database. If no matching contact is found, the flow displays a screen to tell the user to

go back and try again. For that screen, select Don’t show Finish button.

Adds the Pause button to the navigation buttons for this screen, if Let Users Pause Flows is enabled

in your organization’s Workflow and Approvals settings. Once a user pauses a flow interview, only that user

or an administrator can resume the interview.

Show Pause

button

Note: Users can’t resume paused flows from Lightning Experience, so we recommend removing the

Pause button from flows that are distributed in Lightning Experience.

The message that’s displayed to flow users when they pause a flow.Paused Message

Help Text

DescriptionField

Information for users to see when they click Help for this form.

This field accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Text box

Usage

If you allow users to pause interviews of this flow:

•Customize the interview label

•Enable Let Users Pause Flows in your organization’s Process Automation Settings

•Add the Paused Flow Interviews component to the Home page layout for relevant users

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element

Design Home Page Layouts

Flow Screen Element: User Input Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Lets users manually enter information. A flow user input field is a text box, long text area, number,

currency, date, date/time, password, or checkbox in a Screen element.

DescriptionField

User-friendly text that displays to the left of the field.

To format the label, click .

Label

A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric characters. It must begin

with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two

consecutive underscores.

Unique

Name

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Automatically populated based on the type of input field you selected.Input Type

Pre-populated value for the input field. If the associated screen isn’t executed, the stored value of the input field is

always null.

The data type of the default value must be compatible with the field’s data type. For example, a checkbox’s default

value must be of type boolean.

Default

Value

Controls the number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Can’t exceed 17. If you leave this field blank or set to

zero, only whole numbers display when your flow runs. Available for only Currency and Number input fields.

Scale

Forces users to enter a value before they can move on to the next screen.Required

Enables input validation on this field.Validate

Boolean formula expression that evaluates whether the user entered an acceptable value.Formula

Expression

Displays underneath the field if the user didn’t enter an acceptable value.

This field accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Error

Message

Adds next to the input field. In the text box, enter helpful information about this field.

This field accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Help Text

SEE ALSO:

Checkbox Input Fields

Flow Screen Element

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Lets users select from a set of choices. A flow choice field is a radio button, drop-down list, multi-select

checkbox, or multi-select picklist in a Screen element.

DescriptionField

Displays to the left of the field. To format the label, click .Label

A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric characters. It must begin

with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two

consecutive underscores.

Unique

Name

Controls which choices are available in Choice Settings. For example, if you choose

Number you can’t use a choice that has a data type of Text.

You can’t change the value data type of multi-select choice fields; only text is

supported.

Value

Data

Type

Controls the number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Can’t exceed 17. If

you leave this field blank or set to zero, only whole numbers display when your flow

runs. Available for only Currency and Number choice fields.

Scale

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Forces users to identify a choice before they progress to the next screen.Required

The choice that’s preselected for the user. If the associated screen isn’t executed, the stored value of the choice field

is always null.

Default

Value

The choice options that the user can choose from. Select configured choices, dynamic record choices, or picklist

choices.

Choice

Note: You can’t rearrange choices.

The choice’s data type must match Value Data Type.

Information that users see when they click .

This field accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Help Text

box

SEE ALSO:

Limitations for Multi-Select Choice Fields

Options for Choice Fields in Flow Screen Elements

Flow Screen Element

Options for Choice Fields in Flow Screen Elements

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A key part of configuring choice fields in a flow screen is selecting the choice options to display in

that field. These options appear as the individual radio buttons or checkboxes or options in a

drop-down list. Create choice options with at least one of these resources: choices, dynamic record

choices, or picklist choices.

Dynamic record choices and picklist choices are easier to configure and don’t require as much

maintenance as choices. We recommend using a flow choice resource (otherwise known as

stand-alone choices) only when you can’t use the other two.

Use this resourceIf you want the user to select...

Dynamic Record ChoiceFrom a set of filtered records

Picklist ChoiceFrom a set of values that correspond to an

existing picklist or multi-select picklist field

ChoiceSomething that can’t be generated from a

record, picklist field, or multi-select picklist field

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Flow Dynamic Record Choice Resource

Flow Picklist Choice Resource

Flow Choice Resource

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Screen Element: Display Text Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Displays information to users while they’re running the flow.

DescriptionField

A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric characters. It must begin

with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two

consecutive underscores.

Unique

Name

The text to display to the flow user. Click to switch between the plain text editor

and the rich text editor.Using the rich text editor saves the content as HTML.

This field accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Text box

Example: Welcome users to the flow or display terms and conditions.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element

Flow Send Email Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Sends an email by manually specifying the subject, body, and recipients in the flow.

Tip:

•Store the text for the email body in a text template.

•To use an email template that exists in your organization, call an email alert instead.

Specify at least one recipient for the email. You can use both email address parameters, so long as

the combined number of addresses is five or fewer.

DescriptionField

Text for the body of the email. The email is treated as plain text; HTML

formatting isn’t respected.

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value

is treated as text.

Body

Text for the subject of the email.

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value

is treated as text.

Subject

Optional. Recipients of the email.

For the email to send successfully, enter a value for Email

Addresses (comma-separated) or Email Addresses

Addresses

(comma-separated)

(collection). You can use both parameters, so long as the

combined number of email addresses is five or fewer.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Optional. Recipients of the email.

For the email to send successfully, enter a value for Email Addresses (comma-separated)

or Email Addresses (collection). You can use both parameters, so long as the combined

number of email addresses is five or fewer.

Email Addresses

(collection)

This parameter accepts collection variables of type Text.

The organization-wide email address that’s used to send the email. Required only if Sender Type

is set to OrgWideEmailAddress.

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Sender Address

Optional. Email address used as the email’s From and Reply-To addresses. Valid values are:Sender Type

•CurrentUser—Email address of the user running the flow. (Default)

•DefaultWorkflowUser—Email address of the default workflow user.

•OrgWideEmailAddress—The organization-wide email address that is specified in Sender

Address.

Usage

Note: At run time, the email isn’t sent until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either when the interview

finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Send Email from a Flow

Flow Text Template Resource

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Step Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Acts as a placeholder when you’re not sure which element you need.

Usage

Steps aren’t valid elements for active flows. As a flow admin, you can run a draft flow with Step

elements in it. Before you activate the flow, replace the Step elements with other elements or delete

them entirely.

Convert a Step element into a Screen element at any time by hovering your mouse over the step

and clicking .

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Note:

•If you convert a step that has multiple connectors into a Screen, all its connectors are deleted.

•Once a Step element has been converted, you can’t use its original unique name.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element

Flow Elements

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Flow Submit for Approval Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Submits one Salesforce record for approval.

Tip: Before you begin, store the ID for the record that you want to submit for approval.

Inputs

Transfer data from the flow to the approval submission.

DescriptionInput Parameter

The ID of the record that you want to submit for approval.

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value

is treated as text.

Record ID

The ID of the user to be assigned the approval request when the approval

process doesn’t automatically assign the approver.

This parameter accepts collection variables of type Text that include

exactly one item.

Next Approver

IDs

The unique name or ID of the specific approval process to which you want

the record to be submitted. The process must have the same object type

as the record you specified in Record ID.

Required if Skip Entry Criteria is set to

$GlobalConstant.True.

Approval

Process Name

or ID

If this parameter and Submitter ID aren’t set, the flow succeeds

only when:

•The approver on submit is determined automatically, and

•The user who launched the flow is an allowed initial submitter

Make sure that:

•The approver on submit is determined automatically, and

•The initial submitters (for the approval processes related to this object)

include all users who could launch this flow

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionInput Parameter

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

If set to $GlobalConstant.True, the record isn’t evaluated against the entry criteria set on the

process that is defined in Approval Process Name or ID.

This parameter accepts any single-value resource of type Boolean.

Skip Entry Criteria

Text that you want to accompany the submission. Don’t reference merge fields or formula expressions.

Submission comments appear in the approval history for the specified record. This text also appears

in the initial approval request email if the template uses the {!ApprovalRequest.Comments}

merge field.

Submission Comments

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

The ID for the user who submitted the record for approval. The user receives notifications about

responses to the approval request.

The user must be one of the allowed submitters for the process.

Submitter ID

If you don’t set this field, the user who launched the flow is the submitter. If a workflow rule triggers

a flow that includes this element, the submitter is the user who triggered the workflow rule. Workflow

rules can be triggered when a user creates or edits a record. When the record is approved or rejected,

the user who launched the flow or triggered the workflow rule is notified.

This parameter accepts single-value resources of any type. That value is treated as text.

Outputs

Transfer data from the approval request to the flow. Assignments occur when the approval request is created.

DescriptionOptional Output

Parameter

The ID of the approval request that was submitted.

This parameter accepts single-value variables of type Text, Picklist, or Picklist (Multi-Select).

Instance ID

The status of the current approval request. Valid values are “Approved,” “Rejected,” “Removed,” or

“Pending”.

This parameter accepts single-value variables of type Text, Picklist, or Picklist (Multi-Select).

Instance Status

The IDs of the new items submitted to the approval request. There can be 0 or 1 approval processes.

This parameter accepts collection variables of type Text.

New Work Item IDs

The IDs of the users who are assigned as the next approvers.

This parameter accepts collection variables of type Text.

Next Approver IDs

The ID of the record that the flow submitted for approval.

This parameter accepts single-value variables of type Text, Picklist, or Picklist (Multi-Select).

Record ID

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Usage

Note: At run time, the approval request isn’t created until the interview’s transaction completes. Transactions complete either

when the interview finishes, executes a Screen element, or executes a Wait element.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Subflow Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Calls another flow in your organization. Use this element to reference modular flows and simplify

the overall architecture of your flow.

A subflow element references another flow and calls that flow at run time. When a flow contains

a subflow element, we call it the master flow to distinguish it from the referenced flow.

Tip: Create smaller flows that perform common tasks. For example, build utility flows to

capture address and credit card information, and authorize a credit card purchase amount.

Then call those flows as needed from multiple product-ordering flows.

Assign values to variables in the referenced flow. Variable assignments occur when the master flow

calls the referenced flow at run time.

DescriptionColumn

Header

Referenced flow’s variable whose value you want to set.

By default, this drop-down list contains the variables of the currently active version of the referenced flow. If the

referenced flow has no active version, the drop-down list contains the variables of the latest version of the referenced

flow.

Target

Master flow’s resource or value to assign to the target.

Options:

Source

•Select an existing flow resource, such as a variable, constant, or user input.

•Select CREATE NEW to create a flow resource.

•Manually enter a literal value or merge field.

Source’s data type must be compatible with Target.

Assign values from the referenced flow’s variables to the master flow’s variables. Variable assignments occur when the referenced flow

finishes running.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionColumn

Header

Referenced flow’s variable whose value you want to assign to the target.

By default, this drop-down list contains the variables of the currently active version of the referenced flow. If the

referenced flow has no active version, the drop-down list contains the variables of the latest version of the referenced

flow.

Source

Master flow’s variable whose value you want to set.

Target’s data type must be compatible with Source.

Target

Usage

At run time, the master flow calls the active version of each referenced flow by default. If a referenced flow has no active version, then

the master flow calls the latest version of the referenced flow. To run only the latest version of each referenced flow:

•Open the master flow, and click Run with Latest in the button bar, or

•Append the URL for the master flow with ?latestSub=true

Note: Only flow admins can run inactive flows. For other users, the flow fails at run time if a subflow element tries to call a flow

with no active version.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

View Inputs and Outputs of Other Referenced Flow Versions

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Wait Element

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Waits for one or more defined events to occur, which lets you automate processes that require a

waiting period.

Define the events that the flow waits for before it proceeds.

DescriptionField

The name appears on the connector that’s associated with this event.Name

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the current

flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided they are used

in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric

Unique Name

characters. It must begin with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an

underscore, and not contain two consecutive underscores.

Determines whether the flow is waiting for:Event Type

•An absolute time (such as 3 days from now), or

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

•A time relative to a date/time field on a Salesforce record (such as 3 days after an opportunity closes)

Determines the exact event that the flow is waiting for. Parameters vary, based on the selected event type.Event Conditions

If selected, the flow waits for this event only when certain conditions are met.Wait for this

event only if

additional

conditions are

met

Determines which conditions must be true for the flow to wait for this event. Available only if Wait for

this event only if additional conditions are met is selected.

The flow waits for the event only if the waiting conditions evaluate to true. For details, see Define Flow

Conditions on page 45.

Waiting Conditions

Assigns the event’s outputs to flow variables. Parameters vary, based on the selected event type.Variable Assignments

Determines what the flow does when all the events have unmet waiting conditions. If at least one event

doesn’t have waiting conditions, the default path is never executed.

The name displays on the Wait element’s default connector. Provide a custom name for this path by replacing

the predefined value.

[Default Path]

Usage

Note:

•Flows that contain Wait elements must be autolaunched. If a flow includes Wait elements and screens, choice, or dynamic

choices, you can’t activate or run it.

•Before you add a Wait element to your flow, understand the special behavior and limitations. See Limitations for Time-Based

Flows on page 19 for details.

After you define your events, connect the Wait element to other elements on the canvas to indicate what the flow does when:

•Each event is the first to occur. One connector (1) is available for each event that’s defined in the Wait element.

•There are no more events to wait for, because the waiting conditions for every event are unmet. One connector (2) is available for

the Wait element’s default path.

•An error occurs related to the Wait element. One connector (3) is available for the Wait element’s fault path, and it’s always labeled

FAULT.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

If the flow waits for multiple events, consider returning the flow path to the Wait element again so that the flow waits for the other

events. If you return the flow path to the Wait element, consider using waiting conditions to control when the flow waits for each event.

For an example, see Sample Flow That Waits for Many Events on page 136.

IN THIS SECTION:

What Are Waiting Conditions?

Each event that you define in a flow Wait element has optional waiting conditions. These conditions must be met for the flow interview

to wait for that event at run time.

SEE ALSO:

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Define the Path That a Flow Takes

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Elements

What Are Waiting Conditions?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Each event that you define in a flow Wait element has optional waiting conditions. These conditions

must be met for the flow interview to wait for that event at run time.

When an interview encounters a Wait element, it checks the waiting conditions for each event to

determine which events to wait for. If the waiting conditions aren’t met for an event, the interview

doesn’t wait for that event. If all events have unmet waiting conditions, the interview executes the

default path.

Tip: Add a default path if:

•All the events have waiting conditions set, and

•You want the flow to proceed when the waiting conditions for all events are met

Example: Here are two scenarios in which you would use waiting conditions.

•The flow waits for different events based on a field value on a given record.

For example, send an email reminder to a contract’s owner before the contract’s end date. The date on which you send the

email depends, however, on the rating of the contract’s account. If the account is hot, send the email a month before the end

date. If the account isn’t hot, send the email two weeks before the end date.

In this example, you would create two events. The event for hot accounts occurs 30 days before the contract’s end date. Its

waiting conditions would check if the Rating for the contract’s account is equal to “Hot.”

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

The second event occurs 15 days before the contract’s end date. Its waiting conditions would check if the Rating for the

contract’s account is not equal to “Hot.”

When a flow interview executes the Wait element during run time, the interview checks the waiting conditions for each event.

It only waits for the events whose waiting conditions are met. If the account is hot, the interview doesn’t wait for the second

event.

•The flow waits for multiple events to occur, such as to send periodic email reminders. For an example of this scenario, see

Sample Flow That Waits for Many Events on page 136.

SEE ALSO:

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Flow Wait Element

Flow Event Types

Flow Resources

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Each resource represents a value that you can reference throughout the flow.

In the Cloud Flow Designer, the Explorer tab displays the resources that are available in the flow.

You can create some types of resources from the Resources tab by double-clicking them. Some

resources, such as global constants and system variables, are automatically provided by the system.

Other resources are provided by the system when you add an element to the flow. For example,

when you add a Decision element to your flow, the system creates a resource for each outcome.

Which resources are available depend on the specific field you’re setting. Oftentimes you can create

resources from within that field by expanding the CREATE NEW section of its drop-down list.

Creatable from

the Resources Tab

DescriptionFlow

Resource

YesRepresents an individual value that can be used in choice

screen fields.

Choice

YesStores multiple updatable values that have the same data

type, such as a group of email addresses.

Collection

Variable

YesStores a fixed value.Constant

YesRepresents a set of choices that’s generated from an object’s

records.

Dynamic

Record

Choice

Any element that you add to the flow is available as a

Resource with the was visited operator in outcome

Element

criteria. An element is considered visited if the element has

already been executed in the flow interview.

Any element that you add to the flow that supports a fault

connector is available as a Boolean resource. If the element

has already been successfully executed in the flow interview,

the resource’s value is True. If the element wasn’t executed

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Creatable from the

Resources Tab

DescriptionFlow

Resource

or was executed and resulted in an error, the resource’s value is False.

YesCalculates a value by using other resources in your flow and Salesforce functionsFormula

Fixed, system-provided values, such as EmptyString, True, and False, that

can be assigned as the values of flow resources.

Global

Constant

System-provided variables that reference information about the organization or

running user, such as the user’s ID or the API session ID. In Visual Workflow, global

variables are available in only flow formulas.

Global

Variables

If you add a Decision element to the flow, its outcomes are available as Boolean

resources. If an outcome path has already been executed in the flow interview, the

resource’s value is True.

Outcome

YesRepresents a set of choices that’s generated from the values of a picklist or multi-select

picklist field.

Picklist Choice

System-provided values for picklist fields in sObject variables and sObject collection

variables. Available for only Assignment and Decision elements.

Picklist Values

Any screen field that you add to the flow is available as a resource. The resource value

depends on the type of screen field. The value for a screen input field is what the user

Screen Field

enters. The value for a screen choice field is the stored value of the choice that the

user selects. The value for a screen output field is the text that’s displayed to the user.

YesStores updatable field values for one or more Salesforce records.SObject

Collection

Variable

YesStores updatable field values for a Salesforce record.SObject

Variable

System-provided values about the running flow interview, such as

{!$Flow.CurrentDate}, {!$Flow.CurrentDateTime}, and

{!$Flow.FaultMessage}.

System

Variable

YesStores formatted text.Text Template

YesStores a value that can be updated as the flow executes.Variable

If you add a Wait element to the flow, its events are available as Boolean resources. If

an event’s waiting conditions are met, the resource’s value is True. If the event has

no waiting conditions set, the resource’s value is always True.

Wait Event

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow Choice Resource

Represents an individual value to use in choice screen fields.

Flow Collection Variable Resource

Stores multiple updatable values that have the same data type, such as a group of email addresses.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Constant Resource

A flow constant represents a fixed value. Unlike variables, this value can’t change throughout a flow.

Flow Dynamic Record Choice Resource

Represents a set of choices that’s generated from an object’s records.

Flow Formula Resource

Calculates a value by using other resources in your flow and Salesforce functions.

Flow Global Constant Resource

Fixed, system-provided values, such as EmptyString, True, and False.

Global Variables in Visual Workflow

System-provided variables that reference information about the organization or running user, such as the user’s ID or the API session

ID. In Visual Workflow, global variables are available only in flow formulas.

Flow Picklist Choice Resource

Represents a set of choices that’s generated from the values of a picklist or multi-select picklist field.

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Stores updatable field values for one or more Salesforce records.

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Stores updatable field values for a Salesforce record.

System Variables in Flows

System-provided values about the running flow interview, such as {!$Flow.CurrentDate},

{!$Flow.CurrentDateTime}, and {!$Flow.FaultMessage}.

Flow Text Template Resource

Stores HTML-formatted text.

Flow Variable Resource

Stores a value that can be updated as the flow executes.

SEE ALSO:

Cloud Flow Designer

Flow Choice Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Represents an individual value to use in choice screen fields.

DescriptionField

A user-friendly label for the choice option.Label

A unique name is limited to underscores and alphanumeric characters. It

must begin with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore,

and not contain two consecutive underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this choice option from other resources.Description

Controls which choice fields this choice can be used in. For example, you

can’t use a Text choice in a Currency radio button field.

Value Data

Type

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Controls the number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Can’t exceed 17. If you leave this field

blank or set to zero, only whole numbers display when your flow runs.

Available for only Currency and Number choices.

Scale

If the user selects this choice, the choice field has this value. If a user leaves a choice blank or unselected,

its stored value is set to null.

Stored Value

Displays a text box below the choice option. This option isn’t available if the choice’s data type is Boolean.Show Input on

Selection

These fields appear only if you select Show Input on Selection.

DescriptionField

A user-friendly label for the text box.Label

Forces users to enter a value in the text box before they can progress or finish the flow.Required

Evaluates whether the user entered an acceptable value.Validate

These fields appear only if you select Validate.

DescriptionField

Boolean formula expression that evaluates whether the user entered an acceptable value.Formula

Displays if the user didn’t enter an acceptable value.Error

Message

Example: If your flow asks users to choose a particular service level, create choices for Gold, Silver, and Bronze. In a screen, display

the choices with a description of the features included. Then, in the same screen, let the user pick from a dropdown list.

Rich Text in Choice Labels

You can configure every choice’s label using the rich text editor, but keep in mind where you want to use the choice.

Dropdown List and Multi-Select Picklist Fields

Rich text isn’t supported. If you include a choice with rich text in a dropdown list, at runtime the choice renders the HTML characters

in their escaped form.

For example, the choice label My Label renders as My Label at runtime.

Radio Button and Multi-Select Checkbox Fields

•Rich text is supported.

•Don’t use angle brackets (< and >) except when applying HTML markup to your label. Instead, use square brackets ([ and ]).

If a choice is used in a field that supports rich text, it treats anything in angle brackets as HTML. If the contents isn’t valid HTML,

the content is stripped from the label.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

For example, you include the “<My Label>” choice in a radio button or multi-select checkbox field. <My Label> is considered

invalid HTML, so at runtime the value is stripped from the label. Rather than display nothing—because the label doesn’t include

any other value—the flow displays the choice’s unique name: My_Label.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Options for Choice Fields in Flow Screen Elements

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Collection Variable Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Stores multiple updatable values that have the same data type, such as a group of email addresses.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this collection variable from other resources.Description

Determines the type of values that can be assigned to the collection

variable.

Data Type

Determines whether the collection variable can be accessed outside the

flow.

Input/Output

Type

•Private—Can be assigned and used only within the flow

•Input—Can be set at the start of the flow using Visualforce controllers,

or subflow inputs

•Output—Can be accessed from Visualforce controllers and other

flows

This field doesn’t affect how variables are assigned or used within the

same flow, for example, through these types of elements: Assignment,

Record or Fast Create, Record or Fast Lookup, and Apex Plug-in.

The default value of the field is Private.

Warning: Disabling input or output access for an existing variable

can break the functionality of applications and pages that call the

flow and access the variable. For example, you can access variables

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

from URL parameters, Visualforce controllers, subflows, and processes.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

Flow Loop Element

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Constant Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A flow constant represents a fixed value. Unlike variables, this value can’t change throughout a flow.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this constant from other resources.Description

Determines the types of values that the constant can store.Data Type

The constant’s value. This value doesn’t change throughout the flow.Value

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Flow Dynamic Record Choice Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Represents a set of choices that’s generated from an object’s records.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this resource from other resources.Description

Data type of the choice’s stored value.Value Data

Type

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionField

Determines the object whose records you want to use to generate the choicesCreate a choice for

each

Determines which records are included in the generated list of choices. If you don’t apply any filters,

a choice is generated for every record of the selected object.

For example, to generate a list of all accounts in San Francisco, use filters to include only accounts

whose Billing City is San Francisco.

Filter Criteria

Determines which field is used as the label for each generated choice. Select a field that enables users

to differentiate between the generated choices.

Choice Label

Tip: Make sure to choose a field that contains data. If the selected field has no value for a given

record, the corresponding choice’s label is blank at run time.

Determines which field’s value is stored when the user selects this choice at run time. Value Data

Type determines the available options.

By default, the stored value is null. The stored value is determined by the most recent user selection

of a choice within the generated set.

Choice Stored Value

Controls the order that the choices appear in.

When Sort results by is selected, also select the field that you want to order the choices by.

Then select which order the choices should appear in.

Sort results by

Controls the number of options that appear in the screen field that uses this dynamic record choice.

When Limit number of choices to is selected, also enter the maximum number (up to

200) of choices to include.

Limit number of

choices to

Takes field values from the record that the user chose and stores them in flow variables that you can

reference later.

Assign the record

fields to

variables... Note: When a multi-select choice field uses a dynamic record choice, only values from the

last record that the user selects are stored in the flow variables. If multiple multi-select choice

fields on one screen use the same dynamic record choice, the variable assignments obey the

first of those fields.

Example: In a support flow for a computer hardware manufacturer, users identify a product to find its latest updates. You create

a dynamic record choice that displays all products whose product ID starts with a specific string of characters. However, the flow

users are more likely to know the product’s name than its ID, so for Choice Label select the field that contains the product

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

name. Elsewhere in the flow, you want to display the associated product ID and description. To do so, you assign the ID and

Description field values from the user-selected record to flow variables.

SEE ALSO:

Operators in Flow Record Filters

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Options for Choice Fields in Flow Screen Elements

Flow Resources

Flow Formula Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Calculates a value by using other resources in your flow and Salesforce functions.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within

the current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name,

provided they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited

to underscores and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a

letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore, and not

contain two consecutive underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this formula from other resources.Description

The data type for the value calculated by the formula.Value Data Type

Controls the number of digits to the right of the decimal point.

Can’t exceed 17. If you leave this field blank or set to zero, only

whole numbers display when your flow runs.

Appears when Value Data Type is Number or Currency.

Scale

The formula expression that the flow evaluates at run time. The

returned value must be compatible with Value Data Type.

Formula

Note: Some formula operators are not supported in the

Cloud Flow Designer.

SEE ALSO:

Formula Operators and Functions

Limitations for Flow Formulas

Flow Resources

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Global Constant Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Fixed, system-provided values, such as EmptyString, True, and False.

Supported Data TypesGlobal Constant

Boolean{!$GlobalConstant.True}

Boolean{!$GlobalConstant.False}

Text{!$GlobalConstant.EmptyString}

Example: When you create a Boolean variable, $GlobalConstant.True and

$GlobalConstant.False are supported. But when you create a Currency variable,

no global constants are supported.

Null vs. Empty String

At run time, {!$GlobalConstant.EmptyString} and null are treated as separate, distinct values. For example:

•If you leave a text field or resource value blank, that value is null at run time. If you instead want the value to be treated as an

empty string, set it to {!$GlobalConstant.EmptyString}.

•For flow conditions, use the is null operator to check whether a value is null. If the condition compares two text variables,

make sure that their default values are correctly either set to {!$GlobalConstant.EmptyString} or left blank (null).

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Global Variables in Visual Workflow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

System-provided variables that reference information about the organization or running user, such

as the user’s ID or the API session ID. In Visual Workflow, global variables are available only in flow

formulas.

Example: Use {$!User.Id} to easily access the ID of the user who’s running the flow

interview.

The following global variables are supported in flow formulas. If a value in the database has no

value, the corresponding merge field returns a blank value. For example, if nobody has set a value

for your organization’s Country field, {!$Organization.Country} returns no value.

DescriptionGlobal

Variable

References API URLs or the session ID. The following merge fields are available.$Api

•Enterprise_Server_URL_xxx—The Enterprise WSDL SOAP

endpoint where xxx represents the version of the API.

•Partner_Server_URL_xxx—The Partner WSDL SOAP endpoint

where xxx represents the version of the API.

•Session_ID

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionGlobal Variable

References custom labels. This global variable appears only if custom labels have been created in your

organization.

The returned value depends on the language setting of the contextual user. The value returned is one of

the following, in order of precedence:

$Label

1. The local translation’s text

2. The packaged translation’s text

3. The master label’s text

References information about your company.$Organization

Note: {!$Organization.UiSkin} returns one of these values.

•Theme1—Obsolete Salesforce theme

•Theme2—Salesforce theme used before Spring ’10

•Theme3—Classic “Aloha” Salesforce theme, introduced in Spring ’10

•PortalDefault—Salesforce Customer Portal theme

•Webstore—Salesforce AppExchange theme

References information from the current user’s profile, such as license type or name.$Profile

Tip:

•Use profile names to reference standard profiles in $Profile merge fields.

•Users don’t need access to their profile information to run a flow that references these merge

fields.

References custom settings of type “hierarchy”. This global variable appears only if hierarchy custom settings

have been created in your organization. You can access custom settings of type “list” only in Apex.

Hierarchical custom settings allow values at any of three different levels:

$Setup

•Organization—the default value for everyone

•Profile—overrides the Organization value

•User—overrides both Organization and Profile values

Salesforce automatically determines the correct value for this custom setting field based on the running

user’s current context.

$System.OriginDateTime represents the literal value of 1900-01-01 00:00:00. Use this

merge field to perform date/time offset calculations.

$System

References information about the user who’s running the flow interview. For example, reference the user’s

ID or title.

$User

Tip:

•The current user is the person who caused the flow to start.

•When a flow is started because a Web-to-Case or Web-to-Lead process changed a record, the

current user is the Default Lead Owner or Default Case Owner.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

DescriptionGlobal Variable

$User.UITheme and $User.UIThemeDisplayed identify the look and feel the running user

sees on a given Salesforce page. The difference between the two variables is that $User.UITheme

returns the look and feel the user is supposed to see, while $User.UIThemeDisplayed returns the

look and feel the user actually sees. For example, a user may have the preference and permissions to see the

Lightning Experience look and feel, but if they are using a browser that doesn’t support that look and feel,

for example, older versions of Internet Explorer, $User.UIThemeDisplayed returns a different value.

These merge fields return one of the following values.

•Theme1—Obsolete Salesforce theme

•Theme2—Salesforce Classic 2005 user interface theme

•Theme3—Salesforce Classic 2010 user interface theme

•Theme4d—Modern “Lightning Experience” Salesforce theme

•Theme4t—Salesforce1 mobile Salesforce theme

•PortalDefault—Salesforce Customer Portal theme

•Webstore—Salesforce AppExchange theme

References information about the current user’s role, such as the role name or ID.$UserRole

Tip:

•The current user is the person who caused the flow to start.

•When a flow is started because a Web-to-Case or Web-to-Lead process changed a record, the

current user is the Default Lead Owner or Default Case Owner.

Flow Picklist Choice Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Represents a set of choices that’s generated from the values of a picklist or multi-select picklist field.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this resource from other resources.Description

Data type of the choice’s stored value.Value Data

Type

The object whose fields you want to select from.Object

The picklist or multi-select picklist field to use to generate the list of

choices.

Field

Controls the order that the choices appear in. The choices sort based on

the translated picklist value for the running user’s language.

Sort Order

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Example: In a flow that simplifies the process of creating an account, users identify the company’s industry.

Rather than creating one choice for each industry, you add a picklist choice to the flow and populate a drop-down list with it.

When users run this flow, the picklist choice finds all the values in the database for the Industry picklist field (1) on the Account

object (2).

On top of being easier to configure than the stand-alone choice resource, picklist choices reduce maintenance. When someone

adds new options to the Account Industry picklist, the flow automatically reflects those changes; you don’t have to update the

flow.

Limitations

Unlike with dynamic record choices, you can’t:

Filter out any values that come back from the database.

The flow always displays every picklist value for that field—even if you’re using record types to narrow down the picklist choices in

page layouts.

Customize the label for each option.

The flow always displays the label for each picklist value.

Customize the stored value for each option.

The flow always stores the API value for each picklist value.

Picklists for Knowledge Articles aren’t supported.

Labels and Values for Translated Fields

When a picklist field has been translated:

•Each choice’s label uses the version of that picklist value in the running user’s language

•Each choice’s stored value uses the version of that picklist value in the org’s default language

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element: Choice Fields

Options for Choice Fields in Flow Screen Elements

Flow Resources

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow sObject Collection Variable Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Stores updatable field values for one or more Salesforce records.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this sObject collection variable from other

resources.

Description

Determines whether the sObject collection variable can be accessed

outside the flow.

Input/Output

Type

•Private—Can be assigned and used only within the flow

•Input—Can be set at the start of the flow using Visualforce controllers,

or subflow inputs

•Output—Can be accessed from Visualforce controllers and other

flows

The default value is Private.

Warning: Disabling input or output access for an existing variable

can break the functionality of applications and pages that call the

flow and access the variable. For example, you can access variables

from URL parameters, Visualforce controllers, subflows, and

processes.

Type of Salesforce records that the sObject collection represents in the

flow.

Object Type

Usage

After you populate the sObject collection, reference it to create, update, or delete records in the Salesforce database.

Examine every item in the collection by using a Loop element. When an item is being examined in the loop, the item’s field values are

copied into an sObject variable that you specify as the loop variable. If you want the loop to modify a collection item, such as to update

an item’s field values:

1. Configure the elements within the loop to update the loop variable.

2. Add the variable’s field values to a separate collection.

Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

You can add new items to the end of the collection (Assignment element) or replace all items in the collection (Fast Lookup element).

However, you can’t update existing collection items. To get around this limitation, have the loop iteratively add the contents of the loop

variable to another collection. When the loop finishes, you can update the Salesforce records with values from the new collection.

SEE ALSO:

Sample Flow That Loops Through a Collection

Flow Loop Element

Flow Resources

Flow sObject Variable Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Stores updatable field values for a Salesforce record.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this sObject variable from other resources.Description

Determines whether the sObject variable can be accessed outside the

flow.

Input/Output

Type

•Private—Can be assigned and used only within the flow

•Input—Can be set at the start of the flow using Visualforce controllers,

or subflow inputs

•Output—Can be accessed from Visualforce controllers and other

flows

This field doesn’t affect how variables are assigned or used within the

same flow, for example, through these types of elements: Assignment,

Record or Fast Create, Record or Fast Lookup, and Apex Plug-in.

The default value of the field is Private.

Warning: Disabling input or output access for an existing variable

can break the functionality of applications and pages that call the

flow and access the variable. For example, you can access variables

from URL parameters, Visualforce controllers, subflows, and

processes.

Type of Salesforce record that the sObject variable represents in the flow.Object Type

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Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Usage

When an sObject variable is created, its default value is null. Before you reference an sObject variable’s values, make sure that the

sObject variable has a value by using the is null operator in a Decision element.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

System Variables in Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

System-provided values about the running flow interview, such as {!$Flow.CurrentDate},

{!$Flow.CurrentDateTime}, and {!$Flow.FaultMessage}.

DescriptionSupported Resource TypesSystem Variable

Date when the flow interview

executes the element that

references the system variable.

Text, Date, and

DateTime

{!$Flow.CurrentDate}

Date and time when the flow

interview executes the element

that references the system

variable.

Text, Date, and

DateTime

{!$Flow.CurrentDateTime}

System fault message that can

help flow administrators

troubleshoot run time issues.

Text{!$Flow.FaultMessage}

Example: A flow is used only internally by call center personnel. For each flow element that interacts with the Salesforce database,

a fault connector leads to a screen. A Display Text field on the screen displays the system fault message and instructs the flow user

to provide that message to the IT department.

Sorry, but you can’t read or update records at this time.

Please open a case with IT, and include the following error message:

{!$Flow.FaultMessage}

SEE ALSO:

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Flow Resources

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Flow ReferenceVisual Workflow Guide

Flow Text Template Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Stores HTML-formatted text.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the current

flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided they are

used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores and

alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include spaces,

not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this text template from other resources.Description

The text for the template. Use HTML to format the text and merge fields

to reference information from other resources.

Text Template

Example: You’re designing a flow that registers people for an event. You create a text template that includes a registrant's name,

address, and other information. Then you use the template in an email confirmation that the flow sends when it finishes.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Flow Variable Resource

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Stores a value that can be updated as the flow executes.

DescriptionField

The requirement for uniqueness applies only to elements within the

current flow. Two elements can have the same unique name, provided

they are used in different flows. A unique name is limited to underscores

and alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include

spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two consecutive

underscores.

Unique Name

Helps you differentiate this variable from other resources.Description

Determines the types of values that can be assigned to the variable.Data Type

Controls the number of digits to the right of the decimal point. Can’t

exceed 17. If you leave this field blank or set to zero, only whole numbers

display when your flow runs.

Appears only when the Data Type is set to Number or Currency.

Scale

Determines whether the variable can be accessed outside the flow.

Input/Output

Type •Private—Can be assigned and used only within the flow

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DescriptionField

•Input—Can be set at the start of the flow using Visualforce controllers, or subflow inputs

•Output—Can be accessed from Visualforce controllers and other flows

This field doesn’t affect how variables are assigned or used within the same flow, for example, through

these types of elements: Assignment, Record or Fast Create, Record or Fast Lookup, and Apex Plug-in.

The default value of the field depends on the release or API version in which the variable is created:

•Private for a variable created in Summer ’12 and later or in API version 25.0 and later.

•Input and Output for a variable created in Spring ’12 and earlier or in API version 24.0.

Warning: Disabling input or output access for an existing variable can break the functionality

of applications and pages that call the flow and access the variable. For example, you can access

variables from URL parameters, Visualforce controllers, subflows, and processes.

Determines the variable value when the flow starts. If you leave this field blank, the value is null.

Default values aren’t available for Picklist and Picklist (Multi-Select) variables.

Default Value

Usage

You can delete a variable at any time. Any variable assignments that use the deleted variable are set to null.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Resources

Flow Assignment Element

Flow sObject Variable Resource

Cross-Object Field References in Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When building a flow, you can reference fields for records that are related to the values that are

stored in an sObject variable. To do so, manually enter the references.

IN THIS SECTION:

Tips for Cross-Object Field References in Flows

Cross-object field values are valid wherever you can reference a flow resource or manually enter

a value. Keep these implementation tips in mind when you use a cross-object field reference.

Cross-Object Field References in Flows: Simple Relationships

Most relationships are straightforward. For example, Case.AccountId links directly to the

case’s parent account. If you know that a field relationship ties your object to exactly one other object, use this syntax.

Cross-Object Field References in Flows: Polymorphic Relationships

Some fields have relationships to more than one object. We call these relationships polymorphic. For example, if you have queues

enabled for cases, a case owner can be either a user or queue. If you’re traversing from a case to its owner ID, add special syntax to

identify which object you mean when you say “Owner”.

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Example Cross-Object Field References in Flows

This example demonstrates how to update a contract’s owner to be the contract’s account’s owner.

Tips for Cross-Object Field References in Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Cross-object field values are valid wherever you can reference a flow resource or manually enter a

value. Keep these implementation tips in mind when you use a cross-object field reference.

When you create an sObject variable to reference fields on related records from, store the ID for the

first related record in the variable. For example, to reference an opportunity’s contract, store

ContractId in the sObject variable or add a value for ContractId by using an Assignment

element.

Unsupported Relationships

The following relationships aren’t supported in cross-object field references.

•Lead.ConvertedAccount

•Lead.ConvertedContact

•Lead.ConvertedOpportunity

Avoiding Null Values

If a flow interview encounters a null value at any point in the cross-object expression, the element containing the reference fails. The

reference runs successfully if the last field value in the expression is null. For example, store a contact in {!sObjContact} and

try to reference {!sObjContact}.Account.Name. The flow fails if AccountId on the stored contact is null (because

there isn’t an account to look at), but it succeeds if Name on the related account is null.

If an element contains a cross-object reference that fails and the element doesn’t have a fault path defined, the entire interview fails. To

avoid this situation, you can:

•Make the fields that you want to reference in the expression required in Salesforce. For example, for the expression

{!sObjContact}.Account.Name, you could require AccountId on contact page layouts. Then, using another flow,

find any records with null values for that field and update them.

•Determine whether each field that’s referenced in the expression has a value by using the wasSet operator in a Decision element.

Cross-Object Field References and Org Limits

Cross-object field references in flows don’t count against your org’s limits for:

•Cross-object relationships per object

•DML operations per transaction

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Cross-Object Field References in Flows: Simple Relationships

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Most relationships are straightforward. For example, Case.AccountId links directly to the

case’s parent account. If you know that a field relationship ties your object to exactly one other

object, use this syntax.

To reference a field on a related record, use this syntax.

{!sObjectVariable.objectName1.objectName2.fieldName}

where:

•sObjectVariable is the unique name for the sObject variable that you want to start from.

•objectName1 is the API name for an object that's related to sObjectVariable's object type. The API names for all custom objects

end in __r.

•(Optional) objectName2 is the API name for an object that's related to objectName1.

Your expression must include at least one object name, but you can add more objects as needed.

•fieldName is the name for the field that you want to reference on the last object in the expression. The API names for all custom

fields end in __c.

For example, {!sOv_Contact.Account.Id} references Id of the account that's related to the contact record represented by

an sObject variable in the flow.

Cross-Object Field References in Flows: Polymorphic Relationships

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Some fields have relationships to more than one object. We call these relationships polymorphic.

For example, if you have queues enabled for cases, a case owner can be either a user or queue. If

you’re traversing from a case to its owner ID, add special syntax to identify which object you mean

when you say “Owner”.

To reference a field on a related record, use this syntax.

{!sObjectVariable.polymorphicObjectName1:specificObjectName2.fieldName}

where:

•sObjectVariable is the unique name for the sObject variable that you want to start from.

•polymorphicObject is the API name for a polymorphic relationship for sObjectVariable's object type.

•specificObjectName is the API name for the object that you want to select from the polymorphic relationship.

•fieldName is the name for the field that you want to reference on the last object in the expression. All custom field API names

end in __c.

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For example: {!sObj_Case.Owner:User.Id} references the ID of the user who owns the case, while

{!sObj_Case.Owner:Queue.Id} references the ID of the queue who owns the case. You can always add the polymorphic

reference after several traversals ({!sObj_Case.Account.Owner:User.Id}) or in the middle of a reference

({!sObj_Case.Owner:User.Manager.Id}).

Supported Polymorphic Relationships

Not every relationship is polymorphic, so we recommend using the polymorphic syntax only when you know that the field can link to

multiple objects. The following relationships are supported.

•Case.Source

•FeedItem.CreatedBy

•Object.Owner

Where Object lets you set Owner to either a user or a queue. Group.Owner and Queue.Owner aren’t supported.

When you create an sObject variable to reference fields on related records from, store the ID for the first related record in the variable.

For example, to reference an opportunity’s contract, store ContractId in the sObject variable or add a value for ContractId by

using an Assignment element.

Example Cross-Object Field References in Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

This example demonstrates how to update a contract’s owner to be the contract’s account’s owner.

Example:

1. Use a Fast Lookup element to store the contract’s fields, including AccountId, in an

sObject variable called varContract.

2. Use a Decision element to verify that the value of AccountId was set in

varContract.

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3. Use a Fast Lookup to store the fields for the contract’s account, including OwnerId, in another sObject variable called

varAccount.

4. Use a Decision element to confirm that the value of OwnerId was set in varAccount.

5. Use an Assignment element to specify {!varContract.Account.OwnerId} as the value for

{!varContract.OwnerId}.

6. Use a Fast Update element to write the values in varContract, including the updated OwnerId value, to the contract

in Salesforce.

Flow Connectors

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Connectors determine the available paths that a flow can take at run time. In the Cloud Flow Designer

canvas, a connector looks like an arrow that points from one element to another.

DescriptionExampleLabel

Identifies which element to execute next.Unlabeled

Identifies which element to execute when

the criteria of a Decision outcome are met.

Decision

outcome name

Identifies which element to execute when

an event that’s defined in a Wait element

occurs.

Wait event

name

Identifies which element to execute when

the previous element results in an error.

FAULT

Identifies the first element to execute for

each iteration of a Loop element.

Next element

Identifies which element to execute after a

Loop element finishes iterating through a

collection.

End of loop

SEE ALSO:

Flow Elements

Flow Operators

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Operators behave differently, depending on what you’re configuring. In Assignment elements,

operators let you change resource values. In flow conditions and record filters, operators let you

evaluate information and narrow the scope of a flow operation.

IN THIS SECTION:

Operators in Flow Assignment Elements

Use Assignment element operators to change the value of a selected resource.

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Operators in Flow Conditions

Use condition operators to verify the value of a selected resource. Conditions are used in Decision elements and Wait elements.

Operators in Flow Record Filters

A flow record filter narrows the scope of records that the flow operates on. For example, use a record filter to update only the contacts

that are associated with the Acme Wireless account. When you add a Record Update element, use the record filters to narrow the

scope to just the contacts whose parent account is Acme Wireless.

Operators in Flow Assignment Elements

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Use Assignment element operators to change the value of a selected resource.

Use this reference, organized by the data type that you select for Resource, to understand the

supported operators.

•Boolean

•Collection

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•sObject

•Text

Boolean

Replace a boolean resource with a new value.

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before Assignment: {!varBoolean} is false.

Assignment: {!varBoolean} equals

{!$GlobalConstant.True}

BooleanWhat you enter or select for Value

replaces the value of Variable.

equals

After Assignment: {!varBoolean} is true.

Collection

Replace the value of a collection variable or sObject collection variable (equals) or add an item to the end of the variable (add).

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ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment:Collection of the

same data type or

object type

Text, Picklist, and

Multi-Select

What you enter or select for Value

replaces the value of Variable.

equals

•{!collText} is Yellow, Green, Blue

•{!collPicklist} is Blue, Red, Orange

Assignment: {!collText} equals {!collPicklist}.

After the Assignment: {!collText} is Blue, Red,

Orange.

Picklist data types

are compatible

with each other.

Before the Assignment:Variable of the

same data type or

What you enter or select for Value

is added as a new item at the end

of the collection.

add

•{!collText} is Yellow, Green, Blue

sObject variable

of the same

object type

Text, Picklist, and

Multi-Select

•{!varPicklist} is Red

Assignment: {!collText} add {!varPicklist}.

After the Assignment: {!collText} is Yellow,

Green, Blue, Red.

Picklist data types

are compatible

with each other.

Currency and Number

Replace (equals), add to (add), or subtract from (subtract) the value of a currency or number resource.

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 10.

Assignment: {!varCurrency} equals 7.

The number that you enter or select

for Value replaces the value of

Variable.

equals •Currency

•Number

After the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 7.

Before the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 10.

Assignment: {!varCurrency} add 7.

The number that you enter or select

for Value is added to the value of

Variable.

add •Currency

•Number

After the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 17.

Before the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 10.

Assignment: {!varCurrency} subtract 7.

The number that you enter or select

for Value is subtracted from the

value of Variable.

subtract •Currency

•Number

After the Assignment: {!varCurrency} is 3.

Date

Replace (equals), add to (add), or subtract from (subtract) the value of a date/time resource.

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ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/16/2016.

Assignment: {!varDate} equals 1/15/2016.

The date that you enter or select for

Value replaces the value of Variable.

equals •Date

•Date/Time

After the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/15/2016.

Before the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/16/2016.

Assignment: {!varDate} add 7.

Value is added, in days, to the

selected Variable’s value.

add •Currency

•Number

After the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/23/2016.

Before the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/16/2016.

Assignment: {!varDate} subtract 7.

Value is subtracted, in days, from the

selected Variable’s value.

subtract •Currency

•Number

After the Assignment: {!varDate} is 1/9/2016.

Date/Time

Replace a date/time resource with a new value (equals).

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varDateTime} is 1/16/2016

01:00.

Assignment: {!varDateTime} equals 1/16/2016

08:00.

The date that you enter or select for

Value replaces the value of Variable.

equals •Date

•Date/Time

After the Assignment: {!varDateTime} is 1/16/2016

08:00.

Picklist

Replace a picklist resource with a new value (equals) or concatenate a value onto the original value (add).

Note: Before values are assigned or added to a picklist resource, they’re converted into string values.

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varPicklist} is Blue.

Assignment: {!varPicklist} equals Yellow.

What you enter or select for Value

replaces the value of the selected

picklist.

equals •Boolean

•Currency

After the Assignment: {!varPicklist} is Yellow.

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select

Picklist

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ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Before the Assignment: {!varPicklist} is Blue.

Assignment: {!varPicklist} add -green.

What you enter or select for Value

is added to the end of the selected

picklist.

add •Boolean

•Currency

After the Assignment: {!varPicklist} is Blue-green.

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Multi-Select Picklist

Replace a multi-select picklist resource with a new value (equals), concatenate a value onto the original value (add), or add a selection

to the resource (add item).

Note: Before values are assigned or added to a multi-select picklist resource, they’re converted into string values.

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Blue.

Assignment: {!varMSP} equals Yellow.

What you enter or select for Value

replaces the value of the selected

multi-select picklist.

equal •Boolean

•Collection

After the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Yellow.

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

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ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Blue; Green.

This value includes two separate selections.

Assignment: {!varMSP} add Yellow.

What you enter or select for Value

is added to the last item selected in

the multi-select picklist. It doesn’t

create a selection.

Easily add items to a multi-select

picklist resource by using the “add

item” operator.

add •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

After the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Blue;

GreenYellow. This value includes two separate selections.

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select

Picklist

•Number

To add semi-colon-delimited items

to a multi-select picklist variable •Picklist

with the “add” operator, always add •Text

a single space after the semi-colon

and don’t include a space before the

semi-colon. This way, you can

compare the variable’s values to the

values of a multi-select picklist field

from the Salesforce database. For

example: ; Yellow

Before the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Blue; Green.

Assignment: {!varMSP} add item Yellow.

What you enter or select for Value

is added as a new selection to the

end of the multi-select picklist. The

add item •Boolean

•Currency

After the Assignment: {!varMSP} is Blue; Green;

Yellow. This value includes three separate selections.

•Date

Assignment automatically adds “; ”

before the new item. That way,

Salesforce reads it as a separate item

selected by the multi-select picklist.

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

sObject

Replace an sObject variable with a new value (equals).

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment:sObject with the

same object type

The sObject that you select for Value

replaces the value of Variable.

equals

•{!account1} contains field values for the Acme

Wireless account

•{!account2} contains field values for the Global Media

account

Assignment: {!account1} equals {!account2}.

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ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

After the Assignment: both {!account1} and

{!account2} contain the field values for the Global Media

account.

Text

Replace a text resource with a new value (equals) or concatenate a value onto the end of the original value (add).

Note: Before values are assigned or added to a text resource, they’re converted into string values.

ExampleSupported

Data Types

DescriptionOperator

Before the Assignment: {!varText} is Blue.

Assignment: {!varText} equals Yellow.

The text that you enter or select for

Value replaces the value of Variable.

equals •Boolean

•Currency

After the Assignment: {!varText} is Yellow.

•Date

•Date/Time

•Number

•Multi-select

picklist

•Picklist

•Text

Before the Assignment: {!varText} is Blue.

Assignment: {!varText} add Yellow.

The text that you enter or select for

Value is added to the end of

Variable.

add •Boolean

•Currency

After the Assignment: {!varText} is BlueYellow.

•Date

•Date/Time

•Number

•Multi-select

picklist

•Picklist

•Text

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Operators in Flow Conditions

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Use condition operators to verify the value of a selected resource. Conditions are used in Decision

elements and Wait elements.

Use this reference, divided up by the data type that you select for Resource, to understand the

supported operators.

•Boolean

•Choice

•Collection

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-Select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•sObject

•Text

Boolean

Check whether a Boolean resource’s value matches another value or resource.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

BooleanThe value of the selected Resource doesn’t match what you enter or select for Value.does not

equal

BooleanThe value of the selected Resource matches what you enter or select for Value.

An outcome resolves to true if the flow interview took that outcome. A wait event resolves

to true if all of the waiting conditions for that event are met.

equals

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once.

was set

BooleanThe selected Resource is an element in the flow, and it has been visited during the flow

interview.

was visited

Choice

Every choice resource has a data type and obeys the operator rules for that data type. However, choice resources support one extra

operator that other resources don’t, no matter what their data type is.

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

BooleanA user selected that choice or dynamic record choice in a screen choice input field.

If your flow references the same choice option in multiple screens, was selected always

evaluates to the most recent screen that the flow visited.

was selected

If your flow references the same choice option with a user input in more than one place on

the same screen, this operator always evaluates the first usage in the screen.

Collection

Check whether a Collection resource’s value contains or matches another value or resource.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

Varies

If the resource is an

sObject collection

An item in the collection that’s selected for Resource contains the exact same value as Valuecontains

variable, only sObject

resources with the

same object type are

supported.

Otherwise, only

resources with the

same data type are

supported.

Collection

If the resource is an

sObject collection

The collection that’s selected for Resource doesn’t match the collection that’s selected for

Value

Two sObject collection variables are unequal if they include different fields or if the fields have

different values.

does not

equal

variable, only sObject

collection variables

with the same object

type are supported.

Otherwise, only

collection variables

with the same data

type are supported.

Collection

If the resource is an

sObject collection

The collection that’s selected for Resource matches the collection that’s selected for Value

Two sObject collection variables are equal if they include the same fields and those fields have

the same values.

equals

variable, only sObject

collection variables

with the same object

type are supported.

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

Otherwise, only

collection variables

with the same data

type are supported.

BooleanThe collection that’s selected for resource isn’t populated with any valuesis null

Currency and Number

Check whether a Currency or Number resource’s value matches, is larger than, or is smaller than another value or resource.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal •Currency

•Number

The value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals •Currency

•Number

The value of the Resource is larger than what’s entered or selected for Valuegreater than •Currency

•Number

The value of the Resource is larger than what’s entered or selected for Value or is the samegreater than

or equal •Currency

•Number

The value of the Resource is smaller than what’s entered or selected for Valueless than •Currency

•Number

The value of the Resource is smaller than what’s entered or selected for Value or is the sameless than or

equal •Currency

•Number

BooleanResource isn’t populated with a valueis null

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once

was set

Date and Date/Time

Check whether a Date or Date/Time resource’s value matches, is before, or is after another value or resource.

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal •Date

•Date/Time

The value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is a later date or time than what’s entered or selected for Valuegreater than •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is a later date or time than what’s entered or selected for Value or

is the same date or time

greater than

or equal •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is an earlier date or time than what’s entered or selected for Valueless than •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is an earlier date or time than what’s entered or selected for Value

or is the same date or time

less than or

equal •Date

•Date/Time

BooleanResource isn’t populated with a valueis null

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once

was set

Picklist

Check whether a Picklist resource’s value matches or contains another value or resource.

Note: These operators treat the resource’s value as a text value.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource contains what’s entered or selected for Value

For example, if the value of {!varPicklist} is yellow-green, the condition

{!varPicklist} contains green evaluates to true.

contains •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

The value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once

was set

Multi-Select Picklist

Check whether a multi-select picklist resource’s value matches or contains another value or resource.

Note: These operators treat the resource’s value as a text value. If the resource’s value includes multiple items, the operators treat

the value as one string that happens to include semi-colons. It doesn’t treat each selection as a different value. For example, the

operators treat red; blue; green as a single value rather than three separate values.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource contains what’s entered or selected for Valuecontains •Boolean

Tip: When you use this operator for a multi-select picklist resource, be aware of the

values that a user can enter. If you want to check that a specific value is included and

•Currency

•Date

that value is also included as part of another value, create a flow formula resource that

uses the INCLUDES function.

For example, your organization has a Color multi-select picklist value. Among the

possible values are “green” and “yellow-green”. If both “green” and “yellow-green” are

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

•Picklist

acceptable values, use the contains operator in a flow condition. If only “green” is an

acceptable value, create a formula that uses the INCLUDES() function. •Text

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal •Boolean

Note: Order matters. If you aren’t sure which order the values that you’re checking

for will appear in, use the INCLUDES() function in a flow formula. For example, if you

•Currency

•Date

compare “red; blue; green” to “blue; green; red” using the does not equal operator,

that condition resolves to true. •Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

The value for Resource exactly matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals •Boolean

Note: Order matters. If you aren’t sure which order the values that you’re checking

for will appear in, use the INCLUDES() function in a flow formula. For example, if you

•Currency

•Date

compare “red; blue; green” to “blue; green; red” using the equals operator, that condition

will resolve to false. •Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once

was set

sObject

Check whether an sObject resource’s value matches another value or resource.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

sObject with the same

object type

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal

sObject with the same

object type

The value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals

BooleanResource isn’t populated with a valueis null

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Text

Check whether a Text resource’s value matches, contains, ends with, or starts with another value or resource.

Note: Before values are compared to a text resource, they’re converted into string values.

Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

The value for Resource contains what’s entered or selected for Valuecontains •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s entered or selected for Valuedoes not

equal •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

The value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueequals •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

The end of the value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valueends with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

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Supported Data

Types

True if...Operator

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanResource isn’t populated with a valueis null

The beginning of the value for Resource matches what’s entered or selected for Valuestarts with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select

Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanThe value for Resource is a field in an sObject variable, and that field has been populated with

a value in the flow at least once

was set

Operators in Flow Record Filters

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A flow record filter narrows the scope of records that the flow operates on. For example, use a record

filter to update only the contacts that are associated with the Acme Wireless account. When you

add a Record Update element, use the record filters to narrow the scope to just the contacts whose

parent account is Acme Wireless.

Use this reference, organized by the data type of the field that you select, to understand the

supported operators.

•Address Fields

•Autonumber Fields

•Checkbox Fields

•Currency Fields

•Date Fields

•Date/Time Fields

•Email Fields

•Encrypted Text Fields

•External Lookup Relationship Fields

•Fax Fields

•Lookup Relationship Fields

•Multi-Select Picklist Fields

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•Number Fields

•Parent Fields

•Percent Fields

•Phone Fields

•Picklist Fields

•Text Fields

•Text Area (Long) Fields

•Text Area (Rich) Fields

•URL Fields

Checkbox Fields

When you select a checkbox field under Field, these operators are available.

Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

BooleanDoesn’t match what you enter or select for

Value

does not equal

BooleanMatches what you enter or select for Valueequals

BooleanHasn’t been populated with a value yet (if

you select True for Value)

is null

Tip: Flow treats null as a different value than false. If you filter for records whose checkbox field is null, no records are

returned.

Currency, Number, and Percent Fields

When you select a currency, number, or percent field under Field, these operators are available.

Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

Doesn’t match what’s entered or selected

for Value

does not equal •Currency

•Number

Matches what’s entered or selected for

Value

equals •Currency

•Number

Is larger than what’s entered or selected for

Value

greater than •Currency

•Number

Is larger than what’s entered or selected for

Value or is the same

greater than or equal •Currency

•Number

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Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

BooleanHasn’t been populated with a value yet (if

you select True for Value)

is null

Is smaller than what’s entered or selected

for Value

less than •Currency

•Number

Is smaller than what’s entered or selected

for Value or is the same.

less than or equal •Currency

•Number

Date and Date/Time

When you select a date or date/time field under Field, these operators are available.

Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

The value for Resource doesn’t match what’s

entered or selected for Value

does not equal •Date

•Date/Time

The value for Resource matches what’s

entered or selected for Value

equals •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is a later date or

time than what’s entered or selected for

Value

greater than •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is a later date or

time than what’s entered or selected for

Value or is the same date or time

greater than or equal •Date

•Date/Time

BooleanHasn’t been populated with a value yet (if

you select True for Value)

is null

The value of the Resource is an earlier date

or time than what’s entered or selected for

Value

less than •Date

•Date/Time

The value of the Resource is an earlier date

or time than what’s entered or selected for

Value or is the same date or time

less than or equal •Date

•Date/Time

Picklist and Text Fields

When you select a picklist or text field under Field, these operators are available.

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Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

Contains what’s entered or selected for

Value

contains •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Doesn’t match what’s entered or selected

for Value

does not equal •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Matches what’s entered or selected for

Value

equals •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Ends with what’s entered or selected for

Value

ends with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanHasn’t been populated with a value yet (if

you select True for Value)

is null

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Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

Begins with what’s entered or selected for

Value

starts with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Multi-Select Picklist Fields

When you select a multi-select picklist field under Field, these operators are available.

Tip: Be careful when using these operators to filter records based on a multi-select picklist field. Even if two resources have the

same items in a multi-select picklist, they can be mismatched if these cases differ.

•The spacing before or after the semi-colon. For example, one resource’s value is “red; green; blue” and the other’s value is

“red;green;blue”

•The order of the items. For example, one resource’s value is “red; green; blue” and the other’s value is “red; blue; green”

For best results, use the INCLUDES function in a flow formula.

Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

Doesn’t match what’s entered or selected

for Value

does not equal •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Matches what’s entered or selected for

Value

equals •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

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Supported Data TypesFilters to records where the selected

field’s value ...

Operator

•Text

Ends with what’s entered or selected for

Value

ends with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

BooleanHasn’t been populated with a value yet (if

you select True for Value)

is null

Begins with what’s entered or selected for

Value

starts with •Boolean

•Currency

•Date

•Date/Time

•Multi-select Picklist

•Number

•Picklist

•Text

Flow Event Types

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Event Type drives the fields that you use to define an event in a flow Wait element. The available

event types are both alarms, which consist of a date/time value—the base time—and an optional

offset from that time.

The base time, which is always required, is the date/time value from which the alarm is based. If

there’s no offset for the alarm, the alarm is set to the exact value of the base time. The base time

can be composed of one or multiple fields, based on the event type that you choose.

The offset, which is optional, is the amount of time before or after the base time at which the alarm

occurs. An offset is always composed of two fields: Offset Number and Offset Unit. For

example, if you want your alarm to occur three days after the base time, the number is 3 and the

unit is Days.

IN THIS SECTION:

Absolute Time Alarms

An absolute time alarm waits for a defined time that’s based off an absolute date/time value. For example, you can use this event

type in a Wait element to do something a day after the flow interview starts to wait.

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Relative Time Alarms

A relative time alarm waits for a defined time that’s based off a date/time field on a record. For example, you can use this event type

to do something three days before a contract ends.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Wait Element

Absolute Time Alarms

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

An absolute time alarm waits for a defined time that’s based off an absolute date/time value. For

example, you can use this event type in a Wait element to do something a day after the flow

interview starts to wait.

When you configure a Wait element in a flow:

•Define what the flow is waiting for

•Assign information from the event after it occurs to flow variables

Event Conditions

The following parameters are available to define events with an Event Type of Alarm: Absolute

Time.

ExampleDescriptionParameter

{!$Flow.CurrentDate}A date/time value. If you enter values for Offset Number and Offset

Unit, this field value is the base for the offset.

You can manually enter a date/time value or reference a merge field or flow

resource.

Base Time

-3Optional. The number of days or hours to offset Base Time. Required if

you set a value for Offset Unit.The value must be a manually entered

integer. You can’t use a merge field or flow resource for this value.

To set the alarm to occur before Base Time, use a negative number. To

set the alarm to occur after Base Time, use a positive number.

Offset Number

DaysOptional. The unit to offset Base Time. Required if you set a value for

Offset Number.

Manually enter Days or Hours. You can’t use a merge field or flow resource

for this value.

Offset Unit

For an example of a flow that waits for an absolute time alarm, see Sample Flow That Waits for a Single Event.

Event Outputs

Reference information from the event in your flow by assigning its outputs to flow variables.

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ExampleDescriptionParameter

11/26/2014 10:12 AMThe actual time at which the event occurred and the flow interview

resumed.

Base Time

DeliveredThe status of the event when the flow interview resumed. After an

event occurs, Salesforce delivers the event to the flow that’s waiting

for it, so that the flow knows to resume. Valid values are:

Event Delivery

Status

•Delivered: The event was successfully delivered.

•Invalid: An error occurred during delivery, but the flow

successfully resumed.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Event Types

Relative Time Alarms

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A relative time alarm waits for a defined time that’s based off a date/time field on a record. For

example, you can use this event type to do something three days before a contract ends.

When you configure a Wait element in a flow:

•Define what the flow is waiting for

•Assign information from the event after it occurs to flow variables

Event Conditions

The following parameters are available to define events with an Event Type of Alarm: Relative

Time.

ExampleDescriptionParameter

ContractThe API name of the object whose field you want to base the alarm

on. See Supported Objects. on page 129

You must manually enter a string. You can’t use a merge field or flow

resource for this value.

Object Type

EndDateThe API name for a date or date/time field on the specified object.

If you enter values for Offset Number and Offset Unit,

this field value is the base for the offset.

Manually enter a string.

Base Date/Time Field

{!ContractId}ID of the record that the alarm is based on. The record’s object type

must match Object Type.

You can enter a string, merge field, or flow resource.

Record ID

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ExampleDescriptionParameter

-3Optional. The number of days or hours to offset Base

Date/Time Field. Required if you set a value for Offset

Unit.

The value must be a manually entered integer. You can’t use a merge

field or flow resource for this value.

Offset Number

To set the alarm to occur before Base Date/Time Field,

use a negative number. To set the alarm to occur after Base

Date/Time Field, use a positive number.

DaysOptional. The unit to offset Base Date/Time Field. Required

if you set a value for Offset Number.

Manually enter Days or Hours. You can’t use a merge field or

flow resource for this value.

Offset Unit

For examples of flows that wait for relative time alarms, see Sample Flow That Waits for Only the First Event or Sample Flow That Waits

for Many Events.

Event Outputs

Reference information from the event in your flow by assigning its outputs to flow variables.

ExampleDescriptionParameter

11/26/2014 10:12 AMThe actual time at which the event occurred and the flow interview

resumed.

Base Time

DeliveredThe status of the event when the flow interview resumed. After an

event occurs, Salesforce delivers the event to the flow that’s waiting

for it, so that the flow knows to resume. Valid values are:

Event Delivery

Status

•Delivered: The event was successfully delivered.

•Invalid: An error occurred during delivery, but the flow

successfully resumed.

Supported Objects

You can create a relative time alarm for any custom object or any of the following standard objects.

•Account

•Asset

•Campaign

•CampaignMember

•Case

•CaseComment

•Certification

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•CertificationDef

•CertificationSectionDef

•CertificationStep

•CertificationStepDef

•Contact

•Contract

•ContractLineItem

•DandBCompany

•DuplicateRecordItem

•DuplicateRecordSet

•EmailMessage

•Entitlement

•EntitlementContact

•EnvironmentHubMember

•EnvironmentHubMemberRel

•Event

•ExternalEventMapping

•FeedItem

•Goal

•GoalLink

•Idea

•IdentityProvEventLog

•Lead

•LiveAgentSession

•LiveChatTranscript

•LiveChatTranscriptEvent

•LiveChatTranscriptSkill

•Macro

•MacroAction

•MacroInstruction

•Metric

•MobileDeviceCommand

•Opportunity

•OpportunityLineItem

•OpportunitySplit

•OpportunityTeamMember

•Order

•OrderItem

•Organization

•PersonAccount

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•Product2

•ProfileSkill

•ProfileSkillEndorsement

•ProfileSkillUser

•Question

•QuickText

•Quote

•QuoteLineItem

•Reply

•SOSSession

•SOSSessionActivity

•ServiceContract

•SignupRequest

•Site

•SocialPersona

•SocialPost

•Solution

•SsoUserMapping

•StreamingChannel

•Task

•UsageEntitlementPeriod

•User

•UserLicense

•UserProvisioningRequest

•WorkBadge

•WorkBadgeDefinition

•WorkCoaching

•WorkFeedback

•WorkFeedbackQuestion

•WorkFeedbackQuestionSet

•WorkFeedbackRequest

•WorkFeedbackTemplate

•WorkGoal

•WorkPerformanceCycle

•WorkReward

•WorkRewardFund

•WorkRewardFundType

•WorkThanks

•WorkUpgradeAction

•WorkUpgradeCustomer

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•WorkUpgradeUser

•articleType_kav

SEE ALSO:

Flow Event Types

Flow Types

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A flow or flow version’s type determines which elements and resources are supported, as well as

the ways that the flow can be distributed.

Standard Flow Types

The following flow types are supported in the Cloud Flow Designer.

DescriptionType

Requires user interaction, because it has one or more screens, steps, choices, or

dynamic choices.

This flow type doesn’t support wait elements.

Flow

A flow can be implemented with a custom button, custom link, direct URL,

Visualforce page, or Salesforce1 action.

Doesn’t require user interaction.

This flow type doesn’t support screens, steps, choices, or dynamic choices.

Autolaunched

Flow

An autolaunched flow can be implemented any way that a flow can, as well as

with a process action, workflow action (pilot), or Apex code.

Provisions users for third-party services. A user provisioning flow can only be

implemented by associating it with a connected app when running the User

User

Provisioning

Flow Provisioning Wizard. Provisions users for third-party services. For example, use this

flow type to customize the user provisioning configuration for a connected app

to link Salesforce users with their Google Apps accounts.

Other Flow Types

Not all flow types are supported in the Cloud Flow Designer. Some flow types are used in other parts of Salesforce. You can’t create or

edit these flows in the Cloud Flow Designer, so you don’t see them in the list of flows. However, the Paused and Waiting Interviews list

on the flow management page can display interviews with one of these types.

For example, when you run a process (from the Process Builder), a flow interview is created. You can monitor that interview in the Paused

and Waiting Interviews list by looking for the type “Workflow”.

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DescriptionType

A running instance of a process created in the Process Builder.Workflow

SEE ALSO:

Flow Properties

Flow and Flow Version Fields

User Provisioning for Connected Apps

Flow Properties

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

A flow’s properties consist of its name, description, interview label, and type. These properties drive

the field values that appear on a flow or flow version’s detail page. The properties of a flow and its

flow versions are separate.

Tip: The properties for a given flow’s versions automatically match the active version’s

properties by default. In other words, if you have three versions and you activate version 2,

Salesforce updates the properties for versions 1 and 3 to match version 2. However, if you

edit the properties for an inactive version, that version’s properties are no longer automatically

updated to match the active version.

From the Cloud Flow Designer, click to update the properties for a flow or a flow version.

DescriptionProperty

The name for the flow or flow version. The name appears in the flow management page and flow

detail page. It also appears in the run time user interface.

You can edit the name for inactive flows and flow versions.

Name

The unique name for the flow. The unique name is used to refer to this flow from other parts of

Salesforce, such as in a URL or Visualforce page. A unique name is limited to underscores and

Unique Name

alphanumeric characters. It must begin with a letter, not include spaces, not end with an underscore,

and not contain two consecutive underscores. The unique name appears on the flow detail page.

You can’t edit the unique name after the flow has been saved.

The description for the flow or flow version. The description appears in the flow management page

and flow detail page.

You can edit the description for inactive flows and flow versions.

Description

The type for the flow or flow version. The type appears in the flow management page and flow

detail page. It determines which elements and resources are supported in the flow or flow version,

as well as the ways that the flow can be implemented. For details, see Flow Types on page 132.

If the type is Login Flow, you can’t update the type after the flow has been saved.

Type

The label for the flow’s interviews. An interview is a running instance of a flow. This label appears in:Interview Label

•The Paused and Waiting Interviews list on the flow management page

•The Paused Interviews component on the Home tab

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DescriptionProperty

•The Paused Interviews item in Salesforce1

You can edit the interview label for inactive flows and flow versions. By default, the interview label

contains the flow name and the {!$Flow.CurrentDateTime} system variable.

Use a text template to reference multiple resources in the label. For example, Flow Name -

{!Account.Name} - {!$Flow.CurrentDateTime}.

SEE ALSO:

Save a Flow

Flow and Flow Version Fields

Sample Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Sometimes showing is better than telling. Check out these sample flows to get a feel for how to

work with advanced things like Wait elements and collection variables.

IN THIS SECTION:

Sample Flow That Populates a Collection Variable

Populate a collection variable by populating an sObject collection variable. Then individually

assign the sObject collection variable’s values to the collection variable.

Sample Flows That Wait for Events

Configure a flow to wait for events in one of three ways.

Sample Flow That Loops Through a Collection

Transfer ownership of accounts from one user to another by using sObject variable collections and loops. The flow already has the

required user IDs.

Sample Flow That Populates a Collection Variable

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Populate a collection variable by populating an sObject collection variable. Then individually assign

the sObject collection variable’s values to the collection variable.

Scenario

In this scenario, you’re designing a flow to send an email to every employee who lives in San

Francisco.

The Send Email element allows you to easily send emails from a flow. However, the Recipients

parameter only accepts text variables and text collection variables. Since multiple users live in San

Francisco, use a collection variable (rather than entering the email address for each individual user).

You can't use a Fast Lookup or Record Lookup to populate collection variables. First populate a User-based sObject collection variable

with field values, including Email, from the employees who live in San Francisco. Then add those emails to the collection variable.

Once the collection variable is populated, you simply use the collection variable as the value for the Send Email element’s Email

Addresses (collection) parameter.

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Example: This flow already contains these resources.

•A User-based sObject collection variable called employeesInSF

•A User-based sObject variable called loopVariable

•A Text-based collection variable called emails_employeesInSF

The example flow:

1. Finds all user records whose City is "San Francisco" and populates employeesInSF with those records’ Email.

Because employeesInSF is an sObject collection variable, use a Fast Lookup element to populate the variable.

2. Loops through the sObject collection variable so that it can look at each individual user record. The loop copies the values of

each item in employeesInSF to loopVariable.

3. For each iteration, assigns the user's Email to a collection variable that has a Data Type of Text.

4. When the loop ends, the flow sends an email to the users whose emails are now stored in emails_employeesInSF.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Collection Variable Resource

Add Values to a Collection Variable

Sample Flows That Wait for Events

Configure a flow to wait for events in one of three ways.

IN THIS SECTION:

Sample Flow That Waits for Many Events

This flow waits for many events to occur, rather than just the first event. The base times for these events are field values, so this

example uses relative time alarms.

Sample Flow That Waits for Only the First Event

This flow waits for the first of multiple events to occur before proceeding. The base times for these events are field values, so this

example uses relative time alarms.

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Sample Flow That Waits for a Single Event

This flow waits for a single event. The base time for the event in this example, which is an absolute alarm, is the

{!$Flow.CurrentDateTime} system variable.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Wait Element

Sample Flow That Waits for Many Events

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

This flow waits for many events to occur, rather than just the first event. The base times for these

events are field values, so this example uses relative time alarms.

You’re designing a flow that reminds contract owners to follow up with their customers before the

contract ends. Rather than sending just one reminder, however, the flow sends them regularly. This

example shows how to use one Wait element to send a reminder two weeks before and then again

one week before the contract ends. You could easily extend this flow to send reminders at more

intervals, such as three days and one day before the contract ends.

Example

This flow already contains these populated variables.

•{!contract} is an sObject variable that contains the contract’s Id and OwnerId

•{!oneWeekVisited} is a Boolean variable whose default value is {!$GlobalConstant.False}

•{!twoWeeksVisited}is a Boolean variable whose default value is {!$GlobalConstant.False}

Before the flow executes the Wait element, it looks up and stores the contract’s Id and OwnerId.

Because the flow sends the reminder emails both two weeks and a week before the contract’s end date, the Wait element defines two

relative alarm events.

Tip: Every alarm event consists of a base time and an offset. With relative time alarms, the flow needs three pieces of information

to determine the base time: the object, the date/time field, and the specific record. The offset for relative time alarms works the

same as it does for absolute time alarms. The flow needs to know the unit (either Days or Hours) and the number of those

units. To wait for a number of days or hours before the base time, set Offset Number to a negative integer.

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For both of these events, the offset is declared in Days, because weeks isn’t an acceptable offset unit.

The base time for the first event (“2 Weeks”) is the value of Contract.EndDate (1) on the record whose ID is stored in

{!contract.Id} (2). The offset is -14 days (3) to represent two weeks.

You want to use the same Wait element for every reminder, so after a flow interview sends one email reminder, it returns to the Wait

element. But first, to ensure that the interview doesn’t send the same email again and again, use waiting conditions. When an interview

executes a Wait element, it first checks the waiting conditions for each event to determine whether to wait for those events. If an event

has waiting conditions set and those conditions aren’t met, the interview doesn’t wait for that event.

For the first event, the interview checks whether the Boolean variable {!twoWeekVisited} is set to false. The variable’s default

value is set to {!$GlobalConstant.False}, so the flow waits for the event until the variable’s value is changed.

Indicate what the flow does when the “2 Weeks” event occurs by connecting the Wait element to other elements. Then, before you

return the flow path to the Wait element, change the value of {!twoWeeksVisited} to {!$GlobalConstant.True}. You

can do so with an Assignment element. If the value for {!twoWeeksVisited} isn’t false when the Wait element is executed, the

flow doesn’t wait for the “2 Weeks” event to occur. Essentially, the interview checks whether the first event has occurred yet, since the

variable is changed to true only in that event’s path. If that event has occurred (and the variable isn’t set to false), the interview knows

not to wait for that event.

The second event (“1 Week”) has the same base time as the first event (4); the offset is -7 days (5) to represent a week.

For the second event, the flow checks whether the Boolean variable {!oneWeekVisited} is set to false. If it isn’t, the flow doesn’t

wait for this event.

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Like with the first event, use an Assignment element to change the value of {!oneWeekVisited} to

{!$GlobalConstant.True} before the flow path returns to the Wait element. As long as {!oneWeekVisited} isn’t false,

the flow doesn’t wait for the “1 Weeks” event to occur.

Tip: When a flow executes a Wait element and all the events have waiting conditions that aren’t met, the flow executes the default

event path. Because this flow is finished after it sends the final reminder, don’t connect the default path to another element.

Just in case something goes wrong, set a fault path. In this example, the fault path sends an email that contains the fault message to

the user who created the flow.

Sample Flow That Waits for Only the First Event

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

This flow waits for the first of multiple events to occur before proceeding. The base times for these

events are field values, so this example uses relative time alarms.

You’re designing a flow that reminds account owners to follow up with their customers a week

before either the account renews or the contract ends. The flow sends a reminder email for whichever

date occurs first.

Example

This flow already contains these populated variables.

•{!accountId} contains the ID for the account

•{!contractId} contains the ID for the contract

•{!accountOwner} contains the ID for the account’s owner

•{!ownerEmail} contains the account owner’s email address

Before the flow executes the Wait element, it looks up and stores the contract’s ID, its parent account’s ID and OwnerId, and the

account owner’s Email.

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The Wait element defines two relative alarm events.

Tip: Every alarm event consists of a base time and an offset. With relative time alarms, the flow needs three pieces of information

to determine the base time: the object, the date/time field, and the specific record. The offset for relative time alarms works the

same as it does for absolute time alarms. The flow needs to know the unit (either Days or Hours) and the number of those

units. For both of these events, the base time is offset by -7 days, because weeks isn’t an acceptable offset unit.

The base time for the first event (“Week before account renews”) is the value of Account.Renewal_Date__c (1) on the record

whose ID is stored in {!accountId} (2). The offset is -7 days (3).

The base time for the second event (“Week before contract expires”) is the value of Contract.EndDate (4) on the record whose

ID is stored in {!contractId} (5). The offset is -7 days (6).

You only want to send one follow-up reminder and the flow always waits for both events, so neither of these events need waiting

conditions. However, just in case something goes wrong, set a fault path. In this example, the fault path sends an email that contains

the fault message to the user who created the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Wait Element

Relative Time Alarms

Flow Wait Element

Relative Time Alarms

What Are Waiting Conditions?

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Sample Flow That Waits for a Single Event

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

This flow waits for a single event. The base time for the event in this example, which is an absolute

alarm, is the {!$Flow.CurrentDateTime} system variable.

You’re designing a flow that requests feedback from customers after a contract is activated, but

you want to delay the email by a day.

Example

This flow already contains the following populated variables.

•{!customerEmail} contains the email address for the customer

•{!creatorEmail} contains the email address for the flow’s creator

The flow activates a contract (1) and then waits (2).

Within the Wait element, a single event is defined (1 day after activated). The flow sends the feedback request one day after the contract

is activated, so use an absolute time alarm. The base time is the {!$Flow.CurrentDateTime} system variable (3), and the offset

is one day (4).

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Because there’s only one event and you only want the feedback request to be sent once, don’t set any waiting conditions for this event.

However, just in case something goes wrong, don’t forget to set a fault path. In this example, the fault path sends an email that contains

the fault message to the user who created the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Wait Element

Absolute Time Alarms

Sample Flow That Loops Through a Collection

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Transfer ownership of accounts from one user to another by using sObject variable collections and

loops. The flow already has the required user IDs.

First, create an Account-based sObject collection variable called collAcctJSmith and populate

it with all account records that John Smith owns.

Then create a loop that iterates through the collection. For each item in the collection, the loop

does the following:

1. Assigns the collection item to the loop variable.

2. Evaluates whether the account has more than 10,000 employees.

3. If the account has more than 10,000 employees, assigns Madison’s user ID to the OwnerId

field in the loop variable.

4. If the account doesn’t have more than 10,000 employees, assigns Amber’s user ID to the OwnerId field in the loop variable.

5. Adds the loop variable’s values as a new item in a second collection called collReassignedAccts.

Finally, create a Fast Update element to update the accounts in collReassignedAccts with the new OwnerId after the loop

finishes iterating through the collection.

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This section of the flow uses a single query to look up the list of accounts and a single DML statement to update those accounts. If you

created a similar flow by using Record Update elements, you would use:

•One Record Update element to find all accounts that John owns and have more than 10,000 employees (1 query). Then update

those records’ OwnerId to Madison’s Id (1 DML statement).

•One Record Update element to find all accounts that John owns and don’t have more than 10,000 employees (1 query). Then update

those records’ OwnerId to Amber’s Id (1 DML statement).

Manage Your Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Use the flow detail page to do anything with your flow outside of designing it—such as activating

a flow, testing it, or viewing its properties.

To visit a flow’s detail page, from Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, select Flows,

and then click a flow name.

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow and Flow Version Fields

View information about a flow and its versions on the flow detail page, like its name and URL.

Open and Modify a Flow

To modify a flow, open it in the Cloud Flow Designer.

Test a Flow

Test your flows before you activate them to make sure they’re working as expected.

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version

You can have several different versions of a single flow in Salesforce, but only one version of each flow can be active at a time. To

activate or deactivate a version of a flow, go to that flow’s detail page in Setup.

Delete a Paused or Waiting Flow Interview

If you no longer need to wait for a long-running flow interview to finish or for a user to resume a paused interview, delete the

interview. For example, when you’re updating or deleting the associated flow version.

Delete a Flow Version

To delete an active flow version, first deactivate it. If a flow has any paused or waiting interviews, it can’t be deleted until those

interviews are finished or deleted. Flows that have never been activated can be deleted immediately.

Let Users Pause Flows

Enable your users to pause a flow interview that they can’t finish yet by customizing your organization’s process automation settings.

A flow interview is a running instance of a flow. For example, a customer service representative can pause a flow interview when the

customer doesn’t have all the necessary information.

SEE ALSO:

Visual Workflow

Limits for Visual Workflow

Considerations for Managing Flows

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Flow and Flow Version Fields

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

View information about a flow and its versions on the flow detail page, like its name and URL.

DescriptionProperty

Identifies which version is active.Active

Version

The description for the flow or flow versionDescription

The name for the flow. It appears in the run time user interface.Flow Name

The name for the flow version. It becomes the Flow Name when this version

is active.

Name

The flow’s namespace prefix, if it was installed from a managed package. The

Cloud Flow Designer can’t open flows that are installed from managed

packages.

Namespace

Prefix

Determines which elements and resources are supported in the flow or flow

version, as well as the ways that the flow can be distributed. For details, see

Flow Types on page 132.

Type

Identifies whether the flow version is active or not.Status

Lets you refer to the flow from other parts of Salesforce, such as in Visualforce

page.

Unique

Name

The relative URL that you can use to run the flow, such as from a custom button

or Web tab.

URL

The number of the flow version.Version

SEE ALSO:

Manage Your Flows

Flow Properties

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Open and Modify a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open a flow in the Cloud

Flow Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

To modify a flow, open it in the Cloud Flow Designer.

You can’t save changes to an active flow version. You can, however, open an active version of a

flow, modify it, and then save as a new version or a new flow.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

2. Click the name of the flow.

3. Open the flow.

•To open a specific version, click the Open link next to that version number.

•To open the active version of the flow, click the Open button. If there isn’t an active version,

the latest version opens.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations for Designing Flows

Manage Your Flows

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version

Test a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To run an active or inactive

flow from the flow detail

page:

To run a flow from within the

Cloud Flow Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Test your flows before you activate them to make sure they’re working as expected.

Warning: Be careful when testing flows that contain delete elements. Even if the flow is

inactive, it triggers the delete operation.

We recommend that you test all possible paths through the flow, so that you can find and fix any

errors before activating the flow. For example, incomplete data in the flow can cause a data element

(create, update, lookup, or delete) to fail at run time. Add a fault connector to a path that corrects

the data and allows the flow to successfully finish.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

2. Click the name of the flow you want to run.

3. Run the flow.

•To run a specific version, click the Run link for that version.

•To run the active version of the flow, click the Run button. If there isn’t an active version,

the latest version runs.

•To run a flow version from the Cloud Flow Designer, open that version and then click Run

from the button bar.

Tip: If you recently modified the flow that you’re testing, save it. Only the most

recently saved changes are included when you run a flow.

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Once you’re confident that your flow is working as expected, activate the version that you tested and then distribute the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Considerations for Running Flows

Manage Your Flows

Activate or Deactivate a Flow Version

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To activate or deactivate a

flow:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

You can have several different versions of a single flow in Salesforce, but only one version of each

flow can be active at a time. To activate or deactivate a version of a flow, go to that flow’s detail

page in Setup.

When you activate a new version of a flow, the previously activated version (if one exists) is

automatically deactivated. Any running flow interview continues to run using the version with

which it was initiated.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

2. Click the name of the flow.

3. Click Activate or Deactivate next to the relevant version of the flow.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations for Managing Flows

Manage Your Flows

Delete a Paused or Waiting Flow Interview

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

If you no longer need to wait for a long-running flow interview to finish or for a user to resume a

paused interview, delete the interview. For example, when you’re updating or deleting the associated

flow version.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

If there are waiting interviews for any of your flows, the Paused and Waiting Interviews related

list appears underneath the list of flows.

2. For each interview that you want to delete, click Del.

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Delete a Flow Version

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To delete a flow:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

To delete an active flow version, first deactivate it. If a flow has any paused or waiting interviews, it

can’t be deleted until those interviews are finished or deleted. Flows that have never been activated

can be deleted immediately.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

2. Click the name of the flow.

3. To delete the flow completely, including all versions, click the Delete button.

4. To delete an individual version, click the Del link for that version.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations for Managing Flows

Manage Your Flows

Let Users Pause Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To edit process automation

settings:

•“Customize Application”

Enable your users to pause a flow interview that they can’t finish yet by customizing your

organization’s process automation settings. A flow interview is a running instance of a flow. For

example, a customer service representative can pause a flow interview when the customer doesn’t

have all the necessary information.

1. From Setup, enter Process Automation Settings in the Quick Find box, then

select Process Automation Settings.

2. Select Let Users Pause Flows.

3. Click Save.

Screens don’t automatically display the Pause button once Let Users Pause Flows is

enabled. If you want your users to be able to pause at a given screen, select “Show Pause button”

when you configure that screen.

SEE ALSO:

Flow Screen Element: General Info

Distribute Your Flow

Once you’ve designed and tested your flow, it’s time to put it to work! Flows can be executed in several ways, depending on who the

flow is designed for. Internal users, external users, or systems can run a flow, or a flow can be deployed for another organization.

IN THIS SECTION:

Distribute a Flow to Internal Users

Enable your internal users to run your flow through the flow URL, a Lightning Page, or a Visualforce page.

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Distribute a Flow to External Users

Let external users run your flow by adding the flow to a Visualforce page and distributing that page externally. For example, through

a Force.com site, Customer Portal, or Partner Portal.

Launch a Flow Automatically

Some flows don’t require any user interaction to start. To enable a system to automatically launch a flow, use the start Apex

method, a process, or a workflow action.

Deploy a Flow to Other Organizations

Flows created in the Cloud Flow Designer can be included in change sets and packages. The recipient organization of either the

change set or package must have Visual Workflow enabled.

Distribute a Flow to Internal Users

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Enable your internal users to run your flow through the flow URL, a Lightning Page, or a Visualforce

page.

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow Runtime Experiences

Depending on how a flow is distributed, your users see either the Classic runtime or Lightning

runtime UI when they run the flow. Like its name suggests, Lightning runtime looks and feels

like Lightning Experience.

Embed a Flow in a Lightning Page (Beta)

To easily distribute a flow to Lightning Experience or Salesforce1 users, embed it in a Lightning Page.

Distribute a Flow URL

Users in your organization who don’t need a customized look and feel can run the flow via its URL. Distribute a flow URL directly or

through a custom button, link, or Web tab.

Embed a Flow in a Visualforce Page

To customize your flow’s look and feel for internal users, add the flow to a Visualforce page. Then distribute that page through a

Visualforce tab, custom button, or custom link.

Flow Runtime Experiences

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Depending on how a flow is distributed, your users see either the Classic runtime or Lightning

runtime UI when they run the flow. Like its name suggests, Lightning runtime looks and feels like

Lightning Experience.

This screenshot shows the same flow rendered in Classic runtime (left) and Lightning runtime (right).

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Which Runtime Experience Do My Users See?

Flows that run from a Visualforce page always use Classic runtime. Flows that run from a Lightning Page always use Lightning runtime.

All other methods depend on whether Lightning runtime has been enabled in your org’s Process Automation settings.

This table summarizes which runtime experience your users see based on how you distribute the flow.

When Lightning Runtime for Flows isFlow Distribution Method

SelectedNot selected

Classic runtimeClassic runtimeVisualforce page

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeCustom button

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeCustom link

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeWeb tab

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeDirect link

Lightning runtimeLightning runtimeLightning Page

Do the Runtime Experiences Behave Differently?

For the most part, the only difference between the two runtime experiences is the look and feel. However, Lightning runtime doesn’t

support passing values to these types of variables from outside the flow.

•Picklist variables

•Multi-select picklist variables

•sObject variables

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•Collection variables of any data type

SEE ALSO:

Choose Your Org’s Runtime Experience for URL-Based Flows

Considerations for Running Flows

Embed a Flow in a Lightning Page (Beta)

USER PERMISSIONS

To create and save Lightning

Pages in the Lightning App

Builder

•“Customize Application”

To view Lightning Pages in

the Lightning App Builder

•“View Setup and

Configuration”

To easily distribute a flow to Lightning Experience or Salesforce1 users, embed it in a Lightning

Page.

Available in: Lightning Experience

Available in: Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer Editions

Note: This release contains a beta version of the Flow component for Lightning Pages, which

means it’s a high-quality feature with known limitations. The Flow component isn’t generally

available unless or until Salesforce announces its general availability in documentation or in

press releases or public statements. We can’t guarantee general availability within any particular

time frame or at all. Make your purchase decisions only on the basis of generally available

products and features. You can provide feedback and suggestions for the Flow component

for Lightning Pages in the IdeaExchange.

If you’re not yet familiar with the types of Lightning pages you can customize, check out the Lightning App Builder module in Trailhead.

1. Open a Lightning Page in the Lightning App Builder.

2. Drag the Flow (Beta) component from the Lightning Components pane on the left onto the Lightning Page canvas.

3. Configure the component.

Only active flows of type Flow are available. Flows that were built in the Desktop Flow Designer aren’t

supported.

Flow

By default, flows display in one column.Layout

If you see other properties, they are the flow’s input variables. Variables appear only if they allow input

access.

Input Variables

This option is available only for Text input variables in Record pages. For simplicity, we recommend passing

the ID to only one variable.

For example, when this component is embedded in an Opportunity Record page, at runtime the component

passes the opportunity’s ID into the selected input variable.

Pass record ID into this

variable

4. Save the page.

5. Hang on, you’re not done yet! To make your page available to your users, activate it. You can activate the page from the Save dialog

when you save it for the first time, or later using the Activation... button.

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6. Test that the flow is working correctly, and then roll the Lightning Page out to your users.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations and Limitations for Flows in Lightning Pages (Beta)

Considerations for Two-Column Flows

Considerations and Limitations for Flows in Lightning Pages (Beta)

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Here are some things to keep in mind when you add a flow component to a Lightning Page.

Note: This release contains a beta version of the Flow component for Lightning Pages, which

means it’s a high-quality feature with known limitations. The Flow component isn’t generally

available unless or until Salesforce announces its general availability in documentation or in

press releases or public statements. We can’t guarantee general availability within any particular

time frame or at all. Make your purchase decisions only on the basis of generally available

products and features. You can provide feedback and suggestions for the Flow component

for Lightning Pages in the IdeaExchange.

Lightning Pages always use Lightning runtime, so also review the Lightning Runtime Limitations.

Running Flows from a Lightning Page

When a user opens a Lightning Page that has a flow component, the flow runs when the page loads. Make sure that the flow doesn’t

peform any actions – such as create or delete records – before the first screen.

Input Variable Limitations

•These variables aren’t supported.

–Collection variables

–sObject variables

–sObject collection variables

–Variables of type Picklist or Multi-Select Picklist

•The component supports only manually entered values for input variables.

•Text input variables accept a maximum length of 4,000 characters.

Deployment Limitations

•If a Lightning Page or FlexiPage contains a flow component, we don’t support:

–Creating packages that include the Lightning Page

–Copying a sandbox that includes the Lightning Page or FlexiPage

–Creating trialforce templates that include the FlexiPage

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•If you use the Metadata API to deploy a FlexiPage that includes a flow component, the referenced flow must already exist. If it

doesn’t, deploy the flow first and then deploy the FlexiPage.

SEE ALSO:

Embed a Flow in a Lightning Page (Beta)

Limits and Considerations for Visual Workflow

Lightning Pages

Lightning Page Considerations and Limitations

Considerations for Two-Column Flows

Distribute a Flow URL

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To view flow detail pages:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Users in your organization who don’t need a customized look and feel can run the flow via its URL.

Distribute a flow URL directly or through a custom button, link, or Web tab.

1. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

2. Click the name of the flow.

3. Verify that there’s an active version.

Only users with the “Manage Force.com Flow” permission can run inactive flows. If the flow

contains subflow elements, the referenced flows must also have an active version.

4. Copy the flow URL, and append it to your instance.

For example:

https://yourDomain.my.salesforce.com/flow/MyFlowName

If the flow was installed from a managed package, include the namespace prefix in the flow URL. For example:

https://yourDomain.my.salesforce.com/flow/namespace/MyFlowName

5. To set the initial values of your flow’s variables, append ?variable1=value1&variable2=value2 to the URL.

6. Distribute the flow URL.

Here are some examples:

•Create a custom button or link, and add it to a page layout.

•Create a Web tab, and add it to the appropriate profiles.

IN THIS SECTION:

Flow Runtime Experiences

Depending on how a flow is distributed, your users see either the Classic runtime or Lightning runtime UI when they run the flow.

Like its name suggests, Lightning runtime looks and feels like Lightning Experience.

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Choose Your Org’s Runtime Experience for URL-Based Flows

Are you distributing a flow via a URL? That includes things like direct URLs and custom buttons, as well as links in Setup. You can flip

one switch to upgrade all those flows to Lightning runtime.

Render Two-Column Screens from a Flow URL

When you distribute a flow using a URL, you can control whether to display the screens with one column or two columns. Two-column

screens are supported only for orgs that have enabled Lightning runtime.

Set Flow Variables from a Flow URL

When you distribute a flow using a URL, you can set the initial values of flow variables and collection variables by using parameters

in the URL.

Set Flow Finish Behavior with a Flow URL

By default, when a flow interview that uses screens finishes, a new interview for that flow begins and the user is redirected to the

first screen. If you want users to be redirected to another page within Salesforce when they click Finish, use the retURL parameter

in the flow URL.

Flow Runtime Experiences

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Depending on how a flow is distributed, your users see either the Classic runtime or Lightning

runtime UI when they run the flow. Like its name suggests, Lightning runtime looks and feels like

Lightning Experience.

This screenshot shows the same flow rendered in Classic runtime (left) and Lightning runtime (right).

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Which Runtime Experience Do My Users See?

Flows that run from a Visualforce page always use Classic runtime. Flows that run from a Lightning Page always use Lightning runtime.

All other methods depend on whether Lightning runtime has been enabled in your org’s Process Automation settings.

This table summarizes which runtime experience your users see based on how you distribute the flow.

When Lightning Runtime for Flows isFlow Distribution Method

SelectedNot selected

Classic runtimeClassic runtimeVisualforce page

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeCustom button

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeCustom link

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeWeb tab

Lightning runtimeClassic runtimeDirect link

Lightning runtimeLightning runtimeLightning Page

Do the Runtime Experiences Behave Differently?

For the most part, the only difference between the two runtime experiences is the look and feel. However, Lightning runtime doesn’t

support passing values to these types of variables from outside the flow.

•Picklist variables

•Multi-select picklist variables

•sObject variables

•Collection variables of any data type

SEE ALSO:

Choose Your Org’s Runtime Experience for URL-Based Flows

Considerations for Running Flows

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Choose Your Org’s Runtime Experience for URL-Based Flows

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To edit process automation

settings:

•“Customize Application”

Are you distributing a flow via a URL? That includes things like direct URLs and custom buttons, as

well as links in Setup. You can flip one switch to upgrade all those flows to Lightning runtime.

We have two flavors of runtime experience for your flow users. Classic runtime looks more like a

standard Visualforce page. Lightning runtime fits right in with Lightning Experience. To see a

comparison of the two runtime experiences, check out Flow Runtime Experiences.

To render all URL-based flows in Lightning runtime:

1. From Setup, enter Process Automation Settings in the Quick Find box, then

select Process Automation Settings.

2. Select Enable Lightning Runtime for Flows.

3. Save your changes.

This setting also lets you control whether a flow displays in one or two columns if you distribute

the flow via a URL or via a Lightning Page.

When enabled, flows use Lightning runtime when they’re run from:

•A direct link

•A custom button or link

•The Run button in the Cloud Flow Designer

•A Run link on the flow list page

•The Run button on a flow detail page

SEE ALSO:

Flow Runtime Experiences

Render Two-Column Screens from a Flow URL

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you distribute a flow using a URL, you can control whether to display the screens with one

column or two columns. Two-column screens are supported only for orgs that have enabled

Lightning runtime.

Prerequisites

Enable Lightning runtime so that your flows respect the specified layout.

1. From Setup, go to Process Automation Settings.

2. Select Enable Lightning Runtime for Flows.

Format

To display a flow’s screens in two columns:

/flow/flowName?flowLayout=twoColumn

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Examples

This example displays a “Case Management” flow in two columns.

/flow/Case_Management?flowLayout=twoColumn

This example displays a “User Info” flow in two columns and sets the varUserFirst and varUserLast variables (both of type Text) to the

running user’s FirstNameand LastName field values.

/flow/User_Info?varUserFirst={!$User.FirstName}&varUserLast={!$User.LastName}&flowLayout=twoColumn

SEE ALSO:

Choose Your Org’s Runtime Experience for URL-Based Flows

Considerations for Two-Column Flows

Set Flow Variables from a Flow URL

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

When you distribute a flow using a URL, you can set the initial values of flow variables and collection

variables by using parameters in the URL.

Implementation Tips

•You can’t set the values for sObject variables and sObject collection variables using URL

parameters. If the flow uses Lightning runtime, you also can’t set the values for picklist variables,

multi-select picklist variables, and collection variables of any data type.

•The variable must have its Input/Output Type set to allow input access.

•Variable names are case-sensitive. For example, you can’t set the variable varNumber by entering VarNumber as a URL

parameter.

•When you distribute a flow, don’t pass a currency field value from a Salesforce record into a flow Currency variable with a URL

parameter. When a currency field is referenced through a merge field (such as {!Account.AnnualRevenue}), the value

includes the unit of currency’s symbol (for example, $). Flow variables of type Currency can accept only numeric values, so the flow

fails at run time. Instead, pass the record’s ID to a flow Text variable with a URL parameter. Then in the flow, use the ID to look up

that record’s value for the currency field.

Format

To set the initial value of a flow variable:

/flow/flowName?variableName=value

To set the initial value of a flow variable when launching a specific version of a flow:

/flow/flowName/flowVersionNumber?variableName=value

Note: Only users with the “Manage Force.com Flow” permission can run inactive flows.

To set the initial values of multiple flow variables:

/flow/flowName?variable1Name=value1&variable2Name=value2

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To set the initial values for items in a collection variable:

/flow/flowName?collection=value1&collection=value2

Valid Values

Acceptable ValuesVariable

Type

Merge field of type Date or YYYY-MM-DDDate

Merge field of type Date/Time or YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ssZDateTime

Merge field of any type or a stringText

Merge field of type Number or a numeric valueNumber

Merge field of type Number or a numeric valueCurrency

Boolean •Merge field of type Checkbox

•True values: true or 1

•False values: false or 0

Examples

The following example is a flow URL that is used in a custom button on a case page layout. When a user clicks that button, the flow

launches with the varID variable (of type Text) set to the case record’s CaseNumber field value.

/flow/Case_Management?varID={!Case.CaseNumber}

The following example sets the varUserFirst and varUserLast variables (both of type Text) to the running user’s FirstName and

LastName field values.

/flow/User_Info?varUserFirst={!$User.FirstName}&varUserLast={!$User.LastName}

The following example is a flow URL that is used in a custom button on a contact page layout. When a user clicks that button, the flow

launches and adds text values from the contact as items in the {!collNames} text collection variable.

/flow/Contact_Info?collNames={!Contact.FirstName}&collNames={!Contact.LastName}

Set Flow Finish Behavior with a Flow URL

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

By default, when a flow interview that uses screens finishes, a new interview for that flow begins

and the user is redirected to the first screen. If you want users to be redirected to another page

within Salesforce when they click Finish, use the retURL parameter in the flow URL.

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Format

To redirect users to a specific page in Salesforce after they click Finish:

/flow/flowName?retURL=page_name

where page_name is a relative URL (the part of the URL that comes after https://yourInstance.salesforce.com/).

Limitations

•You can't redirect flow users to a URL that’s external to your Salesforce organization.

•You can’t use a flow variable as the value for the retURL parameter. If you want to use a flow variable to redirect a user, such as to a

specific record, distribute the flow by using Visualforce.

•retURL can cause nested top and side navigation bars to render on the destination page.

Examples

The following flow URL redirects the user to the home tab for cases (https://yourInstance.salesforce.com/500/o).

/flow/Case_Management?retURL=500/o

The following flow URL sets the varUserFirst and varUserLast variables (both of type Text) to the running user’s FirstName and

LastName field values. When the flow interview finishes, the user is redirected to

https://yourInstance.salesforce.com/home/home.jsp.

/flow/User_Info?varUserFirst={!$User.FirstName}

&varUserLast={!$User.LastName}&retURL=home/home.jsp

SEE ALSO:

Distribute Your Flow

Troubleshoot Flow URLs

Set Flow Variables with the Flow URL

Embed a Flow in a Visualforce Page

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To create, edit, and set

version settings for

Visualforce pages:

•“Customize Application”

To customize your flow’s look and feel for internal users, add the flow to a Visualforce page. Then

distribute that page through a Visualforce tab, custom button, or custom link.

1. Find the flow’s unique name.

a. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

b. Click the name of the flow.

c. Copy the unique name of the flow.

2. From Setup, enter Visualforce Pages in the Quick Find box, then select

Visualforce Pages.

3. Define a new Visualforce page, or open an existing one.

4. Add the <flow:interview> component somewhere between the <apex:page>

tags.

5. Set the name attribute to the unique name of the flow.

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For example:

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="flowuniquename"/>

</apex:page>

If the flow is from a managed package, the name attribute must be in this format: namespace.flowuniquename.

6. Click Save.

7. Restrict which users can access the Visualforce page.

a. Click Visualforce Pages.

b. Click Security next to your Visualforce page.

c. Move all the appropriate profiles from Available Profiles to Enabled Profiles by using the add and remove buttons.

d. Click Save.

8. Add the Visualforce page to your Force.com app by using a custom button, link, or Visualforce tab.

IN THIS SECTION:

Set Flow Variable Values from a Visualforce Page

After you embed your flow in a Visualforce page, set the initial values of variables, sObject variables, collection variables, and sObject

collection variables through the <apex:param> component.

Get Flow Variable Values to a Visualforce Page

Flow variable values can be displayed in a Visualforce page. Once you’ve embedded your flow in a Visualforce page, you can use

Visualforce markup to get values for variables or sObject variables. To display values for a collection variable or an sObject collection

variable, you can use Visualforce markup to get the individual values contained in the collection.

Configure the Flow's Finish Behavior

By default, users who click Finish start a new interview and see the first screen of the flow. After you embed a flow in a Visualforce

page, configure the finishLocation attribute to route users to another page in Salesforce.

Set Flow Variable Values from a Visualforce Page

After you embed your flow in a Visualforce page, set the initial values of variables, sObject variables, collection variables, and sObject

collection variables through the <apex:param> component.

Note: You can set variables only at the beginning of an interview. The <apex:param> tags are evaluated only once, when

the flow is launched.

You can set only variables that allow input access. For each flow variable, input access is controlled by:

•The Input/Output Type variable field in the Cloud Flow Designer

•The isInput field on FlowVariable in the Metadata API

If you reference a variable that doesn’t allow input access, attempts to set the variable are ignored. Compilation can fail for the

Visualforce page, its <apex:page> component, or the Apex class.

The following table lists the ways you can set a flow’s variable, sObject variable, and sObject collection variable values using Visualforce.

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sObject Collection

Variables

Collection VariablessObject VariablesVariablesMethod

Without a controller

With a standard controller

With a standard List

controller

With a custom Apex

controller

With an Interview Map

Setting Variable Values without a Controller

This example sets myVariable to the value 01010101 when the interview starts.

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="flowname">

<apex:param name="myVariable" value="01010101"/>

</flow:interview>

</apex:page>

Setting Variable Values with a Standard Controller

You can use standard Visualforce controllers to set variables or sObject variables by passing in data from a record. This example sets the

initial value of myVariable to the Visualforce expression {!account} when the interview starts.

<apex:page standardController="Account" tabStyle="Account">

<flow:interview name="flowname">

<apex:param name="myVariable" value="{!account}"/>

</flow:interview>

</apex:page>

Setting an sObject Collection Variable Value with a Standard List Controller

Because sObject collection variables represent an array of values, you must use a standard list controller or a custom Apex controller.

This example sets myCollection to the value of {!accounts} when the interview starts.

<apex:page standardController="Account" tabStyle="Account" recordSetVar="accounts">

<flow:interview name="flowname">

<apex:param name="myCollection" value="{!accounts}"/>

</flow:interview>

</apex:page>

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Setting Variable Values with a Custom Apex Controller

For finer control over your Visualforce page than a standard controller allows, write a custom Apex controller that sets the variable value,

and then reference that controller in your Visualforce page. This example uses Apex to set myVariable to a specific account’s Id

when the interview starts.

public class MyCustomController {

public Account apexVar {get; set;}

public MyCustomController() {

apexVar = [

SELECT Id, Name FROM Account

WHERE Name = ‘Acme’ LIMIT 1];

}

<apex:page controller="MyCustomController">

<flow:interview name="flowname">

<apex:param name="myVariable" value="{!apexVar}"/>

</flow:interview>

</apex:page>

This example uses Apex to set an sObject collection variable myAccount to the Id and Name field values for every record with a

Name of Acme.

public class MyCustomController {

public Account[] myAccount {

get {

return [

SELECT Id, Name FROM account

WHERE Name = 'Acme'

ORDER BY Id

] ;

}

set {

myAccount = value;

}

public MyCustomController () {

}

<apex:page id="p" controller="MyCustomController">

<flow:interview id="i" name="flowname">

<apex:param name="accountColl" value="{!myAccount}"/>

</flow:interview>

</apex:page>

Setting Variable Values with an Interview Map

This example uses an Interview map to set the value for accVar to a specific account’s Id when the interview starts.

public class MyCustomController {

public Flow.Interview.TestFlow myflow { get; set; }

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public MyCustomController() {

Map<String,Object> myMap = new Map<String,Object>();

myMap.put('accVar', [SELECT Id FROM Account

WHERE Name = 'Acme' LIMIT 1]);

myflow = new Flow.Interview.ModemTroubleShooting(myMap);

}

<apex:page controller="MyCustomController">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!myflow}"/>

</apex:page>

Here’s a similar example that sets the value for accVar to a new account when the interview starts.

public class MyCustomController {

public Flow.Interview.TestFlow myflow { get; set; }

public MyCustomController() {

Map<String, List<Object>> myMap = new Map<String, List<Object>>();

myMap.put('accVar',new Account(name = 'Acme'));

myflow = new Flow.Interview.ModemTroubleShooting(myMap);

}

<apex:page controller="MyCustomController">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!myflow}"/>

</apex:page>

This example uses a map to add two values to a string collection variable (stringCollVar) and two values to a number collection

variable (numberCollVar).

public class MyCustomController {

public Flow.Interview.flowname MyInterview { get; set; }

public MyCustomController() {

String[] value1 = new String[]{'First','Second'};

Double[] value2 = new Double[]{999.123456789, 666.123456789};

Map<String,Object> myMap = new Map<String,Object>();

myMap.put('stringCollVar', value1);

myMap.put('numberCollVar', value2);

MyInterview = new Flow.Interview.flowname(myMap);

}

<apex:page controller="MyCustomController">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!MyInterview}" />

</apex:page>

Get Flow Variable Values to a Visualforce Page

Flow variable values can be displayed in a Visualforce page. Once you’ve embedded your flow in a Visualforce page, you can use Visualforce

markup to get values for variables or sObject variables. To display values for a collection variable or an sObject collection variable, you

can use Visualforce markup to get the individual values contained in the collection.

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Note: You can get only variables that allow output access. For each flow variable, output access is controlled by:

•The Input/Output Type variable field in the Cloud Flow Designer

•The isOutput field on FlowVariable in the Metadata API

If you reference a variable that doesn’t allow output access, attempts to get the variable are ignored. Compilation can fail for the

Visualforce page, its <apex:page> component, or the Apex class.

The following example uses an Apex class to get an sObject variable value from a flow and then displays it in a Visualforce page.

public class FlowController {

public Flow.Interview.flowname myflow { get; set; }

public Case apexCaseVar;

public Case getApexCaseVar() {

return myflow.caseVar;

}

<apex:page controller="FlowController" tabStyle="Case">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!myflow}"/>

<apex:outputText value="Default Case Priority: {!apexCaseVar.Priority}"/>

</apex:page>

This example uses an Apex class to get the values that are stored in a string collection variable (emailsCollVar) in the flow. Then

it uses a Visualforce page to run the flow interview. The Visualforce page iterates over the flow’s collection variable and displays the

values for each item in the collection.

public class FlowController {

public Flow.Interview.flowname myflow { get; set; }

public List<String> getVarValue() {

if (myflow == null) {

return null;

}

else {

return (List<String>)myflow.emailsCollVar;

}

<apex:page controller="FlowController">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!myflow}" />

<apex:repeat value="{!varValue}" var="item">

<apex:outputText value="{!item}"/>

</apex:repeat>

</apex:page>

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The following example uses an Apex class to set the flow to {!myflow} and then uses a Visualforce page to run the flow interview.

The Visualforce page uses a data table to iterate over the flow’s sObject collection variable and display the values for each item in the

collection.

public class MyCustomController {

public Flow.Interview.flowname myflow { get; set; }

}

<apex:page controller="MyCustomController" tabStyle="Account">

<flow:interview name="flowname" interview="{!myflow}" reRender="nameSection" />

<!-- The data table iterates over the variable set in the "value" attribute and

sets that variable to the value for the "var" attribute, so that instead of

referencing {!myflow.collectionVariable} in each column, you can simply refer

to "account".-->

<apex:dataTable value="{!myflow.collectionVariable}" var="account"

rowClasses="odd,even" border="1" cellpadding="4">

<apex:column >

<apex:facet name="header">Name</apex:facet>

<apex:outputlink value="/{!account['Id']}">

{!account['Name']}

</apex:outputlink>

</apex:column>

<apex:column >

<apex:facet name="header">Rating</apex:facet>

<apex:outputText value="{!account['Rating']}"/>

</apex:column>

<apex:column >

<apex:facet name="header">Billing City</apex:facet>

<apex:outputText value="{!account['BillingCity']}"/>

</apex:column>

<apex:column >

<apex:facet name="header">Employees</apex:facet>

<apex:outputText value="{!account['NumberOfEmployees']}"/>

</apex:column>

</apex:dataTable>

</apex:page>

Depending on the contents of the sObject collection variable in your flow, here’s what that data table looks like.

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Configure the Flow's Finish Behavior

By default, users who click Finish start a new interview and see the first screen of the flow. After you embed a flow in a Visualforce page,

configure the finishLocation attribute to route users to another page in Salesforce.

Set finishLocation with the URLFOR Function

Note: You can't redirect flow users to a URL that’s external to your Salesforce organization.

To route users to a relative URL or a specific record or detail page, using its ID, use the URLFOR function.

This example routes users to the Salesforce home page.

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="MyUniqueFlow" finishLocation="{!URLFOR('/home/home.jsp')}"/>

</apex:page>

This example routes users to a detail page with an ID of 001D000000IpE9X.

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="MyUniqueFlow" finishLocation="{!URLFOR('/001D000000IpE9X')}"/>

</apex:page>

For details about URLFOR, see Functions in the Visualforce Developer’s Guide.

Set finishLocation with the $Page Variable

To route users to another Visualforce page without using URLFOR, set finishLocation to the name of the destination page with

the format {!$Page.pageName}.

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="MyUniqueFlow" finishLocation="{!$Page.MyUniquePage}"/>

</apex:page>

For details about $Page, see Global Variables in the Visualforce Developer’s Guide.

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Set finishLocation with a Controller

You can set finishLocation in a few ways with a custom controller.

This sample controller configures a flow’s finish behavior in three different ways.

•getPageA instantiates a new page reference by passing a string to define the location.

•getPageB returns a string that is treated like a PageReference.

•getPageC returns a string that gets translated into a PageReference.

public class myFlowController {

public PageReference getPageA() {

return new PageReference('/300');

}

public String getPageB() {

return '/300';

}

public String getPageC() {

return '/apex/my_finish_page';

}

Here’s a sample Visualforce page references that controller and sets the flow finish behavior to the first option.

<apex:page controller="myFlowController">

<h1>Congratulations!</h1> This is your new page.

<flow:interview name="flowname" finishLocation="{!pageA}"/>

</apex:page>

If you use a standard controller to display a record on the same page as the flow, users who click Finish start a new flow interview and

see the first screen of the flow, without the record. This is because the id query string parameter isn’t preserved in the page URL. If

needed, configure the finishLocation to route users back to the record.

Distribute a Flow to External Users

USER PERMISSIONS

To create, edit, and set

version settings for

Visualforce pages:

•“Customize Application”

Let external users run your flow by adding the flow to a Visualforce page and distributing that page

externally. For example, through a Force.com site, Customer Portal, or Partner Portal.

For example, you can set up a self-service tool for your public Force.com site to help visitors generate

custom sales quotes. Because the flow is embedded in a Visualforce page, you can customize the

appearance of the flow so that it uses your company’s branding and style.

Note: When you make a flow available to site or portal users, point them to the Visualforce

page that contains the embedded flow, not the flow itself. Site and portal users aren’t allowed

to run flows directly.

To add a flow to a Visualforce page, embed it by using the <flow:interview> component.

1. Find the flow’s unique name.

a. From Setup, enter Flows in the Quick Find box, then select Flows.

b. Click the name of the flow.

c. Copy the unique name of the flow.

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2. From Setup, enter Visualforce Pages in the Quick Find box, then select Visualforce Pages.

3. Define a new Visualforce page, or open an existing one.

4. Add the <flow:interview> component somewhere between the <apex:page> tags.

5. Set the name attribute to the unique name of the flow.

For example:

<apex:page>

<flow:interview name="flowuniquename"/>

</apex:page>

If the flow is from a managed package, the name attribute must be in this format: namespace.flowuniquename.

6. Click Save.

7. Restrict which users can access the Visualforce page.

Any external users with access to the Visualforce page can run the embedded flow.

a. Click Visualforce Pages.

b. Click Security next to your Visualforce page.

c. Move all the appropriate profiles from Available Profiles to Enabled Profiles by using the add and remove buttons.

d. Click Save.

8. Distribute your Visualforce page by taking one of these actions.

•Add the Visualforce page to your Force.com site.

•Define a custom Visualforce tab by using the Visualforce page, and then add that tab to your portal or community.

SEE ALSO:

Configure the Flow's Finish Behavior

Get Flow Variable Values to a Visualforce Page

Set Flow Variable Values from a Visualforce Page

Launch a Flow Automatically

Some flows don’t require any user interaction to start. To enable a system to automatically launch a flow, use the start Apex method,

a process, or a workflow action.

Most of these methods can be used only with an autolaunched flow. An autolaunched flow can be launched without user interaction,

such as from a process or the Apex interview.start method. Autolaunched flows run in bulk and without user interaction. They

can’t contain steps, screens, choices, or dynamic choices in the active or latest flow version.When a flow user invokes an autolaunched

flow, the active flow version is run. If there’s no active version, the latest version is run. When a flow admin invokes an autolaunched

flow, the latest version is always run.

IN THIS SECTION:

Start a Flow with a Process

Just like workflow rules, processes start when a certain object’s records are created or edited. Add a flow action to give a process

even more functionality. For example, create a process that checks if a new feed item is a question. If it is, wait a day and then use a

flow to check whether a Best Comment has been selected or not. If it hasn’t, use that question to create a case.

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Start a Flow with a Workflow Action—Pilot

Create a flow trigger workflow action to launch a flow from workflow rules. With flow triggers, you can automate complex business

processes—create flows to perform logic, and have events trigger the flows via workflow rules—without writing code. For example,

your flow looks up and assigns the relevant entitlement for a case. Create a flow trigger to launch the flow whenever a case is created,

so that all new cases are automatically set with a default entitlement.

Invoke a Flow from the Force.com REST API

Use the Custom Invocable Actions endpoint to invoke an autolaunched flow from the Force.com REST API.

Invoke a Flow with Apex

Use the start method in the Flow.Interview class to launch an autolaunched flow or user provisioning flow from Apex.

Start a Flow with a Process

USER PERMISSIONS

To create or change

processes:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

AND

“View All Data”

Just like workflow rules, processes start when a certain object’s records are created or edited. Add

a flow action to give a process even more functionality. For example, create a process that checks

if a new feed item is a question. If it is, wait a day and then use a flow to check whether a Best

Comment has been selected or not. If it hasn’t, use that question to create a case.

1. Create and activate the autolaunched flow for the process to launch.

2. Create the process that you plan to launch this flow from.

For details, see “Create a Process” in the Salesforce Help.

3. Add a “Launch a Flow” action to the process.

a. For Flow, search for and select the flow that you created.

b. Optionally, click Add Row to set values for the flow’s variables.

4. Activate the process.

Start a Flow with a Workflow Action—Pilot

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To view workflow rules and

actions:

•“View Setup and

Configuration”

To create or change

workflow rules and actions:

•“Customize Application”

Create a flow trigger workflow action to launch a flow from workflow rules. With flow triggers, you

can automate complex business processes—create flows to perform logic, and have events trigger

the flows via workflow rules—without writing code. For example, your flow looks up and assigns

the relevant entitlement for a case. Create a flow trigger to launch the flow whenever a case is

created, so that all new cases are automatically set with a default entitlement.

Note: The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled

the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you

didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

Before you begin, review the special behavior and limitations of flow triggers. See Flow Trigger

Considerations (Pilot).

To set up a workflow rule to launch a flow:

1. Create and activate the autolaunched flow to launch from this workflow action.

2. Create the workflow rule that you plan to add this workflow action to.

3. Define the flow trigger.

4. Associate the flow trigger to the workflow rule.

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Flow Trigger Considerations (Pilot)

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Flow trigger workflow actions have special behaviors and limitations.

Note: The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled

the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you

didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

Understand these considerations before you create flow triggers or add them to workflow rules.

•Flow triggers are available only for workflow rules. You can’t use them as actions elsewhere,

for example, in approval processes.

•Flow triggers are available on most—but not all—objects that are supported by workflow rules.

You can see the list of supported objects when you create a new flow trigger. From Setup, enter Flow Triggers in the Quick

Find box, then click Flow Triggers.

•Only active, autolaunched flows can be launched by flow triggers. However, if a flow trigger is in test mode, administrators run the

latest flow version while other users run the active flow version.

•Flows that are launched from workflow rules are run in system context, which means that user permissions, field-level security, and

sharing rules aren’t taken into account during flow execution.

•If a flow trigger fails at run time, the user who created or edited the record to meet the workflow rule criteria won’t be able to save

the record. To troubleshoot run time issues, see the flow action events in the Workflow category of debug logs, which show the

flow version and the values passed into flow variables.

•A flow trigger can set the values of up to 25 variables and sObject variables in the flow, with the following limitations.

–Flow triggers can’t use multi-select picklist fields to set flow variables or sObject variables.

–When a flow trigger uses a currency field to set a flow variable, only the amount is passed into the flow. Any currency ISO code

or locale information is ignored. If your organization uses multiple currencies, the flow trigger uses the amount in the currency

of the record that contains the specified currency field.

–Flow triggers can’t pass values into sObject collection variables in flows.

•Always keep one version of the flow active if it’s referenced by an active workflow rule’s flow trigger.

•Once you activate a workflow rule using the flow trigger, don’t modify or add a version of the flow to include screens or other

elements that would violate the run restrictions for an autolaunched flow. If you modify a flow to no longer be autolaunched, it can’t

be launched by flow triggers. To work around this situation, you can save the non-autolaunched flow as a new flow and change the

new flow to become autolaunched. Then update the flow triggers to launch the new flow.

•Flow triggers aren’t available as time-dependent workflow actions. You can add flow triggers to workflow rules only as immediate

workflow actions.

•When the system executes a workflow rule with multiple flow triggers, those flows aren’t run in any particular order.

•In a transaction, flow triggers are executed after all workflow field updates, including any Apex triggers and standard validations that

are executed as a result of those workflow field updates. After executing flow triggers, the system executes escalation rules.

•Flows that are launched from workflow rules are governed by the per-transaction limits already enforced by Apex.

•When flows are launched from workflow rules that are triggered by bulk loads or imports, the flows’ data manipulation language

(DML) operations are executed in bulk to reduce the number of calls required and to optimize system performance. The execution

of any of the following flow elements qualifies as a DML operation: Record Create, Record Update, Record Delete, Fast Create, Fast

Update, or Fast Delete.

For example, suppose that you use Data Loader or the Bulk API to update 50 records, and those updates meet the criteria of a

workflow rule with a flow trigger action. In response, the system executes 50 instances of the flow within the same transaction. Each

instance of a running flow is called an interview. The system attempts to execute each DML operation across all the interviews in

the transaction at the same time. Suppose that five of those interviews are executing the same branch of the flow, which has a

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Record Update element called “SetEntitlement.” The system waits for all five interviews to reach that element, and then executes all

five record updates in bulk.

•Flow triggers aren’t available in change sets.

•Flow triggers aren’t packageable.

Define a Flow Trigger—Pilot

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To view workflow rules and

actions:

•“View Setup and

Configuration”

To create or change

workflow rules and actions:

•“Customize Application”

After you create an autolaunched flow, create a flow trigger to launch that flow as part of a workflow

rule.

Note: The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled

the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you

didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

1. From Setup, enter Flow Triggers in the Quick Find box, then select Flow Triggers.

2. Click New Flow Trigger.

3. Select the same object as the workflow rule, and then click Next.

4. Configure the flow trigger.

DescriptionField

Name of the flow trigger.Name

Enter a unique name to refer to this component in the API. The Unique

Name field can contain only underscores and alphanumeric characters.

It must be unique within the selected object type, begin with a letter,

not include spaces, not end with an underscore, and not contain two

consecutive underscores.

Unique Name

Reserved for future use.Protected

Component

Unique name of the autolaunched flow that this workflow action

launches.

Flow

Whether to pass values into the flow’s variables and sObject variables.Set Flow

Variables

5. If you select Set Flow Variables, specify their names and values.

Click Set Another Value to set up to 25 variables.

6. To put the flow trigger in test mode, select Administrators run the latest flow version.

When selected and an administrator triggers the workflow rule, the flow trigger launches the latest version of the flow. For all other

users, the flow trigger always launches the active version of the flow.

The same values are passed into the flow variables and sObject variables whether the flow trigger launches the active or latest flow

version.

7. Click Save.

Don’t forget to associate the flow trigger to a workflow rule.

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Associate the Flow Trigger with a Workflow Rule

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To select existing actions:

•“Customize Application”

Add the flow trigger as an immediate action on your workflow rule.

Note: The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled

the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you

didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

Before you begin, create:

•An autolaunched flow

•A workflow rule

•A flow trigger that launches the autolaunched flow

1. From Setup, enter Workflow Rules in the Quick Find box, then select Workflow

Rules.

2. Select the workflow rule.

3. Click Edit in the Workflow Actions section.

4. In the Immediate Workflow Actions section, click Add Workflow Action > Select Existing Action.

Flow triggers aren’t available as time-dependent workflow actions. You can add flow triggers to workflow rules only as immediate

workflow actions.

5. In the Search drop-down list, select Flow Trigger.

The Available Actions box lists all existing flow triggers.

6. Select the flow trigger to associate with this workflow rule. Move the flow trigger to Selected Actions by using the right arrow.

7. Click Save.

Invoke a Flow from the Force.com REST API

Use the Custom Invocable Actions endpoint to invoke an autolaunched flow from the Force.com REST API.

Example: This example invokes the active version of the flow “Escalate_to_Case”.

POST /v33.0/actions/custom/flow/Escalate_to_Case

The request sets values for two of the flow’s input variables: CommentCount and FeedItemId. Once invoked, the flow

checks whether:

•A given feed item has more than five comments and

•A best comment hasn’t been selected yet

{

"inputs" : [ {

"CommentCount" : 6,

"FeedItemId" : "0D5D0000000cfMY"

} ]

}

Invoke a Flow with Apex

Use the start method in the Flow.Interview class to launch an autolaunched flow or user provisioning flow from Apex.

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Example: The following includes a sample controller that starts a flow and the corresponding Visualforce page. The Visualforce

page contains an input box and a start button. When the user enters a number in the input box and clicks Start, the controller’s

start method is called. The button saves the user-entered value to the flow’s input variable and launches the flow using the

start method. The flow doubles the value of input and assigns it to the output variable, and the output label displays

the value for output by using the getVariableValue method.

public class FlowController {

//Instance of the Flow

public Flow.Interview.doubler myFlow {get; set;}

public Double value {get; set;}

public Double getOutput() {

if (myFlow == null)return null;

return (Double)(myFlow.getVariableValue('v1'));

}

public void start() {

Map<String,Object> myMap = new Map<String,Object>();

myMap.put('v1', input);

myFlow = new Flow.Interview.doubler(myMap);

myFlow.start();

}

The following is the Visualforce page that uses the sample flow controller.

<apex:page controller="FlowController">

<apex:outputLabel id="text">v1 = {!output}</apex:outputLabel>

<apex:form >

value : <apex:inputText value="{!output}"/>

<apex:commandButton action="{!start}" value="Start" reRender="text"/>

</apex:form>

</apex:page>

IN THIS SECTION:

start()

Invokes an autolaunched flow or user provisioning flow.

getVariableValue(variableName)

Returns the value of the specified flow variable. The flow variable can be in the flow embedded in the Visualforce page, or in a

separate flow that is called by a subflow element.

start()

Invokes an autolaunched flow or user provisioning flow.

Signature

public Void start()

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Return Value

Type: Void

Usage

This method can be used only with flows that have one of these types.

•Autolaunched Flow

•User Provisioning Flow

For details, see “Flow Types” in the Visual Workflow Guide.

When a flow user invokes an autolaunched flow, the active flow version is run. If there’s no active version, the latest version is run. When

a flow admin invokes an autolaunched flow, the latest version is always run.

getVariableValue(variableName)

Returns the value of the specified flow variable. The flow variable can be in the flow embedded in the Visualforce page, or in a separate

flow that is called by a subflow element.

Signature

public Object getVariableValue(String variableName)

Parameters

variableName

Type: String

Specifies the unique name of the flow variable.

Return Value

Type: Object

Usage

The returned variable value comes from whichever flow the interview is running. If the specified variable can’t be found in that flow, the

method returns null.

This method checks for the existence of the variable at run time only, not at compile time.

Deploy a Flow to Other Organizations

EDITIONS

Available in: Salesforce

Classic

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Flows created in the Cloud Flow Designer can be included in change sets and packages. The recipient

organization of either the change set or package must have Visual Workflow enabled.

IN THIS SECTION:

Considerations for Deploying Flows with Change Sets

Before you use change sets to deploy a flow, understand the limits and unexpected behaviors

that are related to component dependencies, deployment, and flow triggers.

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Considerations for Deploying Flows with Packages

Flows can be included in both managed and unmanaged packages. Before you deploy one, understand the limitations and behaviors

of packages that contain flows.

Considerations for Deploying Flows with Change Sets

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Before you use change sets to deploy a flow, understand the limits and unexpected behaviors that

are related to component dependencies, deployment, and flow triggers.

Component Dependencies

•If you plan to deploy a flow with change sets, consider limitations in migration support.

Make sure your flows reference only fields and components that are available in change

sets.

•When you view the dependent components for the change set, the Component

Dependencies page lists the dependencies for all versions of the flow. Add all interdependent

components for the relevant flow version to the outbound change set.

•If a component is referenced by the following flow elements, the Component Dependencies

page doesn’t display that component. To deploy the flow successfully, manually add those referenced components to the change

set.

–Apex

–Email Alerts

–Post to Chatter

–Quick Actions

–Send Email

–Submit for Approval

For example, if you use an email alert, manually add the email template that is used by that email alert.

Deployment

•You can include only one version of a flow in a change set.

•An active flow in a change set is deployed to its destination as inactive. Activate the flow manually after deployment.

•If the flow has no active version when you upload the outbound change set, the latest inactive version is used.

•Deploying or redeploying a flow with change sets creates a version of the flow in the destination organization.

Flow Triggers

Flow triggers aren’t available in change sets.

The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled the pilot in your org, you can continue to

create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder instead.

SEE ALSO:

Change Sets

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Considerations for Deploying Flows with Packages

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Flows can be included in both managed and unmanaged packages. Before you deploy one,

understand the limitations and behaviors of packages that contain flows.

Component Dependencies

•If you plan to deploy a flow with packages, consider limitations in migration support. Make

sure your flows reference only packageable components and fields.

•Referential integrity works the same for flows as it does for other packaged elements.

•If any of the following elements are used in a flow, packageable components that they

reference aren’t included in the package automatically. To deploy the package successfully,

manually add those referenced components to the package.

–Apex

–Email Alerts

–Post to Chatter

–Quick Actions

–Send Email

–Submit for Approval

For example, if you use an email alert, manually add the email template that is used by that email alert.

Flow Status

You can package only active flows. The active version of the flow is determined when you upload a package version. If none of the

flow’s versions are active, the upload fails.

Updating Packages

•To update a managed package with a different flow version, activate that version and upload the package again. You don’t need

to add the newly activated version to the package. However, if you activate a flow version by mistake and upload the package,

you’ll distribute that flow version to everyone. Be sure to verify which version you really want to upload.

•You can’t include flows in package patches.

Other Limitations

•If you register your namespace after you referenced a flow in a Visualforce page or Apex code, don’t forget to add the namespace

to the flow name. Otherwise, the package will fail to install.

•If someone installs a flow from a managed package, error emails for that flow’s interviews don’t include any details about the

individual flow elements. The email is sent to the user who installed the flow.

•Flow triggers aren’t packageable.

The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled the pilot in your org, you can continue

to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you didn't enable the pilot in your org, use the Flows action in Process Builder

instead.

•In a development organization, you can’t delete a flow or flow version after you upload it to a released or beta managed package.

SEE ALSO:

Considerations for Installed Flows

Create a Package

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Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

To troubleshoot a failed flow interview, use the flow fault email. You can also set up temporary

Screen or Send Email elements to identify the problem.

IN THIS SECTION:

Emails About Flow Errors

Every time a flow interview fails, the admin who created the associated flow gets an email. The

email includes the error message from the failure and details about every flow element that

the interview executed.

Limitations of Emails About Flow Errors (Beta)

The email about errors in flow interviews has some limitations for Screen, Lookup, Create, and Subflow elements—as well as some

general limitations.

Add Temporary Elements to a Flow

Add Screen or Send Email elements to the flow so you can check what the resources’ values are at any given time. Once you’ve

solved the problem, delete temporary Screen elements.

Troubleshoot Flow URLs

If you’re distributing a flow and the custom button, custom link, or a direct flow URL isn’t working as expected, verify the referenced

flow. In addition, verify its variables if you’re passing values into a flow from the URL.

Emails About Flow Errors

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

Every time a flow interview fails, the admin who created the associated flow gets an email. The

email includes the error message from the failure and details about every flow element that the

interview executed.

Note: This release contains a beta version of the flow error email that is production quality

but has known limitations. You can provide feedback and suggestions for the flow error email

on the IdeaExchange.

If the interview failed at multiple elements, the admin receives multiple emails, and the final email

includes an error message for each failure. If a flow uses fault connectors, its interviews can fail at

multiple elements.

Example:

An error occurred at element Apex_Plug_in_1.

List index out of bounds: 0.

An error occurred at element Fast_Delete_1.

DELETE --- There is nothing in Salesforce matching your delete criteria.

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Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?Visual Workflow Guide

An error occurred at element Email_Alert_1.

Missing required input parameter: SObjectRowId.

SEE ALSO:

Limitations of Emails About Flow Errors (Beta)

Customize What Happens When a Flow Fails

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

Limitations of Emails About Flow Errors (Beta)

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

The email about errors in flow interviews has some limitations for Screen, Lookup, Create, and

Subflow elements—as well as some general limitations.

Note: This release contains a beta version of the flow error email that is production quality

but has known limitations. You can provide feedback and suggestions for the flow error email

on the IdeaExchange.

General

•If the user who started the flow doesn’t have a first name, null replaces the user's first

name in the “How the Interview Started” section.

•Variable assignments display in this pattern: {!variable} (prior value) =

field/variable (new value). If the variable had no prior value, the parentheses display as empty. For example:

{!varStatus} () = Status (Delivered)

•If you install a flow from a managed package, error emails for that flow’s interviews don’t include any details about the individual

flow elements. The email is sent to the user who installed the flow.

Screen elements

Password fields display in plain text, just like if you reference a password field in a Display Text field.

Lookup elements

The email displays lookup elements as “query” elements. Record Lookup displays as Record Query, and Fast Lookup displays as Fast

Query.

Subflow elements

•The merge field annotation ({!variable} as opposed to just variable) is missing for variables in a referenced flow. For

example, when an interview enters a subflow and gives details about the inputs, the subflow's variable is subVariable

instead of {!subVariable}.

•If the error occurs in a referenced flow, the email gets sent to the author of the master flow, but the subject references the name

of the referenced flow.

•If you see multiple “Entered flow ReferencedFlowName version ReferencedFlowVersion” messages with no

“Exited ReferencedFlowName version ReferencedFlowVersion” messages in between them, the flow user

navigated backwards. To prevent this scenario, adjust the navigation options in the first screen of the referenced flow so that

the user can’t click Previous.

SEE ALSO:

Emails About Flow Errors

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

176

Limitations of Emails About Flow Errors (Beta)Visual Workflow Guide

Add Temporary Elements to a Flow

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

USER PERMISSIONS

To open, edit, or create a

flow in the Cloud Flow

Designer:

•“Manage Force.com

Flow”

Add Screen or Send Email elements to the flow so you can check what the resources’ values are at

any given time. Once you’ve solved the problem, delete temporary Screen elements.

1. Create a single text template that contains the values of all resources and the fault message.

2. For each fault path, use the text template to configure one of the following elements.

•A Screen element that uses the text template in a Display Text Field. (Only if the flow’s type

supports Screen elements.)

•A Send Email element that uses the text template as the body and your email as the recipient.

•A Post to Chatter element that uses the text template as the message. Consider creating a

Chatter group specifically for flow errors.

3. Test the flow.

Example: Here’s a text template for the Calculate Discounts on Opportunities flow in the

Cloud Flow Designer Workbook.

RESOURCE VALUES for “Calculate Discounts on Opportunities”

opptyID: {!opptyID}

AccountID: {!AccountID}

AccountRevenue: {!AccountRevenue}

Full_Discount outcome: {!Full_Discount}

Partial_Discount outcome: {!Partial_Discount}

Discount: {!Discount}

ERROR

{!$Flow.FaultMessage}

After each element in the flow, add a temporary Post to Chatter element. Each Post to Chatter

element is configured to use:

•The text template as the post’s message

•The “Flow Troubleshooting” Chatter group as the post’s target

Configure the Record Lookup and Record Update elements’ fault connecters so that they

route to the Post to Chatter elements.

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Add Temporary Elements to a FlowVisual Workflow Guide

This way, the flow posts to the Chatter group after the Record Lookup, Decision, Assignment, and Record Update elements are

executed. Each post provides insight into the values of each resource throughout the flow. If the flow fails, the error is included in

the Chatter posts.

After you identify and fix the problem with the flow, remove the temporary elements.

SEE ALSO:

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

Troubleshoot Flow URLs

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

If you’re distributing a flow and the custom button, custom link, or a direct flow URL isn’t working

as expected, verify the referenced flow. In addition, verify its variables if you’re passing values into

a flow from the URL.

To make sure that the URL can find the right flow, verify that:

•The flow that the URL references hasn’t been deleted or deactivated.

•The flow name is spelled and capitalized correctly. It must be an exact, case-sensitive match to

the flow’s Unique Name.

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Troubleshoot Flow URLsVisual Workflow Guide

If your flow URL references a specific flow version, verify that the version hasn’t been deleted or deactivated.

If you’re using the URL to pass values into the flow and the URL can’t access the variable, the parameter that references the variable is

ignored.

To make sure that the URL can find the right flow variable, verify that each variable you’re trying to pass values into:

•Is spelled and capitalized correctly. It must be an exact, case-sensitive match to the variable.

•Allows input access. The variable’s Input/Output Type must be set to “Input Only” or “Input and Output.”

•Hasn’t been renamed in the flow.

•Hasn’t been removed from the flow.

•Isn’t an sObject variable or an sObject collection variable.

In addition, make sure the value that you’re trying to pass into the variable is compatible with the variable’s data type and is correctly

formatted.

SEE ALSO:

Set Flow Finish Behavior with a Flow URL

Set Flow Variables with the Flow URL

Set Flow Variables from a Flow URL

Why Did My Flow Interview Fail?

Visual Workflow Terminology

EDITIONS

Available in: both Salesforce

Classic and Lightning

Experience

Available in: Enterprise,

Performance, Unlimited,

and Developer Editions

The following terminology is used for Visual Workflow in Salesforce:

Cloud Flow Designer

Cloud-based application that lets administrators create a flow for use in Salesforce.

Connector

Connectors determine the available paths that a flow can take at run time.

Element

Each element represents an action that the flow can execute. Examples of such actions include

reading or writing Salesforce data, displaying information and collecting data from flow users,

executing business logic, or manipulating data.

Flow

A flow is an application that can execute logic, interact with the Salesforce database, call Apex classes, and collect data from users.

You can build flows by using the Cloud Flow Designer.

Flow Interview

A flow interview is a running instance of a flow.

Master Flow

A master flow is a flow that contains a subflow element. The term “master” is used to distinguish it from the flow that is referenced

and called by the subflow element.

Resource

Each resource represents a value that you can reference throughout the flow.

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Visual Workflow TerminologyVisual Workflow Guide

Subflow

A subflow element references another flow, which it calls at run time. The flow that contains the subflow element is referred to as

the master flow.

SEE ALSO:

Cloud Flow Designer

Visual Workflow

180

Visual Workflow TerminologyVisual Workflow Guide

INDEX

<flow:interview>

usage 158, 161

Absolute Alarm Event

example 140

Alarm events

absolute time 127

relative time 128

Apex

call from a flow 46

Apex Plug-in element 59

Approvals

submit from a flow 81

Assignment element

adding 60

configuring 60

operators 108

Call Apex element 61

Chatter

post from a flow 73

Choice 89

Clone records, flow

Fast Create element 49

Cloud Flow Designer

overview 31

system requirements 31

Collection

example 135, 141

Collection variable

example 134

populate with values 50

Conditions

flow 45

Constant 92

Create a Flow 29

Cross-object references

in flows 103–106

Decision element

adding 61

configuring 61

Dynamic Record Choice 92

Elements

Apex plug-in 59

assignment 60

Call Apex 61

decision 61

email alert 62

fast create 63

fast delete 64

fast lookup 65

fast update 67

fault connector 52

fault connector, best practice 53, 55

fault connector, default behavior 52

fault connector, examples 55

loop 67

Post to Chatter 73

quick actions 72

record create 68

record delete 69

record lookup 70

record update 71

screen 75–77, 79

Send Email 79

step 80

subflow 59, 83

Submit for Approval 81

send from flow 46, 79

Email Alert element 62

Event types, flow

absolute time alarm 127

Fast Create element 63

Fast Delete element 64

Fast Lookup element 65

Fast Update element 67

Fault Connector element

best practice 53, 55

default behavior 52

examples 55

flow

activating 145

181

Flow

absolute time alarms 127

accessibility 29

administration considerations 26

building blocks 30

call Apex 46

call email alert workflow action 62

Classic runtime 147, 152

clone record, Fast Create 49

conditions 45

connectors, types of 51, 107

considerations 4

considerations, Cloud Flow Designer 14

considerations, large flows 15

considerations, two-column layout 16

creating 29

creating records 39

delete waiting interviews 145

deleting 146

deleting records 43

delivering to users 146

delivering to users, external 165

delivering to users, internal 147, 149, 157

design considerations 12–16

design considerations, formula 18

differences from Process Builder 2

differences from Workflow 2

editing properties 133, 143

elements overview 57

embedding in Lightning Page 149

embedding in Visualforce pages 157, 165

formula limitations 18

global variables 95

in change sets 173

in Lightning Pages, considerations 150

inaccessible fields 21, 24

Invoke quick action 72

launching from processes 167

launching from workflow rules 167

Lightning runtime 147, 152

Lightning runtime, enable 154

limits 5–6

looking up records 37

managing 142

managing connectors 36

managing elements 36

managing resources 36

modifying 144

opening 144

Flow (continued)

operators 107

operators, assignment 108

operators, conditions 114

operators, record filter 121

passing values into 37

pause, enable 146

process action 167

querying records 37

reference cross-object field values 103–106

relative time alarms 128

resources overview 87

run time considerations 28

runtime experiences 147, 152

saving 35

searching 33

send email 46, 79

setting start element 34

settings 23, 146, 154

sharing 146–147, 149, 157, 165

submit record for approval 81

testing 144

time-based 19

time-based considerations 19

troubleshooting 175, 177

troubleshooting, emails 175–176

type 132

updating records 41

wait 84

wait event types 126

wait, waiting conditions 86

workflow action 167

workflow action considerations 168

Flow collection values

getting 161

setting 158

Flow condition

operators 114

Flow connectors

adding 36

editing 36

removing 36

Flow constant values

getting 161

setting 158

Flow Designer

user interface 31

Flow elements

adding 36

182

Index

Flow elements (continued)

editing 36

removing 36

Flow event types

absolute time alarm 127

Flow examples

absolute alarm event 140

loop through a collection 135, 141

populate a String collection variable 134

relative alarm event 136, 138

wait for many events, all 136

wait for many events, any 138

wait for one event 140

Flow Fast Create element

enforce field-level security 23

ignore read-only fields 23

read-only fields 23

Flow Fast Update element

enforce field-level security 23

ignore read-only fields 23

read-only fields 23

Flow finish location

setting via URL 154, 156

Flow formula resource

create 94

limitations 18

Flow interviews

delete 145

Flow record filters

operators 121

Flow resources

adding 36

editing 36

formula, create 94

formula, limitations 18

removing 36

Flow screen

validate user input 44

Flow sObject variable values

getting 161

setting 158

Flow trigger

associated with workflow rule 170

considerations 168

defining 167

test mode 167

Flow URL

setting finish location 154, 156

setting flow variable values 155

Flow URL (continued)

troubleshooting 178

Flow variable values

getting 161

setting 158

setting via URL 155

Flows in packages 173

Global actionQuick action

Invoke in flow 72

Global constants 95

Global variables

in flows 95

Lightning App Builder

considerations for adding Flow components 150

embedding flows 149

Limits

flow 5–6

Loop element

adding 67

configuring 67

example 135, 141

multi-select choice fields 17

Object-specific action

Invoke in flow 72

Operators

flow assignment element 108

flow condition 114

flow record filters 121

Palette, searching 34

Picklist Choice 97

Populate variable with values

collection variable 50

Post to Chatter element 73

Process Builder

differences from flow 2

differences from Workflow 2

Quick action element 72

183

Index

Record Create element 68

Record Delete element 69

Record Lookup element 70

Record Update element 71

Relative Alarm Event

example 136, 138

Resources

choice 78, 89

Collection variable 91

constant 92

dynamic record choice 78, 92

global constants 95

picklist choice 78, 97

sObject collection 99

sObject variable 100

system variables 101

text template 102

variable 102

variable in referenced flow 48

Saving a flow 35

Screen

choice fields 78

choice resources 78

Screen element

about multi-select choice fields 17

adding 75

choice fields 77

configuring output fields on the Field Settings tab 79

configuring the Field Settings tab 76, 79

configuring the General Info tab 75

configuring user input fields on the Field Settings tab 76

editing 75

settings 75–76, 79

Searching

a flow 33

the Palette 34

Send Email element 79

SObject variable 100

sObject Variable, flow

copy values to new sObject variable 25

Step element 80

Subflow element 59, 83

Submit for Approval element 81

System variables 101

Test mode for flow triggers 167

Text Template 102

Troubleshooting

flow URL 178

flows 175

flows, add temporary elements 177

flows, emails about errors 175–176

flows, fault email 175–176

Variable 102

Variable in referenced flow 48

Visual Workflow

administration considerations 26

considerations 4

considerations, Cloud Flow Designer 14

considerations, large flows 15

considerations, two-column layout 16

design considerations 12–16

design considerations, formulas 18

design considerations, time-based flows 19

formula limitations 18

run time considerations 28

Visualforce

embedding flows 157, 165

getting flow variable values 161

setting flow variable values 158

Wait element

example 136, 138, 140

Wait event types

flow 126

Wait events

relative time 128

Wait in a flow

configure 84

event types 126

waiting conditions 86

Waiting conditions

flow 86

Workflow

differences from Process Builder 2

differences from Visual Workflow 2

flow trigger considerations 168

flow triggers 167

184

Index

Visual Workflow Guide

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