Salesforce Functions are deployed to, and run in, a secure Salesforce-managed infrastructure separate from your Salesforce org. You can invoke Functions directly from Apex (Invocable Apex in case of Flow).<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siiwebsite-uat.siitest.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Blank-diagram-6-1.png\"){kind=spacer}
<\/p>\n
Use cases<\/h2>\n
You might have already thought about some of the cases when such functionality comes in handy. The possibilities are countless! I cannot create an exhaustive list of all Salesforce Functions use cases. There are so many options, even Salesforce hasn\u2019t explored all of them yet! I did, however, list some of the most used ones below:<\/p>\n
- \n
- ETL Processing,<\/li>\n
- Heavy Asynchronous processes,<\/li>\n
- Generating files,<\/li>\n
- Using external libraries,<\/li>\n
- Bypassing Apex Limits.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Moving these heavy processes outside of the Salesforce platform is sometimes necessary due to technological and functional limitations, but it\u2019s never been this straightforward before!<\/p>\n
Setup<\/h2>\n
If you\u2019re anything like me, you\u2019ve probably had enough of hollow theorizing. Let\u2019s start the engineering part, then!<\/p>\n
First things first, before you will be able to use Salesforce Functions, you need to purchase the Functions License. Once you have it, you can start the setup process.<\/p>\n
There are three major things to do there: You need to set up your dev environment, configure your org and set up permissions. Let me explain in more detail.<\/p>\n
Dev Environment setup<\/h3>\n
- \n
- Time for big decisions \u2013 choose the language<\/strong> you want to use! There are a few options when it comes to working with Salesforce Functions:\n
- \n
- js<\/strong> 14 or higher to developer Functions that use JavaScript <\/strong>or TypeScript,<\/strong><\/li>\n
- OpenJDK<\/strong> 8 or higher and Apache Maven<\/strong>6.3 or higher to developer Functions that use Java.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Once you are ready to make a commitment, install<\/strong> the language. It\u2019s official now!<\/p>\n
- \n
- On top of your language of choice, you will definitely need GIT CLI<\/strong>. Install it if you haven\u2019t already.<\/li>\n
- One more thing that will be necessary is of course the Salesforce CLI<\/strong>. If you have managed to read this far despite not having it installed on your device, do it now!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Org configuration<\/h3>\n
- \n
- Enable Dev Hub<\/strong> in production, sandbox, or Developer Edition org.<\/li>\n
- Enable Salesforce Functions<\/strong> to create an authenticated connection for requests between your org and Salesforce Functions.<\/li>\n
- Go to Setup > Functions. You will see two toggles there: Enable Test Space<\/strong> and Enable Production Space<\/strong>. Be sure to switch them both on.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siiwebsite-uat.siitest.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Setup-Functions.png\")
<\/h4>\nSet up permissions<\/h3>\n
- \n
- For developers to work with functions, they will need certain permissions granted to them. There are a few permission sets<\/strong> you can assign to them. Check out the guidelines below if you\u2019re not sure as to which are necessary:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
Permission Set Name<\/th> Lets the user\u2026<\/th> Required System Permissions<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> FunctionsAccess<\/td> \u25cf Use Functions services and functionality.
\u25cf Access any functionality that relies on the Heroku platform including login through CLI.
\u25cf Deploy Functions to Scratch and Sandbox Orgs.<\/td>\u25cf Compute Access<\/td><\/tr> FunctionsProdAccess<\/td> \u25cf Perform any actions that require access to a production space.
\u25cf Deploy Functions-related metadata in your Salesforce Org.<\/td>\u25cf Compute Production Access
\u25cf Customize Application<\/td><\/tr>FunctionsAdminAccess<\/td> \u25cf Manually deploy Functions to your Production Space.
\u25cf Manage Permission Sets.<\/td>\u25cf Compute Production Access
\u25cf Manage Custom Permissions
\u25cf Manage Session Permission Set Activations<\/td><\/tr>SalesforceDXAccess<\/td> \u25cf Create and manage scratch orgs.
\u25cf Add new Apex classes for Functions.<\/td>\u25cf API Enabled
\u25cf Author Apex
\u25cf Manage Sandboxes<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\nDevelopment<\/h2>\n
Now that we have laid the groundwork, it\u2019s time for the exciting part: Salesforce Functions development. There are just a few commands you need to run before we start. You will only run them the first time you start, so just in case you wanted to memorize them \u2013 don\u2019t.<\/p>\n
- \n
- Log in and Set an Alias to Your Dev Hub<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
sf login org --alias ORG_NAME --set-default-dev-hub<\/pre>\n
- \n
- Authenticate the CLI with Salesforce Functions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
sf login functions<\/pre>\n
- \n
- [Scratch Org only] Create your Scratch Org<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
sfdx force:org:create -s -f config\/project-scratch-def.json -a MyScratchOrgAlias<\/pre>\n
- \n
- Create a Compute Environment to deploy the functions and connect it to your org:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
sfdx env create compute -o ORG_NAME -a COMPUTE_ENV_ALIAS<\/pre>\n
All set now! You can create your first Function.It really is way easier than you think. Just run the below commands and follow the steps. Some commands will be provided in two or three alternatives – for the terminal command line, for the VSC command line and for VSC UI buttons.<\/p>\n
Create function<\/h3>\n
The most profound part of the process – to make the Function come into existence!<\/p>\n
sf generate function -n functionname -l javascript\nor\nCtrl + Shift + P > SFDX:Create Function<\/pre>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siiwebsite-uat.siitest.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/create-function.png\")
<\/p>\nTest function locally<\/h3>\n
If you\u2019re a skeptic, here\u2019s how to verify it works:<\/p>\n
- \n
- First, run the function\n
Ctrl + Shift + P > SFDX: Start Function\nor\nSf run function start (executed from the function directory<\/pre>\n<\/li>\n
- Now Invoke it with a test payload\n
- \n
- Create a payload.json file in your function directory<\/li>\n
- Navigate to your project root directory and run<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
sf run function -l http:\/\/localhost:8080 -p '{\"accountName\": \u201cFrom Test\u201d}' - if you want to pass a payload in the command\nor\nsf run function -l http:\/\/localhost:8080 -p '@functions\/myfunction\/payload.json' - if you want to pass a path to the payload\nor\nOpen payload.json and click invoke - if you want to use UI<\/pre>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siiwebsite-uat.siitest.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/FunctionInvoker.png\")
<\/p>\n- \n
- Finally, if you want to stop the function, just use:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Ctrl + Shift + P > SFDX: Stop Function\nor\nCtrl-C<\/pre>\n
Deploy the functions<\/h3>\n
Now that you\u2019ve tested your function locally, you\u2019re ready to deploy it! Let\u2019s move it to your Compute Environment.<\/p>\n
When it comes to deploying Salesforce Functions, there\u2019s one thing that might be different from your experience from Apex. Your local version of code will never be deployed if uncommitted, as the deploy process always looks to the changes tracked in git. Do remember to commit your changes before each deployment.<\/p>\n
git add .\ngit commit -m \u201ccommit message\u201d\nsf deploy functions -o ScratchOrgAlias<\/pre>\n
<\/em>To check the status of your deployed project, use<\/p>\n
sf env list<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siiwebsite-uat.siitest.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/tabela.png\")
<\/p>\nInvoke function from Apex<\/h3>\n
We\u2019re back on our Salesforce Platform, but now we have more possibilities. Run whatever you have developed in your language of choice – it\u2019s really easy.<\/p>\n
\n\npublic with sharing class GenericFunctionInvoker {\n@AuraEnabled\npublic static String invoke(String functionName, String payload) {\n\/\/ Instantiate the function\nfunctions.Function function = functions.Function.get(functionName);\n\n\/\/ Invoke the function\nfunctions.FunctionInvocation invocation = function.invoke(payload);\n\n\/\/ Check if there is any error during the invocation\nif (invocation.getStatus() == functions.FunctionInvocationStatus.ERROR) {\nthrow new CalloutException(\n(invocation.getError() != null\n? invocation.getError().getMessage()\n: 'UNKNOWN')\n);\n}\n\nString response = invocation.getResponse();\n\n\/\/ Return the response to the flow\nreturn response;\n}\n}\n\n<\/pre><\/pre>\nThis is probably the moment when something will go wrong. How do I debug, you might ask. To view Compute Environment Logs, use this command:<\/p>\n
sf env log tail -e COMPUTE_ENV_ALIAS<\/pre>\n
Limits<\/h2>\n
No tool has unlimited power. Even though Salesforce Functions is a heavenly tool, sky is still the limit.<\/p>\n
There are four main things you can exceed:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Function run time
Invoked functions can only run for so long before they time out. The limit is much higher than in apex, but it\u2019s still worth being aware of:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n- \n
- \n
- \n
- 15 minutes for asynchronously invoked functions,<\/li>\n
- 2 minutes for synchronous calls.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- Payload size
Payloads of a certain size are too big for functions to accept. Here\u2019s the numbers:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n- \n
- \n
- \n
- 12MB for asynchronously invoked function,<\/li>\n
- 6MB for synchronously invoked functions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- \n
- Response size\n
- \n
- 12MB for asynchronously invoked function,<\/li>\n
- 6MB for synchronously invoked functions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
- Simultaneous function invocation\n
- \n
- 10 functions for synchronously invoked functions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
***<\/p>\n
Yes, there is no limitation to simultaneous synchronous function invocations. Have we just found a hole in.<\/p>\n
Sources<\/h3>\n
- \n
- Get Started with Salesforce Functions<\/a><\/li>\n
- Configure Your Salesforce Org<\/a><\/li>\n
- Understand Functions Limits<\/a><\/li>\n
- Discover Salesforce Functions<\/a><\/li>\n
- Functions recipes<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
***<\/p>\n
You can find more articles about Salesforce here: The role of the Resource Manager in the recruitment process<\/a>, Salesforce B2B Commerce Lightning \u2013 a tool for building e-commerce platforms<\/a>, and From a user to the abuser \u2013 how to become a Salesforce expert. <\/a><\/p>\n\n
- Configure Your Salesforce Org<\/a><\/li>\n
- Get Started with Salesforce Functions<\/a><\/li>\n
- 10 functions for synchronously invoked functions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Response size\n
- \n
- Payload size
- \n
- Function run time
- Finally, if you want to stop the function, just use:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- First, run the function\n
- Create a Compute Environment to deploy the functions and connect it to your org:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- [Scratch Org only] Create your Scratch Org<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Authenticate the CLI with Salesforce Functions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Log in and Set an Alias to Your Dev Hub<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Enable Salesforce Functions<\/strong> to create an authenticated connection for requests between your org and Salesforce Functions.<\/li>\n
- One more thing that will be necessary is of course the Salesforce CLI<\/strong>. If you have managed to read this far despite not having it installed on your device, do it now!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- OpenJDK<\/strong> 8 or higher and Apache Maven<\/strong>6.3 or higher to developer Functions that use Java.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- js<\/strong> 14 or higher to developer Functions that use JavaScript <\/strong>or TypeScript,<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Time for big decisions \u2013 choose the language<\/strong> you want to use! There are a few options when it comes to working with Salesforce Functions:\n