Appropriate Trigger Framework for Salesforce ISVs
As Salesforce developers or architects, we regularly interact with Salesforce triggers, one of the most critical components. We know flow is the next thing, but Salesforce apex triggers are still essential for complex automation.
These pieces of automation are the backbone of many business processes, managing everything from field updates to complex data workflows. Over time, however, the way we handle triggers has evolved significantly. What started as simple, one-off triggers has transformed into sophisticated, framework-driven solutions designed to be scalable, traceable, and efficient.
In this blog, we explore this evolution—the three ages of Salesforce trigger frameworks—and focus on mastering the third age, where automation meets efficiency, scalability, and robust architecture. You're in the right place if you're a Salesforce developer looking to level up your game.
The Evolution of Trigger Frameworks
1. The First Generation: Simple Triggers
The early days of Salesforce development were dominated by simple triggers, which often served very specific purposes. Each trigger handled a single operation, such as updating a record or sending an email. While easy to write, these triggers became challenging to manage over time as codebases grew more complex.
Challenges of Simple Triggers:
Code Duplication: Every new process needed its own trigger, resulting in redundancy.
Order of Execution: The execution order of multiple triggers on the same object was unpredictable.
Scalability: Simple triggers could not handle bulk operations efficiently.
Maintenance: Changing business logic required updating numerous triggers, making it hard to maintain consistency.
2. The Second Generation: Trigger Handlers
Developers introduced handler classes to solve some of the problems of simple triggers. This was a major leap forward, promoting the principle of separation of concerns. Instead of embedding business logic directly in triggers, developers would delegate this to a handler class, allowing for more reusability and organization.
Advantages of Trigger Handlers
Reusability: Business logic is abstracted into classes, making it reusable across different triggers.
Testability: Isolating logic in classes made unit testing much easier.
Separation of Concerns: Triggers remained simple, while trigger handlers took over complex logic.
Limitations of Trigger Handlers
Duplication Still Exists: Each trigger still had its handler, which could lead to inconsistencies between projects.
Order Control: Managing the execution order was possible but still limited to individual classes.
Scaling: Bulkification and recursion control were handled manually, leaving room for errors.
3. The Third Generation: Framework-Driven Design
Welcome to the 3rd age of trigger handler frameworks! This age is characterized by powerful frameworks that not only solve the issues of the past but also provide a scalable, traceable, and reusable architecture. The best frameworks offer dynamic control over which triggers are activated, include features like bulkification, and can even prevent recursion, all while making minimal SOQL calls.
Key Features of a Robust Trigger Framework
Scalable: Bulkification ensures the trigger can process large data sets efficiently.
Traceable: Frameworks offer visibility into which logic was executed and when making debugging a breeze.
Reusable: Functional methods and classes are separated clearly, enabling code reuse across projects.
Atomic: Specific triggers can be bypassed when necessary, giving you control over when and how they are executed.
Optimized: Built to make minimal SOQL calls and prevent recursion, the frameworks ensure optimal performance, even in complex workflows.
Essential Framework Capabilities:
Dynamic Trigger Control: Allows triggers to be disabled or enabled for specific users or contexts.
Salesforce Flow Control: Integrates with Salesforce Flow to control automation at a higher level.
Governance Optimization: Consumes fewer Salesforce governor limits, critical for large data operations.
Selecting the Best Open-Source Trigger Framework
Matching the tool to your specific context is essential when selecting an open-source framework. You may find various frameworks, such as the popular Apex Trigger Actions Framework or Nebula Core. The proper framework will depend on the complexity of your project, the need for customization, and the size of your organization.
Here are a few key factors to consider:
Customization: Does the framework allow easy customization at both the object and action levels?
Performance: Does it minimize performance impacts, especially during bulk data operations?
Flexibility: Can it enable or disable triggers dynamically based on specific user roles or processes?
For a detailed comparison of the best open-source frameworks, check out our recommended list of resources.
Best Practices for Framework Design
Follow the One Trigger Per Object Paradigm:
Ensure your framework supports the principle of having just one trigger per object. This reduces complexity and makes the framework easier to manage.Loose Coupling:
Frameworks should allow loose coupling between the trigger and handler classes. This means they don’t have to coexist in the same package, promoting flexibility and easier updates.Trigger Sequence Management:
Define a clear sequence for handler methods to run. This guarantees that triggers execute in a predictable, structured manner.Recursion Control:
Set limits on trigger recursion to prevent an endless loop of trigger executions, which can cause performance bottlenecks or failures.Lightweight Design:
The framework should be lightweight, minimizing the time needed to build and deploy Salesforce environments, like scratch orgs.
Conclusion
The third generation of Salesforce trigger frameworks is all about moving beyond simple or handler-based triggers to a robust, scalable, and highly optimized solution. By leveraging a framework-driven approach, Salesforce developers can build more maintainable, efficient, and traceable systems that easily handle complex business processes.
Ready to dive deeper? Watch our YouTube video discussing these concepts in more detail, along with real-world examples of apex triggers in salesforce and code snippets. Don’t forget to subscribe and drop any questions in the comments!
Thanks
Big thanks to Prakash Tiwari from our team for his research and efforts behind this content.
Resources
Suggested Read
PDOs for AppExchange Success: A Salesforce ISV Partner’s Guide
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