Transitioning from Change Set Deployments to CI/CD in Salesforce - EKWIS

Introduction

In recent years, Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Deployment (CD) have become the gold standard for development and release management in Salesforce. By embracing these practices, organisations can accelerate their development process, reduce errors, and maintain a higher level of quality control. In this blog post, we’ll guide you through the process of transitioning from traditional Change Set deployments to a modern CI/CD approach, tailored specifically for the UK Salesforce ecosystem.

Adopting Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Deployment (CD) in Salesforce can revolutionise the way your organisation approaches development and release management. In this blog post, we provide an overview of the process of transitioning from traditional Change Set deployments to a modern CI/CD approach, specifically tailored for the UK Salesforce ecosystem. Please note that this guide offers a high-level understanding of the necessary steps and best practices; it is not intended as a detailed, step-by-step tutorial. By following this overview, you’ll gain a solid foundation for further exploration and implementation of CI/CD in your Salesforce org.

Sections:

1. Creating Your Dev Environment
2. Extracting Metadata from Your Org
3. Leveraging Push and Pull for Sandbox or Scratch Orgs
4. Implementing CI/CD in Your Organisation

Section 1: Creating Your Dev Environment

The first step in adopting CI/CD is setting up a development environment that facilitates collaboration, version control, and automated testing. Here’s how to get started:

1. Choose a Version Control System (VCS): A VCS, such as Git, enables you to track changes to your codebase and manage collaboration efficiently. Create a repository for your Salesforce metadata and establish a branching strategy that suits your development process.
2. Adopt an Integrated Development Environment (IDE): An IDE, such as Visual Studio Code, offers a range of features and extensions that streamline Salesforce development. Install the Salesforce Extension Pack to enable support for Apex, Lightning, and other Salesforce-specific features.

Section 2: Extracting Metadata from Your Org

To begin the transition to CI/CD, you’ll need to extract your existing metadata from your Salesforce org. This can be achieved using the following steps:

1. Install Salesforce CLI: Salesforce Command Line Interface (CLI) is a powerful tool for managing metadata and facilitating CI/CD. Download and install Salesforce CLI, then authenticate with your Salesforce org.
2. Retrieve Metadata: Use the sfdx force:mdapi:retrieve command to extract the metadata from your org. Once the process is complete, unzip the retrieved package and add the metadata to your VCS.

Section 3: Leveraging Push and Pull for Sandbox or Scratch Orgs

Once your development environment is set up and your metadata is in your VCS, you can start working with Sandbox or Scratch Orgs. These environments enable you to test changes in isolation, ensuring that your production org remains unaffected.

1. Create a Sandbox or Scratch Org: Use Salesforce CLI to create a new Sandbox (sfdx force:org:create) or Scratch Org (sfdx force:org:scratch:create) depending on your requirements.
2. Push Metadata: Use the sfdx force:source:push command to deploy your metadata to the newly created environment.
3. Make Changes and Test: Develop and test your changes within the Sandbox or Scratch Org, ensuring that all features and functionality work as expected.
4. Pull Changes: Once your changes have been tested and verified, use the sfdx force:source:pull command to retrieve the updated metadata from the environment and commit the changes to your VCS.

Section 4: Implementing CI/CD in Your Organisation

With your development environment established and your metadata managed through a VCS, you can now implement CI/CD:

1. Choose a CI/CD Tool: Select a CI/CD tool that integrates with your VCS and Salesforce, such as Jenkins, CircleCI, or GitLab CI/CD.
2. Configure Your CI/CD Pipeline: Set up your pipeline to automate tasks such as testing, deploying to staging environments, and promoting changes to production. Make sure to include test automation and quality checks to maintain high code quality.
3. Monitor and Refine: Continuously monitor your pipeline’s performance and