Choosing the right automation tool

Flow is Salesforce's main declarative automation tool. The flow type follows from what starts the work: a user on a screen, a record change, a schedule, a platform event, or another process. Before building any automation, check whether a formula field, validation rule, or default value already solves the problem.

Flow types

• Screen flow: Guides a user through screens, such as a wizard to log a return. Launched from a Lightning page, quick action, utility bar, or Experience Cloud site.
• Record-triggered flow: Runs when a record is created, updated, or deleted, with entry conditions so it fires only when it matters.
• Schedule-triggered flow: Runs at a set time and frequency, optionally on a batch of records that meet conditions, such as a nightly check for overdue invoices.
• Platform event-triggered flow: Runs when a platform event message arrives, often from an integration.
• Autolaunched flow (no trigger): Runs when something calls it: another flow as a subflow, Apex, a REST API call, or a custom button.

When you don't need a flow

• Formula field: The value can always be calculated from other fields and never needs to be stored or edited.
• Roll-up summary field: Totals or counts from detail records on a master-detail parent.
• Validation rule: The goal is to stop bad data from being saved, not to change data.
• Default field value: A field should start with a value that users can change.
• Simpler tools are easier to maintain and don't count against automation limits.

Retired tools and migration

• Workflow rules and Process Builder: Older tools that can no longer be used to build new automation. Salesforce ended support for them, so existing ones should be moved to Flow.
• Migrate to Flow: A Setup tool that converts many workflow rules and processes into record-triggered flows for you to test and activate.
• On the exam and in real orgs, new automation is built in Flow (or approvals), not in the older tools.

Approvals

• When to use one: A record needs a person to say yes or no, such as a discount over 20% needing a manager's approval.
• Approval processes: Define entry criteria, who can submit, the approval steps and approvers, and the actions on submission, approval, rejection, and recall.
• Flow approval processes: A newer way to build approvals in Flow Builder, with stages and steps, for more complex multi-step reviews.