name: sf-deploy description: > Comprehensive Salesforce DevOps automation using sf CLI v2. Use when deploying metadata, managing scratch orgs, setting up CI/CD pipelines, or troubleshooting deployment errors. license: MIT metadata: version: "2.0.0" author: "Jag Valaiyapathy"

sf-deploy: Comprehensive Salesforce DevOps Automation

Expert Salesforce DevOps engineer specializing in deployment automation, CI/CD pipelines, and metadata management using Salesforce CLI (sf v2).

Core Responsibilities

Deployment Management: Execute, validate, and monitor deployments (metadata, Apex, LWC)
DevOps Automation: CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, deployment workflows
Org Management: Authentication, scratch orgs, environment management
Quality Assurance: Tests, code coverage, pre-production validation
Troubleshooting: Debug failures, analyze logs, provide solutions

⚠️ CRITICAL: Orchestration Order

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  sf-metadata → sf-flow → sf-deploy → sf-data                               │
│                              ▲                                              │
│                         YOU ARE HERE                                        │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Deploy order WITHIN sf-deploy: Objects/Fields → Permission Sets → Apex → Flows (Draft) → Activate Flows

Phase	Metadata Type	Why This Order
1	Custom Objects/Fields	Everything references these
2	Permission Sets	FLS requires fields to exist
3	Apex Classes	@InvocableMethod needed before Flows
4	Flows (as Draft)	Flows reference fields and Apex
5	Activate Flows	Safe to activate after validation

See docs/orchestration.md for detailed deployment workflows and agent deployment patterns.

🔑 Key Insights for Deployment

Always Use --dry-run First

# CORRECT: Validate before deploying
sf project deploy start --dry-run --source-dir force-app --target-org alias
sf project deploy start --source-dir force-app --target-org alias

# WRONG: Deploying without validation
sf project deploy start --source-dir force-app --target-org alias  # Risky!

Deploy Permission Sets After Objects

Common Error:

Error: In field: field - no CustomObject named ObjectName__c found

Solution: Deploy objects first, THEN permission sets referencing them.

Flow Activation (4-Step Process)

Flows deploy as Draft by default. Activation steps:

Deploy with <status>Draft</status>
Verify: sf project deploy report --job-id [id]
Edit XML: Draft → Active
Redeploy

Why? Draft lets you verify before activating; if activation fails, flow still exists.

Common Errors: "Flow is invalid" (deploy objects first) | "Insufficient permissions" (check Manage Flow) | "Version conflict" (deactivate old version)

FLS Warning After Deployment

⚠️ Deployed fields may be INVISIBLE without FLS!

After deploying custom objects/fields:

Deploy Permission Set granting field access
Assign Permission Set to user: sf org assign permset --name PermSetName --target-org alias
Verify field visibility

CLI Version (CRITICAL)

This skill uses sf CLI (v2.x), NOT legacy sfdx (v1.x)

Legacy sfdx (v1)	Modern sf (v2)
`--checkonly` / `--check-only`	`--dry-run`
`sfdx force:source:deploy`	`sf project deploy start`

Prerequisites

Before deployment, verify:

sf --version              # Requires v2.x
sf org list               # Check authenticated orgs
test -f sfdx-project.json # Valid SFDX project

Deployment Workflow (5-Phase)

Phase 1: Pre-Deployment Analysis

Gather via AskUserQuestion: Target org, deployment scope, validation requirements, rollback strategy.

Analyze:

Read sfdx-project.json for package directories
Glob for metadata: **/force-app/**/*.{cls,trigger,xml,js,html,css}
Grep for dependencies

TodoWrite tasks: Validate auth, Pre-tests, Deploy, Monitor, Post-tests, Verify

Phase 2: Pre-Deployment Validation

sf org display --target-org <alias>                    # Check connection
sf apex test run --test-level RunLocalTests --target-org <alias> --wait 10  # Local tests
sf project deploy start --dry-run --test-level RunLocalTests --target-org <alias> --wait 30  # Validate

Phase 3: Deployment Execution

Commands by scope:

# Full metadata
sf project deploy start --target-org <alias> --wait 30

# Specific components
sf project deploy start --source-dir force-app/main/default/classes --target-org <alias>

# Manifest-based
sf project deploy start --manifest manifest/package.xml --target-org <alias> --test-level RunLocalTests --wait 30

# Quick deploy (after validation)
sf project deploy quick --job-id <validation-job-id> --target-org <alias>

Handle failures: Parse errors, identify failed components, suggest fixes.

Phase 4: Post-Deployment Verification

sf project deploy report --job-id <job-id> --target-org <alias>

Verify components, run smoke tests, check coverage.

Phase 5: Documentation

Provide summary with: deployed components, test results, coverage metrics, next steps.

See examples/deployment-report-template.md for output format.

Deployment Variants: Production (full + RunAllTests), Hotfix (targeted + RunLocalTests), CI/CD (scripted + gates), Scratch (push source).

CLI Reference

Deploy: sf project deploy start [--dry-run] [--source-dir <path>] [--manifest <xml>] [--test-level <level>] Quick: sf project deploy quick --job-id <id> | Status: sf project deploy report Test: sf apex test run --test-level RunLocalTests | Coverage: sf apex get test --code-coverage Org: sf org list | sf org display | sf org create scratch | sf org open Metadata: sf project retrieve start | sf org list metadata --metadata-type <type>

Error Handling

Error	Cause	Solution
FIELD_CUSTOM_VALIDATION_EXCEPTION	Validation rule blocking	Deactivate rules or use valid test data
INVALID_CROSS_REFERENCE_KEY	Missing dependency	Include dependencies in deploy
CANNOT_INSERT_UPDATE_ACTIVATE_ENTITY	Trigger/validation error	Review trigger logic, check recursion
TEST_FAILURE	Test class failure	Fix test or code under test
INSUFFICIENT_ACCESS	Permission issue	Verify user permissions, FLS

Flow-Specific Errors

Error	Cause	Solution
"Element X is duplicated"	Elements not alphabetically ordered	Reorder Flow XML elements
"Element bulkSupport invalid"	Deprecated element (API 60.0+)	Remove `<bulkSupport>`
"Error parsing file"	Malformed XML	Validate XML syntax

Failure Response

Parse error output, identify failed components
Explain error in plain language
Suggest specific fixes with code examples
Provide rollback options if needed

Best Practices

Always validate first: Use --dry-run for production
Appropriate test levels: RunLocalTests (deploy), RunAllTests (packages)
Code coverage: >75% for production, >90% recommended
Use manifests: package.xml for controlled deployments
Version control: Commit before deploying, tag releases
Incremental deploys: Small, frequent changes over large batches
Sandbox first: Always test before production
Backup metadata: Retrieve before major deployments
Quick deploy: Use for validated changesets

Trigger Deployment Safety

💡 See docs/trigger-deployment-safety.md for comprehensive guide.

Pre-Deployment Guardrails

Before deploying triggers, verify:

Check	Command/Action
Trigger chain analysis	Map all triggers firing together
Cascade failure review	Identify atomic vs independent processes
Async decoupling	Use Queueable/Events for external calls
Savepoint usage	Verify explicit atomicity where needed
Test coverage	Include cascade success/failure tests

Common Trigger Cascade Risks

Risk	Symptom	Solution
External callout in trigger	Cascade failure from HTTP timeout	Move to Queueable
Shared exception handling	One failure rolls back all	Isolate with try-catch or async
Recursive triggers	Stack overflow or DML errors	Use static flag recursion guard
Order-dependent triggers	Inconsistent behavior	Document and test trigger order

Pre-Deployment Checklist

TRIGGER SAFETY CHECKLIST:
□ Identify all triggers in deployment
□ Map trigger chains (which triggers fire together)
□ Verify cascade behavior is intentional
□ Check for external callouts → should be async
□ Confirm savepoint usage for atomic operations
□ Test both success and failure cascade scenarios
□ Validate with --dry-run before production deploy

Recommended Async Patterns

// BAD: Synchronous external call in trigger
trigger AccountTrigger on Account (after insert) {
    ExternalService.sync(Trigger.new);  // Failure cascades
}

// GOOD: Async decoupling
trigger AccountTrigger on Account (after insert) {
    if (canEnqueueJob()) {
        System.enqueueJob(new AccountSyncQueueable(Trigger.newMap.keySet()));
    }
}

CI/CD Integration

Standard pipeline workflow:

Authenticate (JWT/auth URL)
Validate metadata
Static analysis (PMD, ESLint)
Dry-run deployment
Run tests + coverage check
Deploy if validation passes
Notify

See examples/deployment-workflows.md for scripts.

Edge Cases

Large deployments: Split into batches (limit: 10,000 files / 39 MB)
Test timeout: Increase wait time or run tests separately
Namespace conflicts: Handle managed package issues
API version: Ensure source/target compatibility

Cross-Skill Dependency Checklist

Before deploying, verify these prerequisites from other skills:

Dependency	Check Command	Required For
TAF Package	`sf package installed list --target-org alias`	TAF trigger pattern (sf-apex)
Custom Objects/Fields	`sf sobject describe --sobject ObjectName --target-org alias`	Apex/Flow field references
Trigger_Action__mdt	Check Setup → Custom Metadata Types	TAF trigger execution
Queues	`sf data query --query "SELECT Id,Name FROM Group WHERE Type='Queue'"`	Flow queue assignments
Permission Sets	`sf org list metadata --metadata-type PermissionSet`	FLS for custom fields

Common Cross-Skill Issues:

Error Message	Missing Dependency	Solution
`Invalid type: MetadataTriggerHandler`	TAF Package	Install apex-trigger-actions package
`Field does not exist: Field__c`	Custom Field or FLS	Deploy field or create Permission Set
`No such column 'Field__c'`	Field-Level Security	Assign Permission Set to running user
`SObject type 'Object__c' not supported`	Custom Object	Deploy object via sf-metadata first
`Queue 'QueueName' not found`	Queue Metadata	Deploy queue via sf-metadata first

sf-ai-agentforce Integration (Agent DevOps)

Complete DevOps guide: See docs/agent-deployment-guide.md for comprehensive agent deployment documentation.

Agent Metadata Types

Metadata Type	Description
`Bot`	Top-level chatbot definition
`BotVersion`	Version configuration
`GenAiPlannerBundle`	Reasoning engine (LLM config)
`GenAiPlugin`	Topic definition
`GenAiFunction`	Action definition

Agent Pseudo Metadata Type

The Agent pseudo type syncs all agent components at once:

# Retrieve agent + all dependencies from org
sf project retrieve start --metadata Agent:[AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# Deploy agent metadata to org
sf project deploy start --metadata Agent:[AgentName] --target-org [alias]

Agent Lifecycle Commands

# Activate agent (makes available to users)
sf agent activate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# Deactivate agent (REQUIRED before making changes)
sf agent deactivate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# Preview agent (simulated mode - safe testing)
sf agent preview --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# Preview agent (live mode - real Apex/Flows)
sf agent preview --api-name [AgentName] --use-live-actions --client-app [App] --target-org [alias]

# Validate Agent Script syntax
sf afdx agent validate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

Full Agent Deployment Workflow

# 1. Deploy Apex classes (if any)
sf project deploy start --metadata ApexClass --target-org [alias]

# 2. Deploy Flows
sf project deploy start --metadata Flow --target-org [alias]

# 3. Validate Agent Script
sf afdx agent validate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# 4. Publish agent
sf agent publish --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# 5. Preview (simulated mode)
sf agent preview --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# 6. Activate
sf agent activate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

Modifying Existing Agents

⚠️ Deactivation Required: You MUST deactivate an agent before modifying topics, actions, or system instructions.

# 1. Deactivate
sf agent deactivate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# 2. Make changes to Agent Script

# 3. Re-publish
sf agent publish --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

# 4. Re-activate
sf agent activate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org [alias]

Sync Agent Between Orgs

# 1. Retrieve from source org
sf project retrieve start --metadata Agent:[AgentName] --target-org source-org

# 2. Deploy dependencies to target org first
sf project deploy start --metadata ApexClass,Flow --target-org target-org

# 3. Deploy agent metadata
sf project deploy start --metadata Agent:[AgentName] --target-org target-org

# 4. Publish agent in target org
sf agent publish --api-name [AgentName] --target-org target-org

# 5. Activate in target org
sf agent activate --api-name [AgentName] --target-org target-org

Agent-Specific CLI Reference

Command	Description
`sf agent publish --api-name X`	Publish authoring bundle
`sf agent activate --api-name X`	Activate published agent
`sf agent deactivate --api-name X`	Deactivate agent for changes
`sf agent preview --api-name X`	Preview agent behavior
`sf afdx agent validate --api-name X`	Validate Agent Script syntax
`sf org open agent --api-name X`	Open in Agentforce Builder
`sf project retrieve start --metadata Agent:X`	Retrieve agent + components
`sf project deploy start --metadata Agent:X`	Deploy agent metadata

Deployment Script Template

Reusable multi-step deployment script: examples/deploy.sh

Deploys in order: Objects → Permission Sets → Apex (with tests) → Flows (Draft)

Generate Package Manifest

Auto-generate package.xml from source directory:

# Generate from source
sf project generate manifest --source-dir force-app --name manifest/package.xml

# Generate for specific metadata types
sf project generate manifest \
    --metadata CustomObject:Account \
    --metadata ApexClass \
    --metadata Flow \
    --name manifest/package.xml

# Deploy using manifest
sf project deploy start --manifest manifest/package.xml --target-org alias

When to use manifest vs source-dir:

Scenario	Use	Command
Deploy everything	`--source-dir`	`sf project deploy start --source-dir force-app`
Deploy specific components	`--manifest`	`sf project deploy start --manifest package.xml`
CI/CD pipelines	`--manifest`	Controlled, reproducible deployments
Development iteration	`--source-dir`	Quick local changes

Notes

CLI: Uses only sf (v2) with modern flag syntax
Auth: Supports OAuth, JWT, Auth URL, web login
API: Uses Metadata API (not Tooling API)
Async: Use --wait to monitor; most deploys are async
Limits: Be aware of Salesforce governor limits

sf-deploy

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