Best Practices for Apex Code:

Lessons from the Trenches

Track: Advanced Developers

Andrew Albert, salesforce.com

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Andrew Albert
Technical Evangelist
Raise your hand if….
What I hope you take away

ƒ Understand the value of governor

limits

ƒ Learn key coding principles and best

practices

ƒ Understand the differences of

executing Apex synchronously vs.
asynchronously
Agenda

ƒ Why is Apex different?

ƒ Importance of Governor Limits
ƒ Tips for writing efficient, scalable Apex
ƒ Asynchronous Apex
ƒ Additional Resources
ƒ Q&A
Why is Apex different?
ƒ Compiled and executed on the
Force.com multi-tenant architecture

ƒ Shared resources across all customers,

partners, and developers

ƒ Critical that Apex code uses

infrastructure resources efficiently

ƒ This where governor limits come in….

Governor Limits
ƒ Runtime limits to ensure that an Apex
request does not monopolize shared
resources.

ƒ Memory; Database; # of script

statements; # of records processed,
ect..

ƒ Not a new concept. Just a new term.

ƒ Guarantee no implementation of Apex

will negatively impact other
salesforce.com instances.
How are they calculated?
ƒ Calculated at runtime

ƒ Key factors:
– How was the Apex request
invoked?
– How many records initiated
request?
– What resource is in question?

ƒ Scope is the entire Apex request

Trigger Scenario & Governor Limits
Calculation
• Update Contacts through API
• Trigger logic on Contact

Entry
Point

Integration
Logic updates
updates 100 Trigger on Trigger fires
related
Contacts Contacts on Accounts
Accounts
through API

Apex Request Scope

Visualforce & Controller Scenario
• Visualforce page with Buttons
• User clicks two buttons

Entry Entry
Point #1 Point #2

Controller User clicks Controller

VF Page User clicks Apex logic Returns to
method another method
loads a button executes Page
executes button executes…

Apex Request Scope #1 Apex Request #2

Let’s look at how we can write governor-friendly
code that is efficient and scalable.

Let’s turn that frown upside down!

Sample Code #1: Bulkify Triggers

Common Issue:
– Coding a Trigger to only process a single
record
Sample Code #1: Bulkify Triggers

Best Practices:
– Always design the trigger to process the
array of records
– Iterate across the entire Trigger.new
collection; not just the first record.

Benefits:
– Trigger handles both UI operations and
API operations (single and batch
operations)
Sample Code #2: Efficient SOQL, DML & Loops

Common Issue:
– Too many Queries
– Too many DML statements
– Too many script statements
Sample Code #2: Efficient SOQL, DML & Loops
Best Practices:
– No SOQL queries inside Loops
– No DML statements inside Loops
– Use Collections in SOQL Where Clause to get
all records back in single query
– Execute DML statements with a Collection; not
individual records per DML statement

Benefits:
– Improved performance of operation
– Avoid governor limit exceptions by executing
SOQL and DML with Collections.
– Minimize impact on governor limits
Sample Code #3: Efficient Loops, Query
Relationships & Helper Methods

Common Issue:
– Inefficient FOR Loops
– Inefficient Statement control (ie more logic
than needed)
– Poorly designed helper method (not
bulkified)
Sample Code #3: Efficient Loops, Query
Relationships & Helper Methods

Best Practices:
– Streamline FOR Loops
– Avoid redundant iterations
– Use SOQL Relationships to reduce # of
queries
– Bulkify your helper methods

Benefits:
– Execute less lines of code
– Avoid governor limit exceptions with
poorly designed shared Apex methods
– Minimize impact on governor limits
Asynchronous Apex
ƒ Offload some of the processing by creating a
separate, independent Apex request that runs
asynchronously

ƒ Enhances user experience

ƒ Higher governor limits (as compared to with Trigger

limits)
– Same as Visualforce Controller or WSDL Method

ƒ Define async apex methods with @future annotation

Trigger Scenario & Async Apex
• Update Contacts through API
• Trigger logic on Contact

Integration
Calls @future
updates 100 Trigger on Apex
method with
Contacts Contacts completes
Contacts
through API

Enqueue Async Apex

@future SOQL, DML

Acount
Method updates Apex
Trigger
invoked Contacts, Completes
invoked
Accounts
Sample Code #4: Asynchronous Apex

Common Issue:
– Not all Apex logic needs to be
synchronous
– Asynchronous apex classes and methods
are not ‘bulkified’
Sample Code #4: Asynchronous Apex

Best Practices:
– Use @future annotation for Apex logic that does not
need to be synchronous.
– @future methods should be bulkified

Benefits:
– @future Apex gets higher governor limits than Trigger
invocations.
– Better user experience since logic is offloaded to run
asynchronously.
– Avoid governor limit exceptions when executing a
batch of records
– Minimize impact on governor limits
Summary of Key Concepts

Always Bulkify Use

Use Collections
asynchronous
• Triggers (Sets, Lists,
• Methods apex (@future)
Maps)
• Async Apex Methods where possible

Keep SOQL Streamline Loops Use Apex Limits()

queries outside of (avoid methods in your
Loops redundancies) Apex code

Keep DML Streamline

statements queries – avoid
outside of Loops redundant
queries
Agenda
ƒ Why is Apex different?
ƒ Importance of Governor Limits
ƒ Tips for writing efficient, scalable Apex
ƒ Asynchronous Apex
ƒ Additional Resources
ƒ Q&A
Additional Apex Resources
ƒ Apex Governor Limits article
– http://wiki.developerforce.com/index.php/Governors_in_Apex_Code

ƒ Apex Best Practices article

– http://wiki.developerforce.com/index.php/Apex_Code_Best_Practices

ƒ Apex Technical Library

– http://wiki.developerforce.com/index.php/App_Logic

ƒ Discussion Boards
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Summary of Key Concepts

Always Bulkify Use

Use Collections
asynchronous
• Triggers (Sets, Lists,
• Methods apex (@future)
Maps)
• Async Apex Methods where possible

Keep SOQL Streamline Loops Use Apex Limits()

queries outside of (avoid methods in your
Loops redundancies) Apex code

Keep DML Streamline

statements queries – avoid
outside of Loops redundant
queries
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QUESTION & ANSWER
SESSION

Andrew Albert
Technical Evangelist