Development with the Force.com Platform: Building Business Applications in the Cloud Book

Foreword xvi

Preface xix

Acknowledgments xxi

About the Author xxii

Chapter 1 Introducing Force.com 1

Force.com in the Cloud Computing Landscape 1

Platform as a Service (PaaS) 2

Force.com as a Platform 4

Force.com Services 7

Inside a Force.com Project 9

Project Selection 9

Team Selection 11

Lifecycle 12

Tools and Resources 15

Sample Application: Services Manager 17

Background 17

User Roles 18

Development Plan 18

Summary 19

Chapter 2 Database Essentials 21

Overview of Force.com’s Database 21

Objects 21

Fields 23

Relationships 25

Query Language 25

Data Integration 28

Working with Custom Objects 31

Force.com Developer Edition 31

Tools for Custom Objects 31

Object Creation 33

Field Creation 36

Entering and Browsing Data 38

Sample Application: Data Model 41

Logical Data Model 41

Force.com Data Model 47

Implementing the Data Model 50

Importing Data 55

Summary 60

Chapter 3 Database Security 63

Overview of Database Security 63

Object-Level Security 65

Profiles 66

Field-Level Security 67

Record-Level Security 69

Record Ownership 69

User Groups 70

Sharing Model 70

Sample Application: Securing Data 73

Designing the Security Model 74

Implementing the Security Model 78

Testing the Security Model 83

Summary 88

Chapter 4 Additional Database Features 89

Dependent Fields 90

Record Types 90

Defining Record Types 91

Securing Record Types 92

Using Record Types 93

Roll-Up Summary Fields 95

Field History Tracking 97

Tags 98

Enabling Tags 99

Using Tags 99

Force.com Connect Offline 100

Administration of Force.com Connect Offline 100

Using Force.com Connect Offline 102

Sample Application: Applying the Features 103

Dependent Fields for Skill Types 104

Roll-Up Summary Fields for Project Reporting 104

Force.com Connect Offline for Staffing 107

Summary 109

Chapter 5 Business Logic 111

Introduction to Apex 112

Introducing the Force.com IDE 113

Installation 113

Force.com Perspective 113

Force.com Projects 114

Problems View 115

Schema Explorer 115

Apex Test Runner View 116

Execute Anonymous View 116

Apex Language Basics 116

Variables 117

Operators 121

Arrays and Collections 122

Control Logic 124

Understanding Governor Limits 129

Database Integration in Apex 130

Database Records as Objects 130

Database Queries 132

Persisting Database Records 137

Database Triggers 139

Database Security in Apex 142

Object-Oriented Apex 143

Encapsulation 143

Information Hiding 147

Modularity 148

Inheritance 149

Polymorphism 150

Debugging and Testing 151

Debugging 151

Testing 154

Sample Application: Validating Timecards 155

Force.com IDE Setup 156

Creating the Trigger 156

Unit Testing 157

Summary 159

Chapter 6 Advanced Business Logic 161

Additional SOQL Features 161

Inner Join and Outer Join 162

Semi-Join and Anti-Join 163

Multi-Select Picklists 166

Salesforce Object Search Language (SOSL) 167

SOSL Basics 167

SOSL in Apex 168

Transaction Processing 170

Data Manipulation Language (DML) Database Methods 170

Savepoints 171

Record Locking 173

Apex Managed Sharing 174

Sharing Objects 175

Creating Sharing Rules in Apex 176

Sending and Receiving Email 180

Sending Email 181

Receiving Email 185

Dynamic Apex 187

Dynamic Database Queries 188

Schema Metadata 189

Sample Application: Adding Email Notifications 192

Summary 193

Chapter 7 User Interfaces 195

Introduction to Visualforce 196

Overview of Visualforce 196

Getting Started with Visualforce 198

Visualforce Controllers 201

Standard Controllers 201

Custom Controllers 203

Controller Extensions 206

View Components 207

View Component Basics 208

Data Components 210

Action Components 213

Primitive Components 214

Force.com-Styled Components 215

Force.com User Interface Components 218

Visualforce and the Native User Interface 222

Standard Pages 222

Standard Buttons 224

Page Layouts 225

Custom Buttons and Links 226

Custom Tabs 227

Visualforce in Production 227

Security 228

Error Handling 230

Governor Limits 232

Unit Tests 232

Sample Application: Skills Matrix 233

Basic Implementation 234

Full Implementation 235

Implementation Walkthrough 236

Summary 242

Chapter 8 Advanced User Interfaces 245

Asynchronous Actions 245

Partial Page Refresh 246

Action as JavaScript Function 247

Action as Timed Event 248

Action as JavaScript Event 249

Indicating Action Status 250

Modular Visualforce 252

Static Resources 252

Inclusion 253

Composition 253

Custom Visualforce Components 255

Extending Visualforce 257

Using JavaScript Libraries 257

Adobe Flex and Visualforce 258

Force.com Sites 264

Sample Application: Enhanced Skills Matrix 268

Summary 272

Chapter 9 Integration 273

Force.com Integration Solutions 273

Outbound Messaging 274

Salesforce-to-Salesforce (S2S) 279

Developing Custom Integrations 288

Calling Web Services from Apex Code 289

Using HTTP Integration 290

Sample Application: Anonymous Benchmarking 293

Visualforce Page Design 294

Visualforce Controller Design 295

Integrating the Web Service 296

Sample Implementation 299

Summary 302

Chapter 10 Advanced Integration 303

Understanding Force.com Web Services 304

Basics of Force.com Web Services 304

Generating the Web Service Client 306

Logging In 310

Force.com Data Types in SOAP 313

Error Handling 314

Using the Enterprise API 314

Retrieving Records 315

Writing Records 317

Building Custom Web Services in Apex 319

Understanding Custom Web Services 320

Service Definition 321

Calling a Custom Web Service 322

Introduction to the Metadata API 323

Overview 323

Getting Started with the Metadata API 324

Sample Application: Database Integration 326

Integration Scenario 326

Implementation Strategy 326

Sample Implementation 327

Summary 330

Chapter 11 Additional Platform Features 333

Workflow and Approvals 333

Introduction to Workflow 334

Getting Started with Approval Processes 335

Introduction to Analytics 342

Working with Reports 343

Configuring Dashboards 345

Using Analytic Snapshots 346

Force.com for International Organizations 347

Multilingual Support 348

Using Multiple Currencies 350

Advanced Currency Management (ACM) 353

Using Single Sign-On 354

Federated Single Sign-On 354

Delegated Single Sign-On 359

Sample Application: Project Map Dashboard 362

Summary 368

Index 369