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What Is Salesforce Change Data Capture?

Illustration of Salesforce Change Data Capture, showing real-time data updates, event tracking, and system synchronization.

Whether you’ve been using Salesforce for years or are just getting started, staying up-to-date with all the tools and features this program offers is essential. Salesforce Change Data Capture (CDC) is an excellent example of one such feature. 

If you’re unfamiliar with this tool, you’re likely wondering, “What is Change Data Capture?” The Salesforce Change Data Capture feature allows you to track changes in your data records and provides for Salesforce data replication in real time. 

CDC alerts users to these changes and communicates with other data storage systems integrating with Salesforce. It’s a fantastic Salesforce feature to take advantage of, especially when you’re trying to keep your records synchronized between systems. 

Learn more about the advantages of Salesforce Change Data Capture to see if it’s right for you.

How Salesforce Change Data Capture Works

The Salesforce Change Data Capture feature works by tracking and publishing change events.

The types of event triggers that generate the publication of a change event include: 

  • The creation of a new record
  • The deletion of a record
  • The undeletion of a record
  • Any data updates to an existing record
  • Certain data merger events
  • Gap events that represent instances of missing data in linked application services
  • Overflow events that represent an overflow in other types of change events

Salesforce provides an EMP connector that lets you access these notifications. This is done by constructing a jar file that connects you to specific Salesforce events via object URLs. 

Importantly, these event triggers work with both standard objects and custom objects. This increases the adaptability of your Salesforce CDC feature.

Features of Real-Time Notifications to Subscribers

To use change events, you first need to subscribe to Salesforce CDC using any of the following tools: 

  • CometD
  • Pub/Sub API
  • Apex triggers

Only then can you begin receiving change notifications. The system’s transaction boundaries define the data detailed in a change event notification. These notifications are all delivered in standard formats. Consider consulting a change data capture expert to help you understand and enable Salesforce CDC’s timely notifications.

Message Delivery

Change event notifications are delivered based on the order of the corresponding change. After delivery, they’re stored in the event bus for three days. The user can retrieve them at any time during this storage period.

Message Format

Certain features of a change event message are the same regardless of the change, while others depend on the underlying type of operation. For example, all messages have the same header fields. However, the precise order of these fields can vary from one receiving end client to the next. 

Each field conveys a particular piece of information about the change event. The Change Event Header fields contain relevant information about the type of change that was made. For example, in the case of deleted data, the changeType field will have the word “deletion.” 

Examples of other header fields are: 

  • entityName
  • changedFields
  • changeOrigin
  • transactionKey

Examples of included fields outside the header region include the schema field, which contains the event schema ID, and the field replayID, which is relevant for retrieving data.

Integration With External Systems

One of the most compelling reasons to use Salesforce CDC is its ability to interact with connected, external systems and update your dataset in near-real-time. 

When setting up your external integrations, there are many features you can customize for your particular data needs. For example, you can choose exactly which external objects have this feature enabled. 

When a change event is published from one of these external systems, a topic channel and associated change event entity are created along with the publication of your data change notification. You can assign a subscriber to each topic channel to process the indicated data change. 

You can also set how frequently you would like to query your external system for changes. The standard timeframes for tracking your system are five- to thirty-minute intervals. 

Benefits of Implementing Change Data Capture in Salesforce

The Salesforce CDC feature is one of the best ways to maintain an up-to-date, well-integrated dataset. Its unique custom-code approach can be adapted to any type of Salesforce setup, likely making it an excellent choice for your business.

Data Change Capture

Many businesses require the use of data systems that are external to Salesforce. For example, the project management system Jira and the alternative CRM system Hubspot are compatible with Salesforce CDC.

To make these integrations seamless, the systems need to be able to communicate data changes to Salesforce. Otherwise, your Salesforce data risks becoming problematically outdated. There are several ways to communicate these changes, including periodic input and export of data and repeated API (application programming interface) calls. 

However, the data change capture tool is your best choice if your business is already running Salesforce. That’s because it’s fast, automated, and highly customizable. You can even use change data capture with a lighting web component to create novel solutions to data exchange issues.

Event Channels and Event Message

The clear-cut event messages generated by a change event are one of the best features of Salesforce CDC. They provide the user with relevant change event information in a concise, organized format. 

You can also use change data capture to create subscription channels, also called streaming events. These are strings of related change events from one or more entities. Users accessing these channels can then use them to peruse and assess all relevant change events. The CDC database comes equipped with standard channel types and a customizable option. 

With expert help, your business can take advantage of all these great features.

Choose a Certified Salesforce Partner for Implementation Success

Salesforce Change Data Capture is one of the premier systems available today for maintaining your data’s quality and integrity. But implementing this tool so it’s customized for your business needs takes substantial expertise. Astreca is a leading Salesforce consulting firm whose data technicians understand the ins and outs of the system and can streamline the setup process for you. 

To maximize how you use your Salesforce system, don’t hesitate to contact Astreca today.


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