Business Logic and Process Automation32% of the exam

Flow Builder elements, resources and the triggering record

The building blocks of Flow Builder (elements, connectors, variables, constants, formulas, text templates, global constants), how $Record and $Record__Prior behave, when a before-save or after-save flow needs an Update Records element, bulk-safe loop patterns, and referencing screen component values.

Official exam objective
Create and configure flows using Flow Builder.

~7 min read · 14 practice questions ·

What the exam expects

  • Name the building blocks of a flow (elements, connectors, resources) and pick the right resource: variable, constant, formula, text template or global constant.
  • Read and change the triggering record with $Record, and detect changes with $Record__Prior, including its null and same-transaction cases.
  • Decide between before-save (Fast Field Updates) and after-save (Actions and Related Records) and when an Update Records element is needed.
  • Keep flows within per-transaction limits: no data elements in loops, collection updates, filters on Update Records.
  • Reference a screen component's value in a formula.

Key terms: element, a step on the canvas; connector, the line that tells the flow which element runs next; resource, a container elements reference that isn't on the canvas; $Record, the triggering record's values; $Record__Prior, its values before the change.

Key facts

Building blocks
Detail
Elements, connectors, resources (resources aren't on the canvas)
Boolean variables
Detail
Hold only the True, False or Empty String global constants
Variables per run
Detail
Start at default values; never carried between interviews
$Record__Prior on create
Detail
All values null
Create and update in one transaction
Detail
$Record__Prior equals $Record
Derived fields
Detail
$Record lacks fields such as Contact.Name
Before-save elements
Detail
Assignment, Decision, Get Records, Loop, plus Custom Error
After-save field change
Detail
Needs an Update Records element
Per-transaction limits
Detail
100 SOQL, 150 DML, 10,000 DML records, 10 s CPU
Activating a triggered flow
Detail
Requires View All Data
Sources for this section (8)
  • Why does an after-save flow need an Update Records element to change the triggering record?
  • When does a "status changed" Decision fire for every new record?
  • Why can a formula resource used twice in one flow return different results?
  • Why should Create, Update and Delete Records sit after a loop, not inside it?

The questions are free to read. Answers with their sources and self-grading are included with the pack.

Keep reading with the Platform App Builder pack

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The pack includes:

  • All 26 lessons of the Platform App Builder guide, with reading progress
  • Interactive decision walks and step-by-step sequence steppers
  • Inline practice questions and one-click topic practice (14 questions for this lesson)
  • An official source cited for every claim
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