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Workflow Terminology
These terms are used when describing workflow features and functionality.
Required Editions
Available in: both Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic Flow triggers are available in: Salesforce Classic |
Available in: Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer Editions Outbound messages available in: Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer Editions Email alerts are available in: Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer Editions |
After December 31, 2025, existing workflow rules continue to run, and you can activate, deactivate, and edit them; however we recommend using Flow Builder. To migrate existing workflow rules, plan your switch to Flow Builder and use the Migrate to Flow tool. For new automations, create flows in Flow Builder.
Workflow Rule
A workflow rule sets workflow actions into motion when its designated conditions are met. You can configure workflow actions to execute immediately when a record meets the conditions in your workflow rule, or set time triggers that execute the workflow actions on a specific day. If a workflow action hasn’t executed yet, you can view and modify it in the workflow queue.
Workflow Action
A workflow action, such as an email alert, field update, outbound message, or task, fires when the conditions of a workflow rule are met.
Email Alert
Email alerts are actions that send emails, using a specified email template, to specified recipients. Workflow alerts can be sent to any user or contact, as long as they have a valid email address.
Field Update
A field update is an action that automatically updates a field with a new value.
Flow
A flow is an application that can execute logic, interact with the Salesforce database, call Apex classes, and collect data from users. You can build flows by using Flow Builder.
Flow Trigger
A flow trigger is a workflow action that launches a flow. With flow triggers, you can automate complex business processes—create flows to perform logic, and have events trigger the flows via workflow rules—without writing code.
The pilot program for flow trigger workflow actions is closed. If you've already enabled the pilot in your org, you can continue to create and edit flow trigger workflow actions. If you didn't enable the pilot in your org, use Flow Builder to create a record-triggered flow, or use Process Builder to launch a flow from a process.
Outbound Message
An outbound message sends information to a designated endpoint, like an external service. Outbound messages are configured from Setup. You must configure the external endpoint and create a listener for the messages using SOAP API.
