Exclude Metadata with the .forceignore File

Considerations When Creating the .forceignore File

• If you used our template to create the repository, update the .forceignore file for your project requirements.
• If you’re adding the .forceignore file to an existing repository, place the file in the root folder of your Salesforce DX project directory.
• While you can create the .forceignorefile anytime, we recommend creating it when you build your pipeline so it’s in place from the start.
• Configure the file in the main branch associated with your release environment before activating your pipeline. This step copies the files to new branches.
• When you build your pipeline, if DevOps Center creates the repository and branches, each stage branch inherits the .forceignore file from the main branch. If you connect an existing repository or reuse existing branches, add a .forceignore file manually if it’s not available.
• Work item feature branches use the file version from the first pipeline stage branch.
• After you activate the pipeline, DevOps Center applies the file rules when pulling or promoting changes.

Sample .forceignore Syntax

The.forceignore file structure is similar to the .gitignore structure. Each line in the file contains a pattern corresponding to the files that you want to exclude, such as LWC configuration files, JSON files, or tests.

This sample file contains common files and folders that developers want to exclude at the time of a commit or promotion. The syntax is different for the promote (deploy) and pull (retrieve) operations. For example, to exclude all profiles when promoting changes, use **/profiles/**. To exclude all profiles when pulling changes, use *.profile. See How to Exclude Source When Syncing.

# List files or folders below to ignore them when deploying and retrieving changes
        
        # Standard metadata
        package.xml
        
        # These metadata files are ignored when promoting (deploying)
        **/appMenus/**
        **/appSwitcher/**
        **/fieldRestrictionRules/**
        **/objectTranslations/**
        **/profiles/**
        **/profilePasswordPolicy/**
        **/profileSessionSetting/**
        **/settings/**
        **/sharingRules/**
        **/AuthProvider/**
        
        # These metadata files are ignored when pulling (retrieving)
        *.settings
        *.appMenu
        *.appSwitcher
        *.rule
        *.objectTranslation
        *.profile
        *.profilePasswordPolicy
        *.profileSessionSetting
        *.sharingRules
        *.AuthProvider
        
        # LWC configuration files
        **/jsconfig.json
        **/.eslintrc.json
        
        # LWC Jest
        **/__tests__/**

Considerations When Updating the .forceignore File

• Update the .forceignore file in the main branch of your pipeline repository.
• If you have multiple DevOps Center pipelines, update the file in each pipeline repository.
• If the pipeline is already in use, changes don’t apply to existing branches automatically. To apply them everywhere, make the change in a work item and promote that work item. That way, DevOps Center applies the updated .forceignore file across the pipeline branches as you promote.