Administrative FAQ

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General

Why is there a comma in the year?

Each field in Salesforce has a specific "data type" (i.e., pick lists, strings, and numbers). Because the Anticipated Start Year field is a number, Salesforce automatically formats the number by grouping the thousands (3 digits). So, 2018 becomes 2,018.

How are Profiles, Page Layouts, and Record Types related?

Profiles are set up to determine or limit the range of CRM permissions, access, and activities. For example, an admissions counselor would not need the same permissions and access as a CRM administrator.

Page layouts set which fields are visible, read-only, or required on detail and edit pages.

Record types specify which subset of picklists defined for a record type is visible to a user based on their Profile.

Field-level security can be set for specific profiles or specific fields across all profiles.

What is a Salesforce ID, where do I find it, and when do I need it?

A Salesforce ID is a system-generated, case-sensitive string of 15 or 18 letters and numbers uniquely identifying each Salesforce record. The 18-character Salesforce ID can be safely compared for uniqueness by case-insensitive applications.

Within the CRM, the 15-character ID can be found in the URL for the record or by selecting it for display in a report. The report data can be exported as an Excel or CSV file for later use in a data updating procedure. The Apex Data Loader can also extract record data, including the Salesforce ID.

You will need the Salesforce ID for the updated records via the Apex Data Loader when using the update or upsert commands or when loading related list data items. For the Student record, examples of related list items could be Family Relationships, Enrollment History, and Tests. The Salesforce ID of the Student record being updated is required to establish the proper relationship between the student and, for example, the Test record being created or updated.

An external ID is a custom field that has the "External ID" attribute, meaning that it contains unique record identifiers from a system outside of Salesforce. External IDs can be used instead of a Salesforce ID in the Apex Data Loader.

What is the recycle bin, and what goes into it?

The Recycle Bin link in the sidebar lets you view and restore recently deleted records for 15 days before they are permanently deleted. Your Recycle Bin record limit is 25 times the Megabytes (MBs) in your storage. For example, if your organization has 1 GB of storage, then your limit is 25 times 1000 MB or 25,000 records. If your organization reaches its Recycle Bin limit, Salesforce automatically removes the oldest records if they have been in the Recycle Bin for at least two hours.

What is a Master-Detail Relationship?

A Master-Detail Relationship occurs when you have a one (Master) to many (Detail) situation. For example, you may have one student who has multiple Applications. You can create a relationship where the Student object is the Master, and the Application object is the detail.

Once this relationship is created and the Master object page layout is updated, you can view Detail-related data on the Master object.

The following are considerations for Master-Detail Relationships:

To create multilevel master-detail relationships, you need the "Customize Application" user permission.
If you delete a record in the master object, the related data in the detail object is also deleted.
When you define a master-detail relationship, the custom object you work on is the "detail" side. Its data can appear as a custom-related list on page layouts for the other Object.
If a custom object is a detail or sub-detail component in a master-detail relationship, it cannot also be the Master of a different master-detail relationship.
You can have up to three custom detail levels. The relationship is structured as Master Custom Object > Detail Custom Object > Sub-detail Custom Object.
Standard objects cannot be on the detail side of a custom object in a master-detail relationship.
An object can appear once in multilevel master-detail relationships. For example, a sub-detail object in one multilevel master-detail relationship cannot also be the owner of the master object in another multilevel master-detail relationship. A sub-detail object cannot be the master object of the sub-detail Object's detail object.
Multilevel master-detail relationships do not support division transfers.
You cannot create a master-detail relationship if the custom object already contains data. You can, however, create the relationship as a lookup and then convert it to master detail if the lookup field in all records includes a value.
Roll-up summary fields work as in two-object master-detail relationships. A master can roll up fields on detail records; however, it cannot directly roll up fields on sub-detail records. To achieve this, the detail record must have a roll-up summary field for the field on the sub-detail record, allowing the Master to roll up from the detail's roll-up summary field.
When you delete a custom object on the detail side of a master-detail relationship, the relationship is converted to a lookup relationship. If you restore the custom object, you must manually convert it to a master-detail.
You cannot delete a custom object if it is on the master side of a master-detail relationship.
Undeleting the master record also undeletes detail and sub-detail records.

What is the difference between a Master-Detail Relationship and a Lookup Relationship?

The major difference between the two relationships is the impact on the data hierarchy. In a Master-Detail Relationship, the detail records have a direct relationship and will be deleted if the master record is deleted. Only the relationship is lost if a record is deleted in a Lookup Relationship.

Another key differentiator is the inability to create Roll-Up Summary fields in a Lookup Relationship. These data types can only be used in a Master-Detail Relationship.

Before building any relationship between objects, think carefully about the reason for creating such a relationship. Master-detail relationships can give you more flexibility in reporting on the data, but they are harder to change once the relationship is established. Lookup Relationships may give you more flexibility from a design standpoint but do not give you the same reporting options.

What is a Communication Plan in the CRM?

In the Recruitment Manager, a combination of the following components and functionality translates into what is commonly referred to as a "Communication Plan":

CRM Email Campaigns – Rules and Templates CRM Letter Campaigns (via Conga) – Rules and Templates

A Rule (primary purposes):

Defines the criteria used to select the desired population to receive the communication. Defines the related Template that will be used to generate this communication. Defines the schedule when the CRM will select this desired population and deliver the communication.

A Template:

Defines the contents of the communication – including merged fields used to personalize the communication.

Combined, the Rules and Templates for Email Campaigns and Letter Campaigns create a "Communication Plan."

Data

What are API limits, and how can I be notified before I reach the limit?

Salesforce provides an Application Programming Interface (API) to allow third-party applications to exchange data with their platform. Many CRM applications (Email, Events, Informatica, DemandTools) utilize the API to create a seamless experience for the user. Because the CRM runs on a multi-tenant platform, Salesforce needs to ensure resources are available on demand for all users. To achieve this, Salesforce budgets 1,000 API calls per user during a rolling 24-hour period. Any number of users can utilize API calls, but no user can exceed the aggregate. For example, if your organization has 30 users, then 30,000 API calls are budgeted in a 24-hour period for all users.

You can be notified before reaching your API limit. To set up a notification, go to [Your Name] > Setup and search for API Usage Notifications. Click New.

Enter a Salesforce user notification recipient, threshold percentage, and notification frequency. Click Save when complete.

What are data storage limits, and how can I be notified before I reach the limit?

There are two data storage limits – Data and File Space. Data space is storage for all records stored in the system, while data space is files attached to records or documents stored in the documents area.

Each Salesforce account is allocated a minimum of 1 Gigabyte of data space or 50 Megabytes per user, whichever is greater. 10 Gigabytes or 512 Megabytes per user, whichever is greater, of file space, are allocated for each account.

You can see your current space usage by going to Setup and searching for Company Information. You can click "View" to see additional details. There is no way to be notified when your storage limits reach a threshold near the maximum.

Why do we need the Unknown School?

The Unknown School acts as a placeholder in the CRM for student records that do not have a school associated with them. This also allows you to easily track all the students missing this vital information.

The CRM data hierarchy works best if students are attached to school records. All of the CRM Reports are based on students attached to schools, and any students not attached to a school record will not be included in the report.

How long will it take to see a student inquiry, event registration, or application data in the CRM?

Student Inquiry & Event Registration data will be viewable in the CRM immediately.

Application: If a student is applying through the online application system, the data they have entered will become available in the CRM after the next scheduled synchronization between the application database and the CRM runs. Contact Support to find out when your specific synchronization runs.

What is the relationship between student and application data?

The student and application data share a master-detail relationship (see Overview of Object Relationships for more information). The detail object is also referred to as a child object. The Student (Contact) object is the Master, and the Application object is the detail/child.

The nature of the relationship is described on the detail object. The relationship is defined within the context of the custom field named Contact on the Application object. You can see in the field information right-hand column that the Data Type is listed as "Master-Detail." The Sharing Rule states that if you have Read/Write permissions on the student (Master) record, you can create, edit, or delete related Application (detail) records.

It is important to note that when you delete a master record, you also delete all its detail records. So if you delete a Student record, you are also deleting any Application, Enrollment History, Test, etc. records that exist for that student because they are all detailed records. Undeleting the student (Master) record also undeletes detail records.

Objects and Fields

Why can't I change the label on a managed field?

Fields installed as part of a managed package are called managed fields. The main advantage of installing a managed package is that upgrades are considered "non-intrusive" and can be done while users are logged in to the application. However, there are restrictions on fields that are a part of a managed package. One such restriction is the inability to change a label on a managed field.

To determine if a field is a managed field, go to [Your Name] > Setup and select Object Manager > [Object Name]

Look in the Custom Fields & Relationships section.

If there is a white icon with a blue "down" arrow next to the field, it means the field is managed.

Note: If the managed field does not do what you need, create a new custom field and replace the managed field on the page layout with your new field.

What is field dependency?

Picklist, multi-value picklist and boolean-type fields can be set to conditionally display values based on selection in controlling fields.

To create a dependent picklist for standard objects, go to [Your Name] > Setup and select Object Manager > [Object Name].
To create a dependent picklist for custom objects, go to [Your Name] > Setup and select Object Manager > [Object Name]

Find the fields section on the object detail page. Click Field Dependencies in the "Custom Field & Relationships" section. Click New to create a new dependency. Select the controlling and dependent fields from the picklists. Use the field dependency matrix to specify the dependent values when a user selects each controlling field value.

What are the standard and custom objects and fields in CRM?

Standard objects are database tables included with the Salesforce platform. While there are numerous standard objects, the most visible and used objects in CRM are the Account and Contact objects. Both of these objects are renamed Schools and Students.

Like standard objects, standard fields are included in the platform and part of Salesforce standard objects. While some types of standard fields can be customized, most cannot.

Custom objects are database tables that allow you to store information unique to your organization. We have included several custom objects for managing data specific to the recruitment process. Included with a CRM installation are Applications, Tests, Enrollment History, Family Relationships, Extra-Curricular Activities, Essays and Recommendations, and Financial Aid. Other applications for the Salesforce platform will use their own set of custom objects.

Custom fields can be created on either standard or custom objects to increase the number of data fields managed for a record. There are numerous types of custom fields, but many are analogous to the field types expected in any database management system. The Salesforce platform includes some special field types. For example:

A read-only field that derives its value from a formula expression.
A read-only field that displays the sum, minimum, or maximum value of a field in a related object or the record count of all records listed in a related object.

How do I add/change values to an existing picklist on a Custom Object?

To add or update values to pick list fields, follow the below steps.

Setup and select Object Manager
Click the "Label" for the Object whose field you are updating
Click the "Field Label" for the field you are updating
Under "Picklist Values," click "New" to create a new one or "edit" to update existing

Note: When adding new values to any field, you will see a checkbox option to apply the values to specific Record Types, which may be required if you restrict picklist values based on Record Types.

If you do not add the field's new values to a specific Record Type upon creation and need to do so later, you can do so by following the steps below.

Navigate to "Setup"
In the search bar on the top left, search for "Record Types."
Click "Record Types" under the Object where the field in question is found
Click the label for the Record Type that needs visibility to the field's new picklist value
Click "Edit" next to the picklist field
Add the new value from the Available list area to the Select Values area
Click Save

How do I add fields to a report Type?

To add fields to be available for use on a specific report type, follow the steps outlined below:

Setup and search for report Types
Click the Label for the report Type you wish to modify
Click the Edit Layout button in the "Fields Available for report" section
Drag fields from the box on the right to the space in the center of the screen to make them available for the report type.
Click Save

Note: You cannot change standard Salesforce or custom TargetX-delivered report types. To customize these report types, you must recreate them as custom report types.

Security and Permissions

What is field-level security?

The Salesforce platform provides a security model at the field level. There are several factors that determine if a field can be viewed or edited by a user.

Page Layouts - You can set whether fields are visible, required, editable, or read-only.

Field-Level Security - You can further restrict users' access to fields by setting whether those fields are visible, editable, or read-only. These settings override any field properties in the page layout if the field-level security setting is more restrictive.

Permissions on profiles -Some user permissions override page layouts and field-level security settings. For example, users with the "Edit Read Only Fields" permission can always edit read-only fields regardless of other settings. Note that the field accessibility grid includes any field access restrictions based on permission.

Universally required fields - Certain custom fields can be made widely required, overriding any less-restrictive settings on page layouts or field-level security. Making a field universally needed gives you more data quality beyond the presentation level of page layouts. Universally required field settings apply to the platform's user interface, API, and other connection tools. The following field types can be set with universally required settings: Currency, Date, Date/Time, Email, Master-Detail Relationship, Number, Percent, Phone, Text, Text Area, and URL.

For standard objects, navigate to the customize section under Setup, then select the page layouts section for the Object.

For custom objects:

Navigate to [Your Name] > Setup and select Object Manager. Find the Page Layouts section on the object detail page. Click edit for the layout you'd like to modify. Click the "Configure" icon (wrench) for the field to set security rules. Select the desired security settings

Field-level security can be set for each user profile defined in the system. Select "Visible" to allow a user profile to view and edit the field. Check "Read-only" to allow a user profile to view the field.

Why can I see certain data in the CRM and someone else cannot?

The most common reasons you may see different data than another CRM user within your organization pertain to user profile settings, page layouts, and record types. Page layouts, profiles, and record types can work together to control data visibility.

What is a security token, and when do I need to use it?

A security token is an authentication key that allows a Salesforce account holder to access Salesforce data through the remote API.

There is no way in Salesforce to retrieve your security token. If you need it and don't know its current value, you'll need to reset it.

Resetting Security Token:

You must be logged in to Salesforce.
Go to Setup.
From the left-hand setup menu, open the Personal Information section by clicking the arrow.
Click the link Reset My Security Token.
This will bring you to a page with a button that resets your security token. Clicking the Reset Security Token button invalidates your existing token.

Any applications currently using the API and, therefore, the current token will need to be updated with the new security token once you've received it.
Your security token is tied to your password. Any time you update your password in Salesforce, it also invalidates your security token, and any API applications will need to be updated with a new password and token.

When the button is clicked, Salesforce will send the new security token in an email to the email address linked to your Salesforce account.

What permissions do my users need to access Dashboards?

Permissions are set on the Profile. For each Profile you want to give Full access, be sure the following items are selected:

Schedule Dashboards Manage Dashboards Manage Dynamic Dashboards Drag-and-Drop Dashboard Builder View My Team's Dashboards

This link to Salesforce Help & Training may also be helpful as it outlines permission details.