QA role can be challenging, but understanding the core concepts and common interview questions.

1. What is Salesforce Application Architecture?

Answer: Salesforce Application Architecture is a framework that defines the structure and organization of Salesforce applications, including layers such as data, business logic, user interface, and integration.

2. What are the main components of Salesforce architecture?

Answer: The main components include multi-tenant architecture, metadata-driven architecture, API-first architecture, and the layered design of applications.

3. Explain multi-tenancy in Salesforce.

Answer: Multi-tenancy means multiple customers (tenants) share the same infrastructure and instance of Salesforce, but their data is isolated and inaccessible to others.

4. What is metadata-driven development in Salesforce?

Answer: Metadata-driven development allows developers to define the structure, behavior, and presentation of applications using metadata, making customization and configuration easier.

5. How does Salesforce handle upgrades?

Answer: Salesforce provides seamless, automatic upgrades three times a year, ensuring minimal disruption and maintaining backward compatibility for customizations.

6. What are the key components of Salesforce’s data security model?

Answer: The key components include Profiles, Permission Sets, Roles, Sharing Rules, and Organization-Wide Defaults (OWD).

7. Explain Organization-Wide Defaults (OWD).

Answer: OWD settings define the baseline level of access to records for all users in the organization. They can be set to Public Read/Write, Public Read Only, or Private.

8. What is the difference between Profiles and Permission Sets?

Answer: Profiles define a user's baseline permissions and access settings, while Permission Sets provide additional permissions and access without altering the user’s profile.

9. What are Roles in Salesforce?

Answer: Roles control the level of visibility a user has to records within the organization based on a hierarchical structure.

10. How do Sharing Rules work in Salesforce?

Answer: Sharing Rules extend sharing access to users in public groups, roles, or territories, enabling record sharing based on criteria.

11. What is metadata in Salesforce?

Answer: Metadata is data about data, defining the structure, configuration, and customization of Salesforce applications, such as custom objects, fields, page layouts, and workflows.

12. What are the different types of APIs available in Salesforce?

Answer: Salesforce provides several APIs including REST API, SOAP API, Bulk API, Metadata API, and Streaming API.

13. How does the Metadata API work?

Answer: Metadata API allows developers to manage and deploy customizations and configurations programmatically, enabling automation of deployment processes.

14. What is the REST API used for in Salesforce?

Answer: REST API is used for integrating Salesforce with other applications and services by allowing CRUD operations on Salesforce records.

15. Explain the use of the Bulk API.

Answer: Bulk API is optimized for loading large data volumes by allowing batch processing of records asynchronously, improving performance for data-heavy operations.

16. What are custom objects in Salesforce?

Answer: Custom objects are database tables created by users to store data specific to their organization’s needs.

17. How do you create a custom object in Salesforce?

Answer: Custom objects can be created in Salesforce by navigating to the Setup menu, selecting "Objects and Fields," and then "Object Manager" to define new custom objects.

18. What are custom fields in Salesforce?

Answer: Custom fields are user-defined fields added to standard or custom objects to capture specific information relevant to the organization.

19. What types of custom fields can you create in Salesforce?

Answer: Types of custom fields include Text, Number, Date/Time, Checkbox, Picklist, Lookup Relationship, Master-Detail Relationship, and more.

20. How do you manage field-level security for custom fields?

Answer: Field-level security can be managed through profiles and permission sets to control which users can view or edit specific fields.

21. What are record types in Salesforce?

Answer: Record types allow you to offer different business processes, picklist values, and page layouts to different users based on their profiles.

22. How do you create and use record types in Salesforce?

Answer: Record types are created in the Object Manager by defining different sets of picklist values and page layouts for a specific object. They are assigned to profiles to control user access.

23. What are validation rules in Salesforce?

Answer: Validation rules ensure data integrity by enforcing specific criteria before saving records. They use logical expressions to validate that data entered meets the defined standards.

24. How do you create a validation rule in Salesforce?

Answer: Validation rules are created in the Object Manager by defining the rule’s criteria and specifying the error message to display when the rule fails.

25. What are workflows in Salesforce?

Answer: Workflows automate standard internal procedures and processes. They can update fields, send email alerts, assign tasks, or send outbound messages based on criteria.

26. What is Process Builder in Salesforce?

Answer: Process Builder is a point-and-click tool that allows you to automate processes using a visual representation of your business process.

27. How do you create a process using Process Builder?

Answer: Processes are created in Process Builder by defining the object, criteria, and actions to execute when the criteria are met.

28. What is Flow in Salesforce?

Answer: Flow is a powerful automation tool that allows you to build complex business processes by collecting, updating, editing, and creating records through a visual interface.

29. What are the main components of a Flow?

Answer: The main components of a Flow include screens, logic elements (such as decisions and assignments), data elements (such as record creation and updates), and integrations.

30. How do you deploy a Flow in Salesforce?

Answer: Flows are deployed by activating them in Flow Builder and then adding them to Lightning pages, utility bars, or actions to make them available to users.