What Is Testing Environment In Salesforce?
Before deploying the app to production or releasing it to customers, developers migrate the app to a dedicated testing environment(Developer edition or Sandbox org) where they can perform integration tests with large sets of data, do security checks for multiple users and profiles, and uncover bugs or discover enhancements they would like to add.
Automated test scripts can’t determine a user’s level of satisfaction with the app, so there is a need to train several new users to evaluate the application in a real-world setting without affecting the business data. In essence, developers need to create another development environment that mimics the production environment and have these trained users/testers use it to find bugs.
It can be Production or Development Environments specifically used for testing the application’s functionality before deploying to production or releasing to customers.
Developers have multiple options for creating a dedicated testing environment
- One is to create a sandbox copy of their production environment and deploy it directly from the development environment to their sandbox. Using this way, developers will test not only the finished application but also the procedure used to deploy the completed application as well.
- If there is no sandbox then they can use a DE environment as their testing environment. The standard DE environment may be limiting because of license and storage limits.
- There is also Partner Developer Edition for partners looking for a production-like environment with more users and storage to run real-life tests.
Scenarios
Here are some scenarios to determine when to use which Developer Environment when we are creating or implementing new functionality to an application.
Scenario 1
A Developer looking to get started in building a free Salesforce platform application.
Developer Edition
Scenario 2
A Customer who wants to build a new Salesforce platform application for their production environment.
Developer Edition Organization or Set up a sandbox
Scenario 3
A Partner who wants to build a Salesforce platform application to sell
Developer Edition or Partner Developer Edition
Scenario 4
The application that you want to develop has got no relation to the existing customization:
Developer Edition
Scenario 5
The application that you want to develop has any type of relation with existing customization:
Setup a Sandbox
Scenario 6
Whatever implementation we are going to do or app we want to make if 200 MB storage is sufficient for that application and we want existing customization:
Developer Sandbox
Scenario 7
Whatever implementation we are going to do or app we want to make if 200 MB storage is not sufficient and we require up to 1 GB storage and we want existing customization:
Developer Pro Sandbox
Scenario 8
When we want existing customization and also need data that exist in production and if sample data is sufficient:
Partial Copy Sandbox
Scenario 9
When we want existing customization and also need data that exist in production and if all data is needed:
Full Copy Sandbox
Salesforce Edition Comparision
| Features | Essentials | Professional | Enterprise | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $ 25 USD/user/month | $ 75 USD/user/month | $ 150 USD/user/month | $ 300 USD/user/month |
| Custom Applications | Up to 9,999 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| UI Customization Feature |
– | 3 Record Type per Object | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Customizable Profiles and Roles | – | 2 per Org | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Automation | 5 Processes and Flow per Org | 5 Processes and Flow per Org | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Salesforce Mobile App & Offline Mobile Functionality | Available | Available | Available | Available |
