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Formula Field Backups Retirement

What's being done?

GRAX is ending support for backing up formula fields on new backup jobs.

Formula fields are expected to continue working for backup jobs that were configured to enable formulas. However, once you go into the backup job and re-save for any reason, formula fields are disabled.

On all new backup jobs created going forward (starting from GRAX version 3.90), formulas won't be an option.

Archive jobs continue to back up formula fields by default.

Why is GRAX retiring support for this feature?

There are many reasons that GRAX has historically advised not to back up formula fields:

  • Formula fields inherently are stale the minute they are backed up to GRAX.
  • If there are too many formula fields, Salesforce requires "fragmenting" of queries, which can lead to backup jobs taking exponentially longer.
  • GRAX cannot control the contents of any given formula field. If there are too many formula fields or even 1 formula field is too complex, Salesforce can often throw query errors.

What's the recommended workaround?

If you truly need formula fields enabled on a few objects, we recommend:

  • Splitting these objects out into their own GSP
  • Reaching out to GRAX to discuss the implications on backups. Now, GRAX can enable formula fields on a case-by-case basis.

Alternatively, we recommend not backing up formula fields, and instead using History Stream to consume the GRAX data in your downstream data lake / data warehouse where you can recreate the formula logic as needed.

Timing

GRAX support for this feature ends in the Winter of 2022. This may be accelerated if changes are needed to protect the integrity of the GRAX service, or if third parties retire a piece of their service which makes the feature unavailable.

How do I get more information?

If you have questions or need more information, please open a support ticket.