Introducing Factorwise Logger

Salesforce is a highly customizable and widely used CRM platform. However, Salesforce developers and architects often feel that they do not enjoy the observability features provided by Salesforce out-of-box. Factorwise will fill the gap in this area with an easy-to-use logging system.

Using an open source, flexible, and extensible tool like Parseable, along with Factorwise logger and forwarder for Salesforce integration - you can improve observability in your Salesforce org for optimal health and performance, helping you serve customers better and generate revenue. Let’s see how.

State of Observability in the Salesforce ecosystem

Out-of-box tools

Salesforce custom implementation is mostly done using Apex code or the low-code Flows. The out-of-box tool available for debugging is Debug logs. There are a few issues with Debug logs:

• They are not easy to parse in real-time
  • Developer console can be used to search through them but the console is not really handy to work with and also it is ephemeral session based. It can crash often when rendering large log files.
  • One generally downloads files and has to use a simple text search
• Turning on Debug logs in production instances impacts the performance
• The low-level details in debug logs are not always relevant to developers debugging the issues. More often than not, they are looking for the application logs - the System.debug calls

Third-party services

Several third-party services have tried to address Salesforce’s observability challenges in the past. However, these solutions are often not viable for all Salesforce operations teams, particularly those in medium and small businesses, due to cost constraints. As a result, many teams continue to rely on the built-in debug logs despite their limitations.

Another constraint they encounter is the need for user-friendly interfaces for log visualization and searching.

Custom tooling

Some organizations develop custom logging solutions to overcome these challenges, but they often involve storing logs within the Salesforce instance and publishing them on the Event Bus. An example of this is NebulaLogger. While effective to some extent, without a helpful user interface for log visualization and search capabilities, insights cannot be understood, evaluated, and acted upon in a way that improves observability in Salesforce. Additionally, Salesforce’s native search on large text areas can be slow, hampering efficiency.

Factorwise x Parseable

Factorwise logger tries to solve most of the observability challenges mentioned above. Factorwise has chosen the awesome open-source modern logging solution - Parseable.

With this solution, it is possible to:

• Debug Salesforce application logs in real-time with an intuitive UI and familiar SQL
• Setup Alerts and get notified when abnormal events happen
• Monitor performance using the forwarded Salesforce governor limits metadata
• Generate Log-based metrics and aggregate and visualize these metrics in real-time without running into limitations like those presented by Salesforce reporting
• Make real-time dashboards using the Grafana datasource plugin for Parseable

Logs

Parseable’s intuitive UI and familiar SQL syntax make it simple yet powerful for developers to query logs.

Factorwise Logger, generates unique transaction IDs for every invocation of custom Salesforce logic, simplifying the process of tracking and debugging specific transactions.

With Parseable, Salesforce logs can be parsed and searched in real-time, enabling rapid identification and resolution of issues. This capability is a significant improvement over the traditional Salesforce Developer Console, providing a more stable and user-friendly interface for log management.

Alerts

Parseable enables real-time alerts based on defined conditions, ensuring that abnormal events are promptly identified and addressed. Notifications are delivered to the right team via Slack, Alertmanager, or custom webhooks, keeping the team or person you choose informed and able to respond sooner rather than later to potential issues.

Factorwise Logger captures Salesforce governor limits on every log event generated, storing this data in Parseable. This feature enables teams to track performance bottlenecks and optimize their applications effectively.

Performance Monitoring

Factorwise logger captures salesforce governor limits on every log event generated. This is stored in Parseable and can be used to track down performance bottlenecks.

Metrics

Parseable also supports the aggregation and visualization of business and operational metrics!

For example, teams can track the number of leads converted over various time intervals, gaining insights that are difficult to obtain using native Salesforce reports. Parseable’s fast query results make real-time data analysis straightforward and efficient.

Grafana Visualizations

For Grafana fans and users, Parseable integrates seamlessly with this popular platform for monitoring and observability to create real-time dashboards that provide a comprehensive view of system performance and business KPIs, enabling data-driven decision-making. Using Parseable grafana datasource we can easily create real-time ops and business dashboards like the one shown below.

Factorwise x Parseable is ideal for Salesforce log analytics

Factorwise is building a Salesforce native logger, that integrates very well with Parseable. This logger is built with detailed insights from 100s of Salesforce users. Meanwhile, Parseable stands out as the optimal choice for Salesforce observability for several reasons:

• Ease of use: Parseable is easy to deploy, operate, and scale, making it accessible for organizations of all sizes. Its intuitive UI and SQL-based query language reduce the learning curve and enable rapid adoption.
• Comprehensive features: Parseable offers a range of built-in features, including real-time log parsing, alerts, RBAC (Role-Based Access Control), and soft-multi tenancy through stream-based segregation. These capabilities ensure that teams have everything they need to maintain robust observability.
• Cost-effectiveness: For medium and small businesses, Parseable provides a cost-effective solution that doesn’t require extensive resources to manage. This makes it an attractive alternative to more expensive third-party services.

If you’d like to discuss about how Factorwise x Parseable can help your Salesforce team, please schedule a demo.