Metadata API Developer Guide

Introduction to Metadata API
Understanding Metadata API
Use Cases for Metadata API
Move Metadata from Production to Your Local File System
Move Metadata Changes to and from a Scratch Org
Move Metadata to a Sandbox at Integration Points
Deploy Metadata to Production
Move Metadata for Production-Level Changes
Make Large Metadata Configuration Changes
Release Notes
Metadata API Developer Tools
Supported Salesforce Editions
Metadata API Edit Access
Development Platforms
Standards Compliance
Metadata API Support Policy
API End-of-Life Policy
Related Resources
Quick Start: Metadata API
Build Client Applications for Metadata API
Using Metadata API
Metadata API Context MCP Tool (Beta)
Reference
Appendices
PDF

Note: This release is in preview. Features described here don’t become generally available until the latest general availability date that Salesforce announces for this release. Before then, and where features are noted as beta, pilot, or developer preview, we can’t guarantee general availability within any particular time frame or at all. Make your purchase decisions only on the basis of generally available products and features.

Move Metadata Changes to and from a Scratch Org

Use a scratch org to develop and test changes to metadata. You can perform your development within or outside the scratch org using Salesforce CLI or Salesforce Extensions for VS Code, which leverage the power of Metadata API.

Scratch orgs are created empty so that developers can specify the exact metadata and data to include from the source control system. The lifespan of a scratch org is indicated during creation, 1–30 days. They’re ephemeral to ensure the source of truth is always the source control system, and not the org itself.

You can move metadata from the source control system or to the scratch org using Salesforce CLI. Because scratch orgs use source tracking to identify changes, the CLI is the most efficient way to move metadata between your local repository and the scratch org. Continue to iterate through this process of moving metadata between your local file system and your scratch org until development is complete.