Apex Developer Guide

Apex Developer Guide
Release Notes
Getting Started with Apex
Introducing Apex
What is Apex?
Understanding Apex Core Concepts
When Should I Use Apex?
How Does Apex Work?
Developing Code in the Cloud
Apex Development Process
Apex Quick Start
Writing Apex
Running Apex
Debugging, Testing, and Deploying Apex
Apex 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.

Introducing Apex

Apex code is the first multitenant, on-demand programming language for developers interested in building the next generation of business applications. Apex revolutionizes the way developers create on-demand applications.

While many customization options are available through the Salesforce user interface, such as the ability to define new fields, objects, workflow, and approval processes, developers can also use the SOAP API to issue data manipulation commands such as delete(), update() or upsert(), from client-side programs.

These client-side programs, typically written in Java, JavaScript, .NET, or other programming languages, grant organizations more flexibility in their customizations. However, because the controlling logic for these client-side programs is not located on Salesforce servers, they are restricted by the performance costs of making multiple round-trips to the Salesforce site to accomplish common business transactions, and by the cost and complexity of hosting server code, such as Java or .NET, in a secure and robust environment.