afv-library/skills/platform-data-manage/references/anonymous-apex-guide.md

Anonymous Apex Guide

Using anonymous Apex for complex data operations.

When to Use Anonymous Apex

• Complex data setup requiring Apex logic
• Testing triggers with specific data patterns
• One-time data migrations
• Debugging and troubleshooting

sf CLI Execution

From File

sf apex run --file setup-data.apex --target-org myorg

Interactive

sf apex run --target-org myorg
# Then type Apex code and press Ctrl+D

Common Patterns

Bulk Data Creation

List<Account> accounts = new List<Account>();
for (Integer i = 0; i < 500; i++) {
    accounts.add(new Account(
        Name = 'Test Account ' + i,
        Industry = 'Technology'
    ));
}
insert accounts;
System.debug('Created ' + accounts.size() + ' accounts');

Data Transformation

List<Account> accounts = [
    SELECT Id, Name, Industry
    FROM Account
    WHERE Name LIKE 'Old%'
];

for (Account acc : accounts) {
    acc.Name = acc.Name.replace('Old', 'New');
}

update accounts;

Testing Trigger Logic

// Setup test data
Account acc = new Account(Name = 'Trigger Test');
insert acc;

// Force trigger to fire
acc.Industry = 'Technology';
update acc;

// Verify results
acc = [SELECT Id, Field__c FROM Account WHERE Id = :acc.Id];
System.debug('Result: ' + acc.Field__c);

Error Handling

try {
    insert accounts;
} catch (DmlException e) {
    System.debug('Error: ' + e.getMessage());
    for (Integer i = 0; i < e.getNumDml(); i++) {
        System.debug('Row ' + e.getDmlIndex(i) + ': ' + e.getDmlMessage(i));
    }
}

Limits in Anonymous Apex

Limit	Value
SOQL Queries	100
DML Rows	10,000
CPU Time	10,000 ms
Heap Size	6 MB

Best Practices

1. Test in sandbox first - Validate before production
2. Add debug statements - Track progress
3. Handle errors gracefully - Use try/catch
4. Keep scripts idempotent - Safe to re-run