SFSQL Function Catalog — for formula reasoning
Last synced: 2026-04-23 from the Data Processing Engine PDF (2025-06-24 version) and
the BDT help DITA XMLs (c360_a_batch_transform_numeric.xml, _string.xml,
_date_functions.xml, _boolean_functions.xml, _multivalue_functions.xml,
_additionalfunctions.xml). Consult this file before interpreting any formulaExpression.
How formulas appear in BDT JSON
"action": "formula",
"parameters": {
"expressionType": "SQL", // or "DCSQL"
"fields": [
{
"name": "OutputField__c",
"label": "Output Label",
"type": "TEXT", // TEXT | NUMBER | BOOLEAN | DATE_ONLY | DATETIME
"businessType": "Text", // user-visible type name
"formulaExpression": "upper(coalesce(SourceField__c, ''))",
"precision": 255,
"scale": 0, // only for NUMBER
"defaultValue": ""
}
]
}
Functions by family
Math / Numeric
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
abs(n) |
number → number |
Absolute value (strips sign). |
ceiling(n) |
number → number |
Round up, away from zero for negatives. |
floor(n) |
number → number |
Round toward negative infinity. Always rounds down on the number line: floor(2.7) = 2, floor(-2.3) = -3. |
exp(n) |
number → number |
e raised to n. |
log(base, n) |
number → number |
Logarithm of n in the given base. |
max(a, b, …) |
number → number |
Largest value. |
min(a, b, …) |
number → number |
Smallest value. |
mod(a, b) |
number → number |
Remainder after dividing a by b. |
power(a, b) |
number → number |
a raised to the power b. |
round(n, digits) |
number → number |
Round to digits places. |
sqrt(n) |
number → number |
Positive square root. |
trunc(n, digits) |
number → number |
Truncate to digits places (doesn't round). |
String
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
begins(s, prefix) |
text → boolean |
True if s starts with prefix. |
concat(a, b, …) |
text → text |
Concatenate. |
contains(haystack, needle) |
text → boolean |
True if haystack contains needle. |
ends(s, suffix) |
text → boolean |
True if s ends with suffix. |
length(s) |
text → number |
Character count. |
lower(s) |
text → text |
Lowercase (locale-aware if a locale is provided). |
ltrim(s) / ltrim(s, substring) |
text → text |
Remove leading whitespace (or a specific substring). |
rtrim(s) / rtrim(s, substring) |
text → text |
Remove trailing whitespace (or substring). |
substitute(s, old, new) |
text → text |
Replace old with new in s. |
substr(s, start, length) |
text → text |
Extract a substring. |
text(n) |
number → text |
Convert a number to its text form. |
trim(s) / trim(s, substring) |
text → text |
Remove leading + trailing whitespace or substring. |
upper(s) |
text → text |
Uppercase. |
uuid() |
→ text |
Newly generated unique ID. |
value(s) |
text → number |
Parse a text representation of a number into a numeric value. |
Date
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
adddays(date, n) |
date → date |
Add n days. |
addmonths(date, n) |
date → date |
Add n months. |
datediff(start, end) |
date × date → number |
Days between two dates. |
datetimevalue(text_or_date) |
→ datetime |
GMT/UTC date+time value. |
datevalue(text_or_datetime) |
→ date |
Extract the date part. |
day(date) |
date → number |
1-31. |
monthdiff(start, end) |
date × date → number |
Months between two dates. |
now() |
→ datetime |
Current moment (UTC). |
today() |
→ date |
Current date. |
weekday(date) |
date → number |
1=Sunday, 2=Monday, … 7=Saturday. |
Boolean / Logical
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
and(a, b, …) |
bool → bool |
True when all are true. |
or(a, b, …) |
bool → bool |
True when any is true. |
if(cond, then_val, else_val) |
→ any |
Ternary. |
case when <cond1> then <val1> else <elseval> end |
— |
Multi-branch (SQL CASE). |
blankvalue(expr, substitute) |
→ any |
Substitute when expr is blank. |
isblank(expr) |
→ bool |
True when expr is blank. |
isnull(expr) |
→ bool |
True when expr is null. |
nullvalue(expr, substitute) |
→ any |
Substitute when expr is null; returns expr otherwise. |
Multivalue
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
sequence(start, end, step?) |
→ array |
Array of numbers/dates between start and end (step defaults to 1 / 1 day). |
explode(array) |
→ row per element |
Convert multivalue data into one row per element. Cannot be nested inside another function. |
Additional / Null-handling (commonly seen)
| Function |
Signature |
Purpose |
coalesce(a, b, …) |
→ any |
First non-null argument (SQL standard). |
Patterns to recognize in narration
coalesce(X, Y) — "use X when present, otherwise Y." Very common for default-value
handling.case when RANK = 1 then X else 0 end — the "first-occurrence extract" idiom paired
with a computeRelative row_number() node.case when FLAG = 'Y' then 'Y' else 'N' end — boolean-like text normalization.concat(coalesce(A, ''), coalesce(B, '')) — safe string concatenation that defaults
NULLs to empty strings (producing a synthetic composite key).
Sources
- Data Processing Engine reference PDF (captured at
research/bdt-doc-10-data_processing_engine_6-24-2025.pdf.md)
- BDT help XML:
c360_a_batch_transform_numeric.xml, _string.xml, _date_functions.xml,
_boolean_functions.xml, _multivalue_functions.xml, _additionalfunctions.xml (captured
at research/help-xml/).
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