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For HR synchronization requiring high reliability and a multi-day data retention window, Change Data Capture (CDC) is the optimal architectural choice.12

CDC is an event-driven integration framework that automatically publ3ishes change events for Sale4sforce records (Create, Update, Delete, and Undelete). A critical feature of CDC for failure recovery is its 72-hour (3-day) retention window. If the external HR system or the replication middleware experience downtime, the change events remain stored in the Salesforce event bus for up to three days. Once the HR system is back online, the subscriber can use the Replay ID of the last successfully processed event to retrieve all missed notifications from the bus, ensuring zero data loss during the outage.

In contrast, Outbound Messaging (Option B) only provides a 24-hour retry window. If the target system is unavailable for more than one day, the notifications are dropped, making it unsuitable for a 3-day requirement. Callouts (Option C) are typically synchronous and do not have native, platform-managed storage or retry mechanisms for failed requests; once a callout fails, the data is lost unless a custom retry architecture is built. CDC’s native, durable event bus provides the necessary scalability and resilience for critical HR data synchronization without requiring complex custom code for error handling and data recovery.

For organizations using both Salesforce Service Cloud and B2C Commerce (formerly Demandware), Salesforce provides a specialized, pre-built integrat25ion known as the Salesforce B2C Commerce to Service Cloud Connector. This connector is part of the Salesforce B2C Solution Architecture and is the recommended choice because it offers "out-of-the-box" cross-cloud functionality.

The connector enables several critical business processes for service agents:

Unified Customer Profile: Synchronizes customer data between the two platforms, ensuring agents have the most current contact information.

Order History Visibility: Allows agents to view real-time order data and status from the Commerce system directly within the Service Console.

Service Actions: Enables agents to perform commerce-related tasks, such as "Order on Behalf Of," without leaving the Salesforce interface.

While an architect could build a custom integration using the Commerce REST API (Option A) or MuleSoft (Option C), these approaches require significant development, testing, and long-term maintenance effort. The B2C Connector reduces time-to-market and leverages Salesforce's own engineering to handle complex synchronization logic and API versioning. Recommending the standard connector aligns with the architectural principle of "clicks before code" and ensures that the integration remains supported by Salesforce as both platforms evolve.

When an integration callout initiated from a Lightning Web Component (LWC) fails, the architect must distinguish between client-side and server-side security layers. Unlike Apex callouts, which are governed by Remote Site Settings at the server level, LWC requests originate directly from the user's browser. Consequently, they are subject to the browser's Content Security Policy (CSP).

CSP is a security layer that helps detect and mitigate certain types of attacks, including Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and data injection attacks. It prevents a website from loading content from a third party unless that domain is explicitly safe-listed. If an LWC attempts to connect to an external API endpoint that is not listed in the CSP Trusted Sites in Salesforce Setup, the browser will block the request before it is even sent, often returning a "Refused to connect because it violates the document's Content Security Policy" error. While Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) is also a browser-level security mechanism, it must be configured on the external server to allow the browser to access its resources; however, the first validation step within the Salesforce environment for a failing LWC callout is ensuring the domain is allowed by the org's CSP.

In a robust event-driven architecture, "durability" is the ability of a system to retain events so that a subscriber can retrieve them even after being offline. For an architect needing to minimize data loss over "every couple of days," the selection must focus on event types that support a high retention window.

Salesforce provides two modern event types specifically designed for high-scale, durable messaging:

Change Data Capture (CDC): This automatically broadcasts changes to Salesforce records (Create, Update, Delete, Undelete). CDC events are highly durable and are retained in the event bus for 72 hours (3 days).

High-Volume Platform Events: These are custom events defined by the architect. Like CDC, High-Volume Platform Events also provide a 72-hour retention window.

Earlier versions of the Streaming API, such as PushTopic Events and Generic Events (Option C and parts of A), typically offered a 24-hour retention window, which would not satisfy the requirement of a client re-connecting "every couple of days" (potentially 48-72 hours later).

By utilizing CDC and High-Volume Platform Events, the architect can leverage the Replay ID. When the client re-connects, it can send the Replay ID of the last event it successfully processed. Salesforce then "replays" all events that occurred during the client's downtime from that specific point, up to the 72-hour limit. This mechanism ensures zero data loss for planned or unplanned outages lasting up to three days, making it the most resilient choice for the specified requirements.

For a unified service experience between Salesforce Service Cloud and B2C Commerce (formerly Demandware), Salesforce provides a purpose-built, cross-cloud solution known as the Salesforce B2C Commerce to Service Cloud Connector.

This connector is part of the Salesforce B2C Solution Architecture and is designed to provide "out-of-the-box" synchronization of data between the two platforms. By implementing this connector, service agents gain several high-value capabilities within the Service Console:

Customer Profile Sync: Ensures that customer data (name, address, etc.) is consistent across both systems.

Order History View: Allows agents to see real-time order data from the Commerce system directly within the Case record page.

Order on Behalf Of: Enables agents to place orders for customers without leaving Salesforce.

While you could build a custom integration using the Commerce REST API (Option B) or MuleSoft (Option C), these would require significant development, testing, and maintenance effort. The Salesforce B2C Connector is the recommended "path of least resistance" because it leverages Salesforce's own pre-built logic for cross-cloud interoperability, reducing technical debt and time-to-value. For an architect, choosing the standard1 connector ensures better supportability and future-proofing 2as Salesforce continues to enhance its multi-cloud features.

To provide near real-time notifications to a client that already supports CometD, an Integration Architect should leverage the Streaming API. While Platform Events are a modern alternative, PushTopic Events are specifically designed to stream changes to Salesforce records based on a defined SOQL query.

A PushTopic event is triggered when a record is created, updated, deleted, or undeleted. By creating a PushTopic on the Opportunity object, NTO defines the criteria (fields and record states) that should trigger a message to the 1subscriber. The affiliate’s CometD client can then subscribe to this topic's channel (e.g., /topic/OpportunityUpdates) to receive the data payload instantly.

Option A is incorrect because "Accept CometD API Requests" is not a standard checkbox or configuration within a Connected App; authentication is handled via standard OAuth flows, but the streaming channel must still be defined. Option C describes a Polling mechanism, which is the architectural opposite of the requested "immediate notification" and would unnecessarily consume SOAP API limits while introducing latency. By using a PushTopic, NTO ensures a decoupled, event-driven architecture that scales effectively for notification-only use cases while respecting the technical capabilities of the affiliate’s existing CometD-compatible infrastructure.

To satisfy a requirement for a synchronous callout triggered by a user action, the architect should use a UI-driven approach, such as a Lightning component and a button.

In Salesforce, triggers (Option B) are primarily used for asynchronous logic in integration contexts. Because a trigger executes as part of the database save operation, making a synchronous callout directly from a trigger is prohibited as it would block the database transaction until the external system responds, leading to performance degradation and "uncommitted work pending" errors. If a trigger must initiate an integration, it must do so asynchronously (using @future or Queueable Apex), which violates the requirement for a synchronous call.

By using a Lightning component, the architect can initiate a synchronous Request-and-Reply pattern. When the sales rep clicks the "7Submit to OMS" button, the componen8t invokes an Apex method that makes the REST callout to the OMS in real-time. The user remains on the page while the system waits for the OMS to respond, allowing for immediate feedback—such as an order confirmation number or an error message—to be displayed in the UI. A Batch Apex job (Option C) is inherently asynchronous and delayed, making it unsuitable for a synchronous, real-time fulfillment requirement.

For a requirement focused on synchronizing record updates from Salesforce to an external system in an event-driven and asynchronous manner, Change Data Capture (CDC) is the architecturally preferred solution over custom Platform Events.

CDC is designed specifically for data replication and synchronization. It automatically publishes change events for Salesforce records (Create, Update, Delete, and Undelete) to the event bus. Unlike Platform Events, which require manual publishing via Apex triggers or Flows, CDC is a low-code feature that requires only a simple activation for the Contact object in Setup. The external homegrown application can then act as a CometD subscriber, listening to the specialized /data/ContactChangeEvent channel to receive near real-time updates without the need for constant polling. Furthermore, CDC provides ordered, replayable events and an extended 72-hour retention window, ensuring that the homegrown application can recover missed updates using a Replay ID if it momentarily loses connection. This native broadcasting capability ensures data integrity across systems while breaking the tight coupling between Salesforce and the legacy application.

The foundational step for any complex CRM transformation is the discovery and evaluation phase. Before selecting specific tools, connectors, or middleware, an Integration Architect must first understand the business context and data landscape of the organization. Universal Containers has data fragmented across three distinct silos: Marketing, Outlook, and an ERP. To achieve a "single view of the customer," the architect must evaluate how these systems are currently used and how they need to interact with Salesforce in the future.

Evaluating data and system usage allows the architect to define critical integration requirements:

Mastery and Ownership: Identifying which system is the "System of Record" (SoR) for leads, contacts, and financial data. For example, do leads convert in Salesforce and then push to the ERP, or does the Marketing system maintain control until a certain lifecycle stage?

Volume and Latency: Determining if Outlook sync needs to be real-time or if nightly batch updates from the ERP are sufficient.

Transformation Needs: Understanding the complexity of mapping ERP billing structures to Salesforce Account and Opportunity objects.

While exploring connectors (Option C) and middleware (Option B) are essential implementation steps, they are secondary to the initial evaluation. Proposing a technical solution before identifying the actual requirements risks building a system that is either over-engineered or missing key business functionality. By prioritizing the evaluation of data usage, the architect ensures that the resulting integration architecture is scalable, cost-effective, and directly supports the strategic goal of providing a unified customer view.

When an enterprise architect identifies complex infrastructure needs such as caching, queuing, and sophisticated event routing, it signals that a point-to-point integration architecture is insufficient. In such cases, the Integration Architect should recommend a Middleware-mediated architecture.

Middleware tools, such as an Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) or an iPaaS (Integration Platform as a Service), are specifically designed to fulfill these complex "Quality of Service" (QoS) requirements. In a publish/subscribe scenario, the middleware acts as the central orchestrator. It can receive a single "Fire and Forget" event from a publisher (like Salesforce) and then manage the technical complexities of routing that message to multiple active subscribers.

Middleware handles infrastructure-level tasks such as message queuing for offline systems, automatic retries with exponential backoff, and error handling with alerts—capabilities that are either unavailable or difficult to scale within Salesforce natively. Performing message transformation and protocol translation (e.g., SOAP to REST) within the middleware layer also protects Salesforce's Apex CPU limits. By leveraging middleware for these concerns, the architect ensures that Salesforce remains a performant engagement layer while the middleware provides the robust technical backbone for a resilient enterprise landscape.