Building interactive Flow screens with reactive components
Reactive components are generally available in the Winter '24 release. This exciting development allows you to create interactive screens that reduce the need for users to click through multiple screens, which directly enhances user experience and productivity.
Harald is the Co-Founder of Hutte, bringing his vision of no-code DevOps to life. His passion enables teams and individuals to focus on what matters most – bringing value to the users they build for.
Manuel Moya Ferrer is a highly skilled freelancer who serves as a technical architect, developer, and DevOps engineer. He specializes in Salesforce solutions, covering all technical aspects of their development lifecycle.
Article highlights
Reactive components will significantly enhance user experience by enabling interactive screens that reduce the need for navigating multiple pages, streamlining workflow within the Salesforce environment.
The integration of custom Lightning Web Components with standard components on a single screen allows for dynamic interactions and adjustments without user inputs, mimicking the functionality of single-page applications.
Utilizing reactive global variables and additional formula functions in Flow screens simplifies complex logic implementation and customization, enhancing both development speed and user interface responsiveness.
Today, we will explore the world of interactive Flow screens and show how reactive components can change user experiences. We will discuss the core principles of reactivity and guide you through the process of building these interactive elements step by step.
Perfect for experienced app builders or those just getting started, this guide will show you how to develop interfaces that grab users' attention and keep them captivated with fluidity and responsiveness.
The above picture illustrates a post-reactivity screen Flow. It has a single-screen element with multiple components to address the requirement. Simply put, reactivity allows you to eliminate the annoying "Next" buttons on every screen element.
This enables the building of screens that mimic the seamless experience of single-page applications by utilizing reactive Flow screen components. You can configure both supported standard components and custom Lightning Web Components to respond dynamically to changes in other components on the same screen in real-time.
Enable reactive screens
Reactive components are readily available for Flows running on API Version 59.0 (or later). For Flows running on API Version 57.0 or 58.0, you can access reactive components by clicking on "Setup," "Process Automation," "Settings," and selecting the "Opt into Reactive Screens Beta" checkbox.
How does reactivity work?
Let's look at an example
Let's create a screen Flow that has the following:
A datatable component to list all the "Opportunity" records
A text component to display "Stage"
A currency component to display "Expected Revenue"
A date component to display the "Created Date."
The idea is to have the remaining components populate automatically when the user selects a row in the DataTable.
Previously, if you wanted one component to change when doing something in another, you had to put them on different screens. Not anymore!
There's more to reactive components
Reactive global variables
Global variables can be used in reactive formulas on Flow screens to save time and create custom labels for translatable text.
Reactive selections
Enhance interactivity by using choice components ("Choice Lookup," "Picklists," "Radio Buttons," etc.) that respond to user selections on the same screen.
More formula functions
Access additional formula functions, like "SUBSTITUTE," "ADDMONTHS," and "^," for real-time logic in your Flow screen components (for API versions 59 and above).
Reactive display text components (Beta in Winter '24)
These can now be configured to react to changes in other components on the same screen, adding flexibility to your screen Flows.
Advantages of reactive components
Reactive components offer several substantial benefits, including the following:
Single-page-like application
One of the key benefits is the ability to craft screen Flows that resemble single-page applications. This means fewer clicks for users, resulting in higher efficiency and a seamless user experience.
Maintainability
Reactive screens reduce complexity, making screens easier to manage and modify, contributing to long-term maintainability.
Ease of configuration for Admins
The simplicity of implementation empowers Admins to create Flows more efficiently with fewer screens.
Easy testing and debugging
Simplify testing and debugging with real-time feedback and responsiveness.
Building is a breeze
Salesforce's reactive components make building interactive Flow screens a piece of cake. You'll be able to create engaging, dynamic, and unified user experiences.
Embrace the future of user interaction with reactive components to transform your Salesforce applications.
Spring Release Updates
Enhanced Lightning dashboards
The Spring Release introduces the ability to transfer dashboard ownership easily, which can be especially useful for companies restructuring teams or handling personnel changes. This feature simplifies the management of user-specific dashboards without needing to recreate them, supporting better workflow continuity within Salesforce.
Dynamic Forms enhancements
The release expands the capabilities of Dynamic Forms, now allowing fields from up to two levels of related objects to be displayed on the same Lightning record page. This enhancement is crucial for creating more complex, interactive, and informative screens within Salesforce, directly aligning with the development of reactive component-based user interfaces.
Dynamic Actions on mobile
Specific to mobile user interfaces, Salesforce now allows the configuration of Dynamic Actions that appear solely on mobile devices. This functionality supports a more tailored and responsive user experience on mobile, aligning well with the principles of building interactive and dynamic interfaces discussed in the article.
Real-time reactivity in Flow screens
A notable update involves the real-time reactivity of Text Template resources within Flow screens. This feature enables immediate updates within the same screen based on user interactions, which is fundamental for developing interactive and responsive Flow screens.
Harald is the Co-Founder of Hutte, bringing his vision of no-code DevOps to life. His passion enables teams and individuals to focus on what matters most – bringing value to the users they build for.
