Data and Analytics Management
Getting data in and out
Data Import Wizard handles up to 50,000 records per object in the browser and needs no API access. Data Loader is a client that requires API access, handles far larger volumes, and supports hard delete and upsert. Upsert matches on an external ID field (or the Salesforce record ID), updating matches and inserting the rest.
Import parents before children: Accounts before Contacts and Opportunities, Price Books and Products before Price Book Entries, Campaigns before Campaign Members. Load the minimum required fields first, then update.
Duplicate management
Matching rules find duplicates; duplicate rules decide what happens - Allow with a report, Alert, or Block. They run on create and edit, including imports, so a blocking duplicate rule turns a clean load into partial failures.
Reporting and dashboards
Tabular is a plain list with no grouping. Summary groups rows and supports up to three groupings. Matrix groups by rows and columns and is what you need for a cross-tab look. Joined reports use up to five blocks tied by a common field. Dashboards run as a specified user, or as a dynamic user for a viewer-specific view, so a dashboard can show data a viewer cannot open in a report. Cross filters, bucket fields, and row-level formulas are report-only tools.
Worked example
A report returns fewer rows than the matching list view. Check in order: the report type (a type requiring a related record excludes rows without one), the filters, and the running user's sharing access. Report results are never broader than the running user's record access.
Rule of thumb: when counts disagree, test the report type before you test the data.