generating-custom-object by forcedotcom/afv-library

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

Create new custom objects
Generate custom object metadata XML
Configure object sharing and security settings
Set up object features and capabilities
Troubleshoot deployment errors related to custom objects

Specification

1. Overview and Purpose

This document defines the mandatory constraints for generating CustomObject metadata XML (.object-meta.xml file). The agent must verify these constraints before outputting XML to prevent Metadata API deployment errors.

File extension: .object-meta.xml

2. Syntactic Essentials (Tier 1)

The following constraints must be true for the XML body to deploy successfully.

Note: The API Name (fullName) is NOT a tag; it is the filename (e.g., Vehicle__c.object-meta.xml).

Required Elements

Element	Requirement	Notes
`<label>`	Required	Singular UI name
`<pluralLabel>`	Required	Plural UI name
`<sharingModel>`	Required	See Sharing Model Rules below
`<deploymentStatus>`	Required	Always set to `Deployed`
`<nameField>`	Required	Primary record identifier (requires `<label>` and `<type>`)
`<visibility>`	Required	Always set to `Public`

Sharing Model Rules

Default: Set <sharingModel> to ReadWrite.

Exception: If this object contains a Master-Detail relationship field, <sharingModel> MUST be ControlledByParent.

Decision Logic:

IF object has NO Master-Detail field → use ReadWrite
IF object has Master-Detail field → use ControlledByParent
IF a Master-Detail field is being added to an existing child object → that existing object's <sharingModel> must also be updated to ControlledByParent

❌ INCORRECT — Will cause error: Cannot set sharingModel to ReadWrite on a CustomObject with a MasterDetail relationship field

<CustomObject xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
  <label>Order Line Item</label>
  <pluralLabel>Order Line Items</pluralLabel>
  <sharingModel>ReadWrite</sharingModel>  <!-- WRONG: Object has a M-D field -->
  <deploymentStatus>Deployed</deploymentStatus>
</CustomObject>

✅ CORRECT:

<CustomObject xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
  <label>Order Line Item</label>
  <pluralLabel>Order Line Items</pluralLabel>
  <sharingModel>ControlledByParent</sharingModel>  <!-- CORRECT -->
  <deploymentStatus>Deployed</deploymentStatus>
</CustomObject>

3. Smart Defaults & Decision Logic (Tier 2)

The agent must choose which features to enable based on the object's intended use case.

A. The Name Field Decision

Type	When to Use	Additional Requirements
Text	Default for human-named entities (Projects, Locations, Teams)	None
AutoNumber	Use for transactions, logs, or IDs (Invoices, Requests, Tickets)	Must include `<displayFormat>` (e.g., `INV-{0000}`) and `<startingNumber>1</startingNumber>`

Text Name Field Example:

<nameField>
  <label>Project Name</label>
  <type>Text</type>
</nameField>

AutoNumber Name Field Example:

<nameField>
  <label>Invoice Number</label>
  <type>AutoNumber</type>
  <displayFormat>INV-{0000}</displayFormat>
  <startingNumber>1</startingNumber>
</nameField>

B. Object Description

<description>: Mandatory. Every object must contain a professional summary.

If the intent is vague, generate a summary:

"Object used to track and manage [Intent] within the organization."

C. Junction Object Naming

If the object is a many-to-many link between two parents, name the object by combining the two parent entities to ensure the schema remains intuitive.

Examples:

Position_Candidate__c (links Position and Candidate)
Job_Application__c (links Job and Application)

D. Feature Enablement (Clean XML)

To maintain "Clean XML," only include optional tags when deviating from the Salesforce platform default of false.

Scenario A: User-Facing Objects (Apps, Trackers, Business Entities)

Trigger: The object is intended for direct user interaction
Action: Set <enableSearch>, <enableReports>, <enableActivities>, and <enableHistory> to true

Scenario B: System-Facing Objects (Junctions, Background Logs)

Trigger: The object exists for technical associations or background data
Action: Omit these tags to keep the UI clean and the XML lean

4. Critical Constraints & Common Failures

Reserved Words

Never use reserved words as API names for Custom Objects or Custom Fields:

Category	Reserved Words (Do Not Use as API Names)
SOQL/SQL	`Select`, `From`, `Where`, `Limit`, `Order`, `Group`
System	`User`, `External`, `View`, `Type`
Temporal	`Date`, `Number`

Relationship Cap

Do not create more than 2 Master-Detail relationships for a single object. If a third relationship is required, use a Lookup instead.

XML Root Element

Do NOT include the <fullName> tag at the root of the .object-meta.xml file. The API name is derived from the filename.

❌ INCORRECT:

<CustomObject xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
  <fullName>Vehicle__c</fullName>  <!-- WRONG: Remove this -->
  <label>Vehicle</label>
</CustomObject>

✅ CORRECT:

<CustomObject xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
  <label>Vehicle</label>
  <!-- fullName comes from filename: Vehicle__c.object-meta.xml -->
</CustomObject>

Validation Rule Naming Convention

Validation rule names follow different conventions than custom fields.

Rules:

Must contain only alphanumeric characters and underscores
Must begin with a letter
Cannot end with an underscore
Cannot contain two consecutive underscores
Must NOT end with __c (unlike custom fields)

❌ INCORRECT:

<validationRules>
  <fullName>Require_Start_Date__c</fullName>  <!-- WRONG: Has __c suffix -->
  <active>true</active>
  <errorMessage>Start Date is required.</errorMessage>
  <formula>ISBLANK(Start_Date__c)</formula>
</validationRules>

Error: The validation name can only contain alphanumeric characters, must begin with a letter, cannot end with an underscore...

✅ CORRECT:

<validationRules>
  <fullName>Require_Start_Date</fullName>  <!-- CORRECT: No __c suffix -->
  <active>true</active>
  <errorMessage>Start Date is required.</errorMessage>
  <formula>ISBLANK(Start_Date__c)</formula>
</validationRules>

Naming Pattern Reference:

Metadata Type	Naming Pattern	Example
Custom Fields	Ends with `__c`	`Start_Date__c`
Validation Rules	No suffix	`Require_Start_Date`
Custom Objects	Ends with `__c`	`Vehicle__c`

5. Verification Checklist

Before generating the Custom Object XML, verify:

Syntactic Checks

Are both <label> and <pluralLabel> present?
Is <deploymentStatus> set to Deployed?
Is <visibility> set to Public?
Does <nameField> include both <label> and <type>?
If <type> is AutoNumber, are <displayFormat> and <startingNumber> included?

Sharing Model Check (Critical)

Does this object have a Master-Detail relationship field?
- If YES → <sharingModel> MUST be ControlledByParent
- If NO → <sharingModel> should be ReadWrite

Constraint Checks

Is the API name free of reserved words?
Are there 2 or fewer Master-Detail relationships?
Is <fullName> absent from the XML root?

Validation Rule Checks (if applicable)

Do validation rule names NOT end with __c?
Do validation rule names follow alphanumeric + underscore pattern?

Architectural Checks

Is <description> present with a meaningful summary?
Are <enableSearch> and <enableReports> set to true if user-facing?
Does the filename match the intended API name?