How do I refresh an existing sandbox in Salesforce?
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To refresh an existing sandbox in Salesforce, go to Setup > Data Management > Sandboxes, where you’ll be able to see a list of your sandboxes and a Refresh link next to them if they’re eligible to be refreshed. Once you click the Refresh link, the status will change to Copying and you’ll receive an email once the sandbox refresh is complete, after which you can activate the refreshed sandbox.
Understanding the Sandbox Refresh Process
Refreshing a sandbox in Salesforce creates a new org, copies the metadata and data from the source org, then deletes the old org after activation. It’s essential to understand that the refresh interval varies depending on the type of sandbox you have, with Full Copy sandboxes able to be refreshed every 29 days, Partial Copy sandboxes every 5 days, and Developer/Developer Pro sandboxes once per day.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can you refresh a sandbox from the sandbox?
You can select a different sandbox type to refresh, but if the sandbox you’re refreshing is a clone, this option isn’t available, as a cloned sandbox refreshes from its source org and retains the source org’s sandbox license type.
2. Why can’t I refresh the sandbox in Salesforce?
If the sandbox is not recently created or refreshed, or if the refresh interval has already passed, and you still do not have the ‘Delete‘ or ‘Refresh‘ button, this could be due to an expired sandbox license, requiring you to reach out to Salesforce Support to confirm.
3. What happens when I refresh a Salesforce sandbox?
The sandbox refresh procedure creates a new org, copies the metadata and data from the source org, then deletes the old org after activation.
4. How often can you refresh a sandbox in Salesforce?
You can refresh or delete a Full sandbox 29 days after you last refreshed it, a Partial Copy sandbox 5 days after you last refreshed it, and a Developer or Developer Pro sandbox once per day.
5. How do you refresh a sandbox?
In Salesforce, go to Setup > Data Management > Sandboxes, where you’ll be able to see a list of your sandboxes and a Refresh link next to them if they’re eligible to be refreshed.
6. When should I refresh my Salesforce sandbox?
It is recommended to refresh your sandbox as much as possible within the refresh interval limits, which vary depending on the type of sandbox you have.
7. How do I clean up my sandbox in Salesforce?
Deleting a sandbox will completely delete your sandbox and all its contents, and a sandbox can only be deleted if its refresh interval has passed.
8. What is recommended to refresh a full sandbox?
Full Copy sandboxes can be refreshed every 29 days, Partial Copy sandboxes every 5 days, and Developer/Developer Pro sandboxes once per day, with the recommendation to refresh as much as possible within these limits.
9. What will happen if I restart my sandbox?
Resetting a personal workspace or sandbox clears all the changed data values and resets all the data values back to the current values in the base data.
10. How do I enable sandbox after refresh?
Refreshed sandboxes that haven’t been activated yet show an Activate link next to their name, and clicking Activate next to the sandbox you want to activate will activate the sandbox.
11. How do I recover a refreshed sandbox in Salesforce?
If the sandbox refresh is on the Activation Pending Confirm stage, simply click the ‘Discard‘ option and the older sandbox will be retained.
12. Why can’t I log into sandbox after refresh?
If your web browser has saved your login information from before the last sandbox refresh, your login attempts will likely fail, requiring you to clear your browser’s cache, cookies, and saved passwords.
13. What happens to users after sandbox refresh?
A sandbox refresh Deletes and recreates the sandbox as a copy of the production org, reversing any manual access changes made, and sandbox-only users will no longer exist.
14. Can you revert a sandbox refresh?
Salesforce can roll back an activated sandbox refresh if there is a clear business case, you are within 72 hours of the new sandbox activation, and you log a Case with support outlining your Prod and Sandbox org Ids.
15. How do I log into Salesforce sandbox after refresh?
To log on to a newly created or refreshed Sandbox, go to https://test.salesforce.com and add the name of the Sandbox after your Production username, with the password being the same as that of the Production environment.