As you are aware Salesforce are continually making improvements to the platform, with regular releases for these changes. We have completed a review of the Release Updates for Salesforce Winter '25 release.

To learn about some of our favourite features for business users and Salesforce admins, check out our latest blog. 

Enforced Updates in Salesforce Winter '25

The following items in the Salesforce Winter '25 release may impact some clients. You must check and rectify the changes by the given date if they affect you. Enrite recommends creating a sandbox to enable the relevant changes and performing the necessary regression tests.

1. Use REST API for Access to External Client App OAuth Consumer Credentials

What’s Changing?
Instead of using Metadata API, access to External Client App OAuth consumer credentials will now require to use Connect REST API.

What Does This Mean?
This update will improve security by preventing accidental exposure of consumer secrets; therefore, current users must switch to avoid any disruptions.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link]

2. Review and Update Settings to Capture Leads from LinkedIn

What’s Changing?
You must manually disconnect and reconnect your LinkedIn accounts with new settings to sync leads from LinkedIn Lead Forms.

What Does This Mean?
If you fail to update by December 16, 2024, the lead syncing will stop. This update applies to those using LinkedIn Lead Forms with Salesforce in Lightning Experience across all Sales Cloud editions, except for Pro Suite and Einstein 1 Sales Edition.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link]

3. Prevent Guest User from Editing or Deleting Approval Requests 

What’s Changing?
Guest users can approve or reject approval requests; however, they cannot edit, reassign, or delete them.

What Does This Mean?
This change improves security and applies to Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic in Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link]

4. Capture Prompt and Accurate Order Details with New Order Save Behaviour

What’s Changing?
The New Order Save Behaviour now updates parent orders using custom application logic, like validation rules and Apex triggers. Starting Winter '25, it's enabled by default for new orgs.

What Does This Mean?
Before this release, updates to an Order Line Item did not trigger custom application logic such as validation rules, Apex triggers, and flows on the parent Order in the event the parent order was updated in the same transaction. With this feature enabled, that logic will now run on the parent Order in the event it is updated. 

➡️ For technical details, see this [link].

5. Create and Verify Your Default No-Reply Organisation-Wide Email Address to Send Email

What’s Changing?
Organisations must create and verify a Default No-Reply email address in the Organisation-Wide Email Address settings to comply with enhanced email security standards.

What Does This Mean?
This verified no-reply address will be required for sending emails from your org. Emails sent without this address may fail.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link].

6. Turn On Lightning Article Editor and Article Personalisation for Knowledge

What’s Changing?
Salesforce is launching the Lightning Article Editor and Article Personalisation tools to improve the knowledge management experience.

What Does This Mean?
These updates will make creating and editing articles smoother, with better formatting tools and an easy-to-use accessibility checker. Plus, the Article Personalisation feature will allow admins to control who sees what, helping service agents quickly find the answers they need.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link].

Critical Not Enforced Updates to Watch in Salesforce Winter '25

These updates in the Salesforce Winter '25 release aren't enforced but could affect your setup. Review the deadlines and test changes in a sandbox to avoid potential disruptions.

1. Upgrade Your Service Account Connections to Org-Level OAuth 2.0 Authentication

What’s Changing?
Salesforce is transitioning to org-level OAuth 2.0 authentication because Microsoft is retiring the ApplicationImpersonation role in February 2025.

What Does This Mean?
If those using Microsoft Office 365 don't upgrade connections by February 2025, your Einstein Activity Capture will stop functioning. This change applies to Lightning Experience in Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, and Unlimited editions.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link]

2. Add the New Setup Domain

What’s Changing?
Salesforce Setup pages will now be hosted on the *.salesforce-setup.com domain to guarantee proper content loading, especially when third-party cookies are blocked.

What Does This Mean?
If your company restricts internet access through firewalls, your IT department needs to add this domain to the allowlist. However, if your users have general access to the internet, no action is required. 

➡️ For technical details, see this [link] 

3. Forced Login Is Permanently Disabled

What’s Changing?
Salesforce is going to permanently eliminate forced login, which lets users log in by passing their username and password as URL parameters.

What Does This Mean?
This change applies to all editions in both Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic and will break any existing third-party integrations or direct login links that rely on this method. Organisations need to update their integrations to avoid service disruptions.

➡️ For technical details, see this [link] .

How to Move Forward?

If you think the Winter '25 release may affect your setup or wish to get ahead, reach out to us as soon as possible. We can review your environment and take action or provide advice to address any issues. To contact us, please raise a ticket in our portal.

Also, consider joining the Release Readiness Trailblazers Group for more information, or sign up for the Salesforce Release Readiness Live Webinars to stay updated.