Salesforce Certified Data Architecture Practice Test

How can an architect find information about changes to certain fields within the past two months?

1. Remove "customize application" permissions from everyone else.

2. Export the metadata and search for the fields in question.

3. Create a field history report for the fields in question.

4. Export the setup audit trail and find the fields in question.

The correct answer is: Export the setup audit trail and find the fields in question.

The best approach to finding information about changes to certain fields within the past two months is through exporting the setup audit trail and examining the changes recorded there. The setup audit trail is a powerful tool within Salesforce that tracks changes made to the organization, including modifications to field properties and configurations over time. By reviewing the audit trail, an architect can pinpoint specific changes, who made them, and when they occurred, thus getting a comprehensive view of any updates to the fields in question. This option stands out because the setup audit trail logs detailed activity that is specifically relevant to the configurations and metadata changes in Salesforce, providing a clear historical context that may not be available through other means. It's particularly useful for understanding not only what changed but also the purpose behind those changes, which is essential for maintaining data integrity and compliance. While other methods like creating a field history report can provide insights into historical changes for record-level data, they do not capture changes to the metadata itself. Similarly, exporting metadata for search may be cumbersome and inefficient for pinpointing specific recent changes, and removing permissions is not relevant to tracking changes for an architect’s requirements. Thus, utilizing the setup audit trail is the most effective and targeted strategy for this situation.