JTD-DesignerSeries-3-AdminBeginner

How Salesforce Architecture is different

Salesforce applications reside in the cloud, which means few things:
a) Application & Platform services are accessible through the browser and there is no need for on-premise installation.
b) Platform generates freebies like Page Layouts, mobile access with the help of metadata layer and provides API first approach to provide ease of customization.
c) Multitenancy supports sharing of underlying infrastructure which helps Salesforce deliver services to all of its customers in the same way at a lower cost.
d) AppExchange allows customers to take extensibility of salesforce app & platform to next level by allowing partners develop out of the box apps & resources for enterprises, similar to Apple App Store & Google Play Store.

Objects & Relationships
a) Data Model are defined in the form of custom objects, Lookup & Master-Detail relationships using Platform tools like Object Manager.
b) Data Management utilities like Data Loader helps import & export data sets from local files into objects into Salesforce Cloud environments.
c) Developers uses SOQL & DML programming constructs in Apex Classes to manipulate the application data layer.


Customizations
a) Custom tabs on objects & components can be stacked to create Lightning Apps to support coarse grained business functions. Tabs can provide a layer of abstraction to the underlying objects as a reusable component which can be used in different applications.
b) Lightning Apps can be powered by other platform services like chatter, reports and further allow admins to configure the app behavior & styling by costunizing list views, page layouts, compact layouts, quick actions, custom buttons etc.
c) Salesforce Mobile App is readily available with the platform at no additional cost and uses the power of metadata & APIs to further customize the app behavior. Mobile App can then be customized with Quick Actions (Global & Object Specific), Compact Layouts & Navigation (SmartSearchItems).
d) Platform allows reporting & tracking as object configuration and allow admins to configure different report view based on report type, filters. Dashboards allows admins to add different components (Reports, Visualforce, Lightning) as visuals on a single dashboard page to show key metrics & trends.


Security
Salesforce security model defines controls at different level starting from org, object, field & individual records.
a) Access to org is controlled by managing users, setting password & IP policies, enabling single sign on & authorization access using protocols like SAML, OAuth.
b) CRUD access on objects is controlled using profiles & permission sets. Users are assigned a single profile and can be assigned multiple permission sets to provide additional access.
c) Requirements like managing access to sensitive fields like SSN can be managed by restricting field level access using field level profile settings and additional access can be granted using permission sets.
d) Object Data, in the form of records, has a record owner, and record level access is controlled in four ways. Generally model suggests to lock down the data to most restrictive level with Org-Wide Defaults and then use tools like Role Hierarchies, Sharing Rules, Manual Sharing & Apex based sharing to open up access for profiles, groups, roles, users.



Links & References
a) https://trailhead.salesforce.com/trails/force_com_admin_beginner
b) https://trailhead.salesforce.com/en/modules/data_security