Definition
Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce) is a feature that enables two separate Salesforce organizations to share records with each other. Administrators establish a connection between orgs by sending and accepting connection invitations, then configure which objects and fields to publish (share) and subscribe to (receive). This allows partner companies or divisions with separate Salesforce orgs to collaborate on shared Leads, Opportunities, or Cases.
Real-World Example
an architect at Skyline Consulting recently implemented Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce) to extend their Salesforce implementation to meet growing business demands. Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce) provides the additional capability they need without requiring a separate third-party system, keeping everything within the trusted Salesforce ecosystem and reducing integration complexity.
Why Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce) Matters
Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce, or S2S) is a feature that establishes a record-sharing link between two separate Salesforce organizations. Admins in each org send and accept connection invitations, then configure which objects and fields are 'published' (shared out) and 'subscribed to' (received in). Once active, records on published objects can be shared with the partner org by accepting them, and updates flow bidirectionally based on the configuration.
S2S is most often used for partner collaboration where two companies need to share specific records (like Leads, Opportunities, or Cases) without giving each other full access to their orgs. It's also used internally when a single company runs multiple Salesforce orgs (acquired companies, divisions with separate orgs, regional setups) and needs to share data across them. S2S is a built-in feature that works natively, but it has limitations on object types, field types, and complex workflows, so for richer integrations many orgs use middleware like MuleSoft instead.
How Organizations Use Connection (for Salesforce to Salesforce)
- •Skyline Consulting — Set up an S2S connection between a client and their reseller partner. The reseller's Salesforce org receives shared Lead records from the client, and any updates the reseller makes flow back to the client's org automatically.
- •Vertex Global — Maintains S2S connections between three regional Salesforce orgs that share Account and Opportunity records for global customers. Each region owns its own org, but key shared records stay in sync across regions.
- •NovaScale — Evaluated S2S versus middleware for a partner integration and chose middleware (MuleSoft) because they needed bidirectional sync of complex fields and child records that S2S didn't support cleanly.