Routing Configuration
A Routing Configuration is an Omni-Channel setup record that tells Salesforce how to distribute work items to service reps.
Definition
A Routing Configuration is an Omni-Channel setup record that tells Salesforce how to distribute work items to service reps. It defines the routing model, the routing priority, how much capacity each item consumes, and how long a rep has to accept a pushed item before it moves on.
Each routing configuration is tied to a queue. When a case, chat, lead, or custom object record enters that queue, Omni-Channel reads the attached configuration to decide who receives the work and in what order. You build them in Setup under Routing Configurations, then attach them to queues.
How a routing configuration shapes Omni-Channel work distribution
Where it sits in the Omni-Channel model
Omni-Channel routes work through queues, and a routing configuration is the rulebook attached to each queue. Setup has two related but separate records. The queue holds the work and lists which objects it accepts and which reps are members. The routing configuration controls the behavior: which model picks the rep, how items rank against each other, and how much load each item adds. You can point several queues at the same configuration when they should behave identically, or give each queue its own. When a record lands in a queue, Omni-Channel reads that queue's routing configuration before it does anything else. It checks the routing model to find a candidate rep, the routing priority to order the work, and the units of capacity to confirm the rep has room. If no rep qualifies, the item waits in the queue until one frees up. This separation of queue and configuration is what lets a contact center run many work types through one consistent engine while still tuning each lane independently.
Least Active versus Most Available
The routing model is the single most important choice in the record. Least Active sends the new item to the rep with the least open work, counting the items currently assigned to each available rep. It spreads volume evenly, so over a shift everyone handles a similar number of cases or chats. Most Available sends the item to the rep with the greatest difference between total capacity and current open work. It targets whoever has the most headroom right now, which suits teams whose reps carry different capacity ceilings. The practical difference shows up when reps are not identical. Say one rep has a capacity of 10 and three open items, and another has a capacity of 5 and one open item. Least Active picks the second rep, who has fewer open items. Most Available picks the first rep, whose gap between capacity and load is larger (seven versus four). Neither is universally better. Least Active feels fair to reps; Most Available keeps your highest-capacity people busiest. Pick based on how you measure a healthy queue.
Units of capacity and work item size
Capacity is how Omni-Channel knows when a rep is full. You set a Units of Capacity value, also shown as work item size, on the routing configuration. That number is how much of a rep's total capacity one item from this queue consumes. The rep's total capacity lives on their presence configuration. A simple setup gives every rep a capacity of, say, 5, and assigns each chat a size of 1, so a rep handles five chats at once. Because the size lives on the routing configuration and not the queue, different work types can weigh differently. A live chat might cost 1 unit while a complex case costs 3, reflecting that the case demands more attention. When the sum of a rep's open work reaches their capacity, Omni-Channel stops routing new items to them until something closes. Some configurations express the limit as a percentage of capacity instead of a flat unit count. Getting these numbers right is the difference between reps who are stretched thin and reps who sit idle while work piles up in the queue.
Routing priority and push time-out
Routing priority sets the order in which Omni-Channel works through items when more than one is waiting. Lower numbers rank higher, so a configuration with priority 1 is served before one with priority 2. Many centers route urgent channels, like phone or premium support, through a queue whose configuration carries a higher priority than standard email. Priority does not skip capacity checks. It only decides who goes first among items that are otherwise ready to route. Push time-out controls how long a rep has to accept an item that Omni-Channel pushes to their console. If the rep does not accept within the set number of seconds, Omni-Channel pulls the item back and offers it to the next eligible rep. This keeps work moving when someone steps away without changing their status. Push time-out is available only with the Least Active and Most Available models. It does not apply to external routing, where a third-party system owns the accept-and-assign logic instead of Omni-Channel.
Overflow, external routing, and the developer name
The overflow assignee is a fallback. If a work item cannot be routed, for example because no rep has capacity and the item has waited too long, Omni-Channel can hand it to a named user or queue you set as the overflow assignee. This stops items from sitting unrouted indefinitely. Treat the overflow target as a safety net, not a normal path, and watch how often it fires, because heavy overflow usually means capacity or staffing needs attention. The routing model also offers External Routing. With that selected, Omni-Channel hands the work to an external system through the Omni-Channel API rather than picking a rep itself. Partners use this to plug their own routing engines into Salesforce. Every routing configuration also has a Developer Name, a system-friendly unique identifier used by the API and by metadata deployments. You reference the Developer Name when you move configurations between sandboxes and production, so keep it stable and descriptive once a configuration is live.
Tuning routing configurations over time
A routing configuration is rarely right on the first try. New contact centers often start with one configuration and a flat capacity, then split work types apart as patterns emerge. The signals to watch are average speed to answer, how evenly work spreads across reps, and how often items overflow or sit in the queue. If a few reps carry far more than others, the model or the capacity weights probably need a change. If urgent work waits behind routine work, revisit routing priority. Changes take effect for new work, so you can adjust a configuration during a shift without disrupting items already assigned. A common refinement is moving from a single shared configuration to one per channel, so chat, case, and messaging each get capacity weights that match their real effort. Skills-based routing and Omni-Channel flows can layer more logic on top, but the routing configuration stays the place where the core model, priority, and capacity numbers live. Review it on a schedule, not just when something breaks, and let your operational data drive the next adjustment.
Create and attach a routing configuration
Create a routing configuration in Setup, then attach it to the queue that should use it. You need the Customize Application permission. Plan your routing model and capacity numbers before you start so the values are intentional.
- Open Routing Configurations
From Setup, type Routing in the Quick Find box and select Routing Configurations. Click New to start a fresh record.
- Name the configuration
Enter a Routing Configuration Name that describes the work it handles, such as Premium Chat Routing. Salesforce fills in the Developer Name automatically; adjust it if needed before saving.
- Set priority and routing model
Enter a Routing Priority, where lower numbers route first. Choose a Routing Model: Least Active for even distribution, Most Available for greatest headroom, or External Routing to hand off to a third-party engine.
- Set capacity and push time-out
Enter the Units of Capacity (work item size) that each item from this queue consumes against a rep's total capacity. For Least Active or Most Available, set a Push Time-Out so unaccepted items reroute after the chosen number of seconds.
- Save and attach to a queue
Save the configuration. Then edit the relevant queue and set its Routing Configuration field to this record so work in that queue follows these rules.
The label that identifies the configuration in Setup and on the queue.
System-generated unique API name; keep it stable for metadata deployments.
The order items route in, where a lower number is served first.
Least Active, Most Available, or External Routing, deciding how a rep is chosen.
How much of a rep's total capacity one item from this queue consumes.
- A routing configuration does nothing until you attach it to a queue. Creating the record alone will not route any work.
- Push Time-Out is hidden unless the routing model is Least Active or Most Available; it does not apply to External Routing.
- Capacity is split between the routing configuration (item size) and the presence configuration (rep total). Check both when reps fill up too fast or too slow.
- Least Active and Most Available behave differently only when reps have unequal capacity or load, so test with realistic numbers, not a single test agent.
Trust & references
Cross-checked against the following references.
- Routing Configuration SettingsSalesforce
- Routing Model Options for Omni-ChannelSalesforce
Straight from the source - Salesforce's reference material on Routing Configuration.
Hands-on resources to go deeper on Routing Configuration.
About the Author
Dipojjal Chakrabarti is a B2C Solution Architect with 29 Salesforce certifications and over 13 years in the Salesforce ecosystem. He runs salesforcedictionary.com to help admins, developers, architects, and cert/interview candidates sharpen their fundamentals. More about Dipojjal.
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