This documentation explains how Vlocode exports Salesforce/Vlocity records into
datapacks and deploys them back into an org. It covers the concepts behind
datapacks, the vlocode command line interface, how to author export
definitions, how the export and deployment pipelines work internally, and the
extension points available on both sides.
The export and deployment engines live in the
@vlocode/vlocity-deploy package and are
driven from the @vlocode/cli command line tool
(vlocode). The same APIs are used by the Vlocode VS Code extension.
This guide is written for Salesforce developers, release engineers, and architects who package and move Vlocity/OmniStudio metadata between orgs. It assumes working knowledge of Salesforce (SObjects, SOQL, metadata) and of Vlocity/OmniStudio concepts; it explains the parts that are specific to Vlocode.
A datapack is a portable, file-based representation of one or more Salesforce records and their relationships. Instead of moving records by Id — which is not stable across orgs — a datapack identifies each record by a source key derived from business data (a matching key). On deployment those keys are matched back to records in the target org, so the same datapack can be deployed to many orgs and re-deployed idempotently.
Datapacks are the unit of transport for Vlocity/OmniStudio metadata such as OmniScripts, Integration Procedures, Product catalogs, Calculation/Decision matrices, UI Templates, and DataRaptors, but the engine is generic and can export any SObject graph.
| Document | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Concepts | Datapacks, source keys, matching keys, references, and dependencies — the vocabulary used throughout. |
| CLI reference | Installing and authenticating the vlocode CLI, global options, logging, exit codes, and every command. |
| Exporting datapacks | Selecting records, export manifests, and the export pipeline (query → retrieve → expand → write). |
| Building export definitions | Authoring export-definition YAML: matching keys, filters, embedded objects, field settings, and file expansion. |
| Importing / deploying datapacks | The deployment pipeline: dependency resolution, ordering, matching, and upsert. |
| Customizing deployment with specs | The deployment-spec extension model and per-datapack-type customization. |
vlocode is the installed command; examples assume it is on your PATH.%vlocity_namespace%__ is a placeholder for the Vlocity managed-package
namespace, substituted at runtime so artifacts stay portable across orgs.Product2 denote a datapack type; an objectType
value denotes a Salesforce SObject API name. See
Concepts for the distinction.# 1. Install the CLI (Node.js >= 20)
npm install --global @vlocode/cli
# 2. Export a Product2 and all its dependencies into expanded datapack files
vlocode export \
--definitions ./export-definitions.yaml \
--type Product2 \
--query "SELECT Id FROM Product2 WHERE IsActive = true" \
--depth -1 \
--expand \
--output ./datapacks \
--user source-org
# 3. Deploy the exported datapacks to another org
vlocode deploy ./datapacks --user target-org
See the CLI reference for authentication options and the full command surface, and Exporting / Importing for the end-to-end workflows.