platform-apex-anonymous-run

Run anonymous Apex against the connected Salesforce org via sf apex run --file, capture the debug log, and narrate compile-time and runtime outcomes back to the developer.

This is the agent-side equivalent of VS Code's Execute Anonymous Apex (document and selection) commands.

This skill is runtime, not generation — for authoring .cls / .trigger files use platform-apex-generate; for running Apex unit tests use platform-apex-test-run; for deep debug-log analysis (governor breakdowns, SOQL-in-loop detection) hand off to platform-apex-logs-debug.

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Tool Restrictions

Use ONLY the Bash tool to execute sf apex run, and the Write tool to stage snippet temp files. Do NOT use MCP tools for execution.

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Anonymous Apex is NOT read-only

Anonymous Apex executes with the running user's permissions and can perform DML, callouts, and platform events. Treat every invocation as a write unless the developer has stated otherwise.

• Verification-style scripts (preferred for "test this"): wrap the body in a savepoint + rollback so org state is untouched:

  Savepoint sp = Database.setSavepoint();
  try {
      // ... code under test ...
  } finally {
      Database.rollback(sp);
  }
  

• Production org heads-up: if the resolved <alias> points at a production org (no scratch/sandbox markers in sf org display --json), surface a clear warning before running. This is informational only — there is no automated block. Always wait for an explicit "yes, run it" before executing destructive scripts in prod.

• Never run anonymous Apex you did not generate or have not been shown — if the developer pastes a snippet, echo it back and confirm before executing.

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Workflow

Step 1 — Identify the target org

Resolve the active org alias from configuration. If target-org is set, the --target-org flag may be omitted from the command, but always log which alias was used in the report.

sf config get target-org --json

Throughout this skill, <alias> is the resolved alias or username. If no target-org is set, ask the developer; do not silently default. If the org is not authenticated, re-authenticate with sf org login web or switch orgs with the dx-org-switch skill.

Step 2 — Resolve the input mode

Mode	When	Action
File mode	Developer points at an existing path ending in .apex (or any path they specify)	Run sf apex run --file <path> directly
Snippet mode	Developer pastes Apex code into the conversation	Write to .sfdx/tmp/anon-<unix-ts>.apex first, then run sf apex run --file <tmp-path>

Why a temp file for snippets, instead of an inline flag? The current sf apex run CLI only supports --file (and interactive stdin). It does not expose an --apex-code flag. Even where inline code is supported by other tooling, multi-line Apex passed inline runs into shell-escaping pitfalls (single quotes in string literals, backslashes, embedded $). Writing to a temp file is the only reliable path for arbitrary snippets.

Verify CLI flags before deviating:

sf apex run --help

Supported flags (as of writing): --file/-f, --target-org/-o, --api-version, --json, --flags-dir. Do not invent flags — if the task asks for something not listed, surface that to the developer rather than guessing.

Step 3 — Set up trace flags (for useful logs)

sf apex run returns a debug log only if a TraceFlag is active for the running user (or a streaming tail is attached). Recommended path — let the developer tail logs in another terminal:

sf apex tail log --target-org <alias> --color

This auto-creates a short-lived TraceFlag for the running user and streams logs as anonymous Apex executes. Mention this in the report so the developer can copy/paste it.

If no trace flag is set up, sf apex run will still execute the code and return compile/runtime status — only the debug log body will be missing or sparse.

Step 4 — Snippet mode: write the temp file

Only applies when the input is a pasted snippet:

mkdir -p .sfdx/tmp
TS=$(date +%s)
# write the snippet content to .sfdx/tmp/anon-${TS}.apex via the Write tool, NOT via shell heredoc

Use the agent's Write tool (not a heredoc) so the snippet is preserved verbatim — heredocs subject the content to additional shell expansion. Echo the resolved temp path to the developer in the report. Do not auto-clean the temp file after execution — leave it under .sfdx/tmp/ for inspection. The .sfdx/ directory is conventionally gitignored.

Step 5 — Execute

sf apex run --file <path> --target-org <alias> --json

• Always pass --json. Human-format output conflates compile vs runtime errors.
• If target-org is already configured, --target-org may be omitted, but log the alias used.
• The command exits non-zero on compile errors. Capture both stdout and the parsed JSON.

Step 6 — Parse the JSON response

The sf apex run --json response shape (relevant fields):

{
  "status": 0,
  "result": {
    "compiled": true,
    "success": true,
    "compileProblem": "",
    "exceptionMessage": "",
    "exceptionStackTrace": "",
    "line": -1,
    "column": -1,
    "logs": "...full debug log text..."
  }
}

Decision tree:

compiled	success	Meaning	Surface
false	—	Compile failure	compileProblem, line, column, the offending source line
true	false	Runtime exception	exceptionMessage, exceptionStackTrace, plus log tail
true	true	Success	Whatever the script printed via System.debug (extracted from logs)

status !== 0 (top-level) means the CLI itself failed (not authenticated, file not found, network). Surface the raw error and stop.

Step 7 — Surface the debug log

• Short logs (< ~200 lines): inline the log body in the report between fenced code blocks.
• Large logs: write the log to .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.log and report the path. Include the last 30 lines inline as a tail summary.
• Empty / missing log: likely no active TraceFlag. Surface the Step 3 setup hint and proceed with whatever compile/runtime status was returned.

Highlight these patterns when present in the log:

Pattern	Why it matters
LIMIT_USAGE_FOR_NS lines	Governor consumption snapshot — flag SOQL/DML/CPU near-limit
EXCEPTION_THROWN	Unhandled exception within the anonymous block
FATAL_ERROR	Unrecoverable error — show the full trailing block
SOQL_EXECUTE_BEGIN count > 1 inside a loop	SOQL-in-loop hint (hand off to platform-apex-logs-debug)
DML_BEGIN count high	Unbatched DML hint

Do not attempt full log parsing here — surface signals only, then hand off to platform-apex-logs-debug for deep analysis.

Step 8 — Report

Anonymous Apex run: <one-line summary — file or snippet, success or failure>
Org: <alias>  (mode: scratch | sandbox | production)
Source: <file path or temp path for snippet>
Compile: success | <error + line:column>
Runtime: success | <exception type + message>
Limits: <CPU=x/10000ms, SOQL=y/100, DML=z/150>  (only when log includes LIMIT_USAGE_FOR_NS)
Log: <inline | path .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.log>
Rollback: applied | not applied | n/a
Next: <suggested follow-up>

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Examples

Example 1 — File mode

"Run scripts/seed-test-data.apex against my default org."

1. Resolve <alias> from sf config get target-org --json.
2. Confirm the file exists; if not, stop and surface file not found.
3. Run sf apex run --file scripts/seed-test-data.apex --target-org <alias> --json.
4. Parse JSON. Report compile/runtime status, log tail, and org mode.
5. Suggest: "If this seeded real data and you'd like to verify without persisting, re-run with the rollback wrapper (snippet mode)."

Example 2 — Snippet mode (read query)

"Execute System.debug([SELECT count() FROM Account]); and tell me the count."

1. Resolve <alias>.
2. Echo the snippet back; confirm.
3. Write the snippet to .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.apex (Write tool).
4. Run sf apex run --file .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.apex --target-org <alias> --json.
5. Parse result.logs; extract the USER_DEBUG line for the count.
6. Report: "Account count = N. Source: .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.apex (kept for reference)."

Example 3 — Verification with rollback

"Test that this Apex correctly upserts a Contact, then rollback."

1. Resolve <alias>. If prod, surface a heads-up before running.

2. Wrap the developer's snippet:

   Savepoint sp = Database.setSavepoint();
   try {
       // ---- developer snippet begins ----
       Contact c = new Contact(LastName = 'Smoke', Email = 'smoke@example.com');
       upsert c Email;
       System.debug('Upserted: ' + c.Id);
       // ---- developer snippet ends ----
   } finally {
       Database.rollback(sp);
       System.debug('Rolled back savepoint.');
   }
   

3. Write to .sfdx/tmp/anon-<ts>.apex, execute, parse JSON.

4. Report compile/runtime status, the upserted Id from the log, and Rollback: applied.

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Failure Modes

Symptom	Cause	Recovery
No authorization information found for ...	Org not authenticated, or alias is wrong	Run sf org list --json; re-auth with sf org login web or use dx-org-switch
ENOENT: no such file or directory, open '<path>'	.apex file path is wrong or relative to the wrong cwd	Confirm absolute path; re-run
compileProblem non-empty in JSON	Apex compile error	Surface compileProblem, line, column; show that line; suggest a fix
success: false with exceptionMessage	Runtime exception inside the anonymous block	Surface exception type + message + stack; show governor counts if present
logs field is empty even on success	No active TraceFlag for running user	Tell developer to run sf apex tail log --target-org <alias> in another terminal, then re-run
status !== 0 with no result	CLI / network / auth failure before execution	Surface raw stderr; do not retry blindly
Unrecognized flag error	Spec drift with the installed CLI	Re-check sf apex run --help; do not invent flags

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Rules

• Always pass --json.
• Always resolve <alias> from configuration or the developer; never hardcode.
• Never use --apex-code-style inline flags — they are not supported by the current CLI and are escape-hostile. Always go through --file.
• Always echo a pasted snippet back to the developer for confirmation before executing.
• For verification-style scripts, default to wrapping in Database.setSavepoint() + Database.rollback().
• For prod orgs, surface a heads-up but do not auto-block — the developer is in charge.
• Do not auto-delete temp files under .sfdx/tmp/.
• This skill executes anonymous Apex; it does not author, deploy, or test .cls/.trigger files. For those, hand off to platform-apex-generate, the deploy skills, or platform-apex-test-generate.
• For deep log analysis, hand off to platform-apex-logs-debug.