Winter’20 Release has got a lot of updates to the Flow Builder. This post is purely about the Flow Builder new features. Check out the rest of the Winter’20 Release highlights in the other article I’ve written.
Now you can schedule an auto-launched flow to start on a particular date and time and set the frequency to once, daily, or weekly. If you want that scheduled flow to run only for a set of records, you can specify an object and filter.
Here’s how it works – To start a flow for a set of records, select the filter conditions in the Start element. When your flow starts, a flow interview runs for each record that matches your filter—no looping required. The matching record is stored in the $Record global variable, so you can reference the variable or its fields throughout your flow.
Add Lightning Web Components to Your Flow Screens
The powerful features and performance benefits of Lightning web components have come to flow screens. You can now integrate components that your developers have built or find them on AppExchange for use in your flow screens.
Example: This component lets the user manually add and manage sharing settings on a record.
To make a Lightning web component available to a flow screen as a screen component, lightning__FlowScreen must be a target in the component’s targets tag, and the isExposed tag must be set to true. The component can use events in the new lightning/flowSupport module.
Configure Screens and Get Records Elements Without Creating Variables
You no longer have to create and assign variables, but you can still opt to do so. When you add a screen component or a Get Records element to a flow, Salesforce automatically creates variables to store the output values.
To use values from a screen component later in the flow, start typing the API name of the screen component.
If you don’t want to use automatically created variables, select Manually assign variables (advanced).
Help Your Users Search for Records in Flows
Let users search for a record the same way they do everywhere else in Salesforce by adding a Lookup screen component. In Flow Builder, drag the Lookup component onto your flow screen. When you specify the object and field API names, enter an exact match.
And the result!
Make Your Flow Screens Dynamic with Conditional Visibility
Save your users time by showing them only the fields they need when they need them. Add filter conditions and logic to a flow screen component’s properties to show or hide that component based on what a user enters or selects for flow resources like picklists or checkboxes.
Example: display address fields only when checkbox is ticked.
Use Apex-Defined Data Type Collection Variables with Operators in Assignment and Decision Elements
Apex-defined data types let flows work with complex data objects, which are commonly required by web services. Assignment and Decision elements can now manipulate Apex-defined collection variables with the full set of operators.
Example: a flow uses an Apex-defined collection variable to store a list of car registrations from a system outside of Salesforce
Use Flow Builder to Send Custom Notifications
Send customized notifications when important events occur. Previously, custom notification actions were fully supported only in Process Builder. Now the Notification Type IDs that you create in Notification Builder are available directly in the Flow Builder UI.
Create Resources More Easily in Flow Builder
When you set a field on an element by selecting New Resource, a window opens for you to define the new resource. When you finish creating the resource, the element field now specifies the resource as you would expect. Previously, the element field remained blank, and you had to manually enter the new resource.
Get Longer Element Labels, Improved Panning, and Drag Selection in Flow Builder
Activate Your Flow Without Leaving Flow Builder
Click the new Activate button (1) in the button bar. Also, the open flow’s activation status has a new location (2).
Find the Flow Type in Advanced Settings
Changing a flow’s type can be tricky because each type of flow supports a different set of building blocks and functionality. To prevent you from accidentally changing the type when you save a flow as a new flow, we moved the Type field into the advanced settings.
And Finally – The End of Desktop Flow Designer
We’ve come to the end of the road for flows designed with the Desktop Flow Designer. Flows built with the Desktop Flow Designer—also known as the Swing Flow UI—no longer run, and you receive an error when you try to open them.
For the rest of the release highlights, check out my post Winter’20 Release highlights.
sfdcFanBoy 
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