Salesforce Lightning Connect explained: real-time access to external data via OData and querying external objects with SOQL

Outline in brief

• Hook: Real-world need for real-time external data in Salesforce without data duplication

• What Lightning Connect is: Real-time access to external data via OData, external data sources, external objects

• How it works in practice: Mapping, relationships, and the Salesforce UI experience

• Capabilities and clarifications

• A: Write to OData sources without APEX — not the standard pattern

• B: Directly write SOQL queries on external objects — explain the nuance

• C: Associate external records with Salesforce accounts — what’s possible

• D: Use triggers on external objects — usually not supported

• Practical takeaways and design tips

• A few real-world analogies to keep things grounded

• Quick wrap-up

Lightning Connect: bringing outside data into Salesforce, cleanly

Let me paint a simple picture. Imagine your finance team wants to see live customer invoices from an external ERP system right next to Salesforce opportunity records. No copying data, no manual imports, just a live link. That’s exactly the kind of scenario Salesforce Lightning Connect was built for. It lets you connect to external data sources in real-time using OData services and surface that data as if it lived inside Salesforce.

What is Lightning Connect, in plain terms? It’s a bridge. You register an external data source in Salesforce, expose the data through an OData feed, and then create external objects that map to that data. Those external objects behave like Salesforce objects—appear in the UI, can be referenced in reports, and can be related to standard Salesforce records. But here’s the key distinction: the actual data isn’t stored in Salesforce. When you read an external object, Salesforce translates that request into an OData call to the external data source, and the result flows back to Salesforce in real time.

That setup feels almost magical, right? It’s like having a window into another system rather than a copy of its furniture. The live link is powerful for decision making, dashboards, and process automation, because you’re always looking at the most current information.

How the capabilities play out in practice

Before we lock in with a single correct choice, it helps to understand what Lightning Connect can and cannot do, in everyday terms.

• Real-time access to external data via OData

You point Salesforce at an OData endpoint, and Salesforce fetches data on demand. If the external system updates, you see those updates when you refresh or query again. No data duplication in Salesforce storage, no nightly sync jobs.

• External objects that look and feel like Salesforce records

External objects appear in the Salesforce setup like they’re native. You can relate them to accounts, contacts, or other standard objects via relationships. This makes the data feel integrated rather than siloed, which is a huge usability win.

• Point-and-click modeling

A lot of the integration work can be done with clicks and drags in the Salesforce UI—creating external data sources, external objects, and relationships—without heavy coding. That said, you still need to define field mappings, data types, and security appropriately.

• Relationship capabilities

You can link an external object to Salesforce records, such as relating an external invoice to a Salesforce account. These relationships help drive downstream processes like approvals, account-based views, and consolidated reporting.

• Read-only vs. write capabilities

Here’s where real-world nuance matters. Lightning Connect is best known for real-time read access. Some OData sources support write operations, but the standard setup is read-oriented. If the external system supports updates via OData, you can enable write operations through that service—with Salesforce then acting as the consumer that forwards your edits to the external source. In many common scenarios, though, you’ll model and consume data in a read-only mode to keep things straightforward and reliable.

Addressing the common statements about capability

Let’s unpack the multiple-choice notions you’ll encounter in study discussions—especially the ones people get tripped up on.

A. Write to OData sources without APEX

• The quick takeaway: Lightning Connect is not about hacking in new data paths with Apex by default. It’s designed to surface external data in real time through OData and external objects. In many practical use cases, you read data from an external source. Writing back to that source can be possible if the OData service itself supports it and you’ve configured the integration accordingly. But Salesforce’s canonical model emphasizes real-time access and surface-level interaction, not a blanket “write everything directly” approach. So, while write-back can exist in specific setups, it’s not the core, universal pattern you rely on out of the box.

B. Directly write SOQL queries on external objects

• Here’s the nuance that trips people up if they think in black-and-white terms. You can query external objects with SOQL, which makes it feel like you’re querying native Salesforce data. Salesforce translates your SOQL against the external object into underlying OData calls to the external data source. So, in that sense, you are “writing SOQL against external objects,” but the actual data retrieval is still going through the OData layer to the external system. It’s not that you’re issuing a raw, direct OData query within Salesforce; you’re issuing a SOQL query that Salesforce maps to OData behind the scenes. The distinction matters for understanding latency, data freshness, and how you model relationships. It’s a subtle but important difference: you’re querying through Salesforce, not hammering the external endpoint with your own SOQL-like requests.

C. Associate external records with Salesforce accounts

• This one is a practical yes in many setups. External objects can be linked to Salesforce records via external lookups or other relationship types. This makes it possible to present a unified view: for example, an external invoice can be tied to a specific account, so a user can navigate from a Salesforce account to its related external invoice data, and vice versa. It’s one of the big usability benefits: you don’t have to switch apps to see linked data; you can browse a single, connected world.

D. Utilize triggers on external objects

• This one is a no-go in most common Lightning Connect configurations. Triggers—where you’d automatically run custom logic in response to changes—are not typically supported on external objects. If you need automation, you’d generally implement it in the external system (via its own hooks or APIs) or use middleware to synchronize to standard Salesforce objects where Apex triggers can run. It’s a reminder that integration is powerful, but it’s not magic; you need to think about where the data lives and where the logic should execute.

Putting it all together: what this means for design and development

The big takeaway is context. Lightning Connect gives you a robust, real-time window into external data sources, with external objects behaving as part of the Salesforce data model. That means you can:

• Build dashboards and reports that include external data without importing it

• Create user interfaces that feel native to Salesforce

• Establish meaningful relationships between external data and Salesforce records

• Leverage Salesforce sharing and security models to control access to external data

But you’ll want to design carefully:

• Data modeling

Map fields thoughtfully. External data types don’t always map one-to-one with Salesforce types. Align field lengths, formats, and nullability to prevent surprises in the UI.

• Security and access

Use OAuth and appropriate permission sets to ensure only authorized users can view or edit external data (to the extent those operations are supported by the OData service). Security in depth matters—especially when external sources contain sensitive information.

• Performance

Real-time data is powerful, but it can incur latency. Consider how often you truly need live data for the user, and where you might cache or filter results to keep experiences snappy.

• Write-back considerations

If your use case requires updates to the external system, verify that the OData service supports write operations and that Salesforce is configured to perform them correctly. Plan for error handling if the external service is temporarily unavailable.

• Data governance and integrity

Define clear ownership of external data, reconciliation rules, and how stale data is handled. External systems may update at different cadences, and users expect consistency.

A quick analogy to keep it relatable

Think of Lightning Connect like a satellite dish pointed at a distant, but very organized, data planet. You’re not moving the data to your own orbit; you’re receiving it live, and you’ve built an interface that makes the data look like it’s right here with your Salesforce records. Sometimes the signal is crystal clear, other times it’s a touch laggy depending on network and the data source. Still, when you need a decision grounded in the most current information, that live link is incredibly valuable.

A few practical tips you’ll find useful

• Start with a clear data map

Decide which external data is essential for daily workflows. Map those fields to Salesforce external object fields, and plan relationships to standard objects early.

• Prioritize read access

For most users, read operations deliver the most value with the fewest complications. If write-back is necessary, scope it carefully and test thoroughly.

• Use user-friendly interfaces

Even though the data lives outside, you want interfaces that feel cohesive. Leverage quick actions, Lightning pages, and related lists to provide a smooth experience.

• Monitor and tune

Track how often external data is accessed and where users hit latency. Use that insight to refine queries, reduce unnecessary calls, or adjust pagination.

• Plan for failures

External systems can be down or slow. Build graceful error handling in the UI and consider a fallback strategy so users aren’t left staring at error messages.

A closing thought

Lightning Connect doesn’t just pull data into Salesforce; it reframes how teams interact with external information. The real-time access, combined with how external objects emulate native Salesforce records, makes cross-system processes feel natural. It’s not about replacing your existing systems; it’s about weaving them into the daily fabric of your Salesforce workflows.

If you’re ever unsure about the boundaries—whether you’re querying external data through SOQL against external objects, or whether you should enable write-back—pause and map out the end-to-end flow. What happens when a user opens a record? Where does the data originate, and what happens if the external source is unavailable? These questions help you design a solution that’s not only technically sound but also truly usable.

In the end, Lightning Connect is a powerful ally for teams that need a unified, real-time picture of data spread across systems. It’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, but with thoughtful design, it can dramatically reduce data silos and empower informed decisions—without the headache of manual data synchronization. And that’s a win worth aiming for, especially when you’re building integrations that people will actually rely on every day.