#13🗄️ DataPainful

Hard Delete When Soft Delete Would Do

“Used Hard Delete in Data Loader. Records bypassed the Recycle Bin. Permanent deletion. No recovery.”

What Happened

Needed to clean up old test records in production. Checked the 'Hard Delete' box in Data Loader because I wanted them gone. Turns out I accidentally included real records in my CSV — about 800 Opportunities with activities and attachments. With hard delete, they bypassed the Recycle Bin entirely. No recovery possible without a backup or Salesforce support. We had to file a case with Salesforce to attempt a data recovery, which took two weeks and cost the client money.

The Wrong Way

// Data Loader → Delete
// ☑ Hard Delete (Use Bulk API hard delete)
//
// This bypasses the Recycle Bin entirely.
// Records are PERMANENTLY deleted.
// If your CSV has wrong IDs, they're gone forever.
//
// Accidentally included 800 real Opportunities
// mixed in with test data. All gone.

The Right Way

// Data Loader → Delete
// ☐ Hard Delete (UNCHECKED)
//
// Records go to Recycle Bin for 15 days.
// You can undelete them if something goes wrong.
//
// Also: BEFORE deleting, run a query:
// SELECT Id, Name, Amount, StageName
// FROM Opportunity WHERE Id IN (your-csv-ids)
// Export and REVIEW the results.
// Confirm these are actually the records to delete.
//
// Hard Delete should only be used when you've
// already verified soft delete results.

The Lesson

Never use Hard Delete unless you've already done a soft delete dry run. The Recycle Bin exists for a reason. Use it.

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