---
schema_version: "1"
id: ce6fac59790322601dcfd74bd3b2075b78e170bb196f870e59d74a98de16abf3
title: Anonymize FAQs
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/platform/264-0-0/anonymize_o_faqs.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.anonymize_o_faqs.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: cb24f706fc9ae2be09986333ae70262469e26dce56c57bc1e591d57b0633ff83
description: If you encounter issues related to Anonymize for Salesforce, the answers to frequently-asked questions can sometimes help you.
products:
  - Security
  - Salesforce Platform
release: "264"
---
# Anonymize FAQs

If you encounter issues related to Anonymize for Salesforce, the answers to frequently-asked questions can sometimes help you.

## What are History Table and Feed Tracking and why are we deleting them?

Field History tracks value changes in a field. A user enables the history tracking for an object (in Fields & Relationships page per object) and selects the relevant fields. When the selected field values change, an entry is added in the History related list of the object. Feed Tracking detects changes to tracked record fields and posts them as updates in the What I Follow feed. A user selects the relevant objects and their fields in Setup, Feed Tracking. Any change in these fields is mentioned in the objects Chatter. We clear these tables as they record the original data that should be anonymized.

## Do I need to assign new permissions in order to delete History tables and Feed?

Yes, in your sandbox, open the authenticated user, User settings and view the profile permissions. Edit the profile and check Enable Delete From Field History and Bulk API Hard Delete permissions. These permissions are only available if you have already selected them in the Salesforce User Interface (the Delete from Field History and Delete from Field History Archive User Permission).

## Will History and/or Feed errors fail the job?

No, the Anonymize job completes, but the History tables and Feed are not cleared.

## What exactly are we deleting in the History table and Feed?

We delete the entire Field History table of all objects selected in the template. For the Feed, we delete ALL records that contain field changes for ALL of the sandbox objects.

## What happens if I clear a mandatory field?

The Anonymize job fails to anonymize the records connected to the mandatory field.

## Can I select what automations to disable prior to running the anonymization?

Yes, in the Anonymize window when selecting the Custom option in the Automations, a list of all available automations is displayed. Only select the automation you want to disable. They are automatically re-enabled once the anonymization completes.

## I ran an anonymization job but I don’t see the data I just added to my sandbox anonymized - why is that?

The last updates were probably not included in the backup. You can choose to fetch the data from the live source (in the run popup) and get your latest data anonymized. However, doing so consumes many API calls. Therefore, we recommend either using filters or waiting for the next backup.

## I tried anonymizing my full sandbox but the job failed because my sandbox is extremely large. What can I do?

In this case, if you use Recover, you can select to fetch the data from available backups. Doing so replaces querying Salesforce for the data and, along the way, reduces consumption of many API calls.

## I added an object to my template, but it is missing a field.

A field can be hidden from the authenticated user because it is missing read permissions for that field. Add the missing field permissions.

1. Navigate to the Backup tab and select the relevant service.
2. In the Dashboard, a warning message is displayed advising that some fields may have failed to be backed up, due to permission issues. Click the see report link or click Permissions Report on the side menu. The Permission Report opens.
3. Search for missing file.
4. Navigate to the Options tab to verify the Authenticated User.
5. In Salesforce add the fields’ permission to the authenticated user.