---
schema_version: "1"
id: eeaca74fdf44399be4e86ededd4fe0c5bd7bef9f4cfefca0ca30def7f926cc66
title: HelpSettings
collection: legacydeveloper
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/legacydeveloper/current/en-us/api_meta/meta_helpsettings.md
canonical_url: https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/atlas.en-us.api_meta.meta/api_meta/meta_helpsettings.htm
source_site: developer.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 1dfd3441a89c6300a99b0045c05c1343eca749fea6fd7e5642c4bff089ecd28e
description: Represents the org setting that changes the destination of help.salesforce.com to an alternative URL. Use this setting to deploy and retrieve the alternative Help URL.
---
# HelpSettings

Represents the org setting that changes the destination of help.salesforce.com to an alternative URL. Use this setting to deploy and retrieve the alternative Help URL.

## Parent Type

This type extends the [Metadata](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/atlas.en-us.api_meta.meta/api_meta/metadata.htm "The base class for all metadata types. You can’t edit this object. A component is an instance of a metadata type.") metadata type and inherits its fullName field.

In the package manifest, all organization settings metadata types are accessed using the Settings name. See [Settings](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/atlas.en-us.264.0.api_meta.meta/api_meta/meta_settings.htm) for details.

## File Suffix and Directory Location

HelpSettings values are stored in the Help.settings file in the settings directory. The .settings files are different from other named components because there’s only one settings file for each settings component.

## Version

HelpSettings components are available in API version 68.0 and later.

## Special Access Rules

To retrieve or deploy HelpSettings, users need the Customize Application permission. You can’t create or delete this component. HelpSettings isn’t supported in unlocked packages.

## Fields

| Field Name | Description |
| --- | --- |
| alternativeUrl | 
Field Type

string

Description

The alternative URL that opens when users access Salesforce Help. The URL can contain up to 255 characters and must be a valid URL. If validation fails, deployment returns an INVALID\_OPERATION error. If the element is omitted from a deployment, the existing URL doesn’t change. To clear the alternative URL, leave the field blank.



 |

## Declarative Metadata Sample Definition

The following is an example of a HelpSettings component.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<HelpSettings xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
    <alternativeUrl\>https://help.example.com/docs</alternativeUrl\>
</HelpSettings\>

The following is an example package.xml that references the previous definition.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Package xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
    <types\>
        <members\>Help</members\>
        <name\>Settings</name\>
    </types\>
    <version\>68.0</version\>
</Package\>

## Wildcard Support in the Manifest File

The wildcard character \* (asterisk) in the package.xml manifest file doesn’t apply to metadata types for feature settings. The wildcard applies only when retrieving all settings, not for an individual setting. For details, see [Settings](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/atlas.en-us.api_meta.meta/api_meta/meta_settings.htm "Represents the organization settings related to a feature. For example, your password policies, session settings and network access controls are all available in the SecuritySettings component type."). For information about using the manifest file, see [Deploying and Retrieving Metadata with the Zip File](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/atlas.en-us.api_meta.meta/api_meta/file_based_zip_file.htm "The deploy() and retrieve() calls are used to deploy and retrieve a .zip file. Within the .zip file is a project manifest (package.xml) that lists what to retrieve or deploy, and one or more XML components that are organized into folders.").