Avoiding damage at scale.
WHY IT MATTERS MORE HERE
Administration scripts change many objects at once, and mistakes affect everyone.
WHAT TO ALWAYS IMPLEMENT
A mode showing what would happen without doing it.
WHAT THE PLATFORM PROVIDES
Built-in support for that, when the script declares it.
WHAT TO ALWAYS DO BEFORE A BULK CHANGE
Run against one object Then a small group Then everything
WHAT TO OUTPUT
What was changed, with identifiers, to a log.
WHY
So the change can be reviewed and, if necessary, reversed.
WHAT TO CAPTURE BEFORE CHANGING
The current state of what you are about to modify.
WHY
It is what makes reversal possible.
WHAT TO VALIDATE
Every input, before acting.
WHAT TO CHECK SPECIFICALLY
That a variable used in a filter is not empty.
WHY
An empty filter selects everything.
WHAT TO NEVER DO
Run an unfamiliar script against production Run with more privilege than required Suppress errors to make a script complete
WHAT TO TEST
Against a non-production environment, where one exists.
WHAT TO REVIEW
Scripts that run unattended, particularly.
