Platform Limits.
A deliberately small list: only limits I can tie to current official Salesforce sources. No folklore numbers.
| Component | Limit | Type | Operational note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automation Studio SQL Query Activity | 30 minutes | Hard runtime limit | Salesforce recommends reducing scope so queries finish substantially faster; recurring timeouts require optimization. | Salesforce ↗ |
| SQL joins per query | 4 joins | Soft limit | Salesforce recommends 3 joins or fewer for best performance. | Salesforce ↗ |
| Data Extensions operated on per query | 5 DEs | Soft limit | Salesforce recommends 4 or fewer for best performance. | Salesforce ↗ |
| Rows in a Data Extension | 20 million | Soft limit | Treat as platform guidance, not a target architecture size. | Salesforce ↗ |
| Automation Studio Data Views | Most recent 180 days | Retention | The standard rolling window for Data Views; persist history when your use case requires more. | Salesforce ↗ |
| SSJS Script Activity | 30 minutes | Hard runtime limit | Salesforce recommends considering another tool when scripts consistently take more than ~10 minutes. | Salesforce ↗ |