What are Patch Versions in Salesforce? How and why do we use them?

Hello Subhendu,

A patch version enables a developer to change the functionality of existing components in a managed package while ensuring that subscribers experience no visible changes to the package. Patches should be considered as minor upgrades to a Managed - Released Managed - Released package and only used for fixing bugs or other errors.

Patch versions can only be created for Major Releases. Subscribers can receive patch upgrades just like any other package version. However, you can also distribute a patch by using push upgrades.

When you create a patch, the patchNumber on a package's Version Number increments by one. For example, suppose you release a package with the version number 2.0. When you release a patch, the number changes to 2.0.1. This value can't be changed manually.

Every patch is developed in a patch development organization, which is the organization where patch versions are developed, maintained, and uploaded. To start developing a patch, you need to create a patch development organization. To do this, see Create and Upload Patches. Patch development organizations are necessary to permit developers to make changes to existing components without causing incompatibilities between existing subscriber installations.

Hope it helps 🙂