Salesforce is retiring Open CTI, marking an important shift in how organizations integrate voice communications with their Salesforce environments.

For years, Open CTI enabled businesses to connect third-party telephony systems with Salesforce and provide capabilities such as screen pops, click-to-dial, call controls, and softphone functionality directly within the Salesforce interface. However, Salesforce has now placed Open CTI into maintenance mode and announced its end-of-life date: February 28, 2028.

For executives, IT leaders, Salesforce administrators, and contact center decision-makers, this is more than a technology retirement. It is an opportunity to review the current voice architecture, reduce technical debt, modernize customer service operations, and prepare for AI-powered contact center capabilities.

This guide explains what the Open CTI retirement means, who is affected, what organizations should evaluate, and how to approach migration strategically.

What Is Open CTI?

Open CTI, or Open Computer Telephony Integration, is a Salesforce JavaScript API that allows third-party computer-telephony systems to integrate with Salesforce.

It enabled organizations to bring telephony functionality into the Salesforce interface without requiring traditional CTI adapters on individual agent machines. Common capabilities included:

• Click-to-dial
• Screen pops
• Call controls
• Softphone functionality
• Call logging
• Customer record access during calls
• Custom CTI workflows

Open CTI became an important integration layer for businesses that wanted their contact center agents to manage calls while working inside Salesforce.

However, Salesforce has confirmed that Open CTI is now in maintenance mode. No new features or enhancements are being added, and the framework is scheduled for retirement on February 28, 2028.

What Is Changing With Open CTI Retirement?

The retirement means organizations can no longer treat Open CTI as a long-term voice integration strategy.

Salesforce has already taken the first major step: effective in 2026, newly created Agentforce Service orgs cannot implement Open CTI. Existing implementations can continue operating until the retirement date, but organizations should begin planning their transition now.

After February 28, 2028, Open CTI implementations will no longer function.

This can affect more than the visible softphone interface. Depending on the implementation, organizations may need to address:

• Open CTI JavaScript integrations
• Third-party CTI adapters
• Call center definitions
• Softphone layouts
• Custom screen-pop logic
• Call routing logic
• Call logging
• Custom JavaScript
• Reporting and dashboards
• Telephony workflows

Salesforce's migration guidance specifically recommends auditing the organization's Open CTI footprint before selecting a replacement architecture.

Why Is Salesforce Retiring Open CTI?

The retirement is part of Salesforce's broader move toward a more native, AI-enabled service architecture.

Open CTI was designed primarily as an integration framework between Salesforce and external telephony platforms. While this provided flexibility, it could also leave important voice data, routing logic, and call experiences fragmented across systems.

Salesforce is now emphasizing Salesforce Voice and other modern contact center architectures that can integrate more deeply with the Salesforce platform.

The goal is to bring voice closer to capabilities such as:

• Omni-Channel
• Agentforce
• AI-powered service
• Real-time call transcription
• Conversation intelligence
• Automated workflows
• Native Salesforce data
• Unified agent experiences

Salesforce describes Voice as the recommended direction for organizations moving away from Open CTI.

For executives, the important point is this:

The Open CTI retirement is not simply an API replacement project. It is an opportunity to modernize the entire voice and customer service architecture.

Who Is Affected by Open CTI Retirement?

Organizations should assume they may be affected if their Salesforce environment currently uses Open CTI for voice interactions.

The first step is to identify all users, applications, integrations, and business processes that depend on Open CTI.

Salesforce recommends reviewing areas such as users assigned to the call center, phone numbers, reports, dashboards, custom logic, screen pops, routing rules, and other CTI-related functionality.

Your organization may be affected if you use:

• A Salesforce-embedded third-party softphone
• Open CTI adapters
• Custom Open CTI JavaScript
• Custom screen-pop functionality
• Salesforce-based click-to-dial
• Open CTI call logging
• Custom call routing logic
• Reports based on CTI call data
• Salesforce integrations built around Open CTI

Even if the current implementation continues to work today, it should not be considered a sustainable long-term architecture.

Open CTI Retirement Timeline

The retirement should be treated as a strategic project rather than something to address immediately before the deadline.

Current status

Open CTI is in maintenance mode and is no longer receiving new features or enhancements.

New Salesforce environments

New Agentforce Service orgs can no longer implement Open CTI.

February 28, 2028

Open CTI reaches end of life.

Existing Open CTI implementations will no longer function after this date.

That gives organizations time to migrate, but large contact centers should not wait until 2027 or 2028 to begin.

A migration can involve telephony providers, Salesforce configuration, custom development, security reviews, user training, testing, reporting, and business-process changes. Starting early gives organizations more time to test and optimize the new architecture.

What Should Executives Do Now?

The first priority should not be selecting a replacement technology.

The first priority should be understanding the current environment.

1. Audit Your Open CTI Footprint

Create an inventory of every Open CTI dependency.

Review:

• Salesforce orgs
• Contact center users
• Telephony providers
• Phone numbers
• CTI adapters
• Softphone configurations
• Custom JavaScript
• Screen-pop logic
• Call routing
• Call logging
• Reports
• Dashboards
• Integrations
• Custom workflows

This gives leadership a clear picture of the scope and complexity of the migration.

2. Document Business Requirements

Do not migrate technology simply for the sake of replacing Open CTI.

Identify what agents and supervisors actually need.

For example:

• Inbound and outbound calling
• Click-to-dial
• Screen pops
• Call recording
• Call transcription
• IVR
• Queue management
• Skills-based routing
• Call disposition
• Agent presence
• Call analytics
• Supervisor monitoring
• AI assistance
• Automated call summaries

Separating business requirements from legacy implementation details helps prevent unnecessary customization.

3. Evaluate the Right Voice Architecture

Salesforce's migration guidance provides multiple paths, including Salesforce Voice with partner telephony, Salesforce Voice with Amazon Connect, and native telephony options within newer contact center architectures.

The right choice depends on your organization's existing telephony infrastructure, Salesforce strategy, contact center requirements, geographic footprint, compliance needs, and AI roadmap.

For organizations already using Amazon Connect, a Salesforce Voice architecture with Amazon Connect can be particularly relevant because it provides a path to modernize the Salesforce voice experience while continuing to leverage an existing cloud contact center platform.

4. Identify Customizations That Can Be Retired

One of the biggest migration opportunities is eliminating unnecessary custom code.

Many organizations originally built custom functionality around Open CTI because they needed to fill gaps in older architectures.

Salesforce's current migration guidance highlights how some common Open CTI customizations can move toward more declarative or native approaches. For example, custom screen-pop logic can be replaced with Omni-Channel Flows, while call logging can leverage native VoiceCall records and automation.

This means a successful migration does not necessarily mean rebuilding every existing customization.

Instead, ask:

Does this customization still provide business value?

If not, retire it.

Why Migration Is About More Than Compliance

Executives should avoid treating retirement as simply a deadline-driven IT task.

A well-planned migration can improve the contact center in several ways.

Better Agent Experience

Agents can access customer information, voice interactions, and service workflows from a more connected environment.

Improved Customer Context

Voice interactions can become more closely connected to Salesforce customer and service data.

Greater Automation

Modern Salesforce architectures can use native automation and workflow capabilities to reduce manual tasks.

AI-Ready Customer Service

Salesforce's current Voice strategy is designed to support capabilities such as real-time transcription, AI-driven assistance, and Agentforce integration.

Reduced Technical Debt

Removing legacy CTI adapters and custom Open CTI logic can simplify long-term maintenance.

What Happens If You Wait?

Waiting does not necessarily create an immediate outage because existing Open CTI implementations can continue until February 28, 2028.

However, delaying the project can create unnecessary risk.

Organizations may face:

• Compressed migration timelines
• Limited testing windows
• Higher implementation pressure
• Increased technical debt
• Difficulty coordinating telephony and Salesforce teams
• Greater risk of business disruption
• Missed opportunities to modernize the contact center

More importantly, remaining on a legacy architecture means continuing to operate without the newer capabilities Salesforce is building around its Voice and AI strategy.

A Practical Open CTI Migration Framework

A structured migration can be divided into five phases.

Phase 1: Discover

Document your current Open CTI architecture.

Identify users, telephony systems, integrations, custom code, reports, workflows, and business requirements.

Phase 2: Assess

Map existing Open CTI functionality to the capabilities available in your target architecture.

Identify:

• What can be migrated
• What should be redesigned
• What can be retired
• What requires custom development

Phase 3: Design

Define the future-state architecture.

Consider:

• Salesforce Voice
• Partner telephony
• Amazon Connect
• Omni-Channel
• Agentforce
• VoiceCall data
• Automation
• Reporting
• Security
• Compliance

Phase 4: Implement and Test

Build the new environment in a controlled manner.

Test:

• Inbound calls
• Outbound calls
• Screen pops
• Routing
• Agent status
• Call logging
• Record creation
• Call transfers
• Reporting
• Integrations
• Failure scenarios

Conduct user acceptance testing with actual contact center agents before production rollout.

Phase 5: Optimize

After migration, monitor the new environment.

Measure:

• Agent productivity
• Average handling time
• First-contact resolution
• Call abandonment
• Customer satisfaction
• Call quality
• Automation adoption
• AI usage
• Reporting accuracy

The objective should not simply be “Open CTI has been replaced.”

The objective should be:

“Our contact center is now more connected, scalable, measurable, and ready for AI.”

Executive Checklist for Open CTI Retirement

Before starting your migration, leadership teams should be able to answer:

• Where is Open CTI currently being used?
• Which Salesforce orgs are affected?
• Which users depend on Open CTI?
• Which telephony provider is currently connected?
• What custom CTI logic exists?
• Which phone numbers and queues are involved?
• Which reports depend on call data?
• Which workflows depend on CTI events?
• What functionality must be retained?
• What legacy functionality can be retired?
• Should the organization adopt Salesforce Voice with partner telephony?
• Would Amazon Connect be part of the future architecture?
• What integrations need to be redesigned?
• What is the testing strategy?
• What is the target migration date?
• How will agents be trained?
• How will success be measured?

Final Thoughts

The retirement of Open CTI represents a significant change for organizations that rely on Salesforce for customer service and contact center operations.

With the end-of-life date set for February 28, 2028, businesses have an opportunity to move beyond simply replacing a legacy API.

The better approach is to use the transition as a catalyst for modernization.

By auditing the existing environment, simplifying legacy customizations, evaluating Salesforce Voice and partner telephony options, and designing around modern capabilities such as Omni-Channel and AI, organizations can build a more scalable customer service architecture.

For businesses already using or evaluating Amazon Connect, the migration can also be an opportunity to connect cloud contact center capabilities more strategically with Salesforce.

Open CTI is being retired. Your customer experience strategy doesn't have to be.

How La Confianza Can Help

Migrating from Open CTI requires more than replacing a technical integration. It requires a clear understanding of Salesforce, telephony, contact center workflows, integrations, and the future customer experience.

La Confianza helps businesses assess their existing Salesforce and contact center environments, design modern voice architectures, and implement integrations that support scalable customer service operations.

Whether your organization is moving toward Salesforce Voice, integrating Amazon Connect with Salesforce, or modernizing its broader service architecture, the right migration strategy can help reduce technical debt while preparing your contact center for the next generation of customer experience.

Ready to plan your Open CTI migration? Talk to our Salesforce and contact center experts.

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