To run a comparison, you'll first need to connect your Salesforce orgs and/or source control repos.

You can do this in the My connections section in the left-hand side menu:

Alternatively, you can add Salesforce org connections directly on the Compare and deploy page.

Find out more:

Log in to Gearset and go to the Compare and deploy page, under Metadata deployments in the left-hand side menu.

Under Choose comparison source location, click Salesforce organization.

Enter the username for the org you want to connect to.

If the connection is one you’ve already added via the org connections page, you'll see a green tick next to the username. That connection will now be saved for easy re-use in future comparisons.

Or, click Add new connection.

Repeat for your deployment target location.
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Once you've selected a source and target, the Compare now button will become enabled.

To change the selected Salesforce org connection, you can either click on the drop down arrow to show your list of org connections:

Or you can click in the box where the org name shows, allowing you to edit the name of the previously entered org. This allows you to search your org connections by typing the org name or friendly name, rather then selecting from the drop down.

In the new version of 'Compare and deploy', you can now select your metadata types on-demand. Simply click on a currently pending metadata item to begin its retrieval.
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Alternatively, you have the option to select a custom metadata filter in order to retrieve multiple items at once.

Once you've selected your metadata item(s), you'll be able to see what changes have been made, when and by whom at a glance. Eliminating the need for manual XML diff or change tracking documents.
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For more information, check out our guide on Exploring comparison results.