Visualforce and Lightning

Q: Can I make a Lightning Component that shows up in both the mobile and the desktop user interfaces?

A: You can use Lightning Components directly in Lightning Experience, the Salesforce1 Mobile app, template-based communities, and custom standalone apps. Additionally, you can include Lightning components in a Visualforce page, allowing you to use them in Salesforce Classic, Console, and Visualforce-based communities.

Q: Visualforce already has components. How are Lightning Component different and why would I want to use them?

A: Visualforce components are page-centric and most of the work is done on the server. Lightning is designed from the component up, rather than having the concept of a page as its fundamental unit. Lightning Components are client-side centric, which makes them more dynamic and mobile-friendly.

See the User Interface Development Considerations unit of the Lightning Experience Development module on Trailhead for an in-depth explanation of this issue.

Q: What happens to my existing Visualforce Pages?

A: They’ll continue to be supported in the current UI and Lightning Experience. See the Trailhead module on this topic.

Q: Does Lightning work with Visualforce?

A: Yep. See Add Lightning Components to Visualforce Pages in the Lightning Components Developer's Guide for details.

Q: Will Lightning Components be replacing Visualforce?

A: Nope. See the User Interface Development Considerations unit of the Lightning Experience Development module on Trailhead for an in-depth explanation of this issue.

Q: Now that Lightning Components are GA, when would it still be appropriate to use Visualforce?

A: Visualforce provides the facility for delivering template-driven web pages and email messages. In addition, developers wishing to simply utilize a basic container and maintain more control over the lifecycle of the request may choose Visualforce pages. Finally, organizations that can’t use Apex code can’t use Lightning Components, but they can use Visualforce.

See the User Interface Development Considerations unit of the Lightning Experience Development module on Trailhead for an in-depth explanation of this issue.