What is the "companyId" in Liferay?

In Liferay, the "companyId" refers to a unique identifier assigned to a portal instance. This is crucial for multi-tenancy scenarios where there may be several distinct organizations operating within a single Liferay installation. Each portal instance can represent a separate company, allowing for isolated configurations, users, and content under the same Liferay environment.

By using "companyId," system developers can ensure that operations, data access, and user interactions are scoped correctly to the intended instance. This promotes efficiency and organization, as users can navigate their designated content without interference from other companies' data.

In contrast, organizations, sites, and teams serve different roles in Liferay’s architecture. Organizations can encompass multiple sites, sites represent specific collections of content and configurations within an organization, and teams denote smaller groups within an organization for collaboration. While all these elements are essential for structuring content and user management, only the "companyId" specifically identifies the portal instance in which these structures operate.