To retire a Product that is associated with an Opportunity, the most efficient solution is to edit the Product record and uncheck the Active field. Here's why:
* Deactivating the Product: Unchecking the Active field will effectively remove the Product from availability without requiring deletion from price books or the system. This ensures that the Product is no longer available for new opportunities but remains intact for historical records.
* Salesforce Best Practices: Salesforce recommends deactivating Products when they should no longer be available for selection in new records. This method preserves data integrity while making the Product inactive for future transactions.
* References: Salesforce documentation on Product Management outlines how to manage product availability using the Active checkbox.
In summary, editing the Product record and unchecking the Active field (Option C) is the most straightforward way to retire a Product associated with existing opportunities.