Custom "Done" status on subtasks prevents closing sprints

[Matt Brunmeier]

We have a "Story" board that specifically excludes our subtasks from the board itself, only showing top-level issues in the current sprint.  Our subtasks include a custom "Done" status in their workflow, which does not exist on our top-level tickets.

Therefore, we can't map this status to the "Done" column of this board and Jira prevents us from closing the sprint because we supposedly have open subtasks.

In actuality, all subtasks are closed, but in some cases they are in this custom "Done" status that is not mapped on the current board.

Is there any workaround for this?  Off the top of my head I think we could add this new status to some issue type's workflow that is shown on the board just so that we could map it, but that seems like an ugly workaround.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

Your issues need to be "done" in order to be seen as, well, "done".  That means being in the right hand done column when it's a board.

Closest I can get for you is

Include the sub-task's "done" in the "done" column, so that they are done.

Have a quick-filter for "issuetype in standardIssueTypes()" - when toggled, all your sub-tasks will be hidden on the board.

[Matt Brunmeier]

Sorry if I wasn't clear.  The subtasks are Done.  They're in a new "Done" category custom status called "Deferred" and their resolution is set.  But subtasks are NOT displayed on this board, and this "Deferred" status does not apply to any of the issue types that are displayed.  That means Jira does not allow me to categorize my new "Deferred" status in any column.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

No, I think I was unclear.

Your "deferred" status does not matter how it is defined because it is not in the board's "done" column.  The issues that are currently in that status do not count as "done" because they are not in the column. 

They could be outside the column for several reasons, the main two being because:

• their status is not in the column
• they are not on the board

Because they're not "done" according to the board definition, they can't be "done" when the system looks at their parent - it looks like the parent issue has sub-tasks that are not done.

To make them done, you have to include them in the board's done column (even if you hide them later with a quick-filter)

[Matt Brunmeier]

I can not add the "Deferred" status in the board's done column because Jira does not have this status listed as an unmapped status.  Jira does not have it as an unmapped status because no issues with this status in their workflow are actually displayed on the board itself.

Is your solution to include subtasks in the board so that I can categorize this status and then to use a quickfilter to hide the subtasks?  That would work, I suppose.

My current solution is to add the Deferred status to the workflow of an existing issue type with no transitions into it.  This allows me to categorize the status on the board and doesn't require quickfilters, but it still feels like a workaround to me.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

You are missing the point.  You have to include the sub-tasks in the done column for the system to understand that they are done.  To do that, they have to be on the board with a mapped status.

Functionally, your board definition is incorrect because it is deselecting things you need on it.

[Matt Brunmeier]

How can you even say that?  I don't need the subtasks on the board for any reason other than that Jira doesn't account for this particular scenario.

Maybe Jira needs to allow you to  map statuses of subtasks even if they aren't displayed.  Or Jira needs to look at the category type of subtasks instead of looking for whether the status is mapped to a column.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

You do need them, as they're part of the issues that you have on the board.   By excluding them, you're removing information that is part of the sprint, so the sprint can't work.

There are many good reasons for hiding them of course.  Even if there were not many, just "having a more simple overview of the board" is indisputably a good reason.  What you need to do is include them on the board so the board reflects the actual data you have, and then hide the subtasks, which is where the quick-filter I mentioned kicks in - the filters only hide, they don't drop data from the calculations.  The big weakness there is quick-filters default to "off", so you will initially see the sub-tasks.

[Max Foerster - K15t]

Hi Matt,

are you setting a resolution in the transition on the sub-tasks when they move to your custom "Done" status so they are recognized by Jira as "done"? That should help to fix your "they are closed but not recognized as closed" problem.

[Matt Brunmeier]

Yes, the resolution for these subtasks is set.