I want to make parent field mandatory for some issue types so how can I do this?

[Sundram Trivedi]

I want to make parent field mandatory for some issue types so how can I do this? Or what is a good way to follow this.

[Trudy Claspill · Accepted solution]

Hello @Sundram Trivedi 

Welcome to the Atlassian community.

What type of project are you using? Get that information from the Type column on the View All Projects page under the Projects menu.

Do you want the field required all the time? Do you want it required when the issue is being created and at all times thereafter?

What is your level of access for Jira? Are you an Administrator for the affected project? Are you an Administrator for the entire Jira Application?

[Sundram Trivedi]

Hi,

Thanks for your response.

I am a Jira Administrator with access to the entire application. When creating tasks, subtasks, bugs, and epics, I want to make the "Parent" field mandatory. I initially tried using workflow validation, but this also applied to "Theme," which does not have a parent.

Is there a way to enforce the mandatory "Parent" field only for tasks, subtasks, bugs, and epics while excluding themes?

[Trudy Claspill]

As you found you can modify the workflow for this.

You can have a separate workflow for each issue type in a project.

For a Company Managed project you map workflows to issue types on the Workflow Scheme. Make a copy of the workflow in the scheme used by the project. Make the change to one of the copies. Add that new workflow to the Workflow Scheme mapping it to the issue type you want to affect.

https://support.atlassian.com/jira-cloud-administration/docs/configure-workflow-schemes/

[Sundram Trivedi]

Actually I am a beginner in jira admin, I don't know exactly how to use it for make parent field mandatory for some types of issues except theme issue type but I will try.

I initially tried using workflow transition validator, but this also applied to "Theme," which does not have a parent.

[Trudy Claspill]

What type of project are you using? Get that information from the View All Projects page under the Projects menu. Look at the type column for the entry for your project.

If you are new to Jira you might want to make use of the free, on-demand training at https://university.atlassian.com

When we know what kind of project you are using we can direct you to the documentation you need for instructions. Essentially you will need to have separate workflows, one for Theme type issues, and one for the other issue types. Then you can set up the validator in the workflow that applies to all issue types except Theme.

[Sundram Trivedi]

Hi Trudy,

Thank you for your previous response—it worked perfectly! I have two more questions:

I am using a Jira Cloud instance and working on a company-managed project. Is it possible to set a validation rule where all child objects must be in the "Review" and "Done" states before the parent issue can be moved to "In Review" or "Done"?

I have set up an automation rule where, when all child issues are completed, the parent issue is automatically closed. I followed this hierarchy: Theme → Epic → Task, Story, Bug. When I move the Task, Story, and Bug to "Done," the Epic also moves to "Done" after refreshing the browser. However, according to the rule, the Theme should also move to "Done" after the Epic, but it fails in automation. I had to manually set the resolution for the Epic, after which the Theme automatically moved to "Done."

Similarly, I noticed a similar issue with the In Review automation—after refreshing the browser, the changes take effect inconsistently.

Could you please provide guidance on resolving these issues?

[Trudy Claspill]

Hello @Sundram Trivedi 

With regard to making this happen by modifying the Workflow, there are limited Validators available natively for Jira Workflows. You can find the list here:

https://support.atlassian.com/jira-cloud-administration/docs/use-workflow-validators-for-company-managed-projects/

There are several third party apps that extend the functionality of Workflows, and would enable you to modify the workflow to validate that all and issue's children have reached a certain status before allowing the parent to transition to a status. Do you already have any third party apps, or are you willing to consider getting an app? Note that an Automation Rule cannot interrupt the transition process to validate the issue. An Automation Rule can only react to a transition that has been completed. It could potentially reverse the transition if conditions are not met. Or you could use a custom field and an Automation Rule to keep track in a parent issue whether or not all the children had made the required transition. Then your workflow validation could check that custom field.

With regard to your question about an Automation Rule you have written not proding the expected results, that is a different topic from your original post. Please start a new post for that by clicking on the Ask a question option at the top of the community page. When asking about an Automation Rule always provide the following information:

1. Screen images that show the entire rule
2. Screen images that show the details of each step
3. A screen images that show the details on the Rule Details page.
4. Screen images that show all the expanded details for an Audit Log entry for when the rule ran and you didn't get the results you expected. Make sure you expand every entry so we can see all the details.
5. An explanation of what you want the rule to do, and what symptoms are indicating it is not doing what you want.