How to separate Backlog status from sprint board?

Amber Arguijo

I have a custom workflow that has issues created in the backlog and then transitioning to To Do for the sprint board. However, the only way to have Backlog items show in the Scrum Backlog is to map that status to the To Do column of the board. If I move the Backlog status to unmapped, everything disappears from the Backlog screen and there is no dedicated "Backlog" column like there is in the Kanban template. So I have two questions:

1. Is there a way to have backlog items visible in scrum backlog WITHOUT having to map the status to one of the active board columns?

2. If not, how can I make issues auto-transition from Backlog to To Do when the sprint is started? 

Walter Buggenhout

Hi @Amber Arguijo,

You are right about the columns. The backlog and work actively being worked on is managed by assigning items to sprints. And it is the sheer action of starting a sprint that pulls issues in the active sprint view.

If you have a formal process in place for elaborating issues before they end up on the sprint planning, it is not uncommon to have this preparation process managed through a separate (kanban) board, where you move issues through the preparation steps, ending in to do. If you exclude the steps before to do using the board filter of your scrum board, only items ready to be worked on will be on the board.

That may indeed be overkill for your situation, so automating a status transition when a sprint starts is definitely possible as well. Have a look at this sample rule from the template library, where all issues in the starting sprint are updated.

The only thing you should do differently is pick the transition issue action instead of editing the issues, the action configured in that sample rule.

Hope this helps!