Automation

Question

Can you guys help me how to do this step by step process?

Background

The Last Comment custom field should always show the most recent comment on a work item. Right now, if someone deletes a comment, the field can keep showing text from a comment that no longer exists.

Request

Build an automation rule that runs when a comment on a work item is deleted.

Requirements

* Trigger: A comment on a work item is deleted.
* If the deleted comment was the latest comment:* Clear the Last Comment field.
* Fill Last Comment with the comment that is now the latest one.

* If no comments are left on the work item: Leave Last Comment empty.
* The Last Comment field should also show the author and timestamp.   Please refer to the Last Comment or Last Comment (edit) automations for formatting reference.   In fact you may want to copy one of these automations as a starting point.
* This automation will be global (i.e. apply to all Jira Spaces

Acceptance criteria

* Deleting the latest comment, when older comments exist → Last Comment shows the next-latest comment.
* Deleting the only comment → Last Comment is empty.
* Deleting a comment that wasn't the latest → Last Comment doesn't change.

Wali Khan · Answer

Thanks Danylo, this clears up the process for me. I was mainly confused about how to handle the deleted latest comment. Using Re-fetch work item data before checking the remaining comments makes sense. I’ll try the global automation flow first and copy the existing Last Comment expression for the formatting. I’ll also test all three cases on a sample work item before enabling it globally.

Danylo Iliukha [Appfire] · Answer

Hi again @Suraj,

One more option. If the Last Comment field is mainly used to review work items in a list or report, you could skip storing it in a field at all.

If you're open to solutions from the Atlassian Marketplace, JXL for Jira has Last comment, Last commented by user and Date of last comment columns. They are calculated from the work item's comments rather than stored in a field, so there is no rule to maintain and a deleted comment shouldn't linger. You can sort, filter and group by them in a sheet, and there's also a Time since last comment column for spotting stale work.

To be fair about the trade-off: these are JXL columns, not a Jira field, so they don't show on the work item view or in JQL. If you need the field itself, the automation flow above is the way to go.

Disclosure: I'm on the team that builds JXL.

All the best,

Danylo

Danylo Iliukha [Appfire] · Answer

Hi @Suraj, This is possible with a global automation flow. I tried it on a Jira Cloud site and it worked. Steps: * Go to Settings > System > Global automation > Create flow and set the scope to Global (needs Jira admin). * Trigger: Work item comment deleted. * Add Re-fetch work item data, so the flow reads the comment list as it is after the deletion. * Add an If/else block:* If {{issue.comments.size}} is greater than 0: add Edit work item, open More options and, under Additional fields, set your Last Comment field with the same author and timestamp format as your existing Last Comment automation (replace the ID with your field's): {"fields": {"customfield_XXXXX": ""}} * Else: add Edit work item and set the same field to null, which clears it. * Save and turn it on. I used {{issue.comments.last.author.displayName}} ({{issue.comments.last.created}}): {{issue.comments.last.body}} as the value in my test, but copy the exact expression from your existing rule so the output stays identical. The flow never looks at the deleted comment. It rewrites the field from whichever comment is now the latest. I confirmed that deleting the latest comment puts the next-latest one in the field. Deleting the only comment should clear it, and deleting an older comment should write the same value back, but please check both on a sample work item. A few things to know: * The Last Comment field may not be listed under "Choose fields to set", which is why I used Additional fields. To find the field ID, open https://.atlassian.net/rest/api/3/field/search?query=Last Comment, or open the field under Settings > Work items > Fields and read the number in the page address. * The field has to exist and be available in every space you want covered. Team-managed spaces can't set company-managed custom fields. * I tested with a "Paragraph (supports rich text)" field, so test with your own field type. * Under More options, "Send an email when the work item is updated" is on by default. Untick it if you don't want an email on every deletion. * The flow runs on every comment deletion and counts toward your automation usage limit. Best regards, Danylo