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What is the best practice for epic/story/task relationships?

Alice_qq4e4l

We're getting started in our business with using epics, stories, tasks and subtasks. We have epics and stories created, with the stories assigned to the appropriate epics. If I create tasks for a story, should I also assign those tasks to the epic? Or should I only assign stories/issues to the epic?

If I only assign stories to epics, is there a special way I should link tasks back to stories, or should I just use the "link" function?

Accepted answers

Tarun Sapra

Hello @Alice

You can avoid using Tasks, if you are doing an greenfield project then all new features can be described as epics and stories.

My opinion is that Tasks should only be used for house-keeping tasks like - Increasing Server storage, Fixing failed builds, Getting an new SSL certificate etc. Then link all these tasks to an housekeeping Epic and that's it. Since tasks are at the same level as story thus no need to link stories to tasks until or unless really required.

All comments

Jack Brickey

relationship is as follows:

Epics

Story or Task

sub-task

In other words stories and tasks are equal. you don't have tasks under stories. You could, as you mentioned, link tasks to stories. However, I recommend you not do this or be careful w/ this as it may not give you the results you want when working in boards, etc.

Tarun Sapra

Hello @Alice

You can avoid using Tasks, if you are doing an greenfield project then all new features can be described as epics and stories.

Alice_qq4e4l

Thank you for the explanation, @Jack Brickey. I also found this JIRA thread after your post that explains the similarities/differences between tasks and stories a little bit more in-depth. I think the discrepancy I ran into is that stories and tasks are at the same level. I was treating tasks more like components of a story, not their own separate entities.

Alice_qq4e4l

I appreciate the explanation, @Tarun Sapra. Similar to what Jack said, I didn't realize that stories and tasks are at the same level. I like your idea of creating tasks like housekeeping items and then linking them back to a housekeeping epic.

It also makes sense that you wouldn't link tasks to stories unless you absolutely needed to. I can see how this would get confusing working on projects.

Tarun Sapra

Hello @Alice

Yes, having tasks and stories at the same level only leads ton confusion most of the times in projects thus better to avoid them.

If you feel an answer on the community was helpful then please upvote/accept.

Thanks,

Tarun

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