The Assignment:
If you want to make changes to the workflow your Jira space is using, perhaps to add a new status or restrict transitions, etc.,
you may run into an issue because some changes can't be made to a Workflow that is currently in use. (This also depends on which workflow editor you are using, the new workflow editor is much more forgiving! :-)
Read on for a quick overview of the steps to edit a Jira workflow that is currently in use for a company-managed project.
Part of our CliffsNotes series. Would you rather watch the movie, skim the CliffNotes, or read the book? Below are all 3 options!
🎥 Watch the movie:
🗒️ Read the CliffNotes:
Here's a quick summary of the process:
- In the Jira admin settings, create a copy of your workflow
- Associate your project with the workflow copy, which makes the original workflow inactive
💡 Important note: Check to see if your workflow is being used by multiple Jira projects. If that’s the case, you will need to associate ALL the projects that use this workflow with the copy and then associate them all back to the original once your edits are done.
- Make all edits to the original workflow as needed
- Associate the project back with the original workflow
- Delete the workflow copy
- ✅ Done!
📚 Read the book:
For those that want all the details, here are the steps you'll need to edit an active Jira workflow for a company-managed project:
- Go to your Jira project and note the workflow name
- Open a new browser tab. You'll be switching back and forth between Jira admin settings and your project settings, so multiple tabs just makes things easier!
- Go to Settings - upper right (⚙️) and then Work Items
- Click on Workflows, on the left
- Search for the workflow for your company-managed project.
- Click the <...> to copy the workflow. Pro tip: Put a 1 in front of the copied workflow name to make finding it easier!
- Next, we need to configure your project to use the new copy of your workflow. That will make the original inactive so that you can edit it. To do that, go back to your Jira project (in your original browser tab) go to project settings → Workflow → Add workflow → Add existing:
- DON'T FORGET TO PUBLISH the change to the new workflow!
- Switch back to your Jira admin console browser tab and now you can edit the workflow, you'll need to switch to the Inactive workflows tab first:
- You can now edit your workflow to your heart's content! When you're done, just switch your project back to the original workflow, using the same steps as above. As before, don’t forget to publish!
- One final step to keep Jira clean - delete the now inactive workflow copy.
🍎 Extra Credit:
For those who want extra credit, here’s where you can learn more:
🎓 Final grade:
So, how’d do you? Let us know in the comments if you got a passing grade!
