How to Track Changes in Jira Data Center

[#1]

Tracking changes in Jira Data Center allows for keeping projects organized, following the necessary security rules, and enhances team collaboration. When many team members update issues in large teams, it becomes essential to understand which person made which change and at what time.

Also, companies track changes because of legal requirements and security needs. A detailed history of updates enables teams to collaborate more effectively while making better decisions and maintaining unified project understanding. Project efficiency suffers when proper tracking methods are absent.

This article may be helpful if you are using Jira Data Center and looking for simple ways to track changes.

Types of Changes You Can Track in Jira Data Center

Users in Jira Data Center can monitor different changes to preserve project integrity and ensure better team collaboration. Key areas to track include:

1. System Changes: Users can track modifications to Jira system settings. For instance, permission changes or workflow adjustments.
2. Issue Updates: It is possible to track status transitions. For example, from the "To Do" stage to the "In Progress" stage.
3. Field Modifications: For example, you can track changes in issue priority levels or deadlines.
4. User Activity: It is possible to monitor who exactly made the changes to the issues and when.
5. Workflow Transitions: Companies can analyze the issue movement between workflow stages. It helps to identify potential bottlenecks quickly.

Methods to Track Changes in Jira Data Center

Jira Audit Logs

Jira Data Center includes an Audit Log feature which generates records of important system events to help administrators track chronological system activity. The tool serves as a vital system component that records events for change monitoring, compliance verification, and issue detection.

Users can find specific events in the Audit Log through keyword searches and filters. The Audit Log includes Category and Summary filters to categorize events and extra options for User, Project, and Date & Time to track system activities.

To access the Audit Log, you need to do the following:

• Navigate to the Administration section.
• Select System.
• Click on Audit Log.

You can find specific information through efficient filtering in the Audit Log by using date selection or action categories.

Jira Query Language (JQL)

Jira Data Center features Jira Query Language (JQL), a robust tool that enables users to execute complex searches for filtering issues through multiple conditions. JQL provides specialized operators and functions to monitor issue modifications.

To access advanced search with JQL in Jira Data Center, you need to follow these steps:

• Move to the Issues section in the top navigation bar.
• Select Search for issues.
• If the basic search interface appears, click on Advanced to switch to the JQL editor.

Let’s explore a few examples of a JQL query. If you need to track issues where the assignee changed from one user to another, you can use the following JQL query:

assignee changed FROM "user.one" TO "user.two"

In case you need to find unresolved issues assigned to a specific user in a particular project, you can use such query:

project = "ProjectName" AND assignee = "username" AND resolution = Unresolved

History for a Single Issue

Users can access the complete history of changes for individual issues through the History tab in Jira Data Center. Fields and status transitions receive modifications alongside comments through this system. You can access the issue history by viewing the desired issue and selecting the History tab below the details.

Activity Stream Gadget

The Activity Stream Gadget in Jira Data Center functions as a vital monitoring tool that displays recent activities throughout your projects. Users gain access to real-time updates through this system that displays changes to issues as well as comments and status modifications.

To add the Activity Stream Gadget, you need to do the following:

• Access your Dashboard.
• Click on Add Gadget.
• Search for Activity Stream.
• Click the button named Add Gadget to add it.

Third-party Add-ons

You can also track changes in Jira Data Center with the help of different add-ons. One of them is Issue History for Jira.

The Issue History add-on enhances native features in Jira by showing a complete history of all project modifications. With its help, you can review the entire record of all modifications made to issues. The history can be filtered through Assignee, Project, Reporter, and Sprint options. Moreover, you can select the required date range.

Also, you can create reports that can be exported as XLSX or CSV files for additional stakeholder analysis and sharing purposes.

The Keep Deleted Issues option enables the storage and recovery of deleted tasks to prevent vital data loss.

To add the Issue History for Jira add-on to Jira Data Center, you need to do the following:

• Navigate to the Atlassian Marketplace in your Jira Data Center.
• Open the Atlassian Marketplace search bar and type "Issue History for Jira".
• Under the add-on section of the Atlassian Marketplace, locate the "Issue History for Jira" add-on created by SaaSJet.
• Select Data Center hosting from the options presented.
• Begin the installation by clicking on the "Try it free" button.

• Access the add-on menu panel to set up and customize it following installation from the Jira menu panel.

Summary

Efficient tracking of Jira Data Center changes remains essential to project integrity while improving teamwork. Jira includes built-in Audit Log monitoring for system-level changes but lacks detail when tracking issue-level modifications. The Issue History for Jira add-on provides a complete solution for filling the identified gap.

Try to track changes in Jira Data Center via Issue History for Jira add-on