EPIC Name edited in "New" View not reflected in backlog

[Simon Metz]

I realized that I needed to change the name of an EPIC. I went into the EPIC issue and edited the name, it seemed to have been saved.

BUT this edit is never reflected in the backlog or story. When I click into the EPIC name in the issue it does show the edited name.

WHY does JIRA not update in the backlog, this was possible in the "Old" view. seems to be a major UI bug

[Angélica Luz · Accepted solution]

Hello @Simon Metz,

Welcome to Atlassian Community!

Testing on my local site, I wasn’t able to replicate the same issue. I changed the Epic name and after I refreshed the backlog and the ticket linked to the Epic, it changed.

On Classic projects, there is the option to add Epic summary and Epic name.

The Epic name is the one that will appear in the field “Epic link” on child issues and also on the backlog.

Can you please confirm if the field “Epic name” was updated? 

If so, can you go to another ticket and search for that Epic? Does it show the correct name?

Kind regards,
Angélica

[Simon Metz]

Thanks!

Here are some screenshots. I had a EPIC renamed as "Supply" but it still shows up in EPIC list as EPIC 2 , yet when I go into the EPIC 2 detail it correctly displays as Supply. so to answer your question, Yes Epic 2 was updated/renamed but it doesn't seem to have propagated up the tree.

Please let me know your thoughts, if I am doing something wrong. I did see a number of other posts when the "New" view was installed that this was an issue.

[Bill Sheboy]

Hi @Simon Metz  -- Welcome to the Atlassian Community!

I note on your screen image of TEST-2, that:

• the summary field at the top of the view is "Supply"
• the epic name field at the right of the view is "EPIC 2"

What happens when you edit the epic name field?

Best regards,

Bill

[Simon Metz]

Bill. I did edit the EPIOC name from EPIC 2 to Supply. My issue is that the original name still shows up in backlog with the original name of EPIC 2. This was noted back in 2019 when the "New" view was pushed out that editing EPIC names didn't displed on the backlog.

The details of issue "Supply" are arrived at by clicking on "EPIC 2" in the right panel from the story "Test 2" I know this doesn't make sense, but it is happening here.

[Bill Sheboy]

Thanks, Simon.  Like @Angélica Luz I wasn't able to reproduce your results with a Company-Managed project (Classic).

Based upon what you describe and your backlog image, it appears to be showing two stories (TEST-11 and TEST-16), both pointing to the same epic (TEST-2) and yet showing two different epic names.

How about this to confirm: please run this filter on Advanced Issue Search:

issueType = epic ORDER BY Summary

Then on the right side of the view under Columns, add the Epic Name.

The results will show you if you have any epics with the same Summary and different Epic Names.  In that case, perhaps you are seeing two different epics.

[Angélica Luz]

Thank you for the screenshots and details, @Simon Metz

On the backlog, those labels with the Epic name are based on the field “Epic name” and not the Summary.

As Bill mentioned:

• the summary field at the top of the view is "Supply"
• the epic name field at the right of the view is "EPIC 2"

The Epic TEST-2 has the Epic name “EPIC 2” and the child issue TEST-16 that is appearing on the backlog shows “EPIC 2”, which is correct because it’s the name of the Epic TEST-2.

I see that you already have an Epic with the Epic name called Supply, but I tested here on my local site, and even using the same name, it should be updated, so you can have two Epics with the same name.   

[Simon Metz]

How can I edit the name of any EPIC so that it reflects back into a Story link and in the backlog. You are all correct that I created a new EPIC titled Supply, because I was unable (I'm not the only person with this issue) to edit the name of an existing EPIC.

Please provide step by step instructions on how to edit the EPIC name, starting at the Backlog screen.

When I go to my list of Issues there is no EPIC titled EPIC 2, yet EPIC 2 still shows up on the backlog as aligning to a story. This simply doesn't make sense and is a poor user experience.

Thanks

[Simon Metz]

How can I edit the name of any EPIC so that it reflects back into a Story link and in the backlog. You are all correct that I created a new EPIC titled Supply, because I was unable (I'm not the only person with this issue) to edit the name of an existing EPIC.

Please provide step by step instructions on how to edit the EPIC name, starting at the Backlog screen.

When I go to my list of Issues there is no EPIC titled EPIC 2, yet EPIC 2 still shows up on the backlog as aligning to a story. This simply doesn't make sense and is a poor user experience 

[Bill Sheboy]

Hi Simon,

To edit the Epic Name from the Backlog view:

1. Select the epic pane on the left so it is visible
2. Select the epic you wish to update
3. On the right side of the epic, select the drop-down arrow and View epic details, which opens the epic in a browser tab
4. Locate the epic name field on the right side of the view.  If you do not see it, select Show more fields at the bottom of the view.
5. Edit the epic name field
6. Select the checkmark to save your changes

[Simon Metz]

Thanks! This is exactly what I was looking for.

To be clear though when I go to EPICs and click on "EPIC Detail", make an edit and click the checkmark as you mentioned, this shows a label (not sure if this is really a title) that I previously attempted.

As a very experienced program manager and software developer, this is not initiative at all. If I change a label and check okay it should be displayed everywhere with that changed.

This is way too complicated if there are two ways to edit a title, one works and another doesn't. The method you describe is not easily accessed based on how many other JIRA users have had the same issues over the years. :-)

[Bill Sheboy]

@Simon Metz , I am glad that helped you.

Just to clarify, when you say "title" that isn't a thing in the vocabulary of Jira.  Issues  (epics, stories, etc.) have a

• Summary, providing a short name;
• Description, providing the details of the work-item;
• Label, providing any just-in-time identifiers the team wants to add; and
• for epics in Company-Managed (classic) projects, an Epic Name.  This is the often very short name which appears on the child items in various views.  Team-Managed (next-gen) projects use a different mechanism, I believe.

I suspect many people set the Epic Name when they create the item, which is quite easy.  In terms of navigation, editing the field later is easier/harder depending upon which issues are shown in the backlog view, IMHO.

Best regards,

Bill

[Mauricio Martinez]

Once an epic's name is changed the label showing on any ticket regarding Epic link won't update.
The steps sent by @Bill Sheboy do work to update any aspect of the epic, sadly that does not include this label, why? no idea.
But if you had this problem like I did, just got to the backlog, open the epic list:

1. Select the epic pane on the left so it is visible
2. Select the epic you wish to update
3. On the right side of the epic, select the drop-down arrow and Edit name, which gives you the option to update the name. (Changing the name on the epic for some reason does not update this label).
4. Once the name is updated just press enter
5. Check all tickets linked to that epic and they should display the right name now.
   
   

Hope that helps! 

[Alister Fisher]

As mentioned by previous posters, I've changed the epic item's summary to rename the epic, and its items continue to display the previous epic name.

It is unintuitive.

For quick assistance: please post new instructions here that match the presumably modified pages since Apr 2021.

For a proper fix: please automatically propagate changes of an epic's summary.

Thanks!
Alister