How can I create a canned project template?

[Deleted user]

My team is wanting to use JIRA and Confluence to manage our consulting projects. The desired workflow we are trying to implement is for our head Sales Manager to create a JIRA Project for every new consulting project we are contracted. From the "Create Project" menu, he would assign the available consultant as the Project Lead and then create the Project Issues according to our internal WBS. With this "Project Template" it would already have the correct schemes and permissions. Any help would be appreciated.

[TJ Baker · Accepted solution]

Hi Rob,

This is a critical feature for us as well, and we're currently using OnDemand and new too.

Sadly there is no good solutoin for OnDemand at this point.... I've looked, alot.

The best I could find is a workaround that involves setting up a project as you would like each new one to be, with issues, etc., and then exporting those issues in Excel, opening up the sheet, doing any edits you might need to do (to remove issue keys, etc), and saving it as a CSV, and then re-importing the issues into a new project.

I do this now, and also the same with Confluence, which is a little different, but same idea - create the space, export it, import it.

Here's an outline of everything in steps:

1. Create the Jira Project to serve as your 'template', with all of the issues you will 're-use'.
2. Export the issues to Excel format by going to the project, viewing 'all issues', and then using the Export function
3. Open the Excel sheet and remove the project key column, project name, and any others that you will not wish to import
4. Create a new 'blank' project in Jira
5. Import the issues to the new blank project.

For confluence the steps are a little less:

1. Create the Confluence space as you would like it to be for all 'copies'.
2. Export the space
3. Import to create a new space

There is a 'command line' tool that you may be recommended that can make this job a little easier, but you'll be having to pay yet more money to use it, and in my opinion it's pretty lame to ask people to pay even more for something that should be a base funtion of any PM system.

I am really hoping that Atlassian provide a simple solution to this issue before too long....

I hope this helps!

Cheers

[Deleted user]

Thanks for the response. That seems like a process. I wish the Sales Manager who would be generating these projects for our consultants was patient enough to have to perform all these steps....

[Deleted user]

I have a question, when you do this, do you still have to go in and administer the project? i.e. set up the schemes

[TJ Baker]

Yes, you'll still have to do that if you have customized schemes. However, if you create a scheme you can assign it easily enough.

[Henry Gage]

Hello TJ Baker,

I tried to instruction above and realize it may not apply to users of the cloud version of JIRA. For example, by reading other similar comments on the web, most folks have indicated this is not possible for the cloud version. Is this why I can't find the Export feature that you've mentioned above. I've spent over 1 hour trying to find Export for a list of issue. I did find an export for one issue as .XML or Word, but that seems like a different idea. The import mentions .CSV. Guess I need to keep experimenting but seems like a number dead ends.

[Cedric Justice]

Yeah, I have the Cloud version and cannot figure out how to export to Excel. I have an option to start something FROM a template, but no way to CREATE a template. Frustrating. 

[LUC FILION]

You might be interested in our solution called Gaia for JIRA (http://bit.ly/1JSbI5W) - which lets you create JIRA project template based on your lists of issues. This is available on server instances only.

At this moment, there is a trick to import a server JIRA projects to the Cloud: https://confluence.atlassian.com/display/CLOUDKB/Project+Import+From+JIRA+Server+to+JIRA+Cloud

So this combination may work for you.

[TJ Baker]

@Rob, make sure you Vote on that request issue so that it gets seen.

[Deleted user]

I wish I had more votes to give

[Abdoulaye Kindy Diallo]

Guys, I have created a feature request for this matter. Feel free to watch it and comment as well: https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/AOD-6722

[TJ Baker]

Thanks @Abdoulaye, will do!

[Deleted user]

Thanks for the info. Can you provide a workaround for me in the meantime? This is pretty critical for us. Is there a timeframe for the OnDemand push?

[Abdoulaye Kindy Diallo]

The Project Creator For Jira could be useful but not available in OnDemand yet.

[Deleted user]

Thanks for the info. Can you provide a workaround for me in the meantime? This is pretty critical for us. Is there a timeframe for the OnDemand push?