How to restrict editing JIRAs in one status but not another?

[Audrey Cherami]

Is it possible to give a user access to edit the description of a JIRA while in "Open" and not any other status? Ideally, as soon as it goes to In Progress, they can't edit.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

You can't do it directly.

If you take the description field off the "edit" screen, then you can control edit by only allowing it on dedicated "edit" transitions (so you'd have an "edit description" as a transition from open to open, but you wouldn't provide it on "in progress" and beyond)

You can lock the edit of an issue completely too - workflow properties let you say "do not allow edit while in this status", or even "only allow group X to edit while in this status", but it is the whole issue, not just the description field.

[Audrey Cherami]

Is this via a Property Key/Value?

Thank you! 

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

Correct, on the step in the workflow. https://confluence.atlassian.com/display/JIRA/Workflow+properties