Why won't this conditional logic work? {{#if(customfield_12038.value("Constituents"))}}

[Emily Perridge]

Why won't this conditional logic work?

{{#if(customfield_12038.value("Constituents"))}} Data requirement is constituents.{{/}}

I am trying to make a Jira automation using if-then blocks. The automation is run manually from an "action" on a Jira issue in a Jira project. Within the automation I have an "if" block, which checks if the mandatory custom fields are populated. If any of these mandatory fields have no value, an email is sent to the automation initiator. In this email, I want to tell the automation initiator what changes they need to make (to the Jira issue) for the automation to run successfully - the email does this using conditional logic and smart values.

This automation works fine when "isEmpty" is used with the smartvalue. However, the automation doesn't work when I ask it to check a specific string.

In pseudocode, what I want to achieve is:

if customfield_12038 = "constituents" and customfield_12808 is empty

      print("Data requirement is constituents, you must enter a data type")

Where data requirement = customfield_12038 and data type = customfield_12808

The first step is getting "if customfield_12038 = "constituents"". After this, I can get the and condition to work.

Below are all the different combinations of smart values and conditional logic I've tested. As I explained, you see the logic works when I use "isEmpty" but not when I specify a value. I'll be using is [customfield_12038 = Constituents] but I tested with another field (data partner/customfield_12589).

Conditional Logic	Output when true	Output when false	Notes
(6) Checking field: Data Requirement {{#if(equals(customfield_12038, isEmpty))}} Data requirement is empty. Please add a value. {{/}}	Data requirement is empty. Please add a value.
(6) Checking field: Data Requirement {{#if(not(equals(customfield_12038, isEmpty)))}} Data requirement is not empty. Value = "{{customfield_12038.value}}" No action is required on this field. If data requirement = "constituents", please ensure data type has a value.{{/}}		Data requirement is not empty. Value = Constituents No action is required on this field. If data requirement = "constituents", please ensure data type has a value.
(7) Checking field: Data Type {{#if(equals(customfield_12808, isEmpty))}} Data type is empty. Please add a value if data requirement = "constituents". {{/}}	Data type is empty. Please add a value if data requirement = "constituents".
(7) Checking field: Data Type {{#if(not(equals(customfield_12808, isEmpty)))}} Data type is not empty. Value = "{{customfield_12808.value}}". No action is required. {{/}}		Data type is not empty. Value = Open. No action is required.
TEST A - CONS {{#if(not(customfield_12038.value("Constituents")))}} Data requirement is not Constituents. No action is required. {{/}}	TEST A - CONS Data requirement is not Constituents. No action is required.	TEST A - CONS Data requirement is not Constituents. No action is required.	Same output when customfield_12038 = Constituents and when customfield_12038 != Constituents
TEST A - PARTNER {{#if(not(customfield_12589.value("DP-TEST")))}} Data partner is not DP-TEST. No action is required. {{/}}	TEST A - PARTNER Data partner is not DP-TEST. No action is required.	TEST A - PARTNER Data partner is not DP-TEST. No action is required.	customfield_12589 = DP-TEST, but automation says it isn’t Same output when customfield_12589 = DP-TEST and when customfield_12589 != DP-TEST
TEST B - PARTNER EMPTY {{#if(equals(issue.customfield_12589, "None"))}} Data partner is empty. Please add the data partner{{/}}	TEST B - PARTNER EMPTY	TEST B - PARTNER EMPTY	customfield_12589 = DP-TEST, but automation says it isn’t Same output when customfield_12589 = DP-TEST and when customfield_12589 != DP-TEST
TEST B - PARTNER NOT EMPTY {{#if(equals(issue.customfield_12589, "DP-TEST"))}} Data partner is not empty. Value = "{{customfield_12589.value}}"{{/}}	TEST B - PARTNER NOT EMPTY	TEST B - PARTNER NOT EMPTY	Same output when customfield_12589 = DP-TEST and when customfield_12589 != DP-TEST
TEST C – CONS STRING {{#if(customfield_12038("Constituents"))}} Data requirement is constituents. {{/}}	TEST C – CONS STRING	TEST C – CONS STRING	Same output when customfield_12038 = Constituents and when customfield_12038 != Constituents
TEST C – PART STRING {{#if(customfield_12589 ("DP-TEST"))}} Data partner is DP-AAM. {{/}}	TEST C – PART STRING	TEST C – PART STRING	customfield_12589 = DP-TEST, but automation says it isn’t Same output when customfield_12589 = DP-TEST and when customfield_12589 != DP-TEST
TEST D – PARTNER VALUE STRING {{#if(customfield_12589.value("DP-TEST"))}} Data partner is DP-AAM. {{/}}	TEST D – PARTNER VALUE STRING	TEST D – PARTNER VALUE STRING	customfield_12589 = DP-TEST, but automation says it isn’t Same output when customfield_12589 = DP-TEST and when customfield_12589 != DP-TEST
TEST D – CONS VALUE STRING {{#if(customfield_12038.value("Constituents"))}} Data requirement is constituents.{{/}}	TEST D – CONS VALUE STRING	TEST D – CONS VALUE STRING	Same output when customfield_12038 = Constituents and when customfield_12038 != Constituents

[Bill Sheboy]

Hi @Emily Perridge 

Thanks for the details in your question, and well done on methodically working through the cases!  Problems in automation rules are often about context, so please consider also posting images of the complete rule and audit log details showing the rule execution.

Without seeing those...

isEmpty() is a function, and not a value; the documentation says it returns true or false and cannot be compared to as you are doing: https://support.atlassian.com/cloud-automation/docs/jira-smart-values-text-fields/#isEmpty--

To test for null or "no value" you could use {{#if(customfield_12038.value)}}has no value{{/}}
To test for "empty string" you could use {{#if(customfield_12038.value.isEmpty())}}has no value{{/}}

However I have observed that not consistently working, so try it to compare to your results.  Some Jira fields, even when never set, contain either null (no value) or empty string.  Those are not the same thing when testing conditions.  Worse still, once some fields are set and later cleared, they do not return to the original null value.  Again, please test to confirm.

To test for a specific value, please try the equals() function in your condition:

{{#if(equals(customfield_12038.value, "Constituents"))}} Data requirement is constituents.{{/}}

Kind regards,
Bill

[Emily Perridge]

Hi Bill,

Thank you for your contribution - it's much appreciated!

Regarding testing for a specific value, I tried:

When: Manually triggered

If: matches
     Data Requirement contains: Constituents

Then: Send email
     To - Initiator
     Subject - Action required on {{issue.key}}
     Content - 
       {{#if(equals(customfield_12038.value,"Constituents"))}} 
       Data requirement is constituents.{{/}} 

As expected, when I ran the automation an email was send because data requirement = constituents. However, the email had no content. I was expecting the email to contain the message "Data requirement is constituents".

(I tried adding a screenshot of the automation rules, but I wasn't able to due to the error "Permission Denied".)

Best regards,

Emily

[Bill Sheboy]

That is an curious message for trying to add the image.  Did you see that using the Insert Photos option for your post?

What is the type of your "Data Requirement" field: single-select option, multiple-select option, or something else?

For the options in the custom field configuration, have you confirmed:

• there are no leading / trailing spaces, and
• the case matches exactly what you are comparing to?

Either one of those could also cause a mismatch.