Import and Use Releases from Jira

qTest Manager allows you to manage standalone Releases and Releases from Jira. Importing Releases from Jira allows testers to use up-to-date information from Jira Sprints and Fix Versions.

Instructions to import and use Releases from Jira are the same, whether you are using Jira Server or Jira Cloud.

Before importing Releases from Jira, please make sure to complete the setup steps described in the following sections:

How to Get Here

  1. Within the qTest Project that you are configuring your Jira integration, select the Gear icon.

  2. Select Integration Settings from the drop-down and the Configure Integrations page loads.

  3. In the External Systems panel on the left, select Jira.

  4. Locate your Jira connection in the Connections List section and in the Action column, select the wrench icon to configure.

Configure Release Integration

  1. On the Configure Connection page, select the toggle icon in the "Release Integration" area of the screen to activate the Release integration feature.

    Release_Integration_-_Activated.png

  2. Select Add Release Type. The Add Release Types dialog displays

    Add_Release.png

  3. Select the down arrow to the right of the Jira project field. From the drop-down list, select the applicable Jira project from which you will import requirements to qTest Manager.

  4. Select the down arrow to the right of the Jira Artifact types field. Select the artifact type you use to represent Releases in the Jira project selected above (such as, Sprint, fix version). This procedure will retrieve that object type so that it imports into qTest Manager as Releases.

    The purpose of this step is to identify the artifact type from the Jira project and import that object type into qTest Manager as Releases.

  5. Select OK. A line is created in the Release Integration area of the Configure Connection page for the Jira project and associated Jira artifact type selected in the steps 3-4 above.

    Release_type_grid.png

  6. Position the arrow cursor on the new line that indicates the Jira PROJECT and Jira ARTIFACT TYPES. Then, move the arrow cursor into the Actions column on the right side of the window. Three icons display under that column. Select the wrench icon.

    Release_type_grid_-_wrench.png

  7. On the Edit Data Retrieval screen, you can configure two things:

    • Status of selected artifact type (Sprint or fix version) that you wish to retrieve within qTest Manager

    • Auto-populate requirements in Release Scope

    • This step configures the status of artifact types that populate within qTest Manager as Releases and then links imported Jira Requirements to imported Releases as the latest Release scope from Jira. Only Jira Requirements will be added to corresponding Jira Releases.

    • The scope of Fix Versions and Sprints in Jira is real-time updated in Manager (if this function is enabled)

    • You are not able to add Jira Requirements to a Jira Release scope or remove Jira Requirements out of a Jira Release Scope.

    • If you manually add a standalone Requirement of Manager to a Jira Release scope, the link will remain after any data update from Jira.

For Fix Version

Fix_Version_-_Data_Retrival_config.png

Map Multiple Fix Versions

A check box has been added to the Release Integration section Merge all Jira Fix versions with existing Releases that have the same name into a single Release and link to all Jira projects.

If multiple Jira projects have the same Fix Version, when those Jira projects are integrated with a single qTest project, it will now be possible to select from:

  • Fix versions from multiple Jira projects merged into one release in qTest

  • Fix versions from multiple Jira projects created as separate releases in qTest

    • A new field will be added to the qTest release (e.g. Jira Project), showing from which Jira project(s) the release originated

    • The check box is unchecked by default.

    • If the user chooses to merge duplicated Fix Versions, when retrieving Fix Version from Jira to qTest, the check box should be automatically checked through all Releases created:

    • If there are Jira Releases with duplicated names, then that Fix Version will be merged to the existing Release, otherwise a new Release will be created in qTest.

    • If there are multiple Releases that have same name, the first duplicated Release (order by ID) will be merged.

  1. Click the check box to merge Jira Fix Version in the Release Integration section.

  2. Click Retrieve Jira data for the merge to be effected.

  3. A link to the original Jira project is displayed in Jira's Properties section:

  4. A drop down is available in Jira Properties section so the user can choose which project they want to retrieve data from:

Box is Checked:

  • A new Release is created in qTest to merge existing Releases with duplicated names

  • The connection to Jira is removed for existing Releases, they are changed to internal Releases

Example

  • Sample Project 1 - 3.2020 on Jira has releases: "1.0", "2.0"

  • Sample Project 2 - 3.2020on Jira has releases: "1.0", "2.0"

  • When retrieving data from Jira (merging is off), qTest will create:

    • RL-1 1.0 (link to Project 1)

    • RL-2 2.0 (link to Project 1)

    • RL-3 1.0 (link to Project 2)

    • RL-4 2.0 (link to Project 2)

  • When the merge is turned on, the new releases are created:

    • RL-1 1.0 (internal release)

    • RL-2 2.0 (internal release)

    • RL-3 1.0 (internal release)

    • RL-4 2.0 (internal release)

    • RL-5 1.0 (link to Project 1 & Project 2)

    • RL-6 2.0 (link to Project 1 & Project 2)

Box is Unchecked:

  • Keep current merged Release(s) (if any)

  • Apply (to create new release) for Fix Version(s) that haven't been synced and created in qTest

Example:

  • Project 1 on Jira has releases: "1.0", "2.0"

  • Project 2 on Jira has releases: "1.0", "2.0"

  • Merge releases is on, so these are created:

    • RL-1 1.0 (link to Project 1 and Project 2)

    • RL-2 2.0 (link to Project 1 and Project 2)

  • If the user stops merging (unchecks), and then creates a release "1.0" for Project 3, a new Release is created in qTest:

    • RL-3 1.0 (link to Project 3)

  • If the user renames Fix Version in Jira, the linked Release in qTest will be renamed accordingly

For Sprint

Sprint_-_Data_Retrival_config.png

  1. Select OK. Then, select Save & Activate.

Retrieve Jira Data

After you finish all the above steps to configure your Release Integration for Jira Connection, you can configure your Jira Artifacts to populate within Manager. There are two ways to go about doing this:

  1. Position the arrow cursor on the new line that indicates the Jira PROJECT and Jira ARTIFACT TYPES. Then, move the arrow cursor into the Actions column on the right side of the window. Three icons are displayed under that column. Select the Retrieve icon.

  2. Select Retrieve Jira Data.

    The External Release Retrieving Progress dialog displays. A progress bar displays.

    Progress_bar.png

    When qTest Manager has imported all configured Jira artifacts, the following message is displayed:

    Progress_bar_-_Completed.png

  3. Select OK. The Releases created in Jira will be accessible to testers in qTest Manager. Its properties will separate into two sections: one for Manager’s Properties and a Read-only section for Jira’s Properties.

Review Jira Releases After Import

Select the Test Plan module from the header and view the Releases imported from Jira. These are located in the navigation panel. Each of these objects represents an object in Jira. Imported Jira artifacts are represented by with the Atlassian symbol Jira_release_icon.png to differ from internal qTest Releases .

Imported Jira artifacts update in real-time, but you may have to reload the Release page if you are on the actual page when a change is made on the issue in Jira. An imported Jira artifact has two Properties sections - Jira's Properties and qTest's Properties.

Jira Properties contain:

  • For Fix Version: Link, Start Date, End Date, Description

  • For Sprint: Start Date, End Date, Sprint Goal

These Properties are Read-only and can be updated in real-time. In case you only update a Sprint goal without updating any other Sprint properties, the Sprint goal will not be automatically synced to Manager. You will need to manually select Retrieve (in the Jira configuration page or in an individual Release page) to update it. Currently, Jira Properties' fields cannot be used for searching in qTest Manager.

When multiple Jira projects have been mapped:

  1. A link to the original Jira project is displayed in Jira's Properties section:

  2. A drop down is available in Jira Properties section so the user can choose which project they want to retrieve data from:

Start Date and End Date on qTest’s Properties are Read-only & their values are from Jira Properties.

To view the actual Jira artifact - Fix Version for a particular Release, select the Link hyperlink to be redirected to Jira. For Sprint, it shows the name of the Sprint without any hyperlink.

For recommendations on incorporating the Release Integration into your qTest and Jira workflow, refer to Best Practices for Jira Release Integration.