Benefits of using the JIRA connector
The JIRA connector broadens the ways CDESK can be used in IT companies, but also in other companies that make use of developers’ services. It makes it possible to link CDESK with JIRA software, which is designed for organising development work and managing projects. Thanks to this link, a CDESK request can be connected to an existing JIRA issue, or a new issue can be created directly from a request.
At present the link is fully functional with JIRA installed on a local server. A connection to the cloud version of JIRA will be developed based on demand.
Setting up the link between CDESK and JIRA
Adding the JIRA connector in CDESK and activating the JIRA REST API
Before the JIRA connector can be used, it must first be added and configured. To add the JIRA connector, go to Global settings -> Connectors, API and then click the + Add connector button.
After clicking, a window with a selection of connector types is displayed. Choose the JIRA option. To continue, click the -> Continue button.
A form for configuring the connector is then displayed, containing the following fields:
Connector type – when adding the JIRA connector, the field is automatically pre-filled with JIRA( Jira software). This setting cannot be changed.
Name – the name under which the connector will be displayed in the list of connectors.
Enabled – to be able to use the connector, set the switch to the on position 
.
Default project – this field is only displayed after JIRA and CDESK have been synchronised. It allows you to set which project will be pre-filled when entering a new JIRA issue from a request. This project will also be preset in the filter and when linking a request to an existing JIRA issue.
Default status filter – this field is only displayed after JIRA and CDESK have been synchronised. It allows you to set which JIRA issues, by status, will be displayed by default in the list when linking a request to an existing JIRA issue.
JIRA REST API
To be able to use the CDESK JIRA connector, additional libraries must be installed on your JIRA server. They can be downloaded by clicking the Cdesk Jira plugin button. They serve to enable the CDESK server to communicate with the JIRA system.
Then, in the Login credentials section, fill in the address of the JIRA server, the port number (443 is used by default) and the administrator’s user name and password for logging in to JIRA. Once the details have been filled in, the Test connection button becomes available. After clicking it, further fields for pairing CDESK accounts with JIRA users become available in the form. At the same time, the switch next to the button is set to the on position , which signals that the synchronisation was successful.
Mapping JIRA accounts and CDESK users
CDESK users can be linked to JIRA accounts on the Users tab. A user whose CDESK account is not linked to a JIRA account will not be able to create new JIRA issues from CDESK, nor to link requests to existing JIRA issues.
After a successful synchronisation, the tab displays a list of all JIRA users. In the top right corner there is a tool for browsing between the individual pages of the list. A specific user can be found using the search field.
To link a user with a CDESK user, click the 
icon at the end of the row of the user you want to link, and then select the required user in the Cdesk user column. You save the setting by clicking the 
icon located at the end of the user’s row.
If you need to modify the link that has been set up, click the icon at the end of that user’s row. A field is then displayed, the same as when setting up the account link, where you can select a new CDESK user. If you want to remove the link, click the 
icon.
Selecting companies for pairing JIRA issues
Linking to JIRA issues is only possible on requests of customers that are selected on the Companies tab in the JIRA connector. To assign a company, click the + Add company button.
After clicking, a list of companies registered in Address book -> Companies is displayed. You select a company by clicking its name, which adds it to the list of assigned companies. A company can only have one JIRA environment assigned. CDESK requests tied to the company will have access to the assigned JIRA environment.
If you need to remove a company from the list, click the icon at the end of that company’s row.
Mapping JIRA projects with CDESK orders
The CDESK JIRA connector makes it possible to transfer fulfilments from CDESK into the JIRA worklog. This is ensured by linking a JIRA issue with billing items under orders. Fulfilments that are linked to a JIRA issue via a billing item will be synchronised into the worklog. To achieve this, JIRA projects must be linked with CDESK orders, and the pairing of JIRA issues with billing items must also be switched on.
The link between JIRA projects and orders is set on the Projects tab in the JIRA connector.
At the top of the tab there is the Allow pairing of JIRA issues with the order’s billing items switch. Setting the switch to the on position ensures that if fulfilments have the same billing item set as the one on the linked order, the time recorded on these fulfilments will also be transferred into the worklog of the JIRA issue. If the switch is in the off position 
, such a transfer will not work.
After synchronisation, all JIRA projects are loaded into the tab. To create a new CDESK order that will be linked with a JIRA project, click the menu icon 
at the end of that project’s row and select the Link with a new order option. After clicking, a form for entering a new order is displayed. You can find more information about creating orders in a separate article.
Once the order has been created, its name is displayed in the CDESK order column.
To link with an existing order, click the menu icon at the end of that project’s row and select the Link with an existing order option. After clicking, a window with a list of orders is displayed. You select an order by clicking its name.
Once an order has been successfully linked with a JIRA project, it is possible to set up a link between a specific JIRA issue and a billing item. Start by double-clicking the name of the linked order in the CDESK order column. After clicking, a list of all JIRA issues belonging to that JIRA project is displayed. At the top of the window there is a search field that makes it possible to find a specific JIRA issue. The list also allows the use of an advanced filter, which makes it possible to filter JIRA issues according to criteria you enter.
Once you have found a specific issue, you can set up a link with a new or an existing billing item. To link with a new billing item, click the menu icon at the end of that JIRA issue’s row and select the Link with a new billing item option. After clicking, a form for entering a new billing item is displayed. Once you have entered the parameters of the new billing item, click the Save button.
To link with an existing billing item, click the menu icon at the end of that JIRA issue’s row and select the Link with an existing billing item option.
After clicking, the CDESK billing item column displays a selection of billing items available for the customer that is set on the selected order. If a billing item comes from an order other than the selected one, but the customer has it available, the brackets after the name of that billing item contain information about which order the billing item was taken from. You select a billing item in the list by clicking it.
Once a billing item has been selected, this setting must be saved by clicking the menu icon at the end of that JIRA issue’s row and then selecting the Save option.
Once the link between the billing item and the JIRA issue has been saved, the name of the billing item is displayed in the CDESK billing item column.
If you need to cancel the link with a billing item, click the menu icon at the end of that JIRA issue’s row and select the Cancel the link with the billing item option.
If you need to cancel the link directly with the order, click the menu icon at the end of that project’s row and select the Cancel the link with the order option.
Notifications about changes on a connected JIRA issue
Once a CDESK request has been linked with a JIRA issue, the CDESK user can receive notifications about changes made on the JIRA issue. Activating these notifications and setting which changes are to be notified are configured on the Webhook tab in the JIRA connector.
Setting the Update of JIRA task changes switch to the on position 
ensures that CDESK will receive information from JIRA about changes made on issues. This link is important so that CDESK can subsequently send notifications to users. If this switch is off , this link will not work and, as a result, no notifications can be sent either. To set when notifications will be sent, click the + Add rule button.
After clicking, fields for entering the rule parameters are displayed:
Name – enter a name that will serve as a brief description of the rule.
Event – select from the list the event at which notifications will be sent. The following options are available:
- Status change to – the notification is sent when the status of a JIRA issue changes. When this option is selected, a field is displayed for selecting the status which, if set on the JIRA issue, will cause the user to be notified. These are the statuses you have set up in JIRA. If you do not select any specific status in this second field, notifications will be sent on any status change.
- Assignee change – the notification will be sent when the assignee on a JIRA issue changes.
Action – select the Send notification option.
Projects – select the project within which changes on JIRA issues will be notified. Several projects can be selected for a single rule.
You save the rule by clicking the icon located at the end of that rule’s row.
CDESK makes it possible to create several rules for sending notifications about changes on a JIRA issue. All the rules that have been created are displayed in the list on the Webhook tab in the JIRA connector. If you need to modify a saved rule, click the icon at the end of that rule’s row. If you want to remove the rule, click the X icon.
Setting up a rule on the Webhook tab only sets the conditions under which notifications will be sent. However, for the user to receive a notification, notifying from the JIRA connector must also be switched on in Global settings -> Notifications -> Basic settings -> the Requests section -> the Jira connector field. In the Notification recipients column, the roles that will be notified must be set and then the switch in the E-mail column must be switched on. For the Jira connector, only e-mail notifications are currently available.
Entering a JIRA issue via requests in CDESK
Once the JIRA connector has been configured, it can be used to create new JIRA issues from requests, or to link requests with existing issues. These actions can only be performed on saved requests. They must also be for a customer that was selected on the Companies tab when configuring the JIRA connector.
Both adding and linking with JIRA issues are performed on the Jira tab in a CDESK request. If the tab is not displayed in the list, check the permissions in: Users and groups -> Users -> the specific user -> the Permissions -> Requests -> Access to tabs -> Jira tab.
Creating a new JIRA issue
To create a new JIRA issue that will be linked with a request, in the Jira tab click the button +Create.
After clicking, a form containing the following fields is displayed:
Request – the field is automatically pre-filled with the number and name of the request from which the JIRA issue is being created. By clicking the 
icon, the detail of that request can be displayed. Clicking the 
icon again closes the detail.
Project – select the project into which the JIRA issue will be placed. The field may be pre-filled with the project you set when configuring the connector in the field Default project.
Type – select the type of JIRA issue. Once the request type has been selected, further fields are displayed, the ones used in JIRA for that type.
Attachments – in this section, attachments can be added to the JIRA issue. Attachments added to the original CDESK request are also transferred here. If you need to remove one of the attachments, click the bin icon.
You create the new JIRA issue by clicking the button Save, which is located in the bottom right corner of the form. The created JIRA issue contains information about the link with the CDESK request, with the option of clicking through to that request.
Linking with an existing JIRA issue
To link a request with an existing JIRA issue, in the Jira tab click the button + Connect.
After clicking, a modal window with a selection of JIRA issues is displayed. The list may be pre-filled with a filter containing the issue status and the project that you may have set when configuring the JIRA connector in the Default project and Default status filter fields. You create the link by clicking the name of the JIRA issue.
Once linked, the JIRA issue contains information about the link with the CDESK request, with the option of clicking through to that request.
Displaying and working with linked JIRA issues in CDESK
Information about a linked JIRA issue is also displayed directly in the list of requests, where the JIRA-ID and JIRA Fix version columns can be added. Working with the list of requests is described in a separate text, List of requests. Clicking the value in the JIRA-ID column displays the linked JIRA issue in a new browser window.
After a request has been opened, the Jira tab displays a list of all linked JIRA issues. The following columns are displayed in the list:
- JIRA-ID
- Project
- Name
- Status
- Assignee
- Fix version
- Last change
- Last post
If necessary, the link with a JIRA issue can be cancelled. To cancel the link, click the menu icon at the end of that issue’s row and select the Cancel the link option.
