Automation - I'm trying to clone EPIC that carry STORIES but it's doesn't clone SUBTASK

[Ky Huynh]

I'm successfully using automation to clone Epics along with their Child Issues. However, it only clones Stories and does not clone the Subtasks of those Stories.

Here is own Automation setup

[Bogna Krystian_Deviniti_]

Hi @Ky Huynh 

Unfortunately, as far as I know, Jira Automation doesn't natively support multi-level cloning (Epic > Story > Subtask).

If you're interested in exploring Marketplace add-ons, check out Issue Templates for Jira , this is an app developed by the company I work for.

It supports cloning complete issue structures, including Epics, Stories, and Subtasks, by using predefined templates. It allows you to create a structure once and reuse it, ensuring all levels are cloned.

You can define a full issue tree (Epic with Stories and their Subtasks) as a template.
Use automation or manual triggers to clone the entire structure, not just one level.
Use variables and smart values to dynamically update fields across the cloned structure.

[Marlene Kegel - codefortynine]

Welcome to the Atlassian Community, @Ky Huynh.

I am Marlene, product manager of Deep Clone for Jira.

I hope you are able to solve your problem with Jira Automation. If not, you could also try our app.

With Deep Clone cloning epics or larger hierarchies, including their subtasks, is very simple:

• Select the Epic (or other parent issue) you want to clone
• Click on the three dots menu on the top right of the issue (issue action menu)
• Click Deep Clone
• Select Epic/Tree Clone
• Make sure to select "Subtasks" in the clone dialog.

You can also watch this Deep Clone for Jira video to see how it works. 

[Mary Kable]

Hi Marlene,

I have used Deep Clone for sometime, but now when I try to clone a team project to a new team project, the subtasks/child issues are not cloning. I receive an error that they do not have a parent, but they do. I am at a loss as to what the problem could be. Any suggestion?

[Marlene Kegel - codefortynine]

Welcome to the community, @Mary Kable.

We are experiencing an issue at the moment, which was caused by an update made by Atlassian.

In some Jira instances, Deep Clone does not retrieve the subtasks of work items from team-managed projects, resulting in those subtasks not being cloned. This issue is caused by a recently discovered bug in the Jira Cloud API: https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/JRACLOUD-93929 (feel free to vote and watch this ticket).

We hope that Atlassian is going to fix the issue soon, they estimated one for early this week. At the same time we have been able to deploy a fix for cloning single issues including their subtasks, and are working on a solution for more complex clones. 

And sorry for the late reply, Mary. I was not in the office Friday last week. Feel free to always reach out to us directly, if you have a question or problem. 

[Marlene Kegel - codefortynine]

Good news! We've just deployed a fix. Cloning issues and their subtasks in team-managed projects should now work as expected again.

If you continue to experience any issues or notice anything unusual, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us directly.

[Richard Cho - ServiceRocket]

@Ky Huynh 

This worked for me although it's a little hacky in my opinion. You need an additional automation rule to listen to the cloned issue being created so this will run after your automation rule. Next you need to do a JQL lookup plus some branching logic to clone the original subtasks into the current issue.

I've exported and attached the automation rule here: link