Can I use Jira automation to pull comments from a linked issue to the epic?

[Holly A]

In my Jira project I use epics and have linked issues to the epic which represent sub-tasks. Is there a way pull the comments from the linked sub-tasks into the comments section of the epic and have them ordered from most recently added. The idea is to show a timeline of the comments from each of the sub-tasks. 

[Mary from Planyway · Accepted solution]

Hi @Holly A 

It's Mary from Planyway

To achieve what you're describing in Jira, you would typically need to use a combination of Jira's querying features and possibly some scripting or integration with external tools, as Jira's native functionality may not directly support aggregating comments from different issues into a single epic's comment stream in the way you described.

Here's a general approach you could take:

1. Jira Query Language (JQL): Start by using JQL to find all the sub-tasks linked to your epic. This can be done by querying issues with a specific "Epic Link" or issues that are linked to your epic.

2. Scripting or Automation: Once you have the list of linked sub-tasks, you'll need to extract the comments from each issue. This part is more complex and may require scripting or using an automation tool. You can use Jira's REST API to programmatically retrieve comments from each issue.

3. Aggregating Comments: After extracting the comments, you'll need to aggregate them into a single stream, ordered by the date they were added. This will likely involve some custom scripting or programming.

4. Updating the Epic: The final step would be to add these aggregated comments to the epic's comment section. This can also be done via the Jira REST API. Note that this might make the epic's comment section quite cluttered, so consider this carefully.

5. Automation/Refresh: If you want this to be updated regularly (to reflect new comments on sub-tasks), you'll need to set up a recurring job or automation.

Please note that this approach requires a good understanding of Jira's REST API and some programming skills. Alternatively, there are marketplace add-ons for Jira that offer enhanced reporting and issue linking capabilities which might be able to achieve similar results with less technical setup.

[Bill Sheboy · Accepted solution]

Hi @Holly A -- Welcome to the Atlassian Community!

No, that is not possible with the built-in features of Jira.

Although you could use an automation rule to gather the linked issues, and their comments, it would likely run into limitations for the number of items and it could not interleave the comments by date / time for the different issues.  (There is no "sort" function for lists of things in rules.)

Perhaps check the Atlassian Marketplace to learn if there is an addon app which can do this type of reporting.

Kind regards,
Bill