How to query for editable issues in JQL?

[Sascha Ziemann]

I try to do a mass change of about 500 issues. But it does not work, because Jira tells me that at least one issue is not editable. Jira does not tell me which one it is. And Jira does not allow me to continue with just the remaining, which are editable.

How to get out of this dead-lock?

I need to refine my JQL query in order to exclude those issues, which are not editable. How can I do this? What is the JQL syntax to search just for editable issues?

[Jack Brickey]

You can't query for editable issues. However you can think through the process possibly. One possible reason could be that some of the issues are in a done category status, is that possible? What I would do is simply refine your search into smaller chunks and see if you can determine the calls. If you could share your Jakey well I might have some further thoughts for you.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

I usually check projects first (as edit permissions are granted by project permissions) - if your search returns three projects, then check you have edit in those projects.  If you do, then it's almost certainly what @Jack Brickey said - there's a workflow property for "do not allow edit of issues when they are resolved/closed"

[Sascha Ziemann]

This does not help me at the JQL prompt. If Jira is able to find out which issues are not editable, why I can not find out which issues are not editable?

I checked the project, there is just one group, which can edit issues and I am a member.

I checked the workflow and there is no state, which has property editable:false.

I know some people have played in the past with the state not editable. But I have still no idea how to find the issue, which can not edit. I can not click every of the 500 issues. That is the reason, why I want to do a mass change. I have no problem to exclude the problematic issues. But how can I find them?

Btw: I have already changed 1000 issues. This are the remaining 500, because it was not possible to change 1500 at the same time.

It is also not possible to limit the amount:

https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/JRASERVER-31384

So I can not change up to 100 in each turn to nail down the problematic issues.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

It's never going to.  "Issue edit" is a permission, which varies by user, it is not an attribute of an individual issue.

No-one is suggesting you try to edit each individual, what we're suggesting is that you need to understand your data.

• If you have many projects in the data set, use that to narrow down which ones you can or cannot edit.
• If you have issues in "ended" status, check the way the project works to see if it blocks the editing of ended issues.
• Simplify your bulk edits down to issues that you know you can edit - do what you can, then look at the remaining ones later

A couple of iterations through that and you should uncover the reasons you don't have edit rights

[Sascha Ziemann]

I have 500 issues and Jira told my: you can not edit some of them. So Jira knows, which issues I can not edit. So there must be a way to find out, because Jira did it already. All I want is, that Jira tells me what it did.

[Nic Brough -Adaptavist-]

Yes, you said that already,

I've already explained what's there, why the function is very unlikely to ever make it to the top of the pile of improvements, and how you can do it for yourself.