where do I find info on uploading issues, epics, linked issues

[annette mattox]

after building the WBS and conducting the sizing event, I have all my data in a spreadsheet.  How do I load it to jira and accomplish linking tasks (dependencies, epics)

[Ste Wright]

Hi @annette mattox 

Two different upload needs here:

• Upload the hierarchy
• Upload issue linkages

To upload in this manner, you need to use the Admin import tool. You can access this via Jira Settings > System > External System Import.

Below is specific advice for the questions asked. There are also some general requirements for CSV Imports - such as the Summary field is required, and Project Name/Type is needed when importing multiple projects in the same file, etc.

For more information in general, see this page on CSV imports

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Hierarchy:

You can upload Epics, Stories and Sub-Tasks in the same CSV - the basic field layout for just the hierarchical setup is:

• Issue Type: Ensures issues are created in the right issue type
• Epic Name: This is the name of your Epic
• Epic Link: For Stories, the Epic Link should match the text in Epic Name - this creates the relationship between Epic and Story during the upload
• Issue ID: Give each story an Issue ID - for uploads, this can be just any number - eg. Story 1 = 1, Story 2 = 2
• Parent ID: For Sub-Tasks, populate the Parent ID as the equivalent Issue ID you gave a Story - so if you're placing Sub-Task 1, 2 and 3 under Story 1, its Issue ID would be "1"

^ This allows you to upload the three different levels without three separate upload files.

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Issue Linking:

This is similar to the above Issue ID / Parent ID:

1. Issue ID: Create an Issue ID for each issue you intend to link to another
2. Link Type 1: Put the link type you want to use in the column header - for example, "is blocked by". You will map this to the link type during the upload.
3. Link Type 2: Put a separate column for each type of link you are creating - if you are linking multiple issues of the same link type, create multiple columns with the same link type - one for each issue.
4. Fill in the Issue IDs across the linked columns - for example, if Issue ID 1 was being linked to Issue ID 2 and 3, you would put a 1 in "Issue ID", then "2" and "3" in the next two link-based columns

For more information on linking - see a great example on this page

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Both these examples assume you're loading in all new issues. If you aren't, and you want to link a new issue to existing issues (for example), you can replace the numeric IDs you create in the file with actual Issue Keys - eg. ABC-123.

Let us know if you need any more assistance :)

Ste