Hi everyone,
Today we shall share about the usefulness of Issue Keys in Backlog.
What is an Issue Key?
When an issue is added or registered in Backlog, it has an issue key (a.k.a. unique identifier) assigned to it. The first issue in the project will have [ProjectKey]-001, the second issue will have [ProjectKey]-002, and so on.
How to copy Issue Key
To copy the issue key, you can click the clipboard icon to copy (issue key and title), or hold shift + click to copy issue key only.
Here’s how it looks like when you paste the issue key in a Backlog comment:
Clicking on the issue key will direct us to the respective issue with its contents.
Usefulness of Issue Key
1. We can link to related issues by using Issue Key.
For example, we want to tell our team members about a related issue (or link to an issue in another project), we can just paste the issue key into the comment.
This way, we save ourselves the trouble of duplicating the issue contents. Note: they need to be project members in order to access the issue.
2. Use Issue Keys in Wiki
If you are using Wiki to share information about the project, it’s easy to add references to issues by pasting in the issue key. For example, if we want to collate and document the resolved issues on a Wiki page:
3. Use Issue Keys in Space Notification
The Space Announcements feature is only for the Backlog Space administrators. They can create announcements that will be posted on all members’ Dashboards.
It’s possible to use Issue Keys as links in the space notification too. This can be used to make important announcements or link to longer content in issues.
More about using issue keys:
Link issues with Git and Pull Requests (using issue key)
Using issue key with integrated Typetalk chat app
Issue Key format:
I’m sure you will have noticed that the Issue Key is made up of the Project Key. Example: [ProjectKey]-138.
The Project Key is set when you create the project, so it’s good to be aware of how it affects the issue key.
You can also change the Project Key under Project Settings > General.
Important: Changing the Project Key will affect the issue key’s URL and all previously pasted issue keys will no longer work as links.