Backfill GitHub data in Jira

Backfilling refers to the process of importing historical data from your GitHub organization into your software project. This way, you can view previous data alongside current work, and keep both sources in sync.

When you connect GitHub, Jira automatically imports six months of history. The following information is imported:

• All pull requests - the Jira issue key needs to be in the title or the description of the pull request, or in the name of the source branch.

• Builds and deployments - if Jira issue keys are included in commit messages, branch names, or pull requests that are part of a workflow or deployment. Find out more about linking builds and deployments to Jira

• Commits containing Jira issue keys - only the latest 50 commits from non-default branches will be backfilled. Any unreachable commits (like commits from deleted branches) are excluded.

• Branches - as long as the issue key is in:

  • the branch name, or

  • the title of the latest pull request associated with the branch, or

  • the last commit message of the branch.

Manually backfill GitHub data

If you want to import more than six months of historical GitHub data:

1. In the top menu, select Apps, then Manage your apps.

2. Select GitHub for Jira in the sidebar menu.

3. Select settings () for your GitHub organization, then Continue backfill.

4. Select the date you want to start importing history from, then Backfill data. By default, the manual importation process adds data in addition to what’s already been imported. If you want to overwrite all existing historical data, select the checkbox next to Restart the backfill.