Scope Definition (Box)

Introduction

A defined collection of tasks makes up the box scope. In general, tasks can be added to the scope manually or get automatically synchronized with connected tools such as Trello.

Security and access

To access the Scope definition section at the box configuration level:

Method 1:

Open BigPicture.
Navigate to the Overview module.
Find a box.
Click the More actions button on the right side.
Click Configure.
Expand the Tasks section and navigate to Scope definition.

Method 2:

Go to the Gantt module.
Expand the Add task icon visible in the top-left corner below the box name.
Select the Manage scope definition option.

Depending on the box hierarchy and the scope type of a given box, the sections on the Scope definition page differ (every box type has the Scope definition page in box types settings). A box with two levels of sub-boxes shows all possible sections.

Scope definition elements

The table below presents elements and actions you can perform on the Scope definition page.

Scope definition element or action	Description
Scope of the context box	The scope of the box can be managed at the top part of the page. If the box has scope set to own, you can define its elements at the top part of the page. Sub-scope can be managed in a context box (the box you are in) or in a parent box under the Timeboxes section below. If the box has scope set to sub-scope, you can only set synchronization rules.
Scope of the sub-boxes	Scope information of boxes nested under the box you are currently configuring can be found at the bottom part of the page. Depending on the scope type of a child box, you can see: When a child box is set to be a sub-scope, you can see synchronization rules. When a child box has own scope, you are informed about it. The link in the message redirects to the configuration page for the relevant box scope. When a child box functions as a portfolio and has a scope set to none, you can see a message.
Switch between levels of child boxes	Using the arrows you can switch between viewing the level of children and grandchildren in a given box.
Basic info and status of child boxes	Click the … icon to: Edit or delete a sub-element. Change the status of a sub-element.

Own scope

Box admins can:

define the automatic rules to pull in tasks (from connected tools).
view and erase them from the scope manually.

The quickest way to set up the scope is to use the automatic rules.

Own scope - set automatic rules

Role or element

Description

Scope owner

The scope owner is listed as the first field in the Automatic rules section.
A box can contain only the items the scope owner can access (viewing access is sufficient). If add items the scope owner does not have access to, you cannot save the scope.
The scope owner does not have to be an actual user added to the box in any capacity (does not have to be a box admin, box editor, or box viewer).
Permissions of the scope owner user account within the external tool are the basis for the sync of tasks. Tasks are pulled into the scope of a box only if the scope owner can access them (at least as a viewer).
When connecting with tools such as Trello, you need to specify the scope owner for each connection. You cannot change the scope owner once a connection is established.

Scope filters

If tasks are already created in Jira, you can define the scope using the following filters:
- Boards - select from the list created Jira Board (Kanban and Scrum board).
- JQL filters - select from the list of previously saved JQL filters.
- Projects - select from the list of available projects.
If you connect with Trello, you can only select Trello boards.
You can select multiple items and increase the number of issues within the scope, as the OR operator is used for boards, filters, and projects.

Own scope - set rules manually

Element	Description
Manually added tasks	The section remains hidden until needed. It is visible only when it contains at least one task. Manually added tasks are the ones that do NOT fit the scope filter. A box admin can erase all the tasks in the section by clicking the Eraser icon.
Manually removed tasks	Manually removed task - a task moved from one box with the scope type set to own to another with the scope type also set to own.
Task types	You can select elements to be displayed as tasks and, when possible, synchronized with a connected tool (such as Jira). Task types are added automatically when respective structure builders are activated. For example, enabling the sprint structure builder adds the sprint task. Additional elements are added as basic tasks (since they do NOT exist as Trello Cards, they must be added in some form to be part of the task structure). In the case of Trello, you can add the following: Cards Lists Check items Boards Checklists

Sub-scope

Boxes with sub-scope display tasks added to a higher-level box with own scope. Any task added to a box with a sub-scope is automatically added to an upper-level box with own scope.

You can use the field value synchronization to assign tasks to boxes with sub-scope. Whenever you add a new task while working with a sub-box, you are assigning tasks to the upper-level box.

There are three columns for each box in the sub-boxes section:
- Name - the name of the tool with source data, such as a Jira instance, or connected tool, such as Trello.
- Field - the field used to synchronize with Jira. You can use the following field types: string, text, Jira epic link, and select list (single choice).
- Value - the field value used to identify a task in a given box.
When synchronizing with a sprint field, the search only finds the given sprint on the board where it was created. The correct board should be selected using the filter before searching for a sprint.

Reuse a field value in multiple boxes

You can reuse a field value (the same field value can be used for the synchronization of more than one box), but each time it should apply to a different set of tasks.

The warning message

If BigGantt recognizes that a task is already in more than one box with own scope and there are clashing configurations within the sub-scope definitions:

Sub-scope field sync is stopped for a task (existing values of sub-scope sync fields are NOT cleared).

Limitations

You cannot reuse a field value for sub-scope sub-boxes of the same own scope box. Otherwise, BigGantt cannot sort the tasks from own scope into sub-boxes, because the same task cannot be at the same time in multiple sub-boxes.

Security roles in sub-scope boxes

Users of sub-boxes with sub-scope can make any changes that match their permissions in a given sub-box, even if they lack appropriate permissions to their own scope box.

Available operations:

Create tasks
Add tasks to own scope as manually added
Delete tasks
View tasks

Timeboxes

Timeboxes define consecutive time frames used for work planning. It helps to think of them as, e.g., sprints, iterations, increments, or stages.

You can configure each row separately, use the same value for each row or leave the fields empty. Configuration of the next sequential sub-box is based on its predecessor. No additional patterns are taken into account.

BigGantt configures scope synchronization of sub-boxes within a particular box based on the setup of the last sequential, same-level sub-box.

The Next timebox template toggle switch has to be activated.

Action

Description

Auto sprint creation

When you create a new timebox (such as program increment or iteration), BigGantt can create a corresponding sprint. The auto-configuration option configures the scope definition of newly added and existing but NOT configured timeboxes. The process takes place once one of the following actions is performed:

A new box is created.
A new team is allocated to a box.
A box sync field is updated and a user saves settings.

Sprint vs box duration

Sprint and box periods are NOT synchronized or related in any way.

New sprint vs existing sprint assignment

Synchronization of sprints with boxes works in two steps - if a sprint already exists, it is synchronized with a newly created box (a new sprint is NOT created unless no matching sprint has been found).

Toggle switch activation - when a new timebox has been created, the setup of the last existing timebox is used to create the next one:

The duration gets copied but is sequential (can be manually changed later).
The box name is increased by +1.
If the last timebox was synchronized with a field, BigGantt tries to find the next sequential one.
If BigGantt cannot find the next sprint (matching the previous timebox), a new sprint is created.

To change the sprint naming scheme, you have to first change a sprint name in Jira, and then associate it with the last timebox. Otherwise, BigGantt ignores the existing sprint with a name that does not match the last timebox, and a new sprint that meets the specifications is created.

Save scope

BigPicture validates the scope. In case of errors, saving the scope fails.

If you define the scope correctly (all tasks exist and filters are NOT corrupted), the total number of tasks is displayed.

You cannot save the scope when:

At least one item in the scope definition is incorrect or does NOT exist.
The total number of tasks is greater than the task limit set for boxes.

Duplicated tasks

When a task is added manually and updated so it fits the filter described in the Automatic rules section, it is classified as a duplicate.

Refresh cache

The Refresh cache option on the scope definition page is available on Jira Cloud.

Use the Refresh cache option when you cannot find the project, board, or quick filters on the scope definition page. After pressing the Refresh cache button, the screen is disabled for 5 seconds. The option refreshes only projects, boards, and quick filters.

Recalculate box scope aggregations

Set the time interval in which BigPicture recalculates box scope aggregations. The smaller the value, the higher the performance load for BigPicture. The recommended time is 60 seconds.

Open BigPicture.
Click the wrench button on the right side.
Select Modules.
Navigate to the Overview tab.
Set the time interval in the Box scope aggregation field.