Filter unused custom fields

Exported custom fields

Project Configurator exports configuration objects which are used directly or indirectly by the exported project(s). As any field configuration in Jira contains all system and custom fields, and every project uses at least one field configuration, the previous rule means all custom fields will be exported.

However, this is not always convenient. If the original instance has many custom fields, this could make the load into another instance unnecessarily complex and increase the risk of unexpected effects on other projects. So, the app offers options for those Jira admins who wish to export only those custom fields used by the project configuration, excluding the rest of the custom fields from the export file.

The app considers a custom field as "used" by a project if:

It is used in any of the project’s permission, notification, or issue security scheme
OR
It is used in any workflow used by the project
OR
(It is visible in at least one field configuration used by the project
AND
It is included in at least one screen used by the project)
OR
It has a value set in any of the issues of the project

Filtering option

Since version 2.2.3 of Project Configurator, there is an intermediate filtering option: "Only those used in projects (no values considered).” This option will export only custom fields used by the exported projects, but it ignores whether there are values set for those fields in issues of the exported projects.

In terms of the criteria above, this is equivalent to ignoring the last condition after the last "OR". This means a custom field that is not used in any of the project schemes or workflows and is not visible in any of the screens used by the project will not be exported, even if some issues in the exported projects have values for those custom fields.

This intermediate option is intended only for users with large databases, and when the query evaluating the condition about custom field values might have an excessive impact on times required for exporting. In all other cases, its use is not recommended.