Append value to checkbox field in bulk without overwriting data in Jira

Summary

Usually, if you try to bulk update work items to add a value to a checkbox field, it will overwrite any previously set value in that field. If you need to append a value to a checkbox field in bulk, but must retain the original value as well, we can accomplish this with Jira Automation.

Solution

Append a new option using smart values

The key component in our rule is the value we use in the Edit work item action. The following snippet allows us to combine our new field value with a smart value containing the originally set field value without overwriting it:

<new_option> {{issue.<custom_field_name>.value}}

Let's imagine our field is named "Checkbox Test" and we're trying to append a value of "Test Value" to this field without removing any other previously set values. In the automation rule, we'd set:

Test Value {{issue.Checkbox Test.value}}

Below, we build an example automation rule with the same logic.

Automation rule to add value to field without overwriting

• Trigger: Scheduled

  • Select "Run a JQL search and execute actions for each work item in the query" option to enable the query field

  • Enter your query to capture the work items that you'd like to execute the automation rule for

• Condition (Optional):

  • Please add any relevant condition you'd like to verify against the work items before taking any actions

• Action: Edit work item

  • Field: <your_custom_field>

  • Value: <new_field_value> {{issue.<your_custom_field>.value}}

• Click "Update" to save the automation rule

After saving the automation rule, you can either wait for the scheduled time, or select more options (three dots) and hit "Run rule" to execute the rule manually.