Modifying LDAP username or SAMAccountName creates a new user account in Jira Data Center

Platform Notice: Data Center Only - This article only applies to Atlassian products on the Data Center platform.

Note that this KB was created for the Data Center version of the product. Data Center KBs for non-Data-Center-specific features may also work for Server versions of the product, however they have not been tested. Support for Server* products ended on February 15th 2024. If you are running a Server product, you can visit the Atlassian Server end of support announcement to review your migration options.

*Except Fisheye and Crucible

Summary

Problem

Whenever a username or SAMAccount name for a JIRA user is modified on LDAP, a new user that is not associated with the previous or renamed user is created in JIRA, instead of the existing user account simply being renamed in JIRA.

Diagnosis

Environment

  • Observed in JIRA with Microsoft AD SAMAccountName rename.

Cause

Problem is caused by the User Unique ID Attribute under the external directory JIRA configuration not being correctly set.

Solution

Resolution

Set the User Unique ID Attribute to a unique identifier attribute for your LDAP server

  1. Navigate through Administration > User Management > User Directories

  2. From the list of configured User Directories click the Edit link for the relevant directory

  3. Scroll down to the User Schema Settings and expand this section

  4. Find the User Unique ID Attribute field, and enter the correct value:

    • For Microsoft Active Directory for instance, this is likely to be objectGUID

    • For other LDAP server types e.g. OpenDS this may be entryUUID by default

      (when in doubt, it helps to actually use the defaults for the fields provided automatically by JIRA if you have selected the correct directory type when creating the user directory)

Updated on April 2, 2025

Still need help?

The Atlassian Community is here for you.