JIRA Update Skill

Overview

Update existing JIRA tickets using the Atlassian MCP Server or Atlassian CLI (acli), supporting comments, field updates, and status transitions.

Note: Prefer using the Atlassian MCP Server tools when available. The MCP server provides direct API integration without requiring CLI installation.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• Adding comments or work notes to a ticket
• Updating ticket fields (assignee, priority, labels, etc.)
• Transitioning ticket status (move to In Progress, Done, etc.)
• Making multiple updates to a single ticket

Do NOT use this skill for:

• Creating new tickets (use jira-create instead)
• Searching for tickets (use jira-search instead)
• Sprint planning or backlog analysis (use jira-backlog-summary instead)

Quick Reference

MCP Server (Preferred)

Update Issue:

mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__editJiraIssue
  cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
  issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
  fields: {
    assignee: { accountId: "user-id" },
    labels: ["label1", "label2"],
    summary: "Updated title"
  }

Add Comment:

mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__addCommentToJiraIssue
  cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
  issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
  commentBody: "Comment text"

Transition Status:

mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__transitionJiraIssue
  cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
  issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
  transition: { id: "transition-id" }

CLI Fallback

Add Comment:

acli jira workitem comment create \
  --key "KEY-123" \
  --body "Comment text"

Update Fields:

acli jira workitem edit \
  --key "KEY-123" \
  --assignee "@me" \
  --labels "label1,label2"

Transition Status:

acli jira workitem transition \
  --key "KEY-123" \
  --status "In Progress"

Step-by-Step Process

1. Check for MCP Server Availability

First, check if the Atlassian MCP Server is available by looking for these tools:

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__editJiraIssue - Update issue fields
• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__addCommentToJiraIssue - Add comments to issues
• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__transitionJiraIssue - Change issue status
• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getJiraIssue - Get issue details (for validation)
• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getTransitionsForJiraIssue - Get available transitions
• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getAccessibleAtlassianResources - Get cloud ID

If MCP tools are available, prefer using them over the CLI approach.

2. Get Ticket Key

Extract ticket key from user input (e.g., "PROJ-123"). Validate format: UPPERCASE-NUMBER pattern.

3. Determine Update Type

Ask what to update:

• Add a comment/work note
• Update ticket fields
• Transition status
• Multiple updates at once

4. Gather Update Information

For Comments:

• Comment text (supports multi-line)

For Field Updates:

• Assignee (email or "@me")
• Priority (Highest, High, Medium, Low, Lowest)
• Labels (comma-separated)
• Summary (ticket title)
• Description

For Status Transitions:

• Target status (e.g., "In Progress", "Done", "Blocked")
• Optional comment with transition

5. Show Preview and Confirm

Display the operation before execution (whether using MCP or CLI).

6. Execute Operation

Use the appropriate MCP tool or CLI command based on availability.

7. Provide Summary

Show confirmation with link to ticket.

Field Update Options

When using MCP, fields are provided as a JSON object. When using CLI, use these flags:

Natural Language Shortcuts

Common Mistakes

Troubleshooting

• "Issue does not exist": Verify ticket key is correct and accessible
• "Field cannot be set": Field may not be editable or user lacks permission
• "Transition not found": Status may not be available from current state
• "Resolution is required": Some transitions (e.g., Done) require resolution field
• Permission errors: User may lack edit permission on this ticket

Smart Features

• Ticket Key Detection: Extract ticket key from natural language (e.g., "update PROJ-123")
• Batch Updates: Support updating multiple tickets in sequence
• Status Shortcuts: Map common phrases to transitions:
  • "start" → In Progress
  • "done" / "complete" → Done
  • "block" → Blocked
  • "review" → In Review

MCP Server Integration

Available Tools

The Atlassian MCP Server provides these JIRA update tools:

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__editJiraIssue - Update issue fields

  • Parameters:
    • cloudId (string) - Atlassian cloud instance ID or site URL
    • issueIdOrKey (string) - Issue key (e.g., "KEY-123")
    • fields (object) - Field names and values to update
  • Returns: Updated issue details
  • Example fields: summary, description, assignee, labels, priority

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__addCommentToJiraIssue - Add a comment to an issue

  • Parameters:
    • cloudId (string) - Atlassian cloud instance ID or site URL
    • issueIdOrKey (string) - Issue key
    • commentBody (string) - Comment text (supports markdown)
    • commentVisibility (object, optional) - Restrict visibility to group/role
  • Returns: Created comment details

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__transitionJiraIssue - Change issue status

  • Parameters:
    • cloudId (string) - Atlassian cloud instance ID or site URL
    • issueIdOrKey (string) - Issue key
    • transition (object) - Object with id field containing transition ID
    • fields (object, optional) - Additional fields required by transition
  • Returns: Updated issue with new status
  • Note: Use mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getTransitionsForJiraIssue first to discover available transitions

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getJiraIssue - Get issue details

  • Parameters: cloudId (string), issueIdOrKey (string)
  • Returns: Full issue details
  • Use this to validate the issue exists

• mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getTransitionsForJiraIssue - Get available transitions

  • Parameters: cloudId (string), issueIdOrKey (string)
  • Returns: List of available transitions with IDs and names
  • Use this to get the transition ID before calling transitionJiraIssue

MCP vs CLI Usage

Use MCP Server when:

• Available in the environment
• Need structured responses
• Want consistent error handling
• Prefer direct API integration

Use CLI when:

• MCP server is not configured
• Need interactive prompts
• Working with custom acli configurations
• Performing complex field updates not supported by MCP

Example MCP Workflows

Update multiple fields:

1. Use mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__editJiraIssue with:
   cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
   issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
   fields: {
     summary: "New title",
     labels: ["bug", "high-priority"],
     assignee: { accountId: "user-id" }
   }

Add comment and transition:

1. Use mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__addCommentToJiraIssue with:
   cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
   issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
   commentBody: "Work completed, moving to Done"

2. Get available transitions:
   Use mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__getTransitionsForJiraIssue with:
   cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
   issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"

3. Use mcp__plugin_patsy_atlassian__transitionJiraIssue with:
   cloudId: "your-cloud-id"
   issueIdOrKey: "KEY-123"
   transition: { id: "31" }