jira-agent

name	jira-agent
description	Jira Cloud CLI for AI agents. Structured JSON/CSV/TSV output, semantic exit codes. Covers: issue CRUD, search, bulk ops (create/fetch/delete/edit/move/transition), transitions, assignments, comments, worklogs, watchers, votes, attachments, issue links, remote links, changelog, ranking, notifications; agile boards, sprints, epics, backlogs; projects, components, versions; fields (contexts/options), users, groups, filters, permissions, dashboards, workflows, statuses, priorities, resolutions, issue types, labels, JQL helpers, audit records, tasks, time tracking configuration, and server info; resolve (ID lookup) for users, boards, sprints, fields, and transitions. Triggers: 'jira', 'jira issue', 'jira search', 'jql', 'jira create', 'jira bulk', 'jira transition', 'jira assign', 'jira comment', 'jira worklog', 'jira sprint', 'jira epic', 'jira board', 'jira backlog', 'jira component', 'jira version', 'jira project', 'jira field', 'jira user', 'jira group', 'jira filter', 'jira permission', 'jira dashboard', 'jira workflow', 'jira status', 'jira resolve', 'resolve user', 'resolve board', 'jira-agent'.
metadata	{"author":"Major Hayden","version":"2.0.0"}

jira-agent CLI

Go CLI for Jira Cloud REST API v3. All output is structured, errors always JSON, exit codes are semantic.

Feedback

If you hit bugs, confusing usability, missing guidance, or token-inefficient workflows while using jira-agent, encourage the user to open a GitHub issue at github.com/major/jira-agent. Offer to open the issue for them with GitHub's gh CLI if it is installed and the user wants you to file it.

Companion Files

This is the entry point. Command details are split by theme:

File	Scope
issues.md	Issue CRUD, search, bulk ops, meta, count
issue-workflows.md	Transition, assign, comment, worklog, watcher, vote, attachment, link, remote-link, changelog, rank, notify
agile.md	Board, sprint, epic, backlog
project-management.md	Project, project property, component, version
admin-reference.md	Field, user, group, filter, permission, dashboard, workflow, status, priority, resolution, issuetype, label, JQL, audit records, tasks, time tracking, server-info
(this file)	Resolve (ID lookup): user, board, sprint, field, transition

Resolve (ID Lookup)

Resolvers translate human-readable names into the numeric or opaque IDs that Jira write commands require. All resolvers are read-only and appear in jira-agent schema with category: "discovery".

Subcommands

Command	Required flags	Resolves
resolve user <query>		email/name to account_id
resolve board <name>		board name to id
resolve sprint --board-id <id> <name>	--board-id	sprint name to id
resolve field <query>		field name to id
resolve transition --issue <key> <name>	--issue	transition name to id

Examples

jira-agent resolve user "[e-mail]"
jira-agent resolve board "My Scrum Board"
jira-agent resolve sprint --board-id 42 "Sprint 5"
jira-agent resolve sprint --board-id 42 --state active "Sprint 5"
jira-agent resolve field "story points"
jira-agent resolve transition --issue PROJ-123 "Done"

Output contract

Each resolver returns a data array of matched objects plus a metadata.usage_hint with the ready-to-run follow-up command:

{
  "data": [{"id": "...", "display_name": "..."}],
  "metadata": {
    "total": 1,
    "returned": 1,
    "usage_hint": "jira-agent issue assign PROJ-123 --assignee <account_id>"
  }
}

Field-specific shapes: resolve user includes account_id, display_name, email_address, active; resolve board includes id, name, type; resolve sprint includes id, name, state; resolve field includes id, name, custom; resolve transition includes id, name.

Validation nudges

When a command that needs a board ID or sprint ID receives a name instead, the error includes next_command pointing to the appropriate resolver. Follow it to get the ID, then retry.

Auth

Env vars (override config file):

export JIRA_INSTANCE="your-domain.atlassian.net"
export JIRA_EMAIL="[e-mail]"
export JIRA_API_KEY="your-api-token"
export JIRA_ALLOW_WRITES=true  # optional: enable write operations

Config file fallback: ~/.config/jira-agent/config.json (XDG_CONFIG_HOME aware). Verify with jira-agent whoami.

Write Protection

Writes (create, edit, delete, transition, assign) are disabled by default. Enable:

• Config: "i-too-like-to-live-dangerously": true
• Env: JIRA_ALLOW_WRITES=true

Blocked writes return exit 5 with remediation. Read-only commands always work. issue transition --list is read-only.

Global Flags

Flag	Short	Default	Description
--project	-p		Default Jira project key (also JIRA_PROJECT env)
--output	-o	json	json, csv, or tsv
--compact		off	Strip nulls/empties from JSON, flatten single-key objects, JSON Lines for arrays
--dry-run		off	Preview field changes without mutating (composite commands only)
--verbose	-v	off	Verbose logging to stderr
--config			Config file path override

Schema Discovery

jira-agent schema outputs the full CLI structure as JSON without requiring auth. Use it to discover all commands, flags, flag groups, categories, and constraints.

jira-agent schema
jira-agent schema --output json

The output includes commands[] with path, description, category, write_protected, requires_auth, flags[], flag_groups[], and examples[] for each command.

Command Discovery

Use --help to explore commands and flags before guessing:

jira-agent --help                  # top-level command list
jira-agent issue --help            # issue subcommands
jira-agent issue create --help     # flags for a specific command

For reads/searches, request only needed fields: --fields key,summary,status. See JSON shape for default compaction and raw-output guidance. Use CSV/TSV for simple tables, JSON for updates or nested data.

Output

Success envelope (JSON)

{
  "data": { ... },
  "errors": [],
  "metadata": { "timestamp": "...", "pagination": { "type": "offset", "has_more": true, "next_command": "jira-agent issue mine --max-results 10 --start-at 10", "returned": 10, "total": 42, "start_at": 0, "max_results": 10 } }
}

Access results via .data. Check metadata.pagination.has_more for pagination. When has_more is true, metadata.pagination.next_command contains the ready-to-run command for the next page.

Error response (always JSON, regardless of --output)

{
  "error": { "code": "NOT_FOUND", "message": "transition 'Done' not found", "details": "...", "next_command": "jira-agent issue transition PROJ-123", "available_actions": ["To Do", "In Progress", "Done"] }
}

next_command and available_actions appear in errors when applicable. Use them to recover without guessing.

Code	Exit	Meaning
AUTH_FAILED	3	Missing or invalid credentials
NOT_FOUND	2	Resource does not exist
API_ERROR	4	Jira API error
VALIDATION_ERROR	5	Invalid input or blocked write
UNKNOWN	1	Unexpected error

CSV/TSV

Flat rows with header, no envelope. Nested values become inline JSON in cells.

Composite Workflow Commands

Composite commands collapse multiple Jira API calls into one CLI invocation. All require JIRA_ALLOW_WRITES=true. Use --dry-run to preview field changes without mutating.

jira-agent issue start-work PROJ-123 --dry-run

Dry-run output includes diff[] with field, old_value, and new_value for each planned change.

issue start-work

Transitions to In Progress, assigns to current user, and optionally adds a comment.

jira-agent issue start-work PROJ-123
jira-agent issue start-work PROJ-123 --status "In Review" --comment "Starting review"
jira-agent issue start-work PROJ-123 --assignee abc123 --skip-transition
jira-agent issue start-work PROJ-123 --skip-assign --comment "Picked up"

issue close

Transitions to Done, sets resolution, and optionally adds a comment.

jira-agent issue close PROJ-123
jira-agent issue close PROJ-123 --resolution "Won't Do"
jira-agent issue close PROJ-123 --status "Closed" --resolution "Duplicate" --comment "Duplicate of PROJ-100"

issue create-and-assign

Creates an issue and assigns it in one command. Defaults to assigning the new issue to the current user.

jira-agent issue create-and-assign --project PROJ --type Story --summary "New feature"
jira-agent issue create-and-assign --project PROJ --type Bug --summary "Fix" --assignee abc123
jira-agent issue create-and-assign --project PROJ --type Task --summary "Chore" --skip-assign
jira-agent issue create-and-assign --project PROJ --type Story --summary "New" --dry-run

issue create-and-link

Creates an issue and links it to an existing issue in one command.

jira-agent issue create-and-link --project PROJ --type Story --summary "New feature" --link-type Blocks --link-target PROJ-100
jira-agent issue create-and-link --project PROJ --type Bug --summary "Fix" --link-type "is blocked by" --link-target PROJ-200
jira-agent issue create-and-link --payload-json '{"fields":{"project":{"key":"PROJ"},"issuetype":{"name":"Task"},"summary":"Task"}}' --link-type Blocks --link-target PROJ-100

issue transition-jql

Searches by JQL, resolves matching bulk transition IDs, and submits a fire-and-forget bulk transition task. JQL matches over 1000 issues are rejected.

jira-agent issue transition-jql --jql 'project = PROJ AND status = "In Progress"' --status Done
jira-agent issue transition-jql --jql 'assignee = currentUser() AND status = Open' --status "In Progress" --send-notification=false
jira-agent issue transition-jql --jql 'project = PROJ AND status = Open' --status Done --dry-run

issue move-to-sprint

Moves an issue to a sprint using the Agile API, with optional transition and comment.

jira-agent issue move-to-sprint PROJ-123 --sprint-id 42
jira-agent issue move-to-sprint PROJ-123 --sprint-id 42 --status "In Progress"
jira-agent issue move-to-sprint PROJ-123 --sprint-id 42 --comment "Moved to sprint" --rank-before PROJ-100

Smart Shortcuts

issue mine

Returns issues assigned to the current user, ordered by last updated.

jira-agent issue mine
jira-agent issue mine --status "In Progress"
jira-agent issue mine --fields key,summary,status,priority --max-results 20
jira-agent issue mine --fields-preset triage

issue recent

Returns issues recently touched by the current user (assigned, reported, or watching). Default window is 7 days.

jira-agent issue recent
jira-agent issue recent --since 14d
jira-agent issue recent --fields key,summary,status,assignee --max-results 20
jira-agent issue recent --fields-preset minimal

sprint current

Returns the active sprint for a board.

jira-agent sprint current --board-id 42

Returns a single sprint object when one active sprint exists, or an array when multiple are active. Returns a not-found error with remediation when no active sprint exists.

Semantic JQL Flags

issue search accepts convenience flags that build JQL automatically. These are mutually exclusive with --jql.

jira-agent issue search --assignee me
jira-agent issue search --status "In Progress" --priority High
jira-agent issue search --sprint current
jira-agent issue search --type Bug --label backend
jira-agent issue search --updated-since 7d
jira-agent issue search --assignee me --status "In Progress" --sprint current

Flags: --assignee (use "me" for currentUser()), --status, --type, --priority, --label (repeatable), --sprint (use "current" for openSprints()), --updated-since (e.g. "7d"). Conditions join with AND in alphabetical order.

Token-Efficient Output

--compact strips null values, empty strings, and empty arrays from JSON output. Single-key nested objects flatten to dot notation. Arrays output as JSON Lines (one envelope per line).

jira-agent issue get PROJ-123 --compact
jira-agent issue search --jql "project = PROJ" --compact

--fields-preset selects a predefined field set. Mutually exclusive with --fields.

jira-agent issue get PROJ-123 --fields-preset minimal
jira-agent issue search --jql "project = PROJ" --fields-preset triage

Presets: minimal (key, summary, status), triage (+ priority, assignee, labels), detail (+ description, created, updated).

Pagination

Paginated responses include metadata.pagination.has_more (bool, always present) and metadata.pagination.next_command (string, present when has_more is true).

# Offset pagination (issue mine, issue recent, most list commands)
jira-agent issue mine --max-results 10
# metadata.pagination.type: "offset"
# metadata.pagination.has_more: true
# metadata.pagination.next_command: "jira-agent issue mine --max-results 10 --start-at 10"

# Cursor pagination (issue search, changelog bulk-fetch)
jira-agent issue search --jql "project = PROJ" --max-results 10
# metadata.pagination.type: "cursor"
# metadata.pagination.has_more: true
# metadata.pagination.next_token: "<cursor-token>"
# metadata.pagination.next_command: "jira-agent issue search --jql 'project = PROJ' --max-results 10 --next-page-token <cursor-token>"

Gotchas

• Description: --description defaults to auto mode on writes: plain text auto-converts to ADF and valid ADF JSON passes through. Use --description-format wiki for Jira wiki markup like h4. headings and * bullet lists. issue get and issue search default description output to plain text; use --description-output-format markdown for headings/lists, adf for compact ADF, or --raw for Jira's unmodified response.
• Custom fields: --field key=value parses value as JSON if valid, else raw string. Quote carefully in shell.
• Project flag: Command-level --project overrides root -p.
• Type resolution: Issue type matching is case-insensitive.
• Transition resolution: issue transition --to matches status/transition name case-insensitively. Use --transition-id when you already know Jira's numeric transition ID.
• Pagination: issue search uses --next-page-token (cursor).
• Offset pagination: Offset-paginated list commands use --start-at.
• JSON shape: Default JSON removes common Jira metadata noise, including self, expand, avatarUrls, iconUrl, and nested statusCategory objects. issue search additionally flattens common objects to useful scalar values, for example status to its name and assignee to display name. issue get --raw and issue search --raw restore Jira's nested response and bypass description conversion; use --help to check flag availability on any command.
• Assignment: issue assign accepts account ID, not email. --unassign clears, --default uses project default.
• Visibility: Both --visibility-type and --visibility-value must be set together.
• Write protection: All writes blocked unless JIRA_ALLOW_WRITES=true or config set. Exit 5 with remediation.