Jira VS Code
Jira VS Code is an open-source Visual Studio Code extension that brings the essential Jira workflows directly into your editor. It provides reliable authentication for Jira Cloud and custom server deployments, a multi-view explorer for projects and issues, and quick actions like assigning tickets, updating status, and creating new tasks without leaving VS Code.
Features
- Projects View – Browse accessible Jira projects, focus a project for work, and refresh data with a single click.
- Items View – Displays the currently focused project's Jira issues grouped by status, with badges and tree view actions that mirror VS Code's source control UX.
- Issue Details Panel – Open any ticket to view metadata, switch assignees, transition workflow status, and launch the issue in the browser.
- Ticket Creation – Use the
+ Ticket button to create new issues with summary, description, issue type, and starting status right from VS Code.
- Authentication Support – Works with Jira Cloud as well as custom Jira Server/Data Center deployments, storing tokens securely via VS Code's secret storage.
Getting Started
- Install dependencies:
npm install
- Build:
npm run compile (runs the esbuild bundler and outputs dist/extension.js)
- Launch the extension:
- Press
F5 in VS Code to start a new Extension Development Host.
- Open the "Jira" activity bar icon to access the Projects, Items, and Settings views.
Usage
Authenticating
- Run
Jira: Log In from the Command Palette or click "Log in to Jira" in any view.
- Choose Jira Cloud or Server, provide your base URL, username/email, and API token/password.
Focusing Projects
- In the Projects view, click a project to focus it. The Items view automatically refreshes to show its backlog.
- Use the refresh icon to reload project listings, or
Jira: Clear Project Focus to reset.
Working with Issues
- Issues appear grouped by status in the Items view. Selecting an item opens the details panel.
- Inside the panel you can:
- Update status via the combobox (transitions are fetched from Jira).
- Search for and assign the issue to other users (results fetch lazily on demand).
- Click "Open in Jira" to view the ticket in your browser.
Creating Tickets
- Click
+ Ticket in the Items view toolbar.
- Fill in the summary, description, issue type, and desired starting status, then submit.
- The new ticket is created via Jira's REST API, transitions to the requested status, and opens in the details view automatically.
Commands
| Command |
Description |
Jira: Log In |
Authenticate with Jira Cloud/Server. |
Jira: Focus Project |
Choose a project to work on. |
Jira: Clear Project Focus |
Reset the focused project. |
Jira: Refresh Items |
Refresh the Items tree. |
Jira: Refresh Projects |
Refresh the Projects tree. |
Jira: Create Issue |
Launch the ticket creation panel. |
Jira: Open Issue Details |
Open the webview panel for a specific ticket. |
Jira: Commit From Issue |
Prefill the SCM commit box with the selected issue key. |
Jira: Log Out |
Clear credentials and stored secrets. |
Development
This extension is written in TypeScript. Key entry points:
src/extension.ts – Activation, tree providers, commands, and webview wiring.dist/extension.js – Compiled output loaded by VS Code (generated via npm run compile).
When contributing:
- Make sure to run
npm run compile.
- Test flows in the Extension Development Host.
- Update the changelog when changes are user-visible.
Packaging & Bundling
- The extension is bundled with esbuild so that runtime dependencies are inlined and the marketplace payload stays small.
npm run compile handles bundling for both development builds and publishing.
- Packaging for VS Code (
vsce package) automatically honors .vscodeignore, which excludes TypeScript sources, node_modules, and other development artifacts for smaller .vsix files. For more guidance, see aka.ms/vscode-bundle-extension.
License
This project is licensed under the MIT License.
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