JIRA Dashboard Tutorial: How To Create JIRA Dashboard With Example

A Complete Guide to Creating Jira Dashboard Quickly:

We explored Scrum Handling in JIRA in our previous tutorial.

Jira dashboard displays various gadgets and one can easily track the progress of the tasks/issues collectively on one page.

For remote cross-border distributed teams, a dashboard can provide important information about both expected as well as some unexpected project developments.

=> Click Here For Complete JIRA Tutorials Series

 

It can also help in reminding the team members who tend to forget updating the task progress. This tutorial will explain all about Jira Dashboard and How to create a dashboard in Jira.

 

JIRA Dashboard

Once a user logs into the Jira software, the dashboard is the first thing which can be seen. Jira admin can customize the view of the dashboard and also things that can be seen on the dashboard.

A dashboard displays gadgets and apps that show up various kinds of information to facilitate the team members to help in tracking the project’s progress. Jira Dashboard gadgets provide much useful information.

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One way to improve Jira Reporting directly in your dashboards is with Custom Charts for Jira. Decisions can only be made on the data people share, so make reporting in Jira easy enough that everyone wants to do it.

Top Features:

• Customized reporting on Jira data used to be difficult, but now it’s easy to make line, bar, or any kind of simple or two-dimensional charts and tables.
• Everyone (from the non-technical to the advanced power users) will benefit and quickly learn how to make useful reports in a better way on the work happening in Jira.
• The best reports are the ones that everyone can make, use, edit and share, anywhere. Share report configurations between dashboards, or export to PDF, CSV, or PNG.

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Following page is displayed after clicking the ‘Dashboards’ link. This page by default will show the ‘System dashboard’ along with the issues assigned to the logged in user and the user’s activity stream.

Steps to Create a Dashboard

#1) Click on the ‘Dashboards’ link/button which will display the ‘System dashboard’ page.

#2) Click on the ellipses (…) button located in the upper right corner of the page.

#3) Select ‘Create dashboard’ from the pop-up menu. This will display the ‘Create dashboard’ page. (refer the below image)

#4) Name: Provide a descriptive name for the new dashboard. From the name itself, the purpose of the dashboard should be easily identifiable.

#5) Description: This is a non-mandatory field. If a user wishes to provide a description, then this can be entered.

#6) Start from: In the ‘Start from’ dropdown list choose either ‘Blank dashboard’ (which does not consist of any gadgets but the user can customize the dashboard) or a pre-existing dashboard like ‘System dashboard’ whose gadgets will be copied.

#7) Favorite: Choose/select this, if this newly created dashboard is to be made favorite. In the dashboards list, a favorite dashboard is displayed at the top of the list.

#8) Shared with: Select the appropriate user and group to share the dashboard.

#9) Click on the ‘Create’ button.

Note: In case the dashboard is not made as favorite, then Jira will display a popup message (refer the below image).

Click ‘View all dashboards’ link. On ‘Dashboards’ page mark the newly created dashboard as favorite. (Refer the below image). Now the new dashboard will be displayed under the ‘Dashboards’ menu.

Share a Dashboard

#1) Open the dashboard page of the dashboard, which is to be shared, by clicking on the dashboard name (Example: ‘Sample dashboard’) under the ‘Dashboards’ menu.

#2) Click on the ellipses (…) button and then select ‘Share dashboard’ option from the popup menu. This will display ‘Edit and share dashboard’ page. (Refer the below image)

To make the dashboard viewable to the desired people, the following can be done:

• To share the dashboard with a group, select ‘Group’ in ‘Share’ drop-down list and then select a group. Click ‘Add’ button. (Refer the following image for example).
• For adding the dashboard to a project, select ‘Project’ in ‘Share’ drop-down list. Select the desired project name. Select the person(s) who can see the dashboard (Example: ‘All’) and then click on the ‘Add’ button.
  • Note: If the dashboard needs to be added to several more projects then the above step needs to be repeated for each of the projects.
• To share the dashboard with any user, select ‘Any logged-in user’ in ‘Share’ drop-down list and then click on ‘Add’ button.
• To share with all the users (whether they log into Jira or not), select ‘Public’ and then click on ‘Add’ button.
  • Note: In case of serial numbers 3 and 4 above, it is like sharing the dashboard with all the public. In this case, all the previous shares will be removed.

Customize the Dashboard Layout

The dashboard can be customized by choosing the desired layout and adding appropriately the available gadgets.

Edit Layout:

• Open the dashboard page of the dashboard to be customized.
• Click on the ‘Edit Layout’ button available at the top right corner of the page. (Refer the below image).
• Choose the desired layout.

Add gadget:

• Open the dashboard page of the dashboard to be customized.
• Click on the ‘Add Gadget’ button, available at the top right corner of the page. This will display ‘Add a gadget’ page. (Refer the below image).
• Select the desired gadget(s) and click ‘Add Gadget’ button beside the respective gadget. After choosing the required gadgets(s) click the ‘Close’ button on the ‘Add a gadget’ page.

After adding gadgets, the dashboard page will look as shown below:

Customize added gadget(s):

Each gadget has its own settings. Settings of a gadget can be changed at any time.

This can change the way in which the gadget gathers and displays information and how often it updates. Referring to the above image, the name of the ‘Activity stream’ can be customized and a number of items that this gadget will display can be changed in ‘Limit to’ field.

• After making the required changes, click on the ‘Save’ button on the gadget. Now the dashboard page will show up as below.

• If a need arises to customize the gadget still further, then click on the ellipses (…) button beside the relevant gadget and then click the ‘Edit’ option from the popup menu. (This will display the dashboard page similar to the one that is seen immediately after adding a gadget). After making the desired changes click on the ‘Save’ button.
  • Note: Popup menu displayed after clicking on ellipses (…) button beside the relevant ‘Colour, ‘Delete’, ‘Edit’, ‘Rename’, and ‘Refresh’.

Manage a Dashboard

Apart from ‘Share dashboard’ and ‘Create dashboard’, Jira provides other options of managing a dashboard, by means of a popup menu, which is displayed after clicking the ellipses (…) button available at the top right corner of the page.

Options are displayed as – ‘Copy dashboard’, ‘Edit dashboard’, ‘Delete dashboard’, ‘Find dashboard’, ‘View as wallboard’ and ‘Set up wallboard slideshow’. (Refer the below image)

Copy a dashboard:

• Click the ellipses (…) button available at the top right corner of the page and then select the ‘Copy dashboard’ option. This will display the ‘Create dashboard’ page. Name of the dashboard which is being copied is selected in the ‘Start from’ drop-down list on the ‘Create dashboard’ page.
• Give a descriptive name to the new dashboard. Enter a description if desired.
• If the user wants to change the dashboard to copy from, then select the desired one in the ‘Start from’ drop-down list.
• Click the ’Create’ button.

Search a dashboard:

In case, if there are a lot of Jira dashboards, then the required Jira dashboard can be searched either using the name or the owner.

• Click the ellipses (…) button available at the top right corner of the page and then select the ‘Find dashboard’ option. This will show up the ‘Dashboards’ page.
• Enter the first few letters of the dashboard name or owner’s name. This will pop up a list of suggestions. Select the correct one. (Refer the below image)
• Click Search.

Delete a dashboard:

• Open the dashboard which is to be deleted.
• Click the ellipses (…) button available at the top right corner of the page and then select the ‘Delete dashboard’ option.
• Click the ‘Delete’ button on the delete confirmation message popup dialog.

Conclusion

This tutorial taught us everything on what is a Jira dashboard and how to create a dashboard in Jira with examples.