How to control which spaces synchronize user information?

🤔 Problem

There are Jira spaces that do not appear to use the custom fields created through the User Profiles for Jira Cloud app. For example, because no custom fields created via the app are assigned to any screens. Nevertheless, every time work items are updated, user information is retrieved from Microsoft 365 and written to those work items. (This can also be seen in the work items history.)

This leads to unnecessary data traffic and synchronization takes longer than necessary.

🧐 Cause

Our User Profiles for Jira Cloud app synchronizes user information across all work items in the spaces that are linked to a custom field created by the app. Jira controls this link with field schemes.

If a custom field is linked to a space, the app updates the work items of that space. This is also true when the field is not on any screen. Screens only decide where users see the field. They do not stop the app from updating it.

(If your site does not use field schemes yet, see Sites that do not use field schemes yet below.)

🌱 Solution

To stop updating work items for specific spaces, edit the field schemes that these spaces use.

1. Open the Configuration of custom fields tab in the User Profiles for Jira configuration.

2. In the Screens and spaces column, click the link with the number of spaces (for example “5 spaces”). Jira opens the field scheme settings of this custom field.

3. Configure the field schemes accordingly.

The app stops updating work items in the spaces that are no longer linked to the field.

For more information about field schemes, see Atlassian’s documentation What are field schemes?

Sites that do not use field schemes yet

Cause

The app synchronizes user information across all work items that are associated with custom fields created by the app. On these sites, the context of the field controls this. When you create a field through the app, it is added to the global context by default (that is, it is available on all work items).

Not having the custom fields on any screens does not change this behavior.

Solution

To stop updating work items for specific spaces, change the context configuration for each custom field. There are two possible approaches:

1. Remove the “global context” assigned to each field and add a custom one.

2. Edit the existing “global context”.

While you configure the context, you can decide in which spaces the fields are available. The app honors this configuration and stops updating work items from spaces that the context excludes.