How to merge two Jira systems after company acquisition?

[sophiac]

Hi there! Our company recently acquired another business and we’re struggling with managing dual Jira setups. We have about 180 users on our platform while they operate with roughly 160 users on theirs. The main challenge is maintaining consistency across both environments for collaborative projects. Currently we handle synchronization manually by creating duplicate tickets and manually updating progress between both platforms. This approach is obviously inefficient and takes way too much time away from productive work. Has anyone experienced similar challenges during organizational mergers? What tools or plugins did you use to streamline the integration process? Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

[miar]

We dealt with this nightmare three years ago during our acquisition. Having two Jira instances almost killed our dev cycles - nobody knew which system had the real status on shared projects. Here’s what actually worked: We picked the instance with better configs (custom fields, workflows, permissions) and consolidated team by team instead of trying to merge everything at once. Treat it like data migration, not integration. We used Configuration Manager for Jira to move projects while keeping all the history intact. Kept the old system read-only for 6 weeks so people could reference stuff. Biggest lesson: pick one system as the master for each project type right away. The confusion will destroy productivity otherwise. Yeah, learning new workflows sucks temporarily, but it beats managing duplicate systems forever.

[Tom42Gamer]

Been there! We dealt with this exact mess two years ago after merging with a competitor. Having two Jira instances killed our cross-functional teams working on integration stuff.

Here’s what actually worked: Don’t try maintaining both systems forever. Pick which one has better workflows and custom fields, then migrate everything else over. Use Jira’s project import tool plus CSV exports to keep your historical data.

We mirrored critical projects during transition but gave ourselves a hard 90-day deadline. That deadline was crucial - it forced decisions and stopped us from getting stuck in dual-system hell. Trust me, the migration pain beats months of manually syncing everything between two systems.

[bellagarcia]

the automation route’s tempting, but we’ve tried similar integrations before - they break constantly. I’d go with a phased approach instead. start by consolidating shared projects only and keep separate instances for internal work. We did this during our merger and it was way less chaotic than a full migration.

[deltaDreamer]

The Problem: You’re manually synchronizing Jira tickets between two separate instances, resulting in significant time loss and inefficiency. This is unsustainable, especially with a combined user base of over 340 users. The current method of creating duplicate tickets and manually updating progress is error-prone and hinders productivity.

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Automate Synchronization with a Custom Workflow: The most effective long-term solution is to build a custom workflow that automatically synchronizes Jira tickets between your two instances. This workflow should handle ticket creation, updates, status changes, comments, and user assignments. This approach requires some initial setup but will drastically reduce manual effort and improve accuracy.

   • 1.1 Choosing Your Tools: You’ll need a tool capable of interacting with the Jira REST API. Several options exist depending on your technical skills:

     • Latenode (Recommended for no-code/low-code approach): Latenode’s visual workflow builder allows you to connect to both Jira instances and create the synchronization logic without extensive coding. This is the easiest option for non-programmers.
     • Scripting (e.g., Scriptrunner): If you have developers with scripting experience, Scriptrunner offers more control but requires writing Groovy scripts to manage the synchronization.
     • Jira REST API Direct Interaction: For advanced users, direct interaction with the Jira REST API offers maximum flexibility but necessitates significant programming expertise.

   • 1.2 Setting Up Your Chosen Tool: Follow the documentation for your selected tool to connect to both your Jira instances. This involves providing API credentials, configuring authentication, and potentially setting up webhook listeners or other triggers.

   • 1.3 Designing the Synchronization Logic: Create the workflow logic to automatically copy tickets and their details between the instances. Key considerations include:

     • Field Mapping: Carefully map fields from one Jira instance to the corresponding fields in the other. This is crucial to ensure data integrity. Handle differences in custom fields or field names.
     • Conflict Resolution: Define how to handle conflicting updates. For instance, if a ticket is updated in both systems simultaneously, establish a clear precedence rule.
     • Filtering: Implement smart filtering to avoid unnecessary synchronization. For example, only synchronize tickets related to specific projects or labels involved in collaboration.
     • Error Handling: Build robust error handling into your workflow to manage unexpected situations (e.g., API errors, network outages). Proper logging is essential for troubleshooting.

   • 1.4 Testing and Deployment: Thoroughly test your workflow with a small subset of tickets before deploying it to the entire system. Start with a pilot program, gradually expanding the scope once confidence is established. Monitor the workflow closely after deployment to ensure it runs smoothly.

2. Phased Migration (Alternative Approach): If building a full synchronization workflow is not immediately feasible, consider a phased migration approach. Start by consolidating shared projects into a single Jira instance, and focus on migrating team by team rather than attempting an immediate full migration of both systems.

Common Pitfalls & What to Check Next:

• Insufficient Permissions: Ensure that the user account(s) used by your synchronization workflow have the necessary permissions to read and write data in both Jira instances.
• Network Connectivity: Verify that your workflow has stable and reliable network connectivity to both Jira instances.
• API Rate Limits: Be mindful of Jira’s API rate limits, as exceeding them can lead to disruptions. Implement proper throttling if necessary.
• Data Integrity: Regular audits should be done to ensure data consistency and accuracy.

Still running into issues? Share your (sanitized) config files, the exact command you ran, and any other relevant details. The community is here to help! Let us know if you’re trying to use Latenode for this!