This guide covers how to create, view, edit, and delete issues, how to use comments for team collaboration, and how to export issue data.
Prerequisites
Before you can use Issues Management, the built-in issue manager must be enabled for your project:
Go to Project Settings > Defect Settings.
Select TestCollab as the issue manager.
Set a Project Key (e.g., PROJ). This key is used to generate unique issue identifiers such as PROJ-1, PROJ-2, and so on.
Viewing Issues
Once the issue manager is configured, navigate to the Issues section from the left menubar.
Default Filter: Assigned to You
When you first open the Issues page, it shows only issues assigned to you. A Clear filters link appears above the grid whenever a filter is active. Click it to view all issues in the project.
If no issues are assigned to you, a message is displayed: "No issues assigned to you", followed by a Clear filter link.
Issue Detail View
Click on an issue title in the list, or select View from the actions menu (ellipsis on the right).
Linked Test Cases
If the issue was raised during a test execution, the linked test cases are displayed on the issue detail page. Each linked test case shows:
Test case ID and title (clickable link to the test case)
Custom fields for the test case
Issues created directly from the Issues page (not from a failed test step) will not have linked test cases.
A Test Cases column is also available in the Issues list grid, showing comma-separated test case IDs that link to the respective test cases.
Adding a New Issue
From the Issues list, click the Add Issue button.
Fill in the issue form: Title, description, priority and status are mandatory fields.
There can be other custom fields depending on your setup.
Click Save to create the issue.
If you are maintaining a custom field that is of user type and stores assignee information, and you have selected a user as the assignee of this issue then that user will be notified about the assignment.
Editing an Issue
In the Issues list, click the actions menu (ellipsis) on the row you want to edit.
Select Edit.
The edit form opens with all fields pre-populated. Modify any fields as needed.
Click Save to apply changes.
The Reported By label is displayed at the top of the edit page (read-only), so you can see who created the issue without leaving the page.
Note: only the project members having roles that allow them to edit an issue, will be able to perform this action.
Notifications on Changes
TestCollab automatically sends email notifications when key changes are made to an issue:
Event | Who Gets Notified |
Issue Created | Users assigned via user-type custom fields (e.g., Assignee) |
Status Changed | Issue creator and all assigned users (excludes the person who made the change) |
Assignee Changed | Newly assigned user(s) |
Deleting an Issue
In the Issues list, click the actions menu (ellipsis) on the row.
Select Delete.
A confirmation dialog appears: "Delete issue - [Issue Title]. Are you sure?"
Click Yes to confirm, or No to cancel.
Only the users with adequate permissions will be able to delete the issue.
Comments
Comments allow team members to have conversations directly on an issue. Each comment includes a timestamp and the commenter's name, creating a clear trail of communication between testers, developers, and defect leads.
Adding a Comment
Open the issue detail view or issue edit view.
Scroll to the Comments section.
Type your comment in the text field. Rich text formatting is supported.
Click Submit.
The comment is posted with your name and the current timestamp.
Editing or Deleting a Comment
You can edit or delete your own comments within a 5-minute window after posting.
After 5 minutes, the comment becomes read-only and can no longer be edited.
Other team members cannot edit your comments.
Comment Notifications
When a new comment is posted on an issue, an email notification is sent to the assignee of the issue, and the user who has been mentioned in the comment.
Filtering Issues
TestCollab provides a filtering options for the Issues list. All the default and the custom fields that are set to be searchable will be available to filter issues.
Exporting Issues
Issues can be exported in CSV format for reporting and analysis.
How to Export
Navigate to the Issues list.
Optionally, apply filters to narrow down the set of issues.
Click the Export option.
Export Options
Option | Description |
Format | CSV |
Criteria | All (exports all issues, respects active filters) or Selected (exports only checked issues) |
Fields | Choose if all columns need to be included in exported CSV |
Display HTML Tags | Display or strip HTML formatting from rich text fields for cleaner CSV output |
Export Details
Date fields (Created, Updated) include both date and time in the exported CSV.
Linked Test Cases are exported as a comma-separated list of test case IDs.
Comments can be included in the export, showing who communicated what and when.
Custom Fields
Project administrators can add custom fields to issues to capture information specific to their workflow. Supported field types include:
Type | Description |
Dropdown | Single selection from predefined options |
Multiple Select | Multi-selection from predefined options |
User | Pick a project member |
Text | Free-text input |
Date | Date picker |
Textarea / Editor | Extended text with rich formatting |
Custom fields appear in Add/Edit forms and can be displayed as columns in the Issues list grid. They are also included when exporting issues.