Extend Google Sheets with Jira Service Management Data

Interact with Jira Service Management data from Google Sheets through macros, custom functions, and add-ons. The CData API Server enables connectivity to Jira Service Management data from cloud-based and mobile applications like Google Sheets. The API Server is a lightweight Web application that produces OData services for Jira Service Management.

Google Apps Script can consume these OData services in the JSON format. This article shows how to create a simple add-on that populates a Google Spreadsheet with Requests data and, as you make changes, executes updates to Jira Service Management data.

Set Up the API Server

If you have not already done so, download the CData API Server. Once you have installed the API Server, follow the steps below to begin producing secure Jira Service Management OData services:

Connect to Jira Service Management

To work with Jira Service Management data from Google Sheets, we start by creating and configuring a Jira Service Management connection. Follow the steps below to configure the API Server to connect to Jira Service Management data:

1. First, navigate to the Connections page.
2. Click Add Connection and then search for and select the Jira Service Management connection. 👁 Selecting a data source (SQLite is shown)
   
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Jira Service Management.

   You can establish a connection to any Jira Service Desk Cloud account or Server instance.

   Connecting with a Cloud Account

   To connect to a Cloud account, you'll first need to retrieve an APIToken. To generate one, log in to your Atlassian account and navigate to API tokens > Create API token. The generated token will be displayed.

   Supply the following to connect to data:

   • User: Set this to the username of the authenticating user.
   • APIToken: Set this to the API token found previously.

   Connecting with a Service Account

   To authenticate with a service account, supply the following connection properties:

   • User: Set this to the username of the authenticating user.
   • Password: Set this to the password of the authenticating user.
   • URL: Set this to the URL associated with your JIRA Service Desk endpoint. For example, https://yoursitename.atlassian.net.

   Note: Password has been deprecated for connecting to a Cloud Account and is now used only to connect to a Server Instance.

   Accessing Custom Fields

   By default, the connector only surfaces system fields. To access the custom fields for Issues, set IncludeCustomFields.

   👁 Connecting to a datasource (SQLite is shown)
   
4. After configuring the connection, click Save & Test to confirm a successful connection.

Configure API Server Users

Next, create a user to access your Jira Service Management data through the API Server. You can add and configure users on the Users page. Follow the steps below to configure and create a user:

1. On the Users page, click Add User to open the Add User dialog.
2. Next, set the Role, Username, and Privileges properties and then click Add User. 👁 Configure a new user
   
3. An Authtoken is then generated for the user. You can find the Authtoken and other information for each user on the Users page: 👁 API Server user settings
   

Creating API Endpoints for Jira Service Management

Having created a user, you are ready to create API endpoints for the Jira Service Management tables:

1. First, navigate to the API page and then click Add Table . 👁 Add tables
   
2. Select the connection you wish to access and click Next. 👁 Select the connection (SQLite is shown)
   
3. With the connection selected, create endpoints by selecting each table and then clicking Confirm. 👁 Adding tables from the connection (SQLite is shown)
   

Gather the OData Url

Having configured a connection to Jira Service Management data, created a user, and added resources to the API Server, you now have an easily accessible REST API based on the OData protocol for those resources. From the API page in API Server, you can view and copy the API Endpoints for the API:

👁 API Endpoints

Retrieve Jira Service Management Data

Open the Script Editor from your spreadsheet by clicking Tools -> Script Editor. In the Script Editor, add the following function to populate a spreadsheet with the results of an OData query:

function retrieve(){
 var url = "https://MyUrl/api.rsc/Requests?select=Id,RequestId,ReporterName,CurrentStatus";
 var response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url,{
 headers: {"Authorization": "Basic " + Utilities.base64Encode("MyUser:MyAuthtoken")}
 }); 
 var json = response.getContentText();
 var sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();
 var a1 = sheet.getRange('a1');
 var index=1;
 var requests = JSON.parse(json).value;

 var cols = [["Id","RequestId","ReporterName","CurrentStatus"]]; 
 sheet.getRange(1,1,1,4).setValues(cols);

 row=2;
 for(var i in requests){
 for (var j in requests[i]) {
 switch (j) {
 case "Id":
 a1.offset(row,0).setValue(account[i][j]);
 break;
 case "RequestId":
 a1.offset(row,1).setValue(account[i][j]);
 break;
 case "ReporterName":
 a1.offset(row,2).setValue(account[i][j]);
 break;
 case "CurrentStatus":
 a1.offset(row,3).setValue(account[i][j]);
 break;
 } 
 }
 row++;
 }
}

Follow the steps below to add an installable trigger to populate the spreadsheet when opened:

1. Click Resources -> Current Project's Triggers -> Add a New Trigger.
2. Select retrieve in the Run menu.
3. Select From Spreadsheet.
4. Select On open.

After closing the dialog, you are prompted to allow access to the application.

Post Changes to Jira Service Management Data

Add the following function to post changes to cells back to the API Server:

function buildReq(e){
 var sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();
 var changes = e.range;
 var id = sheet.getRange(changes.getRow(),1).getValue();
 var col = sheet.getRange(1,changes.getColumn()).getValue();
 
 var url = "http://MyServer/api.rsc/Requests("+id+")";
 var putdata = "{\"@odata.type\" : \"CDataAPI.Requests\", \""+col+"\": \""+changes.getValue()+"\"}";;
 UrlFetchApp.fetch(url,{
 method: "put",
 contentType: "application/json",
 payload: putdata,
 headers: {"Authorization": "Basic " + Utilities.base64Encode("MyUser:MyAuthtoken")}
 });

}

Follow the steps below to add the update trigger:

1. Click Resources -> Current Project's Triggers.
2. Select buildReq in the Run menu.
3. Select From Spreadsheet.
4. Select On edit.

You can test the script by clicking Publish -> Test as Add-On. Select the version, installation type, and spreadsheet to create a test configuration. You can then select and run the test configuration.

As you make changes to cells, the API Server executes updates to Jira Service Management data.