How to integrate Jira using PowerShell

Learn how to quickly and efficiently connect Jira with PowerShell for smooth data access.

Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required. You can do it all using the high-performance Jira ODBC Driver for PowerShell (often referred to as the Jira Connector). We'll walk you through the entire setup.

Ready to dive in? Download the product to jump right in, or follow the step-by-step guide below to see how it works.

Create data source using Jira ODBC Driver

Step-by-step instructions

To get data from Jira using PowerShell, we first need to create an ODBC data source. We will later read this data in PowerShell. Perform these steps:

1. Download and install ODBC PowerPack (if you haven't already).

2. Search for odbc and open the ODBC Data Sources (64-bit):

   

3. Create a User data source (User DSN) based on the ZappySys API Driver driver:

   ZappySys API Driver

   
   • Create and use a User DSN if the client application runs under a User Account. This is the ideal option at design time (e.g., when developing in Visual Studio). Use it for both types of applications (64-bit and 32-bit).
   • Create and use a System DSN if the client application runs under a System Account (e.g., as a Windows Service). This is usually the required option in a production environment. If your Windows Service is a 32-bit application, you must use the 32-bit ODBC Data Source Administrator to configure this

4. When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "Jira" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "Jira" is not present in the list, then click "Search Online" and download it. Then set the path to the location where you downloaded it. Finally, click Continue >> to proceed with configuring the DSN:

   JiraDSN

   Jira

   

5. Now it's time to configure the Connection Manager. Select Authentication Type, e.g. Token Authentication. Then select API Base URL (in most cases, the default one is the right one). More info is available in the Authentication section.

   API Key based Authentication

   Jira authentication

   Firstly, login into your Atlassian account and then go to your Jira profile:

   1. Go to Profile > Security.
   2. Click Create and manage API tokens.
   3. Then click Create API token button and give your token a label.
   4. When window appears with new API token, copy and use it in this connection manager.
   5. That's it!

   API Connection Manager configuration

   Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

   1. Set Authentication Type to API Key based Authentication [Http]
   2. Optional step. Modify API Base URL if needed (in most cases default will work).
   3. Fill in all the required parameters and set optional parameters if needed.
   4. Finally, hit OK button:

   JiraDSN

   Jira

   API Key based Authentication [Http]

   https://[$Subdomain$].atlassian.net/rest/api/3

   Required Parameters
   Subdomain	Fill-in the parameter...
   Atlassian User Name (email)	Fill-in the parameter...
   API Key	Fill-in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   CustomColumnsRegex
   RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
   RetryStatusCodeList	429
   RetryCountMax	5
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True

   

   Personal Access Token (PAT) Authentication

   Jira authentication

   Follow official Atlassian instructions on how to create a PAT (Personal Access Token) for JIRA

   API Connection Manager configuration

   Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

   1. Set Authentication Type to Personal Access Token (PAT) Authentication [Http]
   2. Optional step. Modify API Base URL if needed (in most cases default will work).
   3. Fill in all the required parameters and set optional parameters if needed.
   4. Finally, hit OK button:

   JiraDSN

   Jira

   Personal Access Token (PAT) Authentication [Http]

   https://[$Subdomain$].atlassian.net/rest/api/3

   Required Parameters
   Subdomain	Fill-in the parameter...
   Token (PAT Bearer Token)	Fill-in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   CustomColumnsRegex
   RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
   RetryStatusCodeList	429
   RetryCountMax	5
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True

   

   OAuth (**Must change API Base URL to V3 OAuth**)

   Jira authentication

   OAuth App must be created in Atlassian Developer Console. It is found at https://developer.atlassian.com/console/myapps/ [API reference]

   Firstly, login into your Atlassian account and then create Jira application:

   1. Go to Atlassian Developer area.

   2. Click Create and select OAuth 2.0 integration item to create an OAuth app:

      

   3. Give your app a name, accept the terms and hit Create:

      

   4. To enable permissions/scopes for your application, click Permissions tab, then hit Add button, and click Configure button, once it appears:

      

   5. Continue by hitting Edit Scopes button to assign scopes for the application:

      

   6. Select these scopes or all of them:

      

   7. Then click Authorization option on the left and click Add button:

      

   8. Enter your own Callback URL (Redirect URL) or simply enter https://zappysys.com/oauth, if you don't have one:

      

   9. Then hit Settings option and copy Client ID and Secret into your favorite text editor (we will need them in the next step):

      

   10. Now go to SSIS package or ODBC data source and in OAuth authentication set these parameters:

       • For ClientId parameter use Client ID value from the previous steps.
       • For ClientSecret parameter use Secret value from the previous steps.
       • For Scope parameter use the Scopes you set previously (specify them all here):
         • offline_access (a must)
         • read:jira-user
         • read:jira-work
         • write:jira-work
         • manage:jira-project
         • manage:jira-configuration
         NOTE: A full list of available scopes is available in Atlassian documentation.
       • For Subdomain parameter use your Atlassian subdomain value (e.g. mycompany, if full host name is mycompany.atlassian.net).
   11. Click Generate Token to generate tokens.
   12. Finally, select Organization Id from the drop down.
   13. That's it! You can now use Jira Connector!

   API Connection Manager configuration

   Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

   1. Set Authentication Type to OAuth (**Must change API Base URL to V3 OAuth**) [OAuth]
   2. Optional step. Modify API Base URL if needed (in most cases default will work).
   3. Fill in all the required parameters and set optional parameters if needed.
   4. Press Generate Token button to generate the tokens.
   5. Finally, hit OK button:

   JiraDSN

   Jira

   OAuth (**Must change API Base URL to V3 OAuth**) [OAuth]

   https://[$Subdomain$].atlassian.net/rest/api/3

   Required Parameters
   ClientId	Fill-in the parameter...
   ClientSecret	Fill-in the parameter...
   Scope	Fill-in the parameter...
   ReturnUrl	Fill-in the parameter...
   Organization Id (Select after clicking [Generate Token])	Fill-in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   Custom Columns for output (Select after clicking [Generate Token])
   RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
   RetryStatusCodeList	429
   RetryCountMax	5
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True

   

6. Once the data source connection has been configured, it's time to configure the SQL query. Select the Preview tab and then click Query Builder button to configure the SQL query:

   

   ZappySys API Driver - Jira

   Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required.

   JiraDSN

   

7. Start by selecting the Table or Endpoint you are interested in and then configure the parameters. This will generate a query that we will use in PowerShell to retrieve data from Jira. Hit OK button to use this query in the next step.

   SELECT * FROM Issues
   
   --//Query single issue by numeric Issue Id
   --SELECT * FROM Issues Where Id=101234
   
   --//Query issue by numeric Issue Ids (multiple)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='101234,101235,101236')
   
   --//Query issue by Issue Key(s) (alpha-numeric)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='PROJ-11')
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='PROJ-11,PROJ-12,PROJ-13')
   
   --//Query issue by project(s)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Project', Project='PROJ')
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Project', Project='PROJ,KAN,CS')
   
   --//Query issue by JQL expression
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Jql', Jql='status IN (Done, Closed) AND created > -5d' )

   
   Some parameters configured in this window will be passed to the Jira API, e.g. filtering parameters. It means that filtering will be done on the server side (instead of the client side), enabling you to get only the meaningful data much faster.

8. Now hit Preview Data button to preview the data using the generated SQL query. If you are satisfied with the result, use this query in PowerShell:

   

   ZappySys API Driver - Jira

   Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required.

   JiraDSN

   SELECT * FROM Issues
   
   --//Query single issue by numeric Issue Id
   --SELECT * FROM Issues Where Id=101234
   
   --//Query issue by numeric Issue Ids (multiple)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='101234,101235,101236')
   
   --//Query issue by Issue Key(s) (alpha-numeric)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='PROJ-11')
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Key', Key='PROJ-11,PROJ-12,PROJ-13')
   
   --//Query issue by project(s)
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Project', Project='PROJ')
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Project', Project='PROJ,KAN,CS')
   
   --//Query issue by JQL expression
   --SELECT * FROM Issues WITH(SearchBy='Jql', Jql='status IN (Done, Closed) AND created > -5d' )

   
   You can also access data quickly from the tables dropdown by selecting <Select table>.
   A WHERE clause, LIMIT keyword will be performed on the client side, meaning that the whole result set will be retrieved from the Jira API first, and only then the filtering will be applied to the data. If possible, it is recommended to use parameters in Query Builder to filter the data on the server side (in Jira servers).

9. Click OK to finish creating the data source.

Video Tutorial

Read Jira data in PowerShell

Sometimes, you need to quickly access and work with your Jira data in PowerShell. Whether you need a quick data overview or the complete dataset, this article will guide you through the process. Here are some common scenarios:

• Quickly peek at Jira data
• Monitor data constantly in your console

• Export data to a CSV file so that it can be sliced and diced in Excel
• Export data to a JSON file so that it can ingested by other processes
• Export data to an HTML file for user-friendly view and easy sharing
• Create a schedule to make it an automatic process

• Store data internally for analysis or for further ETL processes
• Create a schedule to make it an automatic process

• Integrate data with other systems via external APIs

In this article, we will delve deeper into how to quickly view the data in PowerShell terminal and how to save it to a file. But let's stop talking and get started!

Reading individual fields

1. Open your favorite PowerShell IDE (we are using Visual Studio Code).

2. Use this code snippet to read the data using JiraDSN data source:

   "DSN=JiraDSN"

   

   For your convenience, here is the whole PowerShell script:

   # Configure connection string and query
   $connectionString = "DSN=JiraDSN"
   $query = "SELECT * FROM Customers"
   
   # Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
   $adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
   $table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable
   
   # Fill the table with data
   $adapter.Fill($table)
   
   # Since we know we will be reading just 4 columns, let's define format for those 4 columns, each separated by a tab
   $format = "{0}`t{1}`t{2}`t{3}"
   
   # Display data in the console
   foreach ($row in $table.Rows)
   {
       # Construct line based on the format and individual Jira fields
       $line = $format -f ($row["CustomerId"], $row["CompanyName"], $row["Country"], $row["Phone"])
       Write-Host $line
   }
   

   Access specific Jira table field using this code snippet:

   $field = $row["ColumnName"]

   You will find more info on how to manipulate DataTable.Rows property in Microsoft .NET reference.
   For demonstration purposes we are using sample tables which may not be available in Jira.

3. To read values in a console, save the script to a file and then execute this command inside PowerShell terminal:

   
   You can also use even a simpler command inside the terminal, e.g.:

   . 'C:\Users\john\Documents\dsn.ps1'

Retrieving all fields

However, there might be case, when you want to retrieve all columns of a query. Here is how you do it:

"DSN=JiraDSN"

Again, for your convenience, here is the whole PowerShell script:

# Configure connection string and query
$connectionString = "DSN=JiraDSN"
$query = "SELECT CustomerId, CompanyName, Country, Phone FROM Customers"

# Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
$adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
$table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable

# Fill the table with data
$adapter.Fill($table)

# Display data in the console
foreach ($row in $table.Rows) {
    $line = ""
    foreach ($column in $table.Columns) {
        $value = $row[$column.ColumnName]

        # Let's handle NULL values
        if ($value -is [DBNull])
        {
            $value = "(NULL)"
        }
        $line += $value + "`t"
    }
    Write-Host $line
}

SELECT * FROM Customers LIMIT 10

Using a full ODBC connection string

In the previous steps we used a very short format of ODBC connection string - a DSN. Yet sometimes you don't want a dependency on an ODBC data source (and an extra step). In those times, you can define a full connection string and skip creating an ODBC data source entirely. Let's see below how to accomplish that in the below steps:

1. Open ODBC data source configuration and click Copy settings:
   

   ZappySys API Driver - Configuration [Version: 2.0.1.10418]

   ZappySys API Driver - Jira

   Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required.

   JiraDSN

   
2. The window opens, telling us the connection string was successfully copied to the clipboard:
3. Then just paste the connection string into your script:
4. You are good to go! The script will execute the same way as using a DSN.

Handling limitations of using a full connection string

Despite using a full ODBC connection string may be very convenient it comes with a limitation: it's length is limited to 1024 symbols (or sometimes more). It usually happens when API provider generates a very long Refresh Token when OAuth is at play. If you are using such a long ODBC connection string, you may get this error:

"Connection string exceeds maximum allowed length of 1024"

But there is a solution to this by storing the full connection string in a file. Follow the steps below to achieve this:

1. Open your ODBC data source.
2. Click Copy settings button to copy a full connection string (see the previous section on how to accomplish that).
3. Then create a new file, let's say, in C:\temp\odbc-connection-string.txt.
4. Continue by pasting the copied connection string into a newly created file and save it.
5. Finally, the last step! Just construct a shorter ODBC connection string using this format:

   DRIVER={ZappySys API Driver};SettingsFile=C:\temp\odbc-connection-string.txt

6. Our troubles are over! Now you should be able to use this connection string in PowerShell with no problems.

Write Jira data to a file in PowerShell

Save data to a CSV file

Export data to a CSV file so that it can be sliced and diced in Excel:

# Configure connection string and query
$connectionString = "DSN=JiraDSN"
$query = "SELECT * FROM Customers"

# Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
$adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
$table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable

# Fill the table with data
$adapter.Fill($table)

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Csv -NoTypeInformation -Delimiter "`t" | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.csv" -Force

Save data to a JSON file

Export data to a JSON file so that it can ingested by other processes (use the above script, but change this part):

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Json | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.json" -Force

Save data to an HTML file

Export data to an HTML file for user-friendly view and easy sharing (use the above script, but change this part):

# Export table data to a file
$table | ConvertTo-Html | Out-File "C:\Users\john\saved-data.html" -Force

Optional: Centralized data access via ZappySys Data Gateway

In some situations, you may need to provide Jira data access to multiple users or services. Configuring the data source on a Data Gateway creates a single, centralized connection point for this purpose.

This configuration provides two primary advantages:

• Centralized data access
  The data source is configured once on the gateway, eliminating the need to set it up individually on each user's machine or application. This significantly simplifies the management process.
• Centralized access control
  Since all connections route through the gateway, access can be governed or revoked from a single location for all users.

To achieve this, you must first create a data source in the Data Gateway (server-side) and then create an ODBC data source in PowerShell (client-side) to connect to it.

Let's not wait and get going!

Create Jira data source in the gateway

In this section we will create a data source for Jira in the Data Gateway. Let's follow these steps to accomplish that:

1. Search for gateway in the Windows Start Menu and open ZappySys Data Gateway Configuration:

   

2. Go to the Users tab and follow these steps to add a Data Gateway user:

   • Click the Add button
   • In the Login field enter a username, e.g., john
   • Then enter a Password
   • Check the Is Administrator checkbox
   • Click OK to save
   

3. Now we are ready to add a data source:

   • Click the Add button
   • Give the Data source a name (have it handy for later)
   • Then select Native - ZappySys API Driver
   • Finally, click OK
   JiraDSN

   ZappySys API Driver

   

4. When the ZappySys API Driver configuration window opens, go back to ODBC Data Source Administrator where you already have the Jira ODBC data source created and configured, and follow these steps on how to Import data source configuration into the Gateway:

   • Open ODBC data source configuration and click Copy settings:
     

     ZappySys API Driver - Configuration [Version: 2.0.1.10418]

     ZappySys API Driver - Jira

     Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required.

     JiraDSN

     
   • The window opens, telling us the connection string was successfully copied to the clipboard:

   • Then go to Data Gateway configuration and in data source configuration window click Load settings:

     JiraDSN

     

     ZappySys API Driver - Configuration [Version: 2.0.1.10418]

     ZappySys API Driver - Jira

     Read and write Jira data effortlessly. Track, manage, and automate issues, projects, worklogs, and comments — almost no coding required.

     JiraDSN

     
   • Once a window opens, just paste the settings by pressing CTRL+V or by clicking right mouse button and then Paste option.

5. Once done, go to the Network Settings tab and Add a firewall rule for inbound traffic:

   
   • This will initially allow all inbound traffic.
   • Click Edit IP filters to restrict access to specific IP addresses or ranges.

6. Crucial Step: After creating or modifying the data source, you must:

   • Click the Save button to persist your changes.
   • Hit Yes when prompted to restart the Data Gateway service.

   This ensures all changes are properly applied:

   
   Skipping this step may cause the new settings to fail, preventing you from connecting to the data source.

Create ODBC data source to connect to the gateway

In this part we will create an ODBC data source to connect to the ZappySys Data Gateway from PowerShell. To achieve that, let's perform these steps:

1. Search for odbc and open the ODBC Data Sources (64-bit):

   

2. Create a User data source (User DSN) based on the ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server driver:

   ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server

   
   If you don't see the ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server driver in the list, choose a similar version.

3. Then set a Name for the data source (e.g. Gateway) and the address of the Data Gateway:

   ZappySysGatewayDSN

   localhost,5000

   
   Make sure you separate the hostname and port with a comma, e.g. localhost,5000.

4. Proceed with the authentication part:

   • Select SQL Server authentication
   • In the Login ID field enter the user name you created in the Data Gateway, e.g., john
   • Set Password to the one you configured in the Data Gateway
   

5. Then set the default database property to JiraDSN (the one we used in the Data Gateway):

   JiraDSN

   JiraDSN

   
   Make sure to type the data source name manually or copy/paste it directly into the field. Using the dropdown might fail because the Trust server certificate option is not enabled yet (next step).

6. Continue by checking the Trust server certificate option:

   

7. Once you do that, test the connection:

   

8. If the connection is successful, everything is good:

   

9. Done!

We are ready to move to the final step. Let's do it!

Access data in PowerShell via the gateway

Finally, we are ready to read data from Jira in PowerShell via the Data Gateway. Follow these final steps:

1. Go back to PowerShell.

2. Use this code snippet to read the data using ZappySysGatewayDSN data source:

   "DSN=ZappySysGatewayDSN"

   

   For your convenience, here is the whole PowerShell script:

   # Configure connection string and query
   $connectionString = "DSN=ZappySysGatewayDSN"
   $query = "SELECT * FROM Customers"
   
   # Instantiate OdbcDataAdapter and DataTable
   $adapter = New-Object System.Data.Odbc.OdbcDataAdapter($query, $connectionString)
   $table = New-Object System.Data.DataTable
   
   # Fill the table with data
   $adapter.Fill($table)
   
   # Since we know we will be reading just 4 columns, let's define format for those 4 columns, each separated by a tab
   $format = "{0}`t{1}`t{2}`t{3}"
   
   # Display data in the console
   foreach ($row in $table.Rows)
   {
       # Construct line based on the format and individual Jira fields
       $line = $format -f ($row["CustomerId"], $row["CompanyName"], $row["Country"], $row["Phone"])
       Write-Host $line
   }
   

   Access specific Jira table field using this code snippet:

   $field = $row["ColumnName"]

   You will find more info on how to manipulate DataTable.Rows property in Microsoft .NET reference.
   For demonstration purposes we are using sample tables which may not be available in Jira.

3. Read the data the same way we discussed at the beginning of this article.

4. That's it!

Now you can connect to Jira data in PowerShell via the Data Gateway.

Supported Jira Connector actions

Got a specific use case in mind? We've mapped out exactly how to perform a variety of essential Jira operations directly in PowerShell, so you don't have to figure out the setup from scratch. Check out the step-by-step guides below:

• Create Issue Comment
• Create Issues
• Create Project
• Create User
• Create Worklog
• Delete Issue
• Delete Issue Comment
• Delete Project
• Delete User
• Delete Worklog
• Get custom field context options
• Get custom field contexts
• Read Application Roles
• Read Changelog Details
• Read Changelogs
• Read Changelogs by IDs
• Read Comments
• Read Custom Fields
• Read Fields
• Read Groups
• Read Issue (By Id)
• Read Issue Types
• Read Issues
• Read Projects
• Read Resources
• Read Users
• Read Worklogs
• Read Worklogs modified after a specified date
• Update Issue
• Update Issue Comment
• Update Worklog
• Upsert Project
• Make Generic REST API Request
• Make Generic REST API Request (Bulk Write)

Conclusion

In this article we showed you how to connect to Jira in PowerShell and integrate data without writing complex code — all of this was powered by Jira ODBC Driver.

Download ODBC PowerPack now or ping us via chat if you have any questions or are looking for a specific feature (you can also reach out to us by submitting a ticket):

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