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Grid Basics

Grids help you view, organize, and manage work items effectively. Master essential grid operations to work efficiently.

Permission note: Your ability to modify work items (drag-drop reordering, bulk actions) depends on your project role. Team Members typically have edit access to items in their project. Read-only users can view and sort grids but cannot modify items.

What you can do with grids​

  • Sort work items by any column to find related items quickly
  • Drag and drop items to change their priority or sequence
  • Use bulk actions to modify multiple items at once
  • Access item details and perform actions from the action menu
  • Customize your view by adding or removing columns

Sort work items​

Sorting helps you organize work items in a meaningful way to find related items quickly.

How to sort​

  1. Click any column header to sort by that column.
  2. Click the same header again to toggle between ascending and descending order.
  3. Use the Reset Sort Reset Icon icon to return to default order.

Sort behavior​

  • Default order: Work items appear sequentially with newer items at the bottom
  • Tree view: Items sort by hierarchy level - higher level items sort first, lower level items sort within their grouping
  • Multiple columns: You can sort by multiple columns to create complex ordering

Drag and drop items​

Move work items to change their priority or sequence by dragging and dropping them within the grid.

How to drag and drop​

  1. Hover your cursor over a work item until it changes to a hand pointer.
  2. Drag the item up or down in the grid to the desired position.
  3. Release to drop the item in its new location.

Important considerations​

  • Sort order impact: The grid must be in default sort order for drag and drop to work
  • Reset sorting: Click Reset Sort Reset Icon if you've applied custom sorting
  • Sequential ordering: Use drag and drop to manually set the priority sequence of items

Use the grid action menu​

The action menu provides bulk operations and quick access to common tasks for selected work items.

Access the action menu​

  • Grid level: Located in the top-right corner of grids
  • Item level: Available on individual item detail screens
  • Bulk operations: Select multiple items to apply actions to all at once

Available actions​

Actions vary depending on the selected work item type and current status:

  • Edit multiple items: Modify common fields across selected items
  • Change status: Update workflow states for multiple items
  • Assign owners: Set or change ownership for work items
  • Add relationships: Link items together
  • Delete items: Remove items (when permitted)

Action restrictions​

Some actions may be disabled when:

  • Work items are in closed sprints (cannot be edited)
  • Projects contain backlog items (cannot be deleted)
  • You don't have sufficient permissions for the operation
  • Items are in workflow states that prevent certain changes

Select multiple owners​

To assign multiple owners to work items:

  1. Click the Customize icon in the top corner of the grid.
  2. In the Customize Columns window, find the Owner field.
  3. Select both the Display and Edit columns for the Owner field.
  4. Use the action menu to assign multiple owners to selected items.

Troubleshooting​

Why can't I drag and drop items to reorder them?​

Drag and drop only works when the grid is in default sort order:

  • Custom sorting applied: If you've clicked any column header to sort, drag and drop is disabled. Click the Reset Sort icon to restore default ordering.
  • Tree view: In hierarchy views, you can only drag items within their level. Parent-child relationships restrict where items can be moved.
  • Permissions: You need edit permissions on the items and project. Read-only users cannot drag and drop items.
  • Closed sprint: Items in closed sprints cannot be reordered. Only items in open sprints or backlog can be moved.

Why are some action menu options disabled or missing?​

Action availability depends on context and permissions:

  • Closed sprint: Items in closed sprints cannot be edited or deleted. Reopen the sprint or move items to an open sprint first.
  • Insufficient permissions: You may have read-only access to the project. Contact your administrator to verify your project role.
  • Workflow restrictions: Some actions are disabled based on item status. For example, you cannot delete a project that contains active backlog items.
  • No items selected: Bulk actions require selecting one or more items first. Check the boxes next to items to enable bulk operations.

Why does sorting by one column mess up my priority order?​

This is expected behavior to help you analyze data:

  • Sorting overrides default order: When you sort by any column, items rearrange to show values in order, which changes their default priority sequence.
  • Restore priority order: Click Reset Sort to return to default priority-based ordering.
  • Save sorted views: Use My Views to save specific sort configurations for quick access without affecting default priority order.

Why can't I bulk-edit multiple items at once?​

Bulk editing has specific requirements:

  • Item selection: You must select multiple items by checking their boxes before bulk actions appear in the action menu.
  • Mixed item types: You can only bulk-edit items of the same type (all stories, or all defects, etc.). Select items of consistent type.
  • Field compatibility: Only fields common to all selected item types can be edited in bulk. Mixed selections may limit available fields.
  • Permission consistency: You must have edit permissions on ALL selected items. If even one item is read-only, bulk edit may fail.