Cloud Migration (JCMA)

Starting with version 1.3.0, Jira Issue Picker DC is ready to support your migration from Jira Data Center to Jira Cloud using the Jira Cloud Migration Assistant (JCMA). When you run a migration with JCMA, the add-on automatically packages the values of your Issue Picker fields and their configurations, and delivers them to the equivalent Cloud add-on: Dynamic Work Item Picker (DWIP).

The result: issues that arrive in Cloud keep the values their Issue Picker fields had in DC, without any administrator having to re-enter them manually.

Cloud side of the flow

This page describes only the DC side of the migration. Reception and application of values in Cloud is handled by the Dynamic Work Item Picker (Cloud) add-on. Make sure it is installed on your Cloud site before starting the migration with JCMA.

What gets migrated?

When JCMA runs the migration of a project that contains Issue Picker fields, Jira Issue Picker DC delivers the following to Cloud:

Field values (jip-field-data)

For each migrated issue that has at least one Issue Picker field with a value, the following is sent:

• The source issue (key and ID in DC).
• The field (name and ID of the custom field).
• The list of selected issues within the field, expressed as issue keys.

Values stored internally as numeric IDs are resolved to their issue keys before export, so that once the migration is complete, the links point correctly to the new issues in Cloud even if their internal IDs change.

Configuration by context (jip-field-config)

For each Issue Picker field and each of its native Jira contexts, the configuration saved in the add-on panel is exported:

Exported configuration	Description
JQL Filter	The JQL that restricts selectable issues.
Note	The informational text configured for users.
Selection Type	SINGLE or MULTI.
Ignore Project Context	Whether the search ignores the native context.
View Attributes	Show Priority, Assignee, and/or Status.
Incoming Links Panel Title	The custom name of the references panel.
Associated contexts	Scheme, associated projects, and whether the configuration is global or context-specific.

This way, field administration in Cloud starts from the same state it had in DC, and there is no need to reconfigure fields one by one.

Prerequisites

Before starting the migration with JCMA, verify that these requirements are met:

• ✅ Jira Issue Picker DC installed and updated to version 1.3.0 or higher on your Data Center instance.
• ✅ Dynamic Work Item Picker (DWIP) installed on your Jira Cloud site, version 2.8.0 or higher. See the Cloud migration guide for details on the receiving side.
• ✅ Jira Cloud Migration Assistant (JCMA) installed on Data Center and configured against the target Cloud site.
• ✅ At least one active user exists in Data Center in the jira-administrators group (or an admin user). This user is used to run the JQL searches that collect issues with Issue Picker field values.

caution

If no active administrator exists, the listener will log an error and complete the export without sending values. Verify this before launching the migration.

How to run the migration

The migration process is operated entirely from JCMA; Jira Issue Picker DC participates automatically when it detects that a migration has started.

1. In Data Center, open Jira Administration → System → Migrate to Cloud (Jira Cloud Migration Assistant).
2. Create or reuse a migration plan that includes the projects where Issue Picker fields are used.
3. In the Apps step, JCMA will automatically list Jira Issue Picker as a migratable application and associate it with Dynamic Work Item Picker on Marketplace. Confirm that the add-on appears marked for migration.
4. Launch the migration as you normally would.

During the app migration phase, JCMA invokes the add-on listener, which scans all Issue Picker fields in the instance, collects their values and configurations, and delivers them to Cloud. No additional manual action is required on the DC side.

Log traces

To follow progress, you can check the Jira log. The listener emits messages with the JCMA: prefix indicating the number of fields detected, issues processed per page, and the size of packages sent to Cloud.

Post-migration verification

Once JCMA reports the migration as completed:

1. Access the target Jira Cloud site.
2. Open some migrated issues that had Issue Picker fields with values in DC.
3. Verify that the equivalent fields (now of type Dynamic Work Item Picker) show the same selections as in DC, pointing to the correct issues.
4. As an administrator, open the configuration of one of these fields in Cloud and verify that the JQL, view attributes, and selection mode have been preserved.

If all of the above are met, the add-on migration was successful.

Contingency plan

If for some reason JCMA could not complete the delivery of values (for example, an interrupted migration or a network failure), there are two alternative routes to re-hydrate the fields in Cloud without having to repeat the full migration:

• Script via REST API: using the Jira Cloud APIs, you can write a script that iterates over the affected issues and applies Dynamic Work Item Picker field values using the DC → Cloud key mapping that JCMA generates.
• CSV Export/Import: for limited volumes, values can be exported from DC to CSV and reimported into Cloud using native import.

Both mechanisms are designed as fallback options. The recommended and default supported route is always JCMA.