Historical due dates

Configuration

Create a Custom smart text field and use the Jira expression parsing mode.

Expression

issue.changelogs.filter(changelog => changelog.items.some(item => item.fieldId 
== 'duedate' && item.from != null)).map(changelog =>  {duedateentry: 
changelog.items.filter(item => item.fieldId == 'duedate' )}).map(e => new 
CalendarDate(e.duedateentry[0].from).toString()).join(", ")

Details

1. What does the expression do?

This expression returns a list of all previous due dates for the current work item, showing them in descending order (most recent first).

2. Step-by-step breakdown

Let’s break down the expression:

• issue.changelogs: This accesses the full history of changes for the current work item.

• .filter(...): This keeps only those changelogs where the due date field (fieldId == 'duedate') was changed and where there was a previous value (item.from != null).

• .map(...): For each filtered changelog, it creates an object containing only the items where the due date was changed.

• .map(...): For each of these objects, it takes the previous value of the due date (from), converts it into a date format (CalendarDate), and then into a readable text.

• .join(", "): Finally, it combines all these previous due dates into a single string, separated by commas.

3. Examples

Suppose a work item had its due date changed three times:

• First due date: 2023-01-01

• Changed to: 2023-02-01

• Changed to: 2023-03-01

The expression would return:
2023-01-01, 2023-02-01

(Assuming the current due date is 2023-03-01, the list shows the previous values.)

4. Real-life use cases

• Audit trail: Track how the due date for a work item has changed over time, which is useful for audits or understanding project delays.

• Reporting: Display a history of due date changes in a custom field, so team members can quickly see if deadlines have shifted.

• Process improvement: Identify patterns in deadline changes to improve planning and estimation in future projects.