JIRA Screens and Schemes
Every form in JIRA, from the Create dialog to the issue detail page, follows a plan. Screens hold the fields, and schemes decide which screen appears in which situation. Administrators of company-managed projects use these tools to shape the experience for every team.
Layman's View: Restaurant Menus
A restaurant prints a breakfast menu, a lunch menu, and a children's menu. The host hands out the right menu based on the time of day and the guest. Screens work like menus, and schemes work like the host's rules about who gets which menu.
Screens
A screen lists fields in a chosen order. One screen can hold Summary, Description, Priority, and a custom field such as Browser. JIRA uses three main actions for screens.
Screen Operations
| Operation | When It Appears |
|---|---|
| Create | A user starts a new issue |
| Edit | A user changes an existing issue |
| View | A user opens the issue detail page |
Workflow transitions can show a screen, such as a pop-up that asks for a resolution when someone closes an issue.
The Scheme Chain
Three layers connect screens to projects. Each layer narrows the choice.
Screen
| (a list of fields)
v
Screen Scheme
| (picks one screen for Create, Edit, and View)
v
Issue Type Screen Scheme
| (picks one screen scheme for each issue type)
v
Project
(uses one issue type screen scheme)
What Each Layer Does
Screen Layers Explained
| Layer | Job | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Screen | Holds fields in a set order | Bug Screen with Summary, Steps, Browser |
| Screen Scheme | Assigns screens to Create, Edit, and View | Bug Scheme uses Bug Screen for all three |
| Issue Type Screen Scheme | Assigns screen schemes to issue types | Bugs use Bug Scheme, Stories use Story Scheme |
Other Schemes Around Screens
Screens belong to a family of schemes. Each scheme controls one part of project behavior.
Common JIRA Schemes
| Scheme | Controls |
|---|---|
| Issue Type Scheme | Which issue types a project offers |
| Workflow Scheme | Which workflow each issue type follows |
| Field Configuration Scheme | Which fields are required, hidden, or described |
| Permission Scheme | Who can perform which actions |
| Notification Scheme | Who receives alerts for each event |
Creating a Screen
- Open the administration area and find the Screens page under Issues.
- Choose the option to add a screen.
- Type a clear name, such as Bug Create Screen.
- Add fields in the order users should see them.
- Connect the screen to a screen scheme.
Menu names differ slightly across JIRA versions. Team-managed projects skip this chain, since the project settings handle fields directly.
Design Tips
- Show only the fields people need during creation. Short forms get completed.
- Place the most important fields at the top.
- Use separate screens for Create and Edit when the two tasks need different details.
- Reuse one scheme across many projects to simplify upkeep.
Common Mistakes
- Adding a custom field to a screen but forgetting the matching context, so the field never appears.
- Building a separate scheme for every project, which multiplies maintenance work.
- Changing a shared scheme without checking which projects depend on it.
Real-World Example
A company runs five software projects. Bug reports need Steps to Reproduce and Browser, while stories need Acceptance Criteria. The administrator builds a Bug Screen and a Story Screen, wraps each in a screen scheme, and links both schemes in one issue type screen scheme. All five projects share it. Adding a field later takes one change instead of five.
Summary
Screens hold fields, screen schemes assign screens to actions, and issue type screen schemes assign those schemes to issue types. Projects attach to one top-level scheme. Sharing schemes keeps behavior consistent and saves effort. Short forms with the right fields help teams enter clean data.