Atlassian Plugin Configuration Guide

This guide explains how to configure the ActivityPulse Atlassian plugin to fetch activity data from Jira and Confluence.

Prerequisites

  • Atlassian Cloud account (Jira and/or Confluence)
  • Account with access to the projects/spaces you want to track
  • API token for authentication

Overview

The Atlassian plugin uses the Jira and Confluence REST APIs to fetch activity data. This requires:

  1. Jira URL - The base URL of your Jira instance
  2. Jira Email - Your Atlassian account email
  3. Jira API Token - An API token for authentication
  4. Confluence URL (Optional) - The base URL of your Confluence instance
  5. Confluence Credentials (Optional) - Separate credentials if different from Jira

Step 1: Create an API Token

1.1 Navigate to API Tokens

  1. Go to Atlassian Account Settings
  2. Sign in with your Atlassian account
  3. Click Create API token

1.2 Create New Token

  1. Enter a Label for the token (e.g., ActivityPulse)
  2. Click Create

1.3 Copy the Token

IMPORTANT: Copy the token immediately. You will NOT be able to see it again.

Store it securely - you’ll need it for ActivityPulse configuration.

Step 2: Find Your Atlassian URLs

Jira URL

Your Jira URL is typically:

  • Cloud: https://your-domain.atlassian.net

You can find this by:

  1. Opening Jira in your browser
  2. Looking at the URL in the address bar (before any /browse or /projects path)

Confluence URL (if applicable)

Your Confluence URL is typically:

  • Cloud: https://your-domain.atlassian.net/wiki

Note: For Atlassian Cloud, Jira and Confluence often share the same base domain, with Confluence adding /wiki.

Step 3: Configure ActivityPulse

3.1 Enter Jira Configuration

In the ActivityPulse web interface:

  1. Navigate to Data Sources
  2. Click Add Data Source or edit an existing Atlassian source
  3. Enter the Jira values:
FieldValueExample
Jira URLBase URL of your Jira instancehttps://company.atlassian.net
Jira EmailYour Atlassian account emailyou@company.com
Jira API TokenAPI Token from Step 1xxxxxxxxxxxx

3.2 Enter Confluence Configuration (Optional)

If you also want to track Confluence activity:

FieldValueExample
Confluence URLBase URL of your Confluencehttps://company.atlassian.net/wiki
Confluence EmailEmail (or leave empty to use Jira email)you@company.com
Confluence API TokenAPI Token (can use same as Jira)xxxxxxxxxxxx
  1. Click Save Configuration

3.3 Map Users

For each team member you want to track:

  1. Navigate to Teammates
  2. Edit the team member
  3. In the External IDs section, add their Atlassian identifier
  4. Enter their Atlassian account email or account ID

Data Collected

Jira Activity

The plugin collects:

  • Issues Created - New issues created by the user
  • Issues Updated - Issues modified by the user
  • Issues Resolved - Issues closed or resolved
  • Comments - Comments added to issues
  • Worklogs - Time logged on issues

Confluence Activity

If Confluence is configured, the plugin also collects:

  • Pages Created - New pages created
  • Pages Updated - Existing pages edited
  • Comments - Comments on pages
  • Spaces - Activity within spaces the user has access to

Verification

Test the Connection

  1. In ActivityPulse, go to Data Sources
  2. Find your Atlassian data source
  3. Click Test Connection
  4. A successful test confirms credentials are valid

Verify Data Collection

  1. Click Fetch to trigger immediate data collection
  2. Go to Activities to see fetched activity data
  3. Filter by source type “Atlassian” to see only Atlassian activities

Troubleshooting

”Authentication failed” Error

  • Verify the email address is correct (case-sensitive)
  • Ensure the API token is copied correctly (no spaces)
  • Check that the token hasn’t been revoked
  • Try creating a new API token

”Forbidden” Error

  • Verify your account has access to the Jira/Confluence instance
  • Check that the API token was created for the correct account
  • Ensure you have permission to view the projects/spaces

”Not found” Error

  • Verify the Jira/Confluence URLs are correct
  • For Confluence, ensure you include /wiki if required
  • Check that the instance is accessible from the network

No Data After Fetch

  • Verify team members have Atlassian external IDs configured
  • Ensure users have recent activity in Jira/Confluence
  • Check the date range for the fetch operation

Rate Limiting

  • Atlassian Cloud has rate limits on API calls
  • ActivityPulse handles rate limiting automatically
  • If issues persist, reduce sync frequency

Security Best Practices

API Token Management

  • Use dedicated API tokens for ActivityPulse
  • Regularly rotate API tokens (every 6-12 months)
  • Revoke tokens immediately if compromised
  • Store tokens securely using a password manager

Account Permissions

  • The API token inherits the permissions of the account that created it
  • Consider using a dedicated service account for ActivityPulse
  • Grant minimum necessary permissions to the account

Network Security

  • Atlassian Cloud always uses HTTPS
  • For Data Center/Server: ensure HTTPS is configured
  • Consider IP allowlisting if available

Multiple Atlassian Instances

If your organization uses multiple Atlassian instances:

  1. Create a separate data source for each instance
  2. Use different API tokens for each instance
  3. Map users to the appropriate instance based on where they’re active

Jira vs Confluence Credentials

You can use:

  • Same credentials for both Jira and Confluence (most common for Cloud)
  • Different credentials if needed (e.g., different accounts or permissions)

If Confluence email/token fields are left empty, ActivityPulse will use the Jira credentials for Confluence access.

API Permissions Reference

The API token inherits all permissions of the user account. For ActivityPulse to function properly, the account needs:

Jira

  • Browse Projects - View issues and projects
  • View Worklogs - See time tracking data

Confluence

  • View Pages - Read page content and metadata
  • View Space - Access space information

No write permissions are required - ActivityPulse only reads data.

Additional Resources