Help with automation: Cloning won't link to original ticket
Asked by Jason Pearce:

I've created a manually fired automation that clones a ticket successfully, however when using the Choose fields to set for "Linked Issues" it will not create a link to the trigger issue.

![Screenshot 2024-08-14 at 08.16.07.png](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/341650iCB20C2E8AF6CA95F/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "Screenshot 2024-08-14 at 08.16.07.png")

I've checked the Settings -\> Issue Linking and that is correct, and I can set it fine manually afterwards so am at a loss as to the problem. All help is appreciated.

Running the cloud version.


Answers:
author: Dirk Ronsmans
body: [@Jason Pearce](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/5211464) ,

Most likely it can't do it since at creating the linked issue doesn't exist yet.

Best approach is to

* create the issue
* link it after creation

You can link the issue that was created using the "Link Issues" action as an automation step

<https://support.atlassian.com/cloud-automation/docs/jira-automation-actions/#Link-issues>

![image.png](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/341785iA75420E938AB735E/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "image.png")

comments: author: Jason Pearce
body: I went the route of adding an additional step to link the issue instead of doing all in one and it works fine. Don't know why I didn't think of that.


author: Dirk Ronsmans
body: Great [@Jason Pearce](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/5211464) !

sometimes splitting it up gives you greater control and also more visibility when troubleshooting.


author: Victor Law
body: Hi [@Jason Pearce](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/5211464)

Welcome to the community!

Based on the screenshot provided, the automation has been configured correctly.

Please verify if you have added the **Linked Issues** field on the **Creation** screen for the target Jira project.

I suspect the **Linked Issues** field has NOT been added to the **Creation** screen yet, and you should be able to see a warning on the audit log for the automation rule.

Thank you.


author: Clara Belin-Brosseau
body: Hello [@Jason Pearce](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/5211464)

If you're seeking for an easier way to **link your cloned issue with the original one** , you can try our app [Elements Copy \& Sync](https://marketplace.atlassian.com/apps/1211111/elements-copy-sync-clone-jira-issues?tab=overview&hosting=cloud?&utm_source=community&utm_medium=answer&utm_campaign=question_2784165&utm_keyword=CS&utm_vendorID=4952) that allows you to clone and sync a full hierarchy of issues with all their content (summary, description, custom fields, comments, attachments, etc).

![Elements Copy & Sync - Link source issue to clone.png](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/342506iF5372904AAE80085/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "Elements Copy & Sync - Link source issue to clone.png")

You can check our guide [here](https://doc.elements-apps.com/copy-and-sync-jira-cloud/create-a-link-between-an-issue-and-its-copy-automa?&utm_source=community&utm_medium=answer&utm_campaign=question_2784165&utm_keyword=CS&utm_vendorID=4952).

The app is for **free during 30 days** (and it stays free under 10 users).


Tags: cloud

jira-service-management

jira-service-management-cloud