The definitive guide to issue tracking software

How to choose the right issue and bug tracking tools for your team

In an ideal world, software would be created without errors and go off without a hitch. But in the world of software development, one certainty remains: bugs are an unavoidable reality.

To deal with these inevitable hurdles, developers need an effective system where they can log and track issues as soon as possible. This is where issue tracking software comes in, a crucial component in issue resolution and project improvement.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll dive deep into issue tracking software, exploring its features, tangible benefits, and practical tips to effectively manage your issue resolution workflow.

Whether you’re a project manager, developer, or part of a support team, get ready to unlock the power of issue tracking software and revolutionize how you handle and conquer challenges.

What is issue tracking software?

Issue tracking software is a powerful tool designed to streamline and manage the process of identifying, reporting, and resolving issues or bugs within a project or organization. It acts as a centralized system that allows users to create, assign, and track issues throughout the course of a project.

Issue tracking software allows teams to capture important information about each issue, such as its description, priority, status, assignee, and relevant attachments. This documentation facilitates collaboration among team members, enables communication and discussion around issues, and provides transparency and visibility into issue resolution progress.

Some examples of these issues include software defects, feature requests, customer complaints, or any other problem that needs attention. Issue tracking software also provides a structured and organized approach, enabling teams to prioritize and allocate resources effectively.

Other features that allow for efficient resolution and effective project management include progress tracking, communication tools, and real-time collaboration. Ultimately, issue tracking software serves as a vital component in maintaining quality control, improving productivity, and enhancing customer satisfaction. Interested in trying it out for yourself? Check out our powerful issue tracking software.

Which is the best issue tracking software to use?

Determining the "best" issue tracking software depends on your specific requirements and preferences, as each team and organization will have varying needs.

To find the best fit for your team, you must consider factors such as ease of use, scalability, customization options, integration capabilities, reporting features, and overall suitability for your specific project.

While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to issue tracking software, some highly-regarded software solutions have gained popularity for their intuitive interfaces and seamless integration. Here are some options that are currently crowd favorites in the space of issue-tracking software.

Jira

Developed by Atlassian, Jira is one of the most popular issue tracking software solutions due to its extensive features and versatility.

GitHub Issues

GitHub Issues is a built-in issue tracking feature within the GitHub platform, primarily used for managing software development projects.

Backlog

Backlog by Nulab is a project management and issue & bug tracking software especially suited for development teams, quality assurance teams, and the teams that work with them.

Zendesk

Zendesk is popular for its comprehensive suite of customer support tools, including a robust ticketing system and knowledge base.

Bugzilla

Bugzilla is an open-source issue tracking software known for its simplicity and scalability.

Trello

Trello is a visual project management tool that uses boards, lists, and cards to track tasks and issues. While it is not primarily designed as an issue tracking tool, Trello can be used effectively for simple issue tracking purposes.

Asana

Asana is a popular project management tool that can also be used for issue tracking. It offers a wide range of features for task management, including the ability to create tasks, assign tasks, and track issues.

The benefits of issue tracking software

Issue tracking software offers many benefits that can enhance productivity in various domains. By enabling teams to effectively manage, track, and resolve issues throughout the project lifecycle, it promotes collaboration, transparency, and efficiency, ultimately leading to smoother project execution and successful delivery.

Here are some of the key advantages of using issue tracking software.

Centralized issue management

Issue tracking software provides a centralized platform where all project issues can be captured, organized, and tracked in one place. This eliminates the need for scattered information across different tools or spreadsheets, making managing and prioritizing issues easier.

Improved visibility and transparency

Team members also have better visibility into the status and progress of each issue. They can see who is responsible for each task, track the history of changes and updates, and understand the project's overall status. This transparency helps identify bottlenecks, avoid duplication of effort, and ensure accountability.

Efficient collaboration and communication

By enabling team members to comment on issues, discuss potential solutions, and share relevant files or screenshots, issue tracking software also facilitates effective collaboration. This promotes clear and efficient communication, leading to quicker issue resolution and improved teamwork.

Streamlined workflow and prioritization

Workflow management features allow teams to define custom workflows, set priorities, and automate certain tasks. This ensures that issues are appropriately assigned, tracked, and moved through the resolution process, reducing delays and enhancing overall productivity.

Historical tracking and knowledge base

Issue tracking software also serves as a historical record of all project issues and their resolutions. It creates a valuable knowledge base that can be referenced in the future for similar issues or projects. Your team can take this data and learn from past experiences, leverage existing solutions, and avoid repeating mistakes, ultimately improving efficiency and productivity.

Metrics and reporting

Metrics and reporting capabilities allow your teams to analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) related to issue management, meaning you can track metrics like issue resolution time, open/closed issue ratios, and backlog size. These insights help identify improvement areas, optimize workflows, and make data-driven decisions.

Which teams are issue tracking software most suitable for?

By streamlining workflows, improving collaboration, and ensuring efficient issue resolution, issue tracking software can benefit various teams and organizations involved in project management and software development. Here are some specific examples of which teams can benefit the most from utilizing issue tracking software. You can also see how teams like these use Nulab’s tools.

Software development teams

Issue tracking software is particularly useful for software development teams as it helps track and manage bugs, feature requests, and enhancements throughout the development cycle. Developers can stay organized, collaborate effectively, and prioritize their work based on the severity and impact of each issue.

Project managers

Project managers play a critical role in overseeing project progress and ensuring timely issue resolution, so it’s no wonder that issue tracking software is also widely used for this department. Issue tracking software gives project managers visibility into the status of issues, helps prioritize tasks, and allows them to assign responsibilities to team members. This streamlines project management, enhances communication, and facilitates decision-making.

Quality Assurance (QA) teams

As QA teams focus on testing software and identifying defects or issues, issue tracking software can be extremely helpful for this department. It can provide a structured approach to logging and tracking issues, enabling QA teams to document and communicate their findings effectively. It also ensures that identified issues are appropriately addressed and resolved before the software is released.

Customer support and helpdesk teams

Issue tracking software can also be helpful for customer support teams and helpdesk teams, who can use it to track and manage customer issues, customer tickets, or customer feedback. Teams who utilize issue tracking systems can improve how efficiently customer inquiries are handled, track issue resolution progress, and improve overall customer satisfaction.

IT operations and infrastructure teams

IT operations and infrastructure teams deal with various technical issues and maintenance tasks, and issue tracking software can allow them to track and manage system outages, server maintenance, security vulnerabilities, and other infrastructure-related issues. It can also help maintain uptime, prioritize tasks, and track resolution progress.

Cross-functional project teams

Any cross-functional project team that needs to collaborate and track issues across different departments or disciplines can greatly benefit from issue tracking software. This is due to its ability to provide unified communication, coordination, and issue resolution, ensuring alignment and progress across the project team.

How Nulab optimizes every stage of your issue tracking workflow

Key capabilities of Nulab’s issue tracking tools

Nulab’s issue tracker tools can help you efficiently track, manage, and resolve issues, ensuring smooth collaboration and timely project delivery. Here are some unique ways our products can streamline and enhance your issue tracking process.

Identify and create issues

Use Backlog tasks to effortlessly document bug reports, feature requests, improvements, and any other pertinent issues. With Backlog, you have the flexibility to create issues with just a concise title or provide comprehensive details to ensure thorough documentation. What's more, tasks can be automatically generated through web page form and email integration for seamless workflow management.

Take advantage of issue templates to streamline your team's documentation process. You can effortlessly incorporate relevant visual assets that help capture bugs and define issue requirements by simply dragging and dropping files and images.

Troubleshooting becomes a breeze with Cacoo's developer diagram templates. Effortlessly illustrate your architecture, systems, and networks to identify and resolve issues efficiently. The schema importer tool allows you to accurately generate your current state in a matter of minutes, enabling quick problem-solving.

With these powerful features at your disposal, Backlog and Cacoo empower your team to streamline communication, enhance collaboration, and drive productivity to new heights.

Prioritize and assign issues

When it comes to handling issues, an effective prioritization strategy is essential. We recommend following a systematic approach that takes into account multiple factors: urgency, impact, severity, team workload, and business needs. By considering these criteria, you can prioritize issues in a way that maximizes efficiency and effectiveness.

Assign Backlog tasks and due dates to the designated developers or team members responsible for them while also assigning appropriate priority levels of low, medium, or high. To maintain a well-organized workflow, you can nest child tasks under parent tasks, creating a logical hierarchy. Utilizing versions and milestones allows for grouping related tasks together, facilitating better tracking and progress monitoring. By listing issues on your project's Board in order of importance, priorities remain transparent and easily accessible. Users can also group Gantt charts by assignee, enabling them to view each individual team member’s workload and timeline.

With Cacoo, your developer team can conduct daily standup meetings directly within the platform, promoting real-time collaboration and alignment on issue priorities. The ability to bulk-add sticky notes and effortlessly move them based on the assignee, status, or urgency streamlines organization and visual representation. Seamless integration between your preferred chat app and your issue tracking software ensures the entire team is promptly notified of new issues and status changes.

Collaborate and communicate on issues

To collaborate and communicate on issues, developers and team members can hold discussions, ask for clarifications, and share insights right inside Backlog tasks. Your assigned developer can keep everyone updated through comments, status changes, and notifications.

Simply set the status of each issue to open, in progress, resolved, or closed, depending on where it is in your workflow. Then, create your own custom fields to support your unique issue tracking workflow and internal processes. When you leave a comment, you can select only those you want to notify (only pinging those with updates they actually need).

Backlog's versatile Boards feature enables you to intuitively drag and drop issues across different stages of your workflow, providing a comprehensive overview of all ongoing tasks. Additionally, with Cacoo, you can conduct live video call meetings directly on developer diagrams, facilitating in-depth discussions on changes and risk assessments.

Monitor issue progress

As you track issues moving through your workflow, Backlog allows you to pay close attention to potential bottlenecks, delays, or blockers to improve task completion efficiency over time.

Sort and manage your workflows easily with Boards and plan timelines and refine delivery dates for issue resolutions through Gantt charts. Use Burndown charts to see how your developers perform against expectations so that you can adjust workloads and delivery estimates accordingly.

Backlog issues reflect each pull request, merge, build, and update. Notify your team of key status updates when you integrate with your chat app.

Code review and testing

Testing thoroughly is crucial to verify that the resolution meets the expected criteria and doesn’t introduce new issues. Before merging into the main codebase, your team can conduct code reviews in Backlog to ensure code quality and adherence to coding standards. This feature allows developers to comment on each other's code, streamlining communication and collaboration.

Projects also have built-in repositories and pull request functionality for easy code management and release, so you can track everything and review code right in issues. You can also use the difference viewer to verify changes and leave inline comments to resolve issues.

Documentation and knowledge sharing

After issue resolution, your team should immediately update or create documentation to reflect the changes made. This ensures that future developers or team members have the necessary information to understand the issue, its resolution, and any associated considerations.

To make things even easier, Wikis make project knowledge available and editable to your entire team so legacy knowledge doesn’t hinder future fixes. You can also share any diagram with a simple link, so all developers can always have access to the latest standards and visual documentation.

Six unique features of Nulab’s issue tracking tools

The right combination of effective tracking features can enable efficient management, timely resolution, and effective collaboration. Here are some of the key features that make Nulab’s issue tracking tools one-of-a-kind.

Intuitive issue management

Streamline your issue tracking process easily with our user-friendly interface. Create, assign, and prioritize issues effortlessly, keeping everyone on the same page and driving accountability.

Customizable workflows

Tailor your workflows to match your team's unique requirements. Define custom statuses and fields to mirror your project management processes and adapt as your projects evolve.

Collaborative communication

Foster effective collaboration within your team by facilitating seamless communication. Discuss issues, share updates, and exchange insights directly within the software, keeping everyone informed and aligned.

Real-time updates

Stay up to date with the latest developments in your projects. Use real-time activity streams to track changes, comments, and updates on issues as they happen.

Powerful search and filtering

Easily locate and filter issues based on specific criteria, such as status, assignee, priority, or tags. Find the information you need quickly and efficiently to focus on resolving critical issues.

Integration capabilities

Seamlessly integrate with your existing tools and workflows. Connect with popular development tools, collaboration platforms, and notification systems to enhance productivity and streamline your workflows.

What are some specific examples of issue tracking?

There are many ways issue tracking software can be leveraged to streamline your internal processes. Here are some example scenarios that illustrate exactly how the software can be used to manage different types of issues.

Bug tracking

A software development team uses issue tracking software to log and track software bugs reported by users or identified during testing. Each bug is assigned a priority level and an appropriate developer. The team can collaborate on the issue, discuss potential solutions, and track the progress of bug resolution until it is fixed and closed.

Feature request management

A product team receives feature requests from users and stakeholders. They use issue tracking software to capture these requests as issues, prioritize them based on their value and feasibility, and assign them to the appropriate team members. The team can track the status of each feature request, communicate with users about the progress, and provide updates on their implementation.

Support ticket management

A customer support team receives support tickets from customers via various channels. They utilize issue tracking software to create and manage tickets, assign them to support agents, and track their progress until resolution. The software enables the team to collaborate internally, communicate with customers, and provide timely updates on the ticket status.

Infrastructure issue tracking

An IT operations team uses issue tracking software to manage infrastructure-related issues, such as server outages or network failures. They log each incident as an issue, assign it to the responsible team member, and track the progress of resolution. The tool helps them communicate about the incident, document the steps taken to resolve it, and analyze patterns to prevent similar issues in the future.

Task management and workflows

A project manager utilizes issue tracking software to manage tasks and workflows within a project. They create issue tickets for each task, assign them to team members, and track their progress. The software provides visibility into the status of each task, facilitates collaboration among team members, and ensures that tasks are completed on time.

How to choose an issue tracking system

Choosing the best issue tracking system requires careful consideration of your team's specific needs and requirements. Here are some factors to consider when selecting the most suitable system for your situation.

Ease of use

Look for a system that is user-friendly and intuitive. The interface should be easy to navigate, with clear options for creating and managing issues. Consider systems that offer a clean and organized layout, making it simple for team members to quickly adapt and start using the tool effectively.

Customization options

Assess the level of customization offered by the system. Each team has unique workflows and processes, so the system should allow you to customize fields, workflows, and statuses to match your requirements. Look for systems that provide flexibility to adapt to your team's specific needs.

Collaboration features

Evaluate the collaboration features of the system. It should allow team members to comment, discuss, and share issues-related information. Look for features like @mentions, file attachments, and notifications to facilitate effective communication and collaboration among team members.

Integration capabilities

Consider the system's integration capabilities with other tools you commonly use. Look for integrations with project management software, version control systems, communication tools, or customer support platforms. Seamless integration with existing tools can streamline workflows and improve efficiency.

Reporting and analytics

Check if the system provides reporting and analytics features. This allows you to track key metrics related to issue management, such as issue resolution time, open/closed issue ratios, or team performance. Reporting capabilities help you gain insights into your team's performance and identify areas for improvement.

Scalability

Think about the scalability of the system. If your team is growing or you anticipate an increase in the number of issues to be tracked, ensure that the system can handle the projected growth without compromising performance or functionality.

Security and permissions

Evaluate the security features of the system. Ensure that it offers adequate data protection, user access controls, and permissions management. Consider systems that provide options for role-based access control and data encryption depending on your organization's requirements.

Customer support and training

Assess the level of customer support and training the system provider offers. Look for documentation, tutorials, and responsive customer support to assist you in getting started and addressing any issues that may arise.

Cost and licensing

Consider the cost and licensing model of the system. Evaluate whether it aligns with your budget and offers flexible pricing options that suit your team's needs. Consider factors such as the number of users, storage capacity, and additional features that may incur extra costs.

By evaluating these factors, you can identify an issue tracking system that meets your team's requirements, enhances collaboration, and improves issue management efficiency. It's also recommended to involve key stakeholders and conduct trials or demos of the systems to make an informed decision.