Xray is a test management app for Jira. This article explains how to connect Xray to Rewind as an add-on to a Jira instance, what Rewind backs up, how restores work, and what to know before you start. Xray backups require the Advanced plan.
Covered in this article:
Overview
Xray is a test management app that teams run inside Jira. It stores test cases, the setup conditions they depend on, and the plans and sets that group them.
You can connect Xray to Rewind as an add-on to the Jira instance it's installed on. Rewind backs up your Xray items and the relationships between them, and restores them back into working order. Xray backs up on the same schedule as its Jira instance, so both stay on the same point in time.
What's backed up
Rewind backs up and restores:
- Tests, including their steps, test type, and folder
- Preconditions, including their definition and type
- Test Plans
- Test Sets
- The relationships between them — which Tests belong to which Test Plans and Test Sets, and which Preconditions a Test depends on
Your storage, encryption, and Cloud Sync settings are inherited from the Jira instance. There's nothing extra to configure, and they can't be set differently for Xray.
How quickly your backup runs depends on your Xray plan, which sets the API rate limit available to Rewind. This affects speed, not what gets captured. If your team also uses the Xray API, those requests share the same limit.
Connecting Xray
Before you begin
Before starting, confirm the following:
- Xray is installed on your Jira instance
- The same Jira instance is connected to Rewind and on the Advanced plan
- You have an Xray API key pair — a Client ID and a client secret, generated in Xray
Enable Xray backups
- In the left sidebar, expand your Jira integration and click Explore add-on backups.
- On the Add-ons for Jira page, select your Jira instance from the dropdown.
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On the Xray card, click Enable.
- If Enable stays unavailable after you select a Jira instance, that instance may not be on the Advanced plan. This is the Rewind plan for that Jira instance, not your Jira or Xray subscription.
- If Enable stays unavailable after you select a Jira instance, that instance may not be on the Advanced plan. This is the Rewind plan for that Jira instance, not your Jira or Xray subscription.
- Enter your Client ID and Client secret, then click Connect Xray.
- Select a storage option, then click Continue.
- Review the data region, then click Submit. The region is set to match your Jira instance.
Your first Xray backup runs with the Jira instance's next scheduled backup. Because Xray backs up on the same schedule as its Jira instance, the two stay on the same point in time, which is what keeps restores consistent. You won't need to re-enter your credentials unless the keys are revoked in Xray.
Restoring
You can restore a single item from Xray, or restore everything to a chosen point in time. Rewind restores items in dependency order and then rebuilds the relationships between them.
New issue keys after a restore
When Rewind restores an item, it creates a new Jira issue for it. Jira never reuses an issue key, so the restored item has a new key rather than its original one. Rewind updates the links between your Xray items to match the new keys, so your structure stays intact.
Restoring Tests, Test Plans, and Test Sets
Tests are independent items rather than children of a Test Plan or Test Set. If you restore a Test Plan or Test Set and the Tests inside it are also missing, restore the Tests first, then the Test Plan or Test Set.
Restoring after a Jira restore
If a Jira restore recreates a deleted issue, that issue comes back with a new ID. Your Xray items still point at the old ID, so the links between them can break.
To bring both back to a consistent state, restore Xray to the same point in time as the Jira restore. This also rolls back every Xray change made since that date.
Limitations
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References outside Xray aren't updated after a restore
Rewind updates the links between your Xray items when keys change, but anything outside Xray that pointed at an old key — dashboards, links, bookmarks — will need updating manually. -
Restores are to the same Xray instance
Xray data can't be restored to a different Xray or Jira instance. -
Test Plans and Test Sets can be created but not updated
If you restore a Test Plan or Test Set that hasn't been deleted, its membership isn't rolled back. To roll back membership, delete it first, then restore it. -
Board folders in a Test Plan are restored empty
The folder structure comes back, but the placement of Tests within board folders isn't restored. -
Attachments on test steps aren't restored
The step's action, data, and result are restored, but any files attached to the step aren't. -
Evidence and defect links aren't backed up or restored
Rewind doesn't capture the evidence or defect links attached to Test Runs. -
Links between Tests and Preconditions are rebuilt from the Precondition
Rewind uses the Precondition as the source when reconnecting these links after a restore.
Related articles
- What does Rewind Backup for Jira Cloud? — Lists everything Rewind backs up for Jira, including Xray.
- Item-Level Restores for JIRA — Explains how to restore individual items from a Jira backup.
- Jira Billing — Covers how your Jira instance's plan and subscription are billed, including Xray.
Need help?
If you have questions or need assistance, contact help@rewind.com or submit a request.