NPRecycle user guide
NPRecycle is a recycle bin for Jira Cloud. It keeps a copy of your work items as they change, so a Jira administrator can restore one after it is deleted, along with its sub-tasks, comments, worklogs, links and attachments.
Getting started
- Install NPRecycle from the Atlassian Marketplace.
- Open Jira settings → Apps → NPRecycle. Only Jira administrators can see this page.
- NPRecycle captures your existing work items in the background. You can follow the progress in Settings → Initial backfill. Work items deleted after installation can be restored. Anything deleted before installation cannot.
Restoring a deleted work item
- Open the Recycle bin tab. A parent deleted together with its sub-tasks appears once, marked "with sub-tasks".
- Click Preview restore. The preview shows what will be recreated: work items, comments, worklogs, links and attachments. It names any attachment that cannot be restored, with the reason.
- Click Restore. You can close the window; the restore keeps running. The Restore jobs tab shows its progress and result.
The restored work item:
- has a new key. Jira does not allow reusing the old one. A comment on the restored item records the original key (and any earlier keys if it was restored before), and the
nprecycle-restoredlabel makes restored items easy to find. - comes back in its original status when the workflow has a direct transition to it, along with its resolution.
- keeps its fields, including custom fields its project's screens allow. The restore report lists any field that could not be set.
- gets its comments, worklogs and attachments back, re-posted by NPRecycle. Each one notes the original author and date, because Jira does not let apps post as other people.
- has its links rebuilt in both directions.
Images embedded inside a description or comment come back as attachments, but the inline image may need to be inserted again.
Attachment copies
NPRecycle keeps copies of attachments so they can be restored with a deleted work item. Copies are made when a file is added, because Jira deletes files together with the work item. Copies are kept up to the storage budget set in Settings → Attachment copies. When the budget is full, the oldest copies are removed first; a work item's files count as recent from the moment it is deleted, so recently deleted work items keep their files. Files larger than the per-file limit are not copied. A work item whose files were removed can still be restored, without those files, and the restore report lists what is missing.
| Setting | Range | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Storage budget | 1–100 GB | 10 GB |
| Largest file to copy | 1–100 MB | 100 MB |
To copy files that were already attached before you installed NPRecycle, click Run backfill again in Settings.
Retention
Deleted work items are kept for the retention period set in Settings → Retention (7 to 180 days, 90 by default), then removed for good, together with their attachment copies.
Audit log
Settings → Audit log → Generate CSV lists every deleted work item still within retention: who deleted it, when, and whether it was restored.
Storage limits
Snapshots are stored in Forge SQL, which allows 1 GiB per site, and NPRecycle compresses them. Settings → Storage shows current usage.
- At 75% full, a banner warns you.
- At 90% full, NPRecycle pauses the activity log and the backfill to keep room for snapshots of real work items.
Lowering the retention period frees space.
Licensing
If the NPRecycle license becomes inactive, NPRecycle stops capturing changes and restores are disabled. Work items already in the recycle bin are kept until their retention period ends, so renewing the license restores full function.
Troubleshooting
- A deleted work item isn't in the recycle bin. It was deleted before NPRecycle was installed, or before the backfill reached it.
- A field didn't come back. The restore report names it, with Jira's reason. This usually means the field isn't on the project's screens.
- The status didn't come back. The workflow has no direct transition from the initial status to the original one. Move the work item manually.
- Support asks for event details. Turn on Settings → Store event details for troubleshooting, reproduce the problem, then check the Activity tab. Turn it off again afterwards.