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Jira Credential Setup

This guide walks you through setting up API token credentials for Jira in Jentic using Basic Auth with a standard API token (no scopes).

Overview

What you'll need

What you'll do

  1. Find Jira in Jentic's API Directory and add it to your registry
  2. Create an API token in your Atlassian account using the "Create API token" button (not "Create API token with scopes")
  3. Add Basic Auth credentials in Jentic using your email and API token
  4. Verify the connection to ensure everything is working

Note: This guide uses the standard "Create API token" button which creates a token without scopes. If you see an option for "Create API token with scopes", do not use that — use the regular "Create API token" button instead.

Account Requirements

  • Free tier: Jira Cloud free plan provides API access (up to 10 users, 2GB storage)
  • API tokens: Tied to individual user accounts
  • Service accounts: 5 free per organization; more than 5 requires Atlassian Guard subscription
  • Team credentials: API tokens are per-user. Each team member creates their own token. For shared integrations, create a dedicated service account (service accounts must be licensed Jira users)

Reusing credentials

Important: Once you've created an API token in your Atlassian account, you can reuse it across all Atlassian Cloud products (Jira, Confluence, etc.). The same API token works for any Atlassian API that uses Basic Auth. See the Reusing Credentials section below for details.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Find Jira in Jentic

  1. In the Jentic webapp, click API Registry
  2. Go to Jentic API Directory and search for "Jira"
  3. Click Add to Registry
  4. Go back to your API Registry and find Jira
  5. Click the Credentials box and then Add credential
  6. Keep this tab open — you'll need to enter your credentials here

2. Create an API Token in Atlassian

  1. Open a new tab and go to Atlassian Account API Tokens
  2. Log in with your Atlassian account (the same account you use for Jira)
  3. Click Create API token (not "Create API token with scopes")
  4. This creates a standard API token without scopes, which is what you need for Basic Auth
  5. Give the token a descriptive name (e.g., "Jentic Integration")
  6. Set an expiration date (default: 1 year, configurable)
  7. Click Create
  8. Copy the token immediately — it's shown only once and cannot be retrieved later

Security tip: Save your API token in a secure password manager. You'll need it to add credentials in Jentic, and you may want to reuse it for other Atlassian products.

3. Add Basic Auth Credentials in Jentic

  1. In the Jentic webapp (where you clicked "Add credential" in Step 1), you'll see fields for Basic Auth:
  2. Your Atlassian domain: Enter your Atlassian domain (just the domain part, not the full URL)
    • For example, if your Jira URL is https://test.atlassian.net, enter just test
    • The full format is https://{your-domain}.atlassian.net, so you only need to enter the {your-domain} part
  3. Username: Enter your Atlassian account email address (the email you use to log into Jira)
  4. Password/Token: Paste the API token you created in Step 2
  5. Give your credential a descriptive name (e.g., "Jira API Token")
  6. Click Save or Connect to complete the setup

Note: For Basic Auth with Jira, you need to provide your Atlassian domain, your email address as the username, and your API token as the password. Jentic will use these credentials to authenticate API requests to Jira.

4. Verify Setup

If no errors occurred, Jira should now be: - Available in your API Registry with credentials configured - Ready to be added to a new Capability Set or MCP Configuration Set

Reusing Credentials for Multiple Atlassian APIs

Once you've created an API token in your Atlassian account, you can reuse it for other Atlassian Cloud products:

  1. Add the new API to Jentic from the API Directory (e.g., Confluence)
  2. When adding credentials, select Basic Auth and use:
  3. Your Atlassian domain: The same domain you used for Jira (e.g., test for test.atlassian.net)
  4. Username: The same Atlassian account email address
  5. Password/Token: The same API token you created earlier

Note: The API token is tied to your Atlassian account, not to individual products. As long as you use the same domain, email, and token, you can use the same credentials for all Atlassian APIs that support Basic Auth.

Authentication Methods

Jira supports two authentication methods:

API Token (Basic Auth) - Covered in this guide

  • What it is: Email address + API token combination
  • Best for: Most use cases, simple setup
  • Shared credentials: Same token works across all Atlassian Cloud products
  • Important: Use the "Create API token" button (without scopes) — do not use "Create API token with scopes" for this guide

OAuth 2.0

  • What it is: Token-based authentication managed by OAuth flow
  • Best for: Applications requiring user consent and token refresh
  • Setup: More complex, requires OAuth app registration in Atlassian

This guide covers API Token (Basic Auth) setup.

Rate Limits & Token Management

  • Rate limits: Varies by endpoint — typically 100 requests per minute
  • Token expiry: Configurable when creating the token
  • Token security: Treat API tokens like passwords. If compromised, revoke immediately and create a new one
  • Revoking tokens: Go to Atlassian Account API Tokens to revoke or manage existing tokens

Troubleshooting

"Unauthorized" or "Authentication failed" error

Possible causes and solutions:

  1. Incorrect Atlassian domain
  2. Verify your domain is correct (just the domain part, e.g., test for test.atlassian.net)

  3. Make sure you didn't include .atlassian.net in the domain field

  4. Email mismatch

  5. Verify your email address matches your Atlassian account email exactly

  6. Check for typos or extra spaces

  7. API token issues

  8. Ensure you copied the API token correctly (no extra spaces before or after)
  9. Check that the API token hasn't expired or been revoked
  10. Go to Atlassian Account API Tokens to verify your token is still active

"Rate limit exceeded" error

What it means: Jira has rate limits (typically 100 requests per minute per user)

Solutions:

  1. Wait before retrying
  2. Wait a few minutes before retrying your request

  3. Rate limits reset after a short period

  4. Implement throttling

  5. Consider implementing request throttling in your integration
  6. Reduce the frequency of API calls if possible

"Token not found" error

What it means: The API token you're trying to use doesn't exist or can't be found

Solutions:

  1. Create a new token
  2. API tokens are shown only once when created — if you didn't save it, you'll need to create a new one

  3. Go to Atlassian Account API Tokens to create a new token

  4. Verify account

  5. Make sure you're using the token associated with the correct Atlassian account
  6. Ensure the token was created for the same account you're using in Jentic

Can't access Jira data

Possible causes and solutions:

  1. Account access
  2. Ensure your Atlassian account has access to the Jira instance you're trying to connect to

  3. Verify you're using the correct Atlassian account (the one with Jira access)

  4. Permissions

  5. Verify your account has the necessary permissions in Jira

  6. Check with your Jira administrator if you need additional permissions

  7. Instance URL

  8. Check that you're using the correct Jira Cloud instance URL if required
  9. Verify the domain matches your Jira instance

Next Steps

After setting up your Jira credentials:

  • Add Jira to a Capability Set for use with agents
  • Add Jira to an MCP Configuration Set for use with MCP clients
  • Explore other Atlassian APIs (like Confluence) using the same credentials
  • Set up service accounts for team-wide integrations (requires Atlassian Guard for more than 5 service accounts)

Additional Resources