External References

External References connect your test cases, runs, and sessions to issues in external tools — Jira, GitHub, Azure DevOps, Linear, GitLab, and more. Once configured, team members can link any test object to an external ticket with a single click, and issue details sync back automatically.

How it works

An external reference is a link between a TestOrchestrator object (a test case, run, session, cycle, or result) and an item in an external system. Each link records:

• Which external system the link points to (Integration Source)
• The external item's key or URL (e.g., PROJ-123 in Jira)
• The nature of the relationship (Relation — e.g., Relates to, Defect)

When a source supports reading issue details, TestOrchestrator fetches and caches the issue's current status and assignee so your team can see external issue state without leaving the app.

Linear goes further. Linear connects with one-click OAuth and adds live issue search when linking, an AI-written insight on each linked issue, and test-case generation from the Linear sidebar. See the Linear Integration guide.

Per-connector guides. Several providers have dedicated pages covering their authentication and AI test-case generation: Jira, Azure DevOps, and Notion. GitHub, GitLab, and custom trackers are covered by the generic Integration Sources page.

Two-part admin setup

Before team members can create external links in their projects, you need to configure two things in Admin → External References:

1. Integration Sources — one entry per external system instance your organisation uses. Each source defines the provider (Jira, GitHub, etc.), how to authenticate, what capabilities are enabled, and which projects can use it.
2. Relations — the semantic labels available when creating a link. A relation answers "what kind of link is this?" — for example Relates to, Defect, or Blocks.

Once at least one source and one relation are configured and enabled, project members with the correct permissions can start linking test objects.

Example: linking a test case to a Jira defect

1. A tester opens a test case and clicks Add External Reference.
2. They select Our Jira as the source and enter PROJ-123 as the issue key.
3. They choose Defect as the relation type.
4. The link is saved. TestOrchestrator fetches the Jira issue's current status and assignee and displays them alongside the test case.

Who can manage external references?

The External References page is available on Pro and Business workspaces to Tenant Admins and Project Admins with the required permissions.