Azure Boards

What is Azure Boards?

Azure Boards is a work tracking system that supports Scrum, Kanban, and custom process templates. It integrates tightly with Azure Pipelines, Repos, and Test Plans to deliver end‑to‑end DevOps.

Create a Project & Enable Boards

Follow these steps to spin up a new Azure DevOps project with Boards enabled.

az devops project create --name MyFirstBoard --process Agile

Step 2: Navigate to Boards +

From the project sidebar, select Boards → Boards. The default Kanban board will appear.

Work Items & Types

Work items represent units of work. Azure Boards provides several default types:

• Epic – large bodies of work
• Feature – grouping of related user stories
• User Story – functional requirement
• Task – development task
• Bug – defect

Create a new work item using the New Work Item button or via CLI:

az boards work-item create --type 'User Story' --title 'Add login page'

Backlog & Sprints

Organize work into a product backlog and iterative sprints.

Backlog

Drag and drop items to prioritize. Use the Columns menu to add custom fields.

Sprints

Define a sprint (iteration) timeframe, add capacity, and assign work items.

Custom Queries

Queries let you filter work items. Create a new query:

1. Boards → Queries → New Query.
2. Set criteria (e.g., State = Active and Assigned To = @Me).
3. Save and pin to the dashboard for quick access.

az boards query create --name 'My Active Items' --wiql "SELECT [System.Id] FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.State] = 'Active' AND [System.AssignedTo] = @Me"

Dashboards & Widgets

Visualize progress with built‑in widgets.

• Burndown chart – track sprint completion.
• Velocity – monitor team capacity over time.
• Kanban board snapshot – quick view of WIP.

To add a widget:

1. Dashboard → Edit → Add a widget.
2. Search for the desired widget and configure.

Automation with Rules & REST API

Automate state changes, notifications, and more.

Rule Example – Auto Assign Bugs

{
  "event": "workitem.updated",
  "conditions": [
    { "field": "System.WorkItemType", "value": "Bug" },
    { "field": "System.State", "value": "New" }
  ],
  "actions": [
    { "type": "assign", "value": "Project Lead" }
  ]
}

REST API Sample – Get Work Items

curl -u USER:PAT https://dev.azure.com/ORG/PROJECT/_apis/wit/workitems?ids=1,2,3&api-version=7.0