pulpForge help

pulpForge is the software project tracker of pulpSuite. It draws on Azure DevOps (work item types, state categories, sprints, linked repositories, simplified test plans) with the quick feel of a tool like Linear. It runs in the browser, with nothing to install and no account. By default, everything stays on your device; you can also share your projects with a team or open them on a phone: see Share with a team or a phone.

A project is viewed on six screens: Backlog, Board, Sprints, Queries, Repositories and Tests. Import, Trash and Settings complete the menu. Each project opens in a tab at the top of the window.

Getting started

1. Open pulpForge. On first opening, a sample project appears on its own so you can see what pulpForge looks like: the customer area of a fictional building company, with its backlog, board, sprints, code repository and tests. It is never saved and never mixes with your projects. Start from scratch or Remove the example removes it in one click (so does closing its tab), Import my data opens an export to import, and File › See the example again brings it back. Your first project or first import replaces it. Then choose New project (a key of 2 to 10 letters such as PRJ gives the readable numbers PRJ-42, and an Agile, Scrum or Basic process gives the item types and starting states) or Import an export from another tool.
2. In the Backlog, click New item, type a title then press Enter: the item is created and typing carries on. Tab makes the next item a child, Shift+Tab goes up a level.
3. Click an item to open its details: state, assignee, points, hours, due date, tags, Markdown description, acceptance criteria, links, code, attachments and history.
4. In Sprints, create a sprint, drag items from the backlog into the sprint, then Start. The gauge compares the remaining work with the team capacity.
5. Every change is saved at once. File › Save as writes a full .pforge backup.

Common tasks

How do I organise the backlog?

Items nest as epics › features › stories › tasks. A triangle folds or unfolds a branch; the total points and remaining work are shown on each parent. Drag a row's handle: dropping on the top or bottom of another row changes the order, dropping in the middle makes it a child. An item can never become the child of one of its own descendants: a message explains why. With the keyboard, Alt+↑ and Alt+↓ reorder.

How does quick entry work?

As you type, pulpForge suggests the type (bug, story, task…) and the priority from the words of the title, in French, English and Spanish, and flags likely duplicates (“Looks like PRJ-12”). Link as duplicate creates the link together with the item. Nothing is forced: change the type in the list next to the field.

How do I split a story into tasks?

Write a bullet list in the story description. A Create N child tasks button appears: one bullet, one task.

How do I follow progress on the board?

The Board sorts cards by state category (to do, in progress, resolved, done); a custom sub-state shows as a badge. Drag a card to change its state: if the workflow of that type forbids it, the card goes back with a message. Pick lanes by assignee or by parent (dropping a card in someone's lane assigns it to them). A work-in-progress limit per column (the “…” button of the column) turns the column red when exceeded: it is a warning, not a block. On a phone, a card's “…” menu changes its state without dragging.

How do I plan a sprint?

In Sprints, the backlog is on the left and the sprint on the right: drag, or use a row's arrow. Edit sets the dates, the goal, the capacity per person (hours per day, days off) and the team's days off. The gauge turns red when the remaining work exceeds the capacity. The burndown shows the ideal curve (from the total down to zero over working days) and the actual curve, recorded each day the first time pulpForge is opened. Only one sprint is active at a time; End sprint offers to move what is unfinished to the next sprint, put it back in the backlog or leave it. Summary composes a text from the sprint figures, and Release notes lists completed items by type (Save (.md) or Open in pulpDoc).

How do I link items together and to other apps?

In the item, Links: blocks, blocked by, duplicate of, related to, tests… To link an item to a pulpProduct change request or a pulpClient opportunity, paste the pulp:… reference copied from the other app. The item's Copy the reference button does the opposite.

How do I attach commits, branches and pull requests?

In Repositories, add the web address of a repository (never a user name or token: an address containing one is refused). pulpForge does not contact the repository. Import a Git log shows a command to run in your repository (Copy button); then import the file it produces, or paste its content. Commits that mention PRJ-12, AB#12 or #12 are attached to the items, as are feature/PRJ-12-… branches. “Fixes PRJ-3” or “closes #4” proposes closing the item: a checklist asks for your confirmation, nothing is closed automatically.

How do I import test results?

In Tests, import a JUnit XML report. Results are matched to your test cases (by original key, otherwise by test name) and pulpForge offers to create the missing cases. The pass rate is shown per build. A failing test has a Create a bug button, pre-filled with the failure message in the steps to reproduce.

How do I import from Jira, Azure DevOps, GitHub or GitLab?

Import (or drop the file on the window). The wizard recognises the format, then proposes the target project (a new project takes the original key), the mappings (types, states, priorities, people), a preview (to create, to update, warnings) and the import. Original numbers are kept when the project key is the same (PRJ-12 stays PRJ-12). An unknown state keeps its name as a custom state. An import adds, it never overwrites: re-importing a file creates nothing, and items already present are offered as “update” (with the differences) or “skip”.

How do I export or print?

Queries: combinable filters (type, state, category, assignee, tag, sprint, area, text), which Save the query keeps for later, then Export: CSV in Jira format, CSV in Azure DevOps format, JSON in GitHub format, or CSV with headers in your language. The File menu also offers the Jira, Azure DevOps and GitHub exports of the whole project, Release notes and Print (the whole backlog or the active sprint).

How do I set up a project?

In Settings: Projects (name, process, Areas to sort items, and Show sprint ends in the suite calendar), Workflows (add a state, choose its category, Limit the allowed transitions, Restore the default workflow), People (the list of assignees, also used for sprint capacity), Display (theme) and Data (backup, smart search, See the example again).

How do I get back what I deleted?

Trash: deleted items, sprints, repositories, projects, people and queries are there and can be restored. There is no permanent deletion in this version.

Share with a team or a phone

• Shared file: File › Save as a shared file… puts your projects (for example Product.pforge) in a synced folder (OneDrive, Nextcloud, kDrive) or on a network drive. Your colleagues open it with File › Open a shared folder…; everyone sees the others’ changes as soon as the folder has synced. Opening an older .pforge backup adds its content to the open file.
• File status: the badge in the title bar shows On this computer or Shared · N devices; a click shows who has seen your changes (“5 changes not yet seen by Paul”) and offers Sync now.
• Changes at the same time: if two people change the same field of an item, the most recent value is kept and a notice tells you, with Keep or Use the other value.
• Duplicate numbers: two people working offline can each create a PRJ-42. When the changes merge, the more recent one is renumbered (“PRJ-42 became PRJ-57”) and a notice says so. The item shows Former number: PRJ-42, and search, links and the Git log still understand the old number.
• Attachments: they follow the file. Up to 8 MB they arrive by themselves on each device; above that, the attachment shows To download. An attachment marked Not arrived yet will be there once the folder has finished syncing.
• Automatic backup: File › Automatic backup… makes a full copy every day in the folder of your choice; a reminder appears if your projects have never been backed up, or not for more than 7 days.
• My phone: File › Open on my phone… shows a QR code; scan it, check that the 6-digit code is the same on both devices, choose Read only or Can edit and the duration. The phone shows your projects live from the computer and keeps nothing.
• Guest on a ticket: in an item's details, Invite to this record sends a QR code or a link. The person sees only that ticket, its sub-items, its links and its history. An approval window appears on your computer: compare the code, then Refuse, Read only or Can edit. In read only, the whole item is greyed out under a Read only banner; a guest can open attachments but not add any.
• Who is connected: “N device(s) connected” appears in the header; File › Connected devices… lists the sessions, and Cut access ends one of them at once.
• Limits: the shared folder needs a computer with Chrome or Edge; anyone with access to the folder sees and changes every project in the file (no per-person permissions, encrypt it if needed); changes arrive as fast as the folder syncs, not in real time. For the phone and for guests, the computer must stay on, with pulpForge open.

All the details: Share a file with your team or your phone and Where your data lives and how to work with others.

Supported formats

Keyboard shortcuts

On a Mac, Cmd replaces Ctrl.

AI in pulpForge

Everything is computed on your device.

• Automatic triage: type and priority suggested from the title (word rules, no download).
• Likely duplicates: without the module, comparison by shared words; with smart search (Settings › Data, a small module downloaded once with your approval), comparison of the meaning of texts. Clear the smart search memory erases what it has kept on this device.
• Suggested estimate: median of the points of the five most similar completed items, never imposed.
• Import mappings: types, states, priorities and people are proposed automatically.
• Sprint summary: text composed from the figures, with no automatic writing.
• pulpAssist: item search, creation, state changes, sprint status and release notes; every change goes through a confirmation card.

FAQ and troubleshooting

Is my data sent anywhere?

Not unless you decide so. By default, it stays in your browser, on this device: remember the automatic backup or export a .pforge backup from time to time. If you share a file, it goes to the folder you chose; nothing is sent to pulpSuite.

Can several people work together?

Yes, by sharing a file: in a synced folder, by direct exchange between computers, on your phone, or by inviting someone onto a ticket (see Share with a team or a phone). The pulpSuite server (real time, per-person permissions, access from every browser and phone) is not available yet; connecting to an existing company database is planned, with no date announced. On a single device, two open tabs stay in sync, and two edits of the same field at the same time open a box to choose the value to keep.

Why is a state missing from the move list?

The workflow of the type may limit the allowed changes (Settings › Workflows). Refused states are greyed out.

Is pulpForge connected to GitHub or GitLab?

No: it reads the files you give it (issue exports, Git log, test reports) and never contacts your repositories.