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Figwell documentation (source for the public KB)

What Figwell does

Figwell draws Mermaid diagrams, LaTeX math and Markdown that people write in a Jira work item's description, comments and attachments, and lets you write the description or a comment in Markdown. Everything is drawn in your browser from libraries bundled in the app; nothing leaves Atlassian.

Where to find it

  • Diagrams and math panel on the right of every work item (company-managed, team-managed and Jira Service Management). It shows what it found, each item drawn to fit, and Open full view.
  • Apps > Figwell adds a full-width panel under the description on a work item, if you prefer.
  • ... > Edit in Markdown (Figwell) on a work item opens the Markdown editor.
  • Jira settings > Apps > Figwell (Jira admins): settings and a try-it sandbox.

Writing diagrams

Insert a code block (type three backticks) and write Mermaid. The first line says what it is:

flowchart LR
  A[Request] --> B{Valid?}
  B -- yes --> C[Process]

Recognised first lines: graph, flowchart, sequenceDiagram, classDiagram, stateDiagram, erDiagram, journey, gantt, pie, quadrantChart, requirementDiagram, gitGraph, mindmap, timeline, sankey, xychart, block, packet, kanban, architecture, C4.... Mermaid front matter (--- title block) and %%{init}%% lines are fine. If your diagram starts differently, make %% mermaid the first line. Code blocks set to a programming language are never treated as diagrams. A .mmd or .mermaid attachment is drawn too.

Writing math

  • Inside a sentence: $E = mc^2$ or \(E = mc^2\).
  • On its own: $$ ... $$ or \[ ... \]. You can press Enter between lines; Figwell joins them.
  • A code block set to LaTeX (or starting with % latex) is one displayed equation.

$5 and $10 are never math: the opening $ must be followed by a non-space and the closing $ can't be followed by a digit. Write \$ for a literal dollar sign next to text. Jira admins can turn $...$ off; the other forms always work. KaTeX draws formulas; anything it doesn't support (for example \bbox or rare AMS environments) is drawn by the bundled MathJax. Chemistry with \ce{...} works.

Markdown

A code block set to Markdown, a .md attachment (up to 1 MB) or anything you write in the Markdown editor is shown with headings, tables, task lists, alerts (> [!NOTE]), highlighted code, math and diagrams. Remote images show as links and are not loaded.

Editing in Markdown

Open ... > Edit in Markdown (Figwell). The Description tab shows the current description as Markdown; New comment writes a comment. The preview draws diagrams and math as you type.

  • Mentions, attachments and images, smart links, status lozenges, dates, macros, layouts and decisions appear as tokens like ⟦@Ana Silva #1⟧. Leave a token where it is to keep the object, move it to move it, delete it to remove it.
  • Before saving, Figwell lists anything that would change: removed tokens and formatting Markdown has no syntax for (text colour, highlights, merged table cells, alignment).
  • If someone else changed the description while you were editing, Figwell won't overwrite it.
  • Saving needs Edit work items; commenting needs Add comments. Jira records the change in the work item history as you.

Images

Each diagram and displayed equation has Copy image (PNG to the clipboard), PNG and SVG. If your browser doesn't allow copying images from an app panel, the PNG downloads instead. Images are always light-themed.

Settings (Jira admins)

Typeset $...$ inside sentences; render comments; render attachments; show a Source toggle; diagram theme (follow Jira, default, neutral, forest, dark).

Permissions and privacy

Figwell reads and writes as the signed-in user, so people see only what Jira already shows them. It stores only the settings above. Uninstalling leaves every diagram and formula in your work items as text.

Troubleshooting

  • Nothing is drawn: check the panel's message, then the code block's first line.
  • "Diagram could not be drawn": the message is Mermaid's; fix the line it names.
  • Red formula: hover it for the error; check braces and command names.
  • Edit in Markdown is greyed out: you need Edit work items on that work item.