Jira Issues By Component Helper Skill

JIRA Issues by Component - Helper Skill

This skill provides a secure curl wrapper script for the jira:issues-by-component command. The wrapper prevents JIRA authentication token exposure in process listings and command history.

When to Use This Skill

This skill is automatically used by the jira:issues-by-component command. You typically don't need to invoke it directly unless you're:

• Developing or testing JIRA API integrations
• Building custom JIRA scripts that need secure authentication
• Debugging JIRA API connectivity issues

Security Benefits

The jira_curl.sh wrapper script provides:

1. Token Protection: Authentication tokens never appear in process listings (ps aux)
2. History Safety: Tokens are not saved in shell history files
3. Process Isolation: Token is read from environment variables inside the script
4. Clean Interface: Same curl arguments you're already familiar with

Files

jira_curl.sh

Secure curl wrapper that automatically adds JIRA authentication headers.

Location: plugins/jira/skills/jira-issues-by-component/jira_curl.sh

Usage:

jira_curl.sh [curl arguments...]

Required Environment Variables:

• JIRA_URL: JIRA instance URL (e.g., https://redhat.atlassian.net)
• JIRA_API_TOKEN: Authentication token
• JIRA_USERNAME: Atlassian account email for Basic auth

Example:

# Set credentials
export JIRA_URL="https://redhat.atlassian.net"
export JIRA_API_TOKEN="your-token-here"
export JIRA_USERNAME="user@redhat.com"

# Use wrapper (token hidden from process list)
jira_curl.sh -s -X POST -d '{"jql":"project=OCPBUGS"}' https://redhat.atlassian.net/rest/api/3/search/jql

How It Works

1. Environment Check: Validates that JIRA_URL and authentication token are set
2. Token Selection: Uses JIRA_API_TOKEN for Atlassian Cloud authentication
3. Header Injection: Constructs Authorization: Basic <base64> header inside the script using JIRA_USERNAME and JIRA_API_TOKEN
4. Process Replacement: Uses exec curl to replace the script process with curl
5. Clean Execution: Token never crosses process boundaries as a visible argument

Implementation Details

The wrapper uses the same security pattern as the oc auth skill:

# Token and username are read from environment variables inside the script
AUTH_TOKEN="${JIRA_API_TOKEN:-}"
JIRA_USER="${JIRA_USERNAME:-}"

# Execute curl with Basic authentication header
# Credentials are constructed here, never visible in parent process command line
AUTH_HEADER=$(printf '%s:%s' "$JIRA_USER" "$AUTH_TOKEN" | base64)
exec curl -H "Authorization: Basic $AUTH_HEADER" -H "Accept: application/json" "$@"

Why exec?

• Replaces the script process with curl process
• By the time curl runs, the wrapper script is gone
• Only curl appears in process listings, not the wrapper with token

Error Handling

The script provides clear error messages for common scenarios:

Missing JIRA_URL:

Error: JIRA_URL environment variable is required

Please set JIRA credentials:
  export JIRA_URL='https://redhat.atlassian.net'
  export JIRA_API_TOKEN='your-token-here'

Alternatively, source a credentials file:
  source ~/.jira-credentials

Missing Token:

Error: JIRA authentication token is required

Please set:
  export JIRA_API_TOKEN='your-token-here'
  export JIRA_USERNAME='user@redhat.com'

Get your token from:
  - Atlassian API Token: https://id.atlassian.com/manage-profile/security/api-tokens

Credentials Setup

Option 1: Export Directly

export JIRA_URL="https://redhat.atlassian.net"
export JIRA_API_TOKEN="your-token-here"
export JIRA_USERNAME="user@redhat.com"

Option 2: Credentials File (Recommended)

Create ~/.jira-credentials:

# ~/.jira-credentials
export JIRA_URL="https://redhat.atlassian.net"
export JIRA_API_TOKEN="your-token-here"
export JIRA_USERNAME="user@redhat.com"

Secure the file:

chmod 600 ~/.jira-credentials

Source it when needed:

source ~/.jira-credentials

Getting Your Token

Atlassian Cloud (API Token)

1. Visit: https://id.atlassian.com/manage-profile/security/api-tokens
2. Click "Create API token"
3. Give it a label (e.g., "CLI Access")
4. Copy the token
5. Set as JIRA_API_TOKEN

Comparison to Direct Curl

Insecure Approach (Don't Do This)

# Credentials exposed in process list and history!
curl -u "user@redhat.com:${JIRA_API_TOKEN}" -X POST \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jql":"..."}' \
  https://redhat.atlassian.net/rest/api/3/search/jql

Problems:

• ❌ Token visible in ps aux
• ❌ Token saved in shell history
• ❌ Token may appear in logs
• ❌ Security risk

Secure Approach (Use This)

# Token hidden inside wrapper script
jira_curl.sh -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jql":"..."}' https://redhat.atlassian.net/rest/api/3/search/jql

Benefits:

• ✅ Token never in process list
• ✅ Token never in shell history
• ✅ Clean and simple syntax
• ✅ Secure by design

Integration with jira:issues-by-component

The jira:issues-by-component command uses this wrapper to fetch JIRA issues securely:

# Get path to secure curl wrapper
PLUGIN_DIR="plugins/jira/skills/jira-issues-by-component"
JIRA_CURL="${PLUGIN_DIR}/jira_curl.sh"

# Fetch issues with pagination (token hidden)
HTTP_CODE=$("$JIRA_CURL" -s -w "%{http_code}" \
  -o "batch-${BATCH_NUM}.json" \
  "${API_URL}")

This approach:

• Handles 2000+ issues efficiently
• Streams data directly to disk
• Never exposes authentication token
• Avoids LLM token consumption

See Also

• oc auth skill - Similar pattern for OpenShift authentication
• jira:issues-by-component command - Command that uses this skill
• CLAUDE.md - Plugin development guide

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