Getting Started

Last modified: 22 March 2024

If you're new to YouTrack, here are a few tips to help you find your way around.

Choosing an Interface

YouTrack supports two interfaces for working with issues in YouTrack: YouTrack Classic and YouTrack Lite.

  • YouTrack Lite is optimised for new users. It can also appeal to experienced users who always manage tasks that match a predefined filter criteria.

    YouTrack Lite UI.

    Key features that are exclusive to YouTrack Lite include a tabular layout in the issues list and quick access to recently viewed issues and articles in the knowledge base.

    If you're using YouTrack Lite, you can configure a collection of views that only show issues that are relevant to specific aspects of your job. Whenever you need to concentrate your efforts in another direction, just switch to another list.

  • YouTrack Classic caters to users who have been working with YouTrack over longer periods of time. It also allows access to features that are more relevant to software development, like integrations with build servers and keyboard navigation.

    YouTrack Classic UI.

YouTrack Lite and YouTrack Classic are offered concurrently, which means you can switch to whichever interface meets your current need at any time. The option to switch YouTrack Lite on and off is available from the Appearance menu. To access this menu, click your avatar in the application header. For more information, see Interface Options.

When you first log in to YouTrack, you'll find the main navigation at the top of the page.

The main navigation in YouTrack Lite.

These links and icons help you access different pages in the application. The visibility of links and icons are based on the permissions that are available to your user account. For example, if your account does not have the Read Project permission, you do not see the Projects link in the main navigation. The visibility of options in the Administration menu is also based on the permissions that are available to your user account.

The next thing you'll notice is a set of options that let you search for a specific set of issues or filter the current list. The available search and filter options vary based on whether you are working with YouTrack Lite or YouTrack Classic.

Use the options in this section of the page to find issues in YouTrack.

Search and filter options in YouTrack Lite.

There are two different modes available for finding issues:

  • Query mode lets you search for issues that contain matching values for specified attributes and arbitrary strings of text. To learn more about search queries in YouTrack, see Search.

  • Filter mode lets you filter the search results to show only issues that contain matching values in one or more custom fields.

The Issues List

Under the search bar, you see a list of issues.

All the issues that match the search criteria are shown in this list. When you enter a search query or apply a filter, the list is updated.

The Issues list in YouTrack Lite.

For a detailed overview of the controls that are available in the Issues list, see The Issues List.

To the left of the Issues list, you have a sidebar.

The sidebar gives you quick access to issues that match your favorite saved searches. This is also where you can find and resume writing any unreported issue drafts.

The sidebar in the issues list.

To configure the list of saved searches, click the Manage sidebar icon.

Single Issue View

YouTrack provides a view for single issues that shows all the information related to an issue.

The following options for opening and displaying a single issue are available based on the current status of the Quick view option in the List Settings:

  • When Quick view is off, just click the issue summary link in the Issues list.

  • If Quick view is on, the selected issue is shown in the quick view panel to the right of the list. To open and view the issue, click the link for the issue ID.