Templates

Schema Reference

Development docs · main. Your installed version may differ.

Everything you can put in an Atomize YAML File. Browse Templates or Mixins, search for a field, and follow its link to the Template Reference for behaviour and examples.

The format, field by field

Schema Reference.

Everything you can put in an Atomize YAML File.
Types, defaults and constraints, straight from the source.

Template

A recipe for turning Stories into Tasks.

17 fields

formatVersionstringOptional

Which edition of the Atomize schema this file follows. Currently "1.0"; omit it to mean "1.0". Not the template's own revision: that's version.

Allowed values: "1.0"

Runtime rules

Must be a format this release of Atomize can read: "1.0". Write it as a quoted string; an unquoted 1.0 is read as a number.

versionstringOptional

The author's own revision of this file, e.g. '1.2' or '2026-10'. Free text: Atomize shows it but never interprets it. A child Template does not inherit its parent's Revision.

minLength: 1

namestringRequired unless extends is set

Unique display name for this template.

minLength: 1

descriptionstringOptional

What this template is for and when to use it.

authorstringOptional

Author or team that owns this template.

tagsarrayOptional

Tags for template discovery in the catalog.

Each item: string

createdstringOptionalDeprecated

Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads or maintains it. Version control records when the file was created.

Runtime rules

Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.

lastModifiedstringOptionalDeprecated

Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads or maintains it, so it goes stale. Version control records changes.

Runtime rules

Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.

filterobjectRequired unless extends is set

Criteria used to select which stories this template applies to.

additionalProperties: false

Template Reference

teamstringOptional
filter.team
Azure DevOps team name. Overrides the team from the selected Connection Profile for this Template, including team-scoped query macros.
Template Reference
workItemTypesarrayOptional
filter.workItemTypes
Work item types to include (e.g. ['User Story', 'Bug']). With savedQuery, declares which types the query returns: it doesn't filter, but tells Atomize which fields to look up and validate.
Each item
string
Template Reference
statesarrayOptional
filter.states
Story states to target (e.g. ['Active', 'New']).
Each item
string
Template Reference
statesExcludearrayOptional
filter.statesExclude
Story states to exclude from selection.
Each item
string
Template Reference
statesWereEverarrayOptional
filter.statesWereEver
Include stories that were ever in any of these states.
Each item
string
Template Reference
tagsobjectOptional
filter.tags
Include or exclude Stories by tag.
additionalProperties
false
Template Reference
- includearrayOptional
  filter.tags.include
  Include stories that have at least one of these tags.
  Each item
  string
- excludearrayOptional
  filter.tags.exclude
  Exclude stories that have any of these tags.
  Each item
  string
areaPathsarrayOptional
filter.areaPaths
Area paths to match exactly, without descendants. Use '@TeamAreas' to match all areas owned by the configured team. Matching follows the platform's query semantics.
Each item
string
Template Reference
- Alternative 1stringOptional
  filter.areaPaths[]
- Alternative 2stringOptional
  filter.areaPaths[]
  Allowed values
  "@TeamAreas"
areaPathsUnderarrayOptional
filter.areaPathsUnder
Include stories in these area paths and all sub-paths.
Each item
string
Template Reference
iterationsarrayOptional
filter.iterations
Iteration paths to match exactly, without descendants. Use '@CurrentIteration' for the configured team's current sprint.
Each item
string
Template Reference
- Alternative 1stringOptional
  filter.iterations[]
- Alternative 2stringOptional
  filter.iterations[]
  Allowed values
  "@CurrentIteration"
iterationsUnderarrayOptional
filter.iterationsUnder
Include stories in these iterations and all sub-iterations.
Each item
string
Template Reference
assignedToarrayOptional
filter.assignedTo
Assignee filter. Accepts email addresses or '@Me' for the authenticated user.
Each item
string
Template Reference
- Alternative 1stringOptional
  filter.assignedTo[]
  pattern
  "^(?:[A-Za-z0-9_'+\\-]+\\.)*[A-Za-z0-9_'+\\-]*[A-Za-z0-9_+-]@(?:[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9\\-]*\\.)+[A-Za-z]{2,}$"
  format
  "email"
- Alternative 2stringOptional
  filter.assignedTo[]
  Allowed values
  "@Me"
changedAfterstringOptional
filter.changedAfter
Include Stories changed on or after this date (inclusive). ISO 8601 date or date macro (e.g. '@Today-7').
Runtime rules
- Use an ISO 8601 date (YYYY-MM-DD, optionally with a time) or @Today, @StartOfDay, @StartOfMonth, @StartOfWeek or @StartOfYear with an optional integer offset such as @Today-7.
Template Reference
createdAfterstringOptional
filter.createdAfter
Include Stories created on or after this date (inclusive). ISO 8601 date or date macro.
Runtime rules
- Use an ISO 8601 date (YYYY-MM-DD, optionally with a time) or @Today, @StartOfDay, @StartOfMonth, @StartOfWeek or @StartOfYear with an optional integer offset such as @Today-7.
Template Reference
priorityobjectOptional
filter.priority
Priority range filter for story selection.
additionalProperties
false
Template Reference
- minnumberOptional
  filter.priority.min
  Minimum priority value (inclusive); on Azure DevOps, 1 is the highest priority.
- maxnumberOptional
  filter.priority.max
  Maximum priority value (inclusive).
excludeIfHasTasksbooleanOptional
filter.excludeIfHasTasks
If true, skips stories that already have child tasks.
Template Reference
savedQueryobjectOptional
filter.savedQuery
Reference an existing Azure DevOps saved query to select stories.
additionalProperties
false
Runtime rules
- Set exactly one of id or path.
- Only flat (Work Items) saved queries are supported; tree and one-hop queries are rejected at runtime.
- State filters, tags, area or iteration paths, assignedTo, date filters or priority alongside savedQuery produce a validation warning and are ignored; the query controls the returned Stories. workItemTypes is allowed because it declares the query's Work Item types rather than filtering them.
YAML examples
savedQuery: path: Shared Queries/Teams/Backend Team/Sprint Active Stories
savedQuery: id: a1b2c3d4-0000-4000-8000-000000000000
Template Reference
- idstringOptional
  filter.savedQuery.id
  Azure DevOps saved query GUID.
  pattern
  "^([0-9a-fA-F]{8}-[0-9a-fA-F]{4}-[1-8][0-9a-fA-F]{3}-[89abAB][0-9a-fA-F]{3}-[0-9a-fA-F]{12}|00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000|ffffffff-ffff-ffff-ffff-ffffffffffff)$"
  format
  "uuid"
  Template Reference
- pathstringOptional
  filter.savedQuery.path
  Path to the saved query in Azure DevOps (e.g. 'My Queries/Sprint Stories').
  minLength
  1
  Template Reference

tasksarrayRequired unless extends is set

Task definitions that will be generated from this template.

Each item: object
minItems: 1

Runtime rules

Percentage validation uses lower and upper bounds. A task's bounds come from estimationPercent (0 when omitted) and every estimationPercentCondition percentage. A task without a condition contributes its lowest percentage to the lower total; a conditional task contributes 0. Every task contributes its highest percentage to the upper total. Each repeated copy contributes separately.
validation.totalEstimationMustBe must lie between the lower and upper totals. When it is unset, validation.totalEstimationRange must overlap those bounds. Neither setting imposes an automatic 100% limit.
Generated task counts include each repeated copy and must satisfy validation.minTasks and validation.maxTasks when set.
Without an explicit total constraint, the sum of the written estimationPercent values, counting repeated copies, may exceed 100%. Unless estimation.normalize is always, this produces a non-blocking warning rather than a validation error, even in strict mode.

Template Reference

idstringOptional
tasks[].id
Unique identifier for this task within the template. Referenced by 'dependsOn'.
Runtime rules
- Non-empty task IDs must be unique within the file.
Template Reference
titlestringRequired
tasks[].title
The Work Item title shown on the platform. Supports Story variable interpolation.
minLength
1
Template Reference
descriptionstringOptional
tasks[].description
Task description. Supports Story variable interpolation.
Template Reference
estimationPercentnumberOptional
tasks[].estimationPercent
Percentage of the parent story's estimate assigned to this task (0–100). Requires estimation.strategy = 'percentage'.
minimum
0
maximum
100
Template Reference
estimationPercentConditionarrayOptional
tasks[].estimationPercentCondition
Conditional estimation rules evaluated in order. The first matching condition's percent is used.
Each item
object
YAML examples
estimationPercentCondition: - condition: field: tags operator: contains value: critical percent: 60 - condition: field: estimation operator: gte value: 13 percent: 55
Template Reference
- conditionobjectRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition
  Condition evaluated against the parent story. Applied when this condition matches.
  Template Reference
  Alternative 1objectRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  allarrayRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all
  Sub-conditions that must all match (logical AND).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  anyarrayRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any
  Sub-conditions where at least one must match (logical OR).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  anyarrayRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any
  Sub-conditions where at least one must match (logical OR).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  allarrayRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all
  Sub-conditions that must all match (logical AND).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
- percentnumberRequired
  tasks[].estimationPercentCondition[].percent
  Estimation percentage used when this condition matches (0–100).
  minimum
  0
  maximum
  100
  Template Reference
estimationFixednumberOptional
tasks[].estimationFixed
Fixed Task Estimate in the Task's unit, independent of the Story Estimate. Written as supplied; percentage rounding and the minimum do not apply.
minimum
0
Template Reference
estimationFormulastringOptionalDeprecated
tasks[].estimationFormula
Deprecated: formulas were never evaluated and give the task a Task Estimate of 0. Use estimationPercent or estimationFixed.
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
tagsarrayOptional
tasks[].tags
Tags applied to the generated task.
Each item
string
Template Reference
conditionobjectOptional
tasks[].condition
Condition evaluated against the parent story. If it does not match, this task is skipped.
Runtime rules
- Offline Validation of a Template warns when this condition references custom fields; Online Validation is needed to verify that those fields exist on the platform.
YAML examples
condition: field: tags operator: contains value: security
condition: customField: Custom.ClientTier operator: equals value: Enterprise
condition: all: - field: tags operator: contains value: database - any: - field: estimation operator: gt value: 5 - field: priority operator: equals value: 1
Template Reference
- Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
- Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
- Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  allarrayRequired
  tasks[].condition.all
  Sub-conditions that must all match (logical AND).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  anyarrayRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any
  Sub-conditions where at least one must match (logical OR).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.all[].any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
- Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].condition
  additionalProperties
  false
  anyarrayRequired
  tasks[].condition.any
  Sub-conditions where at least one must match (logical OR).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  allarrayRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all
  Sub-conditions that must all match (logical AND).
  Each item
  object
  minItems
  1
  Alternative 1objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  fieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].field
  Standard work item field name to evaluate (e.g. 'tags', 'priority', 'state', 'title').
  minLength
  1
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  Runtime rules
  When field is tags, only contains and not-contains are supported because tags is multi-value.
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 2objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  customFieldstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].customField
  Azure DevOps custom field reference in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
  pattern
  "^[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_.]*\\.[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_]*$"
  operatorstringRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].operator
  Comparison operator. equals/not-equals: exact match. contains/not-contains: substring or array membership. gt/lt/gte/lte: numeric comparison.
  Allowed values
  "equals""not-equals""contains""not-contains""gt""lt""gte""lte"
  valuestring | number | booleanRequired
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[].value
  Value to compare against. Can be a string, number, or boolean.
  Alternative 3objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[].all[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
  Alternative 4objectOptional
  tasks[].condition.any[]
  additionalProperties
  false
  Recursive structure; follows the same fields as its parent.
dependsOnarrayOptional
tasks[].dependsOn
IDs of tasks this task depends on. Atomize creates predecessor dependency links between these tasks.
Each item
string
Runtime rules
- In a Resolved Template, dependencies must reference existing task IDs and must not form a cycle, including a dependency on the task itself.
- A task with repeat set cannot have a non-empty dependsOn, and another task cannot depend on it, even when repeat is 1.
- A task with dependencies should have its own id; validation reports a warning when it does not.
Template Reference
repeatintegerOptional
tasks[].repeat
Number of identical Tasks to generate from this definition (default 1). Each copy's title gets its position, e.g. 'Review (2)'. Cannot be combined with dependsOn.
minimum
1
maximum
9007199254740991
Runtime rules
- When repeat is set, dependsOn must be absent or empty and other tasks cannot depend on this task, even when repeat is 1.
- In a Resolved Template, repeat must not exceed validation.maxRepeat (20 by default). A Mixin defers this cap to the composing Template.
Template Reference
assignTostringOptional
tasks[].assignTo
Email address or alias to assign this task to.
YAML examples
assignTo: "@ParentAssignee"
assignTo: "@Me"
assignTo: "@Unassigned"
assignTo: lead@company.com
Template Reference
prioritynumberOptional
tasks[].priority
Priority value for the generated task.
Template Reference
activitystringOptional
tasks[].activity
Azure DevOps activity type for this task (e.g. 'Development', 'Testing', 'Design').
Template Reference
acceptanceCriteriaarrayOptionalDeprecated
tasks[].acceptanceCriteria
Deprecated: acceptance criteria are never written to the generated task. Move the text to description yourself; no removal quick fix is offered so the text is not lost.
Each item
string
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
acceptanceCriteriaAsChecklistbooleanOptionalDeprecated
tasks[].acceptanceCriteriaAsChecklist
Deprecated: acceptance criteria are never written to the generated task, so this setting has no effect. Remove it.
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
customFieldsobjectOptional
tasks[].customFields
Azure DevOps custom fields to set on the task. Keys must be in 'Namespace.FieldName' format (e.g. 'Custom.ClientTier').
Runtime rules
- Every key must be a platform field reference in Namespace.FieldName format, such as Custom.ClientTier.
- Azure DevOps single-line and multi-line text fields accept strings; only multi-line fields accept newlines. Boolean fields require booleans; decimal fields require numbers; integer fields require whole numbers.
- Date/time fields accept ISO 8601 strings or supported macros such as @Today. Identity fields accept strings such as email addresses or @Me when supported by Azure DevOps.
- Picklist values must match an allowed value and its string or integer type.
- Offline Validation checks shape only. Online Validation verifies field existence, read-only status, types and allowed values; generation verifies them against live platform metadata before creating Work Items.
YAML examples
customFields: Custom.ClientTier: Enterprise Custom.IsBillable: true Custom.TierRank: 3 Custom.ReleaseVersion: "{{ story.customFields['Custom.ReleaseVersion'] }}" Custom.ReleaseDate: "@Today"
Template Reference
- [key]string | number | booleanOptional
  tasks[].customFields.*

taskTypestringOptional

Work Item type generated Tasks are created as, in the platform's own vocabulary (e.g. 'Task', 'Sub-task'). Defaults to Task on Azure DevOps. Online Validation checks custom fields and targetFields against this type.

minLength: 1

Template Reference

estimationobjectOptional

Global estimation configuration for all tasks in this template.

additionalProperties: false

Template Reference

strategystringOptional
estimation.strategy
Estimation strategy. 'percentage' distributes the parent story's estimate across tasks proportionally.
Default
"percentage"
Allowed values
"percentage"
Template Reference
sourcestringOptional
estimation.source
Story field that supplies the Story Estimate, as a platform field reference name (e.g. 'Custom.TShirtSize'). Replaces the platform's default fields with no fallback: a blank override is unresolvable. Azure DevOps defaults to StoryPoints, then Effort, Size and OriginalEstimate.
minLength
1
Template Reference
conversionobjectOptional
estimation.conversion
Translates the Story Estimate into the Task's unit before it is split across tasks. Set exactly one of factor or table; omit for one-to-one.
additionalProperties
false
Runtime rules
- Set exactly one of factor or table.
- Rounding and minimumTaskEstimate apply after conversion and percentage distribution.
YAML examples
conversion: factor: 4
conversion: table: "1": 2 "2": 4 "3": 8 "5": 16
conversion: table: S: 2 M: 4 L: 5 XL: 13 multipliers: true
Template Reference
- factornumberOptional
  estimation.conversion.factor
  Multiplier from the Story's unit to the Task's unit, e.g. 4 when 1 point = 4 hours.
  exclusiveMinimum
  0
  Template Reference
- tableobjectOptional
  estimation.conversion.table
  Story Estimate value to non-negative Task-unit amount, matched exactly, e.g. { XS: 1, S: 2, M: 4, L: 5 } or { 1: 2, 2: 4, 3: 8 } for scales that aren't linear. A value missing from the table is unresolvable unless enabled multipliers match it; ifParentHasNoEstimation decides what happens next.
  Runtime rules
  The conversion table must contain at least one entry.
  Template Reference
  [key]numberOptional
  estimation.conversion.table.*
  minimum
  0
- multipliersbooleanOptional
  estimation.conversion.multipliers
  Also accept a number followed by a table key, with optional whitespace: '0.3XL' or '0.3 XL' = 0.3 × XL. Defaults to false. Exact keys win; otherwise the longest matching suffix key wins. Forms such as 'XL*0.3' or '0,3XL' are unresolvable. Requires a table with at least one non-numeric key.
  Runtime rules
  When multipliers is true, conversion.table must be set and at least one table key must be non-numeric.
  Template Reference
targetFieldsarrayOptional
estimation.targetFields
Task fields that receive the Task Estimate, as platform field reference names. Azure DevOps defaults to Microsoft.VSTS.Scheduling.RemainingWork and Microsoft.VSTS.Scheduling.OriginalEstimate, with Microsoft.VSTS.Scheduling.CompletedWork initialised to 0. Overrides replace all default writes, including CompletedWork initialisation; values are written exactly as calculated.
Each item
string · minLength 1
minItems
1
Template Reference
normalizestringOptional
estimation.normalize
What to do when the generated tasks' percentages don't add up to 100%. 'auto' (default) scales totals below 100% up and leaves totals above 100% as written unless you choose otherwise at generate time; 'always' scales to 100% in both directions; 'never' uses the percentages exactly as written, so a skipped task's share stays unallocated.
Allowed values
"auto""always""never"
Template Reference
roundingstringOptional
estimation.rounding
Rounding mode for percentage-based Task Estimates. Defaults to none, keeping decimal values. nearest rounds to the nearest half unit (0.5), up to the next half unit, and down to the previous half unit. Applied after conversion and distribution, before the minimum.
Default
"none"
Allowed values
"nearest""up""down""none"
Template Reference
minimumTaskEstimatenumberOptional
estimation.minimumTaskEstimate
Minimum percentage-based Task Estimate after rounding, in the Task's unit (hours on Azure DevOps). Defaults to 0. Takes precedence over deprecated minimumTaskPoints when both are set; fixed estimates bypass it.
Template Reference
minimumTaskPointsnumberOptionalDeprecated
estimation.minimumTaskPoints
Deprecated: use minimumTaskEstimate. Still honoured when minimumTaskEstimate is absent.
Runtime rules
- minimumTaskEstimate takes precedence when both minimum fields are set. Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
ifParentHasNoEstimationstringOptional
estimation.ifParentHasNoEstimation
Behaviour when the Story Estimate is missing or cannot be converted. 'warn' (default) creates the tasks with blank estimates (never 0) and reports a warning, 'skip' creates no tasks for the Story and reports why, 'use-default' uses defaultParentEstimation instead. Without a defaultParentEstimation, use-default behaves like warn.
Allowed values
"skip""warn""use-default"
Template Reference
defaultParentEstimationnumber | stringOptional
estimation.defaultParentEstimation
Story Estimate used when the real one is missing or cannot be converted and ifParentHasNoEstimation is 'use-default', in the Story's unit (e.g. 'M' or 5). Goes through the same conversion as a real Story Estimate.
Runtime rules
- When ifParentHasNoEstimation is use-default and this value is set, it must be convertible: numeric without a table, or a matching conversion.table key (including enabled multipliers).
Template Reference
- Alternative 1numberOptional
  estimation.defaultParentEstimation
- Alternative 2stringOptional
  estimation.defaultParentEstimation
  minLength
  1

validationobjectOptional

Validation rules applied when this template is used.

additionalProperties: false

Template Reference

modestringOptional
validation.mode
'strict' treats blocking validation warnings as errors; 'lenient' (default) allows warnings. Non-blocking advisories remain warnings in both modes.
Allowed values
"strict""lenient"
Template Reference
totalEstimationMustBenumberOptional
validation.totalEstimationMustBe
Required total estimation percentage, counting each repeated copy. Validation checks that it is reachable between the lower and upper allocation bounds, including conditions and percentage overrides. It may exceed 100 when Tasks span roles.
Runtime rules
- Choose one total constraint. If both are supplied, totalEstimationMustBe takes precedence and totalEstimationRange is ignored.
Template Reference
totalEstimationRangeobjectOptional
validation.totalEstimationRange
Allowed total estimation percentage range, counting each repeated copy. Must overlap the lower and upper reachable allocation bounds, including conditions and percentage overrides. Bounds may exceed 100 when Tasks span roles.
additionalProperties
false
Runtime rules
- Choose one total constraint. If both are supplied, totalEstimationMustBe takes precedence and totalEstimationRange is ignored.
Template Reference
- minnumberRequired
  validation.totalEstimationRange.min
  Minimum allowed total estimation percentage (inclusive).
- maxnumberRequired
  validation.totalEstimationRange.max
  Maximum allowed total estimation percentage (inclusive).
minTasksnumberOptional
validation.minTasks
Minimum generated Task count the Template must define, counting each repeated copy.
Template Reference
maxTasksnumberOptional
validation.maxTasks
Maximum generated Task count the Template may define, counting each repeated copy.
Template Reference
maxRepeatintegerOptional
validation.maxRepeat
Highest 'repeat' any task in this template may use (default 20). Raise it for a template that genuinely needs more copies.
minimum
1
maximum
9007199254740991
Runtime rules
- This cap applies to every task definition in the Resolved Template, including tasks contributed by Mixins.
Template Reference
taskEstimationRangeobjectOptional
validation.taskEstimationRange
Inclusive bounds for each final task percentage after normalization, including percentage rounding. Fixed estimates are excluded.
additionalProperties
false
Runtime rules
- min must be less than or equal to max.
- Checked after normalization and its percentage rounding, per repeated copy. With normalize: never, supplied percentages are used unchanged. Fixed estimates are excluded. Story-dependent conditions and percentage overrides are checked during preview and generation, once the active allocation is known. Task Estimate rounding in hours or points does not change this percentage constraint.
Template Reference
- minnumberRequired
  validation.taskEstimationRange.min
  Minimum allowed estimation percentage for a single task.
  minimum
  0
  maximum
  100
- maxnumberRequired
  validation.taskEstimationRange.max
  Maximum allowed estimation percentage for a single task.
  minimum
  0
  maximum
  100
requiredTasksarrayOptional
validation.requiredTasks
Tasks that must be present in the template, matched by title or id.
Each item
object
Runtime rules
- Each required entry must match an existing task by its supplied id or its title. Both comparisons are case-insensitive; a title match is accepted even if the supplied id does not match.
Template Reference
- titlestringRequired
  validation.requiredTasks[].title
  Required task title. Matched case-insensitively against task titles.
- idstringOptional
  validation.requiredTasks[].id
  Optional required task ID, matched case-insensitively. A matching title also satisfies the requirement when this ID is absent or does not match.

metadataobjectOptional

Additional metadata for template discovery and documentation.

additionalProperties: false

Template Reference

categorystringOptional
metadata.category
Template category for discovery and grouping (e.g. 'Frontend', 'Backend', 'Infrastructure').
Template Reference
difficultystringOptionalDeprecated
metadata.difficulty
Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads it. Describe the work in description instead.
Allowed values
"beginner""intermediate""advanced"
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
recommendedForarrayOptionalDeprecated
metadata.recommendedFor
Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads it. filter.workItemTypes already declares which Work Item types the template targets.
Each item
string
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
estimationGuidelinesstringOptional
metadata.estimationGuidelines
Human-readable guidance on how to estimate stories before using this template.
Template Reference
notesstringOptional
metadata.notes
Free-form context for the template's authors and maintainers.
Template Reference
examplesarrayOptionalDeprecated
metadata.examples
Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads it. Describe when to use the template in description instead.
Each item
string
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
changelogarrayOptionalDeprecated
metadata.changelog
Deprecated: nothing in Atomize reads it. Keep the template's history in version control.
Each item
object
Runtime rules
- Using this deprecated field produces a non-blocking warning, even in strict mode.
Template Reference
- versionstringRequired
  metadata.changelog[].version
  Template version this changelog entry describes.
- datestringRequired
  metadata.changelog[].date
  Date of the change in YYYY-MM-DD format.
- changesstringRequired
  metadata.changelog[].changes
  Summary of what changed in this version.

extendsstringOptional

Catalog Template name or file path of a parent Template to inherit from. Resolved by the Template Library.

Template Reference

mixinsarrayOptional

Catalog Mixin names or file paths to compose into this Template. Resolved by the Template Library.

Each item: string

Template Reference

originstringOptional

Catalog ref (template:<name> or mixin:<name>) this template was derived from. Informational only; does not affect ref resolution.

Generated from the Atomize schema main @ 6b0ace1 · 2026-10-22

Schema Reference

Template

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

YAML examples

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules

Runtime rules