Alias Command Group

The yt alias command group provides command alias management capabilities for YouTrack CLI. This feature allows you to create custom shortcuts for frequently used commands, improving your productivity by reducing repetitive typing.

Overview

The alias command group offers complete alias lifecycle management including:

  • Creating custom command shortcuts for frequently used operations

  • Deleting user-defined aliases when no longer needed

  • Listing all available aliases (both built-in and user-defined)

  • Showing what command an alias maps to for verification

Base Command

yt alias [OPTIONS] COMMAND [ARGS]...

Alias Management Commands

Create Aliases

Create a new user-defined alias for a command.

yt alias create NAME COMMAND
Arguments:

  • NAME - The name of the alias to create

  • COMMAND - The full command that the alias should execute

Examples:

# Create an alias for listing your assigned issues
yt alias create myissues "issues list --assignee me"

# Create an alias for creating bugs quickly
yt alias create bug "issues create --type Bug"

# Create a shorter alias for listing issues
yt alias create il "issues list"

# Create complex aliases with multiple options
yt alias create openbugs "issues list --type Bug --state Open --format table"

List Aliases

List all available command aliases, including both built-in and user-defined aliases.

yt alias list [OPTIONS]

Examples:

# List all available aliases
yt alias list

Show Alias Definition

Show what command an alias maps to for verification purposes.

yt alias show ALIAS_NAME
Arguments:

  • ALIAS_NAME - The name of the alias to inspect

Examples:

# Show what the 'myissues' alias does
yt alias show myissues

# Verify a built-in alias
yt alias show i

Delete Aliases

Delete a user-defined alias that is no longer needed.

yt alias delete ALIAS_NAME
Arguments:

  • ALIAS_NAME - The name of the user-defined alias to delete

Examples:

# Delete a user-defined alias
yt alias delete myissues

# Remove an outdated alias
yt alias delete oldshortcut

Note

You can only delete user-defined aliases. Built-in aliases cannot be removed.

Built-in Aliases

YouTrack CLI comes with several built-in aliases for common operations:

Alias

Full Command

Description

i

issues

Issue management commands

p

projects

Project management commands

u

users

User management commands

t

time

Time tracking commands

a

articles

Article management commands

b

boards

Board management commands

Best Practices

Alias Naming:

  • Use short, memorable names that are easy to type

  • Choose names that clearly indicate the command’s purpose

  • Avoid names that conflict with built-in commands or aliases

Command Construction:

  • Include commonly used options in your aliases to save time

  • Use descriptive option values that match your typical workflow

  • Test aliases thoroughly before relying on them in automation

Organization:

  • Create aliases for your most frequently used command combinations

  • Group related aliases with consistent naming patterns

  • Document your aliases for team sharing and knowledge transfer

Common Use Cases

Daily Workflow Shortcuts:

# Personal issue management
yt alias create my "issues list --assignee me --state Open"
yt alias create done "issues list --assignee me --state Done"

# Quick issue creation
yt alias create newbug "issues create --type Bug --priority High"
yt alias create task "issues create --type Task"

Team Workflow Shortcuts:

# Project-specific shortcuts
yt alias create webissues "issues list --project WEB --format table"
yt alias create apibugs "issues list --project API --type Bug --state Open"

Reporting Shortcuts:

# Time tracking shortcuts
yt alias create timetoday "time list --date today --format table"
yt alias create mystats "time report --assignee me --format json"

Advanced Usage

Complex Command Aliases:

You can create aliases for complex command combinations:

# Multi-option filtering
yt alias create criticalbugs "issues list --type Bug --priority Critical --state Open --assignee me"

# Reporting with specific formatting
yt alias create weekreport "time report --from -7days --format csv --output weekly.csv"

Integration with Automation:

Use aliases in scripts and automation workflows:

# In shell scripts
#!/bin/bash
eval "yt my"  # Use the 'my' alias
eval "yt newbug PROJECT-123 'Critical issue found'"

Authentication

All alias commands work with your existing authentication. Make sure you’re logged in:

yt auth login

Error Handling

The CLI provides detailed error messages for common alias issues:

  • Duplicate alias names - Cannot create aliases with names that already exist

  • Invalid command syntax - The command portion of an alias must be valid CLI syntax

  • Permission errors - Some commands in aliases may require specific permissions

  • Alias not found - Attempting to show or delete non-existent aliases

See Also