Quality Center Agile Project Accelerator- User Guide

ALM Global Practices – HP Professional Services

HP Software & Solutions

Version 4.0
IMPORTANT NOTE: ...................................................................................................... 3

1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 3

2. Folder Structure ........................................................................................................ 4

3. User Story Prioritization and Navigation ...................................................................... 5

4. Create Tasks, User Defined Fields ............................................................................... 5

5. Effort Calculation & Story Points .................................................................................. 6

6. Super Stories ............................................................................................................ 6

7. Issues (Impediments) .................................................................................................. 7

8. Create Testing task from Development Task .................................................................. 7

9. Reporting – Excel Charts ............................................................................................ 7

10. Converting Defects to Tasks .................................................................................... 10

11. Pre-built Views ...................................................................................................... 10

12. Security and Agile User Groups .............................................................................. 10

13. Populating the Team List ......................................................................................... 11

IMP OR TANT NOTE:
1. If your Quality Center database is Oracle, please perform the following steps for initial
setup:
a. Login to the QC project, after importing the QCP file
b. Navigate to the Dashboard module
c. Navigate to Excel Reports, select the first Excel Report (Sprint Burn down by Effort Spent)
d. Click on “Configuration” on the right side of the screen
e. Select the “Query” Tab. Select the “Query1” tab under it
f. Comment out the section for SQL Server query (add a –- at the beginning of each line)
g. Scroll down and uncomment the section for the Oracle query (remove the –- at the
beginning of each line)
h. Repeat Steps f and g for “Query 2” tab as well.
2. When in the Requirements module, ensure that the Favorite View -> Agile View is selected
(Make sure you are on the Requirements Tree View. Then Go to Favorites -> Public ->
AgileView)
3. If for any reason you are not able to use the user ids mentioned in this guide (for example: if
your QC instance is configured for LDAP), please ensure that the user id that you use belongs
to any one of the “Agile” custom user groups i.e. Product Owner or Scrum Master or Scrum
Team Member.
4. If you have any questions, please email HP Software Professional Services
at AAForQC@hp.com

1. I NTR OD U CTI ON
The QC Agile Accelerator helps Dev and QA teams to implement Agile processes and entities
within an organization using HP Quality Center. The main features of the Accelerator:
a. Setup of Agile entities – Product, Release, Sprint, User Stories and Tasks. Special user
defined fields for each of the entities
b. Product Backlog re-prioritization and navigation
c. Effort Calculation & Story Points
d. Super Stories
e. Issues (Impediments) and Alerts
f. Agile Reports
g. Pre-built Views
h. Teams and Team members
i. Security and Authorization

2. T H EM E – F OL DER S TR U CTU R E
a. Login as Product Master (productowner1/<no password>). Navigate to the Management
Module in QC. Select the top level (Releases) and create a Releases Folder. (IMP: A releases
folder corresponds to a PRODUCT in the Agile world).
b. Create a Release directly under the Release Folder created in Step 1 (IMP: Release in Mgmt
module corresponds to RELEASE in Agile world). Start and End Dates are mandatory. (In the
Advanced version of the accelerator, multiple release folder levels can be created. In the Basic
version, only one release folder level is allowed)
c. Navigate to the Requirements Module – the workflow has automatically created a
Requirement with the same name as the Product and the requirement type is Product Folder. It
has also created a Requirement type – Release Folder under the Product. It also creates a
“Release Backlog Folder” under the Release requirement. [The workflow automatically
recreates the product and release from the Mgmt module to Requirements module – thus saving
re-work and reducing human errors].
d. In the Management module, create two cycles under the Release (IMP: A cycle in Mgmt
module corresponds to SPRINT in Agile world). Start and End Dates are mandatory. Name
these Cycles – Sprint1 and Sprint2 -> This will make Agile users better digest with the fact that
we are talking about Sprints now.
e. Go to the Requirements module. Click Refresh icon. The requirements tree is automatically
created based on the Mgmt module. This tree structure is seen:
f. Product name (Req Type: Product Folder)
g. Release name (Req Type: Release Folder)
h. Backlog Folder (Req Type: Backlog Folder)
i. User Story (Req Type: User Story)
j. Sprint Name (Req Type: Sprint Folder)

Note: Every sprint will have a default user story created called <sprint
name>_Tasks_FromDefectsModule. This is the user story that will contain all tasks that are
generated from the Defects module

a. Now we need to create User Stories. User Stories can be created by uploading using Excel
Add-in or can be created manually. For purposes of demo, we are going to do it manually.
b. Select the Release Backlog Folder requirement created above and click on the New
Requirement icon. Create at least 3 User story requirements.
c. There is a certain amount of built in fault tolerance in the workflow. Selecting the backlog
folder, create one more new requirement and this time choose a Requirement other than “User
Story” requirement in the New requirement dropdown. The workflow auto corrects to create a
User Story requirement. This feature “guides” the user to create the right folder structure.
d. Fill in details about the user story. It will be noticed that the User Story is automatically
populated with the following values:
e. Release to which the user story belongs to
f. Highlight the point that the Sprint to which the user story belongs to is Blank since it is now in
the Backlog Folder
g. Team that is going to implement the User Story
h. Story Points -> This is the “weightage” for the User Story. Select any value from 1 through 8.

3. T H EM E- U SER S TOR Y P R I OR I TI Z A TI ON A ND N A V I GA TI ON
a. We have created 4 User Stories in the above step. Look at the Requirements grid and you
will notice that the Position column is automatically filled in with the position of the User Story.
b. The position determines the priority of the User Story. Lower the number – higher the
priority.
c. In order to move around the User Stories you have 2 options:
d. Use the Up and Down Arrows (icons) to move the User Stories within the sprint – this option
is not available in the basic version
e. Use the Order Backlog icon. Click on the icon and enter the position where you want to
move the User Story to.

(IMPORTANT: After navigation if the page does not refresh automatically –click on the
"Refresh" button manually on the QC screen)

4. T H EM E - CR EA TE T A SK S , U SER D EFI NED F I EL DS

a. There are now 4 User Stories in the Backlog Folder.
b. Drag and drop two User Stories to Sprint 1 and two to Sprint 2
c. Now open up one of the User Stories. The “Target Sprint” field in the User Stories is now
automatically populated with the Sprint that it had been dropped into.
d. Other user defined fields on this page are -> Teams, Priority, Reviewed, Fit Criteria
(Acceptance Test), Macro Plan, Actual Hours, Estimated Hours etc.
e. Now selecting one of the user stories, create a Task Requirement. Create at least 3 Tasks.
f. Open up a Task Requirement and show the use defined fields in a Task Requirements. Fields
are very similar to User Story. However, a Task can be assigned to an individual person. You
will have fields “Teams” and “Assigned To”. Tasks also have status fields -> Draft, Defined, In
Progress and Completed.

5. T H EM E: E FFOR T CA L CU L A TI ON & S TOR Y P OI NTS

a. For the 3 Tasks created above, fill in the following fields: (The Actual effort values need to
be less than the Current Effort Estimation values)
b. Current Effort Estimation
c. Actual Effort Spent
d. To display rollup effort calculation, select the Sprint that the tasks belong to
e. Now click on the “Effort Calculation” icon on the tool bar.
f. QC refreshes and the Sprint shows the rolled up effort calculation effort. The effort hours are
summed up and calculated for Current Estimated Hours, Actual Effort Spent, Time Remaining &
Percentage Completed.
g. Open the Sprint record. The “Total Story Points” and “Story Points Balance” fields have
summed values of all story points within that sprint.
h. Open up one of the User Stories and set the Status of the “User Story” to be “Completed” or
“Accepted”.
i. Perform effort calculation again and then open up the Sprint record again. You will notice
that the Story Point Balance field now has the Total Story Points minus the Story Points of the
User story that you just “completed” or “accepted”
j. Effort calculation can be done at the “Release” level also

6. T H EM E: S U P ER S TOR I ES
Not available in basic version

a. Sometimes user stories need be broken down to smaller stories. A user stories that
“contains” smaller user stories is called a Super Story
b. To create a Super story, select “Y” in the Super Story drop down in a User Story (let us call
this user story – “A”). Now new user stories can
be created “beneath” this “parent” user story. (By default, only tasks can be created beneath
user stories).
c. The Story Points of a “Super Story” is the sum of the story points of its child user stories.

7. T H EM E: I SSU ES (I M P EDI M ENTS )

Not available in basic version

a. Any impediment in the testing / development phaes that is blocking one or many user
stories is indicated by the Issue type
b. Add an “issue” to the Issue Folder for the Release. Add the user stories that are being
blocked by the issue.
c. Go to the Requirement Traceability tab of the Issue and then click on the Requirement tree
icon in the dialog to list the user stories. Select the user stories that are affected by the Issue
and add them to the bottom portion (Requirement Trace To) of the Issue dialog
d. Now selecting the Issue, click on the icon (hint: Alert related requirements) on the top
portion of the QC screen to alert the related requirements.
e. All user stories that are affected by the Issue, will now have a alert next to the record with a
date/timestamp when the issue was raised and name of the Issue. Clicking on the icon again
clears the alerts in the related user stories

8. T H EM E: CR EA TE T ESTI NG TA SK FR OM D EV EL OP M ENT T A SK
Not available in basic version

a. A development task can be converted into a testing task by clicking on the “Create test from
Dev Task” icon.
b. A new test task is created with all values pre-filled except for the effort calc fields, the
Assigned To and Team Fields. The task type is set to Testing

9. T H EM E- R EP OR TI NG – E X CEL CH A R TS
Navigate to the Dashboard module. Select the “Sprint Burn down Chart” on the left pane.
Click on the “Configuration -> Generate Report” on the right pane. There are FIVE agile
specific charts: Sprint Burn down By Effort, Sprint Burn down by Story Points, Sprint Burn up,
Velocity by # of Story Points, Velocity by # of User Stories
a. Sprint Burn down Chart – By Effort Spent
i. The “Sprint Burn down Chart – By Effort” has 3 input parameters:
1. Release Name
2. Sprint Name
3. Sprint ID (This is one of the user defined fields when you open a sprint requirement details
dialog)
ii. The chart’s X axis is “Date” – starting from the first day of the sprint till last day of sprint. The
chart’s Y axis is # of hours
iii. The chart has 3 lines:
1. Ideal Scenario – Effort burn down in the ideal scenario if no change occurs to estimated
effort throughout the sprint
2. Actual Effort – Actual effort burndown during the sprint
3. Additional Effort added – This line reflects any changes to estimated effort after start of
sprint

b. Sprint Burn down Chart – By Story Points Not Available in Basic Version
i. The “Sprint Burn down Chart – By Story Points” has 3 input parameters:
1. Release Name
2. Sprint Name
3. Sprint ID (This is one of the user defined fields when you open a sprint requirement details
dialog)
ii. The chart’s X axis is “Date” – starting from the first day of the sprint till last day of sprint. The
chart’s Y axis is # of Story Points
iii. The chart has 3 lines:
1. Ideal Scenario – Effort burn down in the ideal scenario if no change occurs to estimated
effort throughout the sprint
2. Actual Effort – Actual story point burndown during the sprint
3. Additional Effort added – This line reflects any changes to estimated # of story points after
start of sprint
c. Sprint Burn Up Chart
Not available in basic version

i. The “Sprint Burn Up Chart” has 3 input parameters:

1. Release Name
2. Sprint Name
3. Sprint ID (This is one of the user defined fields when you open a sprint requirement details
dialog)
ii. The chart’s X axis is “Date” – starting from the first day of the sprint till last day of sprint. The
chart’s Y axis is # of hours
iii. The chart has 2 lines:
1. Actual Effort spent –Actual effort spent from start of the Sprint
2. Current Estimated Effort – Estimated effort from start of the Sprint

d. Velocity by # of Story Points

Not available in basic version

i. The “Velocity Chart by # of Story Points” has 1 input parameter:

1. Release ID (This is one of the user defined fields when you open a Release Folder
requirement details dialog)
ii. The chart is bar graph. X axis is “Sprint” name and the Y axis is # of Story Points accepted
or completed per sprint
iii. The Velocity chart by # of Story Points gives an indication of the # of Story Points that the
project team can accomplish per sprint and thus helps in future sprint planning

e. Velocity by # of User Stories

Not available in basic version

i. The “Velocity Chart by # of User Stories” has 1 input parameter:

a. Release ID (This is one of the user defined fields when you open a Release Folder
requirement details dialog)
ii. The chart is bar graph. X axis is “Sprint” name and the Y axis is # of User Stories accepted
or completed in that sprint
iii. The Velocity chart by # of User Stories gives an indication of the # of User Stories that the
project team can accomplish on an average per sprint and thus helps in future sprint planning
10. T H EM E : CONV ER TI NG D EFECTS TO T A SK S
Not available in basic version

1. Defects require time to be fixed. So fixing a defect can be a task that will need its effort
estimations to be performed and calculated.
2. Navigate to the Defect module. Create and submit a defect
3. Selecting the defect in the Grid, click on the “Create Tasks from Defects” toolbar button. This
automatically creates a defect and adds it under the User Story <Sprint
name>_Tasks_From_DefectsModule under the corresponding Sprint in the Requirements
module.
4. A confirmation message box for the task creation is displayed
5. Now change the title or the description in the Defect. Click the “Create Tasks from Defects”
toolbar button again.
6. You get a a confirmation message that the changed has been synched to the Requirement.
7. A QC link is also created between the defect and the Requirement

11. T H EM E : P R E- B U I L T V I EWS
Not available in basic version

1. The following views are pre-built in the Agile Accelerator:

a. Agile View - Requirements Tree View of the entire requirements tree structure. Recommended
view for Scrum Masters, Product Owners and Team Leads
b. Agile Team Member - Requirements Grid View. Meant for individual team members. Shows
list of tasks sorted on Status and Priority for the logged in user.
c. Agile Developer View - Requirements Grid View. Meant for individual team members.
Shows list of DEVELOPMENT tasks sorted on Status and Priority for the logged in user.
d. Agile Tester View - Requirements Grid View. Meant for individual team members. Shows list
of TESTING tasks sorted on Status and Priority for the logged in user.

12. T H EM E – S ECU R I TY A ND A GI L E U SER G R OU P S

Not available in basic version

1. Three special Agile groups are available:

a. Product Owner (productowner1/<no password>)
b. Scrum Master (scrummaster1/<no password>)
c. Team member (developer1/<no password> or tester1/<no password>)
2. Users with Admin or Product Owner permissions can create or delete Product, Releases
3. Users with Admin or Product Owner or Scrum master permissions can create Sprints and
User Stories (Scrum masters cannot delete Sprints or User Stories)
4. User with Team member permissions can create Tasks

13. T H EM E – P OP U L A TI NG TH E T EA M L I ST
Not available in basic version

1. User Stories and Tasks can be assigned to “Teams. The list of Teams is created based on
“quasi-dynamic” QC lists. “Teams” are QC user groups groups.
2. Add a new user group to the QC project. Prefix the user group name with “Team”. In order
for this change to get reflected in the QC Team list, click the “Refresh Lists” icon on the tool
bar. QC lists that hold “Team” information are refreshed with the new user group information
3. Open a new user story or task dialog and check if the Team list is now updated with the
new user group’s information
4. To assign a Task to an individual, select the correct “user group” in the “Team” list. Then
use the “Assigned To” drop down sorted by “User Groups” and select the user name within
that user group.