⏱️Skip to 1:00
Complete Azure DevOps Boards Training for Beginners
by Dani Kahil
💡 TLDW (Too Long; Didn't Watch)
Complete Azure DevOps Boards training covering projects, work items, backlogs, boards, and team collaboration
by Dani Kahil
Complete Azure DevOps Boards training covering projects, work items, backlogs, boards, and team collaboration
Learn how to set up and use Azure DevOps Boards to manage your software projects. This comprehensive course covers creating organizations and projects, managing work items, configuring boards, and collaborating with team members.
Sign in to Azure DevOps using your Microsoft account. Navigate to the official Microsoft documentation to create a new organization. Enter your organization name, select the country/region, and complete the setup.
From your organization dashboard, click 'New Project'. Choose a project name and description. Select your process template (Agile, Basic, Scrum, or CMMI). For beginners, Agile is recommended as it includes epics, features, user stories, and tasks.
Go to Project Settings > Users and click 'Invite'. Enter the email addresses of team members. New users receive Stakeholder access by default (free). To upgrade to full Basic license, go to Organization Settings > Users and change the access level.
Navigate to Boards > Backlogs. Enable epics in settings if using Agile process. Create your hierarchy: Epics > Features > User Stories. Start by creating at least one item of each type to establish the structure.
Export your Azure DevOps backlog to CSV format. Open the CSV and copy your existing requirements into the appropriate columns (Work Item Type, Title). Ensure you maintain the hierarchy. Re-upload the CSV to create all work items automatically.
Go to Boards and click 'Configure' settings. Add custom columns (e.g., In Analysis, In Dev, In Test) mapped to appropriate states. Split columns into Doing and Done stages for better workflow visibility.
Configure card fields to show priority, parent items, and other relevant information. Create tags for statuses like Blocked, In Review, or Showcase. Use tag styles to apply color coding for visual identification of work item states.
Add swimlanes above the default to organize work by priority. Create a P1 swimlane and set criteria (e.g., Priority equals 1) to automatically group high-priority items. This helps focus on critical work first.