FAQ › Issues

How to automatically watch the issues that you created in Redmine (auto watch for issues)

Updated on 2025-12-15  •  Created on 2023-03-08  •  ISHIHARA Yukiko

(Supported versions: Redmine 5.1 or later / RedMica 2.3 or later)

Redmine has an auto watch feature that automatically watches the issues that you created. Redmine automatically watches all issues that you created. The benefits are that you can stop watching each issue after it is watched, and that you do not need to watch issues manually.

Use cases

  • You basically want to receive notifications for the issues that you created, but you do not need notifications for some issues that other people work on.
    → You can stop watching only the issues for which you do not need notifications
  • You want to receive notifications only at first for the issues that you created and assigned to other people, but you do not need notifications later.
    → You do not need to watch the issue manually every time you create an issue

For example, when your email notification is set to "Only for things I watch or I'm involved in", you are notified of all updates to the issues that you created, the issues that are assigned to you, and the issues that you watch. With this setting, notifications stop when you are no longer the assignee or when you stop watching. However, you are notified of all updates to the issues that you created, and you cannot stop these notifications.

Yes: you are notified / No: you are not notified

Issues you created Issues assigned to you Issues you watch Other issues
Only for things I watch or I'm involved in Yes Yes Yes No

→ You cannot stop the notifications for the issues that you created

Therefore, set your email notification to "Only for things I watch or I am assigned to" and turn on the auto watch option "Issues I created". The issues that you created then become issues that you watch, so you receive the notifications. If you stop watching an issue later, you no longer receive its notifications.

Issues you created Issues assigned to you Issues you watch Other issues
Only for things I watch or I am assigned to No Yes Yes No

→ You can stop the notifications for the issues that you created at any time (by stopping watching)

Settings

  1. Click "My account" in the account menu at the top right of the page
  2. Turn on "Issues I created" and click "Save"

The "Issues I created" setting on the My account page

For the email notification, select "Only for things I watch or I am assigned to".

Default auto watch settings for new users (Redmine 6.1 or later)

When you create a new user, the auto watch option "Issues I created" is turned on by default. When a new user creates an issue, the user is automatically added to the watchers of the issue and receives the notification emails after that.

In Redmine 6.1 or later, you can change the default to off in "Auto watch" under "Default values for new users" on the "Administration" → "Settings" → "Users" tab. You can control whether new users become watchers from the start, according to how you operate Redmine.

"Default values for new users" on the Administration page

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