Creating Bug Reports

Submitting a Bug

Creating a well-documented bug report is essential for efficient issue resolution. Sniffer streamlines this process by automatically capturing technical context while allowing you to add visual evidence and detailed descriptions.

Initiating a Bug Report: There are several ways to start a new bug report in Sniffer. The most common method is using the browser extension to capture an issue directly where it occurs. Click the Sniffer extension icon in your browser toolbar and select “Report Bug” or use the one-click capture feature.

One-Click Capture: Sniffer is designed for speed and low friction. The one-click capture feature allows you to instantly start a bug report without navigating through menus. This captures the current page state immediately, letting you add details afterward.

No Technical Knowledge Required: Sniffer is built so that clients and stakeholders can report bugs without any technical expertise. The interface guides users through the process, and all technical data is captured automatically in the background.

The Bug Report Form: After initiating a capture, Sniffer displays a form where you enter details about the issue. The form is optimized for ease of use while ensuring all necessary information is collected.

Automatic Data Capture: Sniffer automatically captures and attaches comprehensive technical information to every bug report, including:

Page URL
Browser type and version
Operating system
Window size
Screen resolution
Timestamp
Selector/element reference
Console logs
Network errors
Environment metadata

This data appears in the bug details without any manual entry, giving developers everything they need to reproduce and debug the issue.

Submitting the Report: Once you have filled in the necessary fields, click “Submit” or “Save” to finalize the bug report. The task is created immediately and saved to Sniffer’s board where your team can review, prioritize, and resolve it.

Adding a Description

The description field provides context that helps developers understand the issue beyond what the visual capture shows.

Be Specific: Clearly describe what is wrong. Instead of “Button doesn’t work,” write “The Submit button on the contact form does not respond when clicked. No error message appears and the form is not submitted.”

Describe Expected vs. Actual Behavior: Explain what should happen and what actually happens. This clarifies whether the issue is a bug or a misunderstanding of intended functionality.

Note Frequency: Indicate whether the issue happens every time, intermittently, or under specific conditions. “This occurs every time I click the button” is more helpful than just describing the problem.

Mention Workarounds: If you discovered a way to work around the issue, include that information. It may help users in the meantime and could provide clues for developers.

Plain Language is Fine: Sniffer is designed to convert client feedback into structured, developer-ready tickets. Write naturally and let the AI-assisted structuring help translate your feedback into actionable reports.

Setting Severity and Priority

Severity and priority help your team triage and address bugs in the right order on Sniffer’s unified board.

Severity refers to the impact of the bug on the system or user experience:

Critical: The bug causes system crashes, data loss, or complete feature failure. The application is unusable for affected users.
High: The bug significantly impairs functionality but does not crash the system. Major features are broken or produce incorrect results.
Medium: The bug affects functionality but has a workaround. Users can complete their tasks with some inconvenience.
Low: The bug is a minor issue, such as a cosmetic defect or typo, that does not affect functionality.

Priority refers to the order in which bugs should be fixed based on business needs:

Urgent: Must be fixed immediately. Drop everything else to address this issue.
High: Should be fixed in the current sprint or release cycle.
Medium: Should be fixed soon but can wait for the next sprint if necessary.
Low: Fix when time permits. Not blocking any critical work.

Filtering by Priority: On Sniffer’s board, you can filter issues by priority to focus on what needs immediate attention. The dashboard view highlights issues that require urgent action.

Combining Severity and Priority: A bug can have high severity but low priority (a critical issue in a rarely used feature) or low severity but high priority (a typo on the homepage that affects brand perception). Both factors should be considered when planning work.

Assigning to Team Members

Assigning bugs to specific team members ensures accountability and helps distribute work evenly across the team.

Selecting an Assignee: In the bug report form or on Sniffer’s board, look for the “Assignee” or “Assign to” field. Click to see a list of project members and select the appropriate person.

Choosing the Right Assignee: Consider who is best suited to handle the issue. Front-end bugs might go to a front-end developer, while server errors should be assigned to a back-end developer. If unsure, leave the bug unassigned for the team lead to triage.

Filtering by Team: Sniffer’s board allows you to filter issues by team, making it easy for specific groups to see only the bugs relevant to their work.

Unassigned Bugs: It is acceptable to submit bugs without an assignee. Many teams prefer to have a triage process where a manager reviews new bugs and assigns them based on current workloads and expertise.

Self-Assignment: If you plan to fix the bug yourself, you can assign it to your own account. This indicates to the team that you are taking ownership of the issue.

Reassignment: Assignees can be changed at any time after the bug is created. If the original assignee cannot handle the issue or if it belongs to a different team member, update the assignment in the task details.

Notifications: When you assign a bug to someone, they receive a notification alerting them to the new task. Sniffer integrates with Slack and Microsoft Teams to send notifications through your preferred communication channels.

Adding Attachments

While Sniffer automatically captures screenshots and can record video, you may want to add additional files to provide more context.

Automatic Screenshot: Every bug report can include an automatic screenshot of the current viewport. This screenshot is captured with a single click, requiring no manual effort.

Additional Screenshots: If the automatic screenshot does not fully capture the issue, you can attach additional images. Sniffer supports multiple screenshots per report.

Video Recordings: For issues that are difficult to explain with static images, Sniffer’s screen recording feature captures the bug in action. Video recordings include:

Visual playback of user actions
Automatic markers on the seekbar for console errors
Automatic markers on the seekbar for network errors
The ability to comment on specific timestamps after saving

Annotations: Before saving your capture, you can annotate screenshots and recordings in real-time. Add highlights, arrows, text, and other markers to draw attention to specific areas of concern.

Blur Sensitive Data: If your screenshot or recording contains sensitive information, use the blur tool to obscure confidential data before submitting the report.

Documents and Files: Attach relevant documents such as specifications, design mockups, or error logs to provide additional context.

Viewing Attachments: After submission, all attachments are visible in the task details on Sniffer’s board. Team members can view screenshots, play videos, and download files to better understand the reported issue.

Shareable Links: Every bug report can be shared via a simple link. Copy the link and share it instantly with team members or clients. The dedicated view page displays all visual and technical context in both client-friendly and developer-friendly formats.

By creating thorough, well-documented bug reports with Sniffer’s automatic capture capabilities, you empower your development team to understand, reproduce, and fix issues efficiently—moving from report to resolution faster without back-and-forth.