Quick Start Guide

Overview

Sniffer follows a straightforward workflow designed to make bug tracking as seamless as possible. Understanding this workflow helps you get the most out of the platform from day one.

The Sniffer workflow consists of four main stages:

Capture: Team members and clients identify issues on your website and capture them using the Sniffer sidebar or browser extension. Each capture includes a screenshot, pin location, and automatic technical metadata.
Report: The person reporting the issue adds a description, sets priority and severity levels, assigns the task to a team member, and submits the bug report. All information is stored in a centralized task that the entire team can access.
Track: Bugs appear on the Sniffer task board where they move through customizable workflow stages such as Backlog, To Do, Doing, and Done. Team members can filter, sort, and organize tasks to focus on what matters most.
Resolve: Developers fix the reported issues and update task statuses accordingly. Comments and activity logs maintain a complete history of each bug from discovery to resolution.

This cycle repeats throughout the development process, creating a continuous feedback loop that improves website quality over time.

Creating Your First Project

A project in Sniffer corresponds to a single website or web application. Each project has its own task board, team members, and settings.

To create your first project, follow these steps:

Step 1: Log in to your Sniffer account and navigate to the dashboard. If this is a new account, you may be prompted to create a project automatically.
Step 2: Click the “New Project” or “Create Project” button. This opens the project creation form.
Step 3: Enter a project name that clearly identifies the website. Use a name that your team will recognize, such as “Company Website” or “Client Portal Redesign.”
Step 4: Enter the website URL where you will be collecting feedback. This is typically your staging or development environment URL, but can also be your production site. Sniffer uses this URL to associate bug reports with the correct project.
Step 5: Optionally, add a project description to provide additional context for team members. This is helpful when managing multiple projects.
Step 6: Click “Create Project” to finalize. Your new project is now ready for setup.

After creating the project, you are directed to the project dashboard where you can install Sniffer on your website, invite team members, and configure project settings.

Installing Sniffer on Your Site

Sniffer must be installed on your website before you can begin capturing feedback. There are two primary installation methods: the JavaScript snippet and the browser extension.

Browser Extension Installation:

The browser extension allows you to use Sniffer on websites where you cannot add the JavaScript snippet, such as third-party sites or competitor analysis. See Section 5 for detailed browser extension installation instructions.

Submitting Your First Bug

With Sniffer installed on your website, you are ready to submit your first bug report.

Step 1: Visit your website where Sniffer is installed. Look for the Sniffer sidebar icon and click it to expand the sidebar.
Step 2: Log in to Sniffer if prompted. Your credentials are the same as your Sniffer account.
Step 3: Click the “Report Bug” or pin icon to enter feedback mode. Your cursor changes to indicate that you can now select elements on the page.
Step 4: Click on the element where you see an issue. Sniffer automatically captures a screenshot and places a pin marker at the location you clicked.
Step 5: In the feedback form that appears, enter a clear and descriptive title for the bug. For example, “Button text is cut off on mobile view” is more helpful than “Button broken.”
Step 6: Add a detailed description explaining the issue. Include steps to reproduce the bug if applicable. The more context you provide, the easier it is for developers to understand and fix the problem.
Step 7: Set the priority and severity levels based on the impact of the bug. Critical issues affecting core functionality should be marked as high priority, while minor visual glitches can be marked as low.
Step 8: Optionally, assign the bug to a specific team member who is responsible for fixing it. If you are unsure who should handle the issue, leave it unassigned for the project lead to triage.
Step 9: Add any relevant tags to categorize the bug. Tags help with filtering and organizing tasks on the board.
Step 10: Click “Submit” or “Create Task” to save the bug report.

Your bug now appears on the project task board where team members can view, discuss, and resolve it. You receive notifications when there are updates to bugs you have created or are assigned to.

Congratulations! You have successfully set up Sniffer and submitted your first bug report. Continue exploring the platform to discover additional features that enhance your team’s feedback workflow.