---
title: "How to Manage and Restore Manual Task Hierarchy in BigGantt/BigPicture"
canonical: "https://support.appfire.com/space/SUPPORT/3532881944/How%20to%20Manage%20and%20Restore%20Manual%20Task%20Hierarchy%20in%20BigGantt%2FBigPicture"
format: markdown
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This article addresses issues related to the loss of manually created task hierarchies (indents/outdents) and dependencies in BigGantt and BigPicture. It covers the impact of the "Clear manual indents" setting and the limitations regarding exporting or importing manual hierarchy data between environments.

## Use Case 1: Understanding the "Clear manual indents" Toggle

### Problem/Context

A user reported that manually created hierarchies and dependencies were lost. They noticed a "Clear manual indents" toggle in the Task Structure settings of one environment but not another, and suspected this might have caused the data loss.

### Cause

The "Clear manual indents" option is a configuration setting that, when enabled and saved, removes all manual indents and outdents applied to tasks within a Box. This action is not automatic; it requires a user to intentionally:

1. Navigate to **Box Configuration** > **Task Structure**.
2. Enable the **Clear manual indents** toggle.
3. Click **Save**.

### Solution/Workaround

- **Prevention:** Ensure that users with configuration access are aware that enabling this toggle will permanently remove manual hierarchy adjustments.
- **Recovery:** If manual indents are cleared, they must be restored manually by using the Indent and Outdent buttons in the Gantt view. There is no "undo" button for this configuration change once saved.

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## Use Case 2: Exporting/Importing Manual Hierarchy Between Environments

### Problem/Context

A user wanted to know if it is possible to export manually created dependencies and hierarchies from a development environment (which contained a backup of the data) and import them into a production environment without affecting the Jira issue data.

### Cause

Manual indents and outdents in BigGantt/BigPicture are stored as **app-specific metadata** rather than standard Jira issue fields. Because this data lives within the BigPicture database/metadata layer, it is not captured by standard Jira exports or issue-level imports.

### Solution/Workaround

- **No Partial Export:** There is currently no supported mechanism to export *only* the manually created hierarchy or dependencies.
- **Full Migration:** The only way to move this data between environments is to migrate the **entire BigPicture dataset**.
- **Manual Restoration:** If a full migration is not feasible, the hierarchy must be reconstructed manually in the target environment using the Gantt chart's Indent/Outdent tools.

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## Related Information

- **Synchronization Issues:** If a Box appears empty one day and reappears the next with missing manual data (without user intervention in settings), it may indicate a synchronization problem, a task structure rebuild, or a broader event affecting the Box configuration.
- **Data Storage:** Remember that manual hierarchy is BigPicture metadata, while standard Jira links (like "blocks" or "relates to") are Jira issue data. Manual indents do not change Jira parent/child links unless specific synchronization rules are configured.

[https://appfire.atlassian.net/browse/DOCUM-4234](https://appfire.atlassian.net/browse/DOCUM-4234)