diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/analytics/shared/components/projects_dropdown_filter.vue b/app/assets/javascripts/analytics/shared/components/projects_dropdown_filter.vue
index 0bdb45d35c9..b3ae671d611 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/analytics/shared/components/projects_dropdown_filter.vue
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/analytics/shared/components/projects_dropdown_filter.vue
@@ -31,7 +31,8 @@ export default {
   props: {
     groupId: {
       type: Number,
-      required: true,
+      required: false,
+      default: null,
     },
     groupNamespace: {
       type: String,
@@ -57,6 +58,11 @@ export default {
       required: false,
       default: () => [],
     },
+    loadingDefaultProjects: {
+      type: Boolean,
+      required: false,
+      default: false,
+    },
   },
   data() {
     return {
@@ -111,6 +117,9 @@ export default {
     searchTerm() {
       this.search();
     },
+    defaultProjects(projects) {
+      this.selectedProjects = [...projects];
+    },
   },
   mounted() {
     this.search();
@@ -202,6 +211,7 @@ export default {
     ref="projectsDropdown"
     class="dropdown dropdown-projects"
     toggle-class="gl-shadow-none"
+    :loading="loadingDefaultProjects"
     :show-clear-all="hasSelectedProjects"
     show-highlighted-items-title
     highlighted-items-title-class="gl-p-3"
@@ -209,6 +219,7 @@ export default {
     @hide="onHide"
   >
     <template #button-content>
+      <gl-loading-icon v-if="loadingDefaultProjects" class="gl-mr-2" />
       <div class="gl-display-flex gl-flex-grow-1">
         <gl-avatar
           v-if="isOnlyOneProjectSelected"
diff --git a/app/assets/stylesheets/utilities.scss b/app/assets/stylesheets/utilities.scss
index 2ebec66f843..6b1ec0666f8 100644
--- a/app/assets/stylesheets/utilities.scss
+++ b/app/assets/stylesheets/utilities.scss
@@ -304,3 +304,10 @@ $gl-line-height-42: px-to-rem(42px);
     width: 25%;
   }
 }
+
+// TODO: Move to @gitlab/ui by https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ui/-/issues/1671
+.gl-md-pr-5 {
+  @include gl-media-breakpoint-up(md) {
+    padding-right: $gl-spacing-scale-5;
+  }
+}
diff --git a/app/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper.rb b/app/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper.rb
index 6c23f888823..81154eb1193 100644
--- a/app/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper.rb
+++ b/app/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper.rb
@@ -38,7 +38,8 @@ module IssuablesDescriptionTemplatesHelper
     # Only local templates will be listed if licenses for inherited templates are not present
     all_templates = all_templates.values.flatten.map { |tpl| tpl[:name] }.compact.uniq
 
-    all_templates.find { |tmpl_name| tmpl_name == params[:issuable_template] }
+    template = all_templates.find { |tmpl_name| tmpl_name == params[:issuable_template] }
+    template || all_templates.find { |tmpl_name| tmpl_name.casecmp?('default') }
   end
 
   def available_service_desk_templates_for(project)
diff --git a/doc/administration/gitaly/praefect.md b/doc/administration/gitaly/praefect.md
index d3a8662080f..b4195a6c354 100644
--- a/doc/administration/gitaly/praefect.md
+++ b/doc/administration/gitaly/praefect.md
@@ -883,9 +883,9 @@ of choice already. Some examples include [HAProxy](https://www.haproxy.org/)
 Big-IP LTM, and Citrix Net Scaler. This documentation outlines what ports
 and protocols you need configure.
 
-WARNING:
-Long-running background jobs can maintain an idle connection with Praefect for up 6 hours. Set your load balancer timeout to be at least
-6 hours long.
+NOTE:
+We recommend the equivalent of HAProxy `leastconn` load-balancing strategy because long-running operations (for example,
+clones) keep some connections open for extended periods.
 
 | LB Port | Backend Port | Protocol |
 |:--------|:-------------|:---------|
diff --git a/doc/development/features_inside_dot_gitlab.md b/doc/development/features_inside_dot_gitlab.md
index 3a9decaad69..73ba9cbd674 100644
--- a/doc/development/features_inside_dot_gitlab.md
+++ b/doc/development/features_inside_dot_gitlab.md
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ When implementing new features, please refer to these existing features to avoid
 - [CODEOWNERS](../user/project/code_owners.md#set-up-code-owners): `.gitlab/CODEOWNERS`.
 - [Route Maps](../ci/review_apps/#route-maps): `.gitlab/route-map.yml`.
 - [Customize Auto DevOps Helm Values](../topics/autodevops/customize.md#customize-values-for-helm-chart): `.gitlab/auto-deploy-values.yaml`.
-- [GitLab managed apps CI/CD](../user/clusters/applications.md#usage): `.gitlab/managed-apps/config.yaml`.
+- [GitLab managed apps CI/CD](../user/clusters/applications.md#prerequisites): `.gitlab/managed-apps/config.yaml`.
 - [Insights](../user/project/insights/index.md#configure-your-insights): `.gitlab/insights.yml`.
 - [Service Desk Templates](../user/project/service_desk.md#using-customized-email-templates): `.gitlab/service_desk_templates/`.
 - [Web IDE](../user/project/web_ide/#web-ide-configuration-file): `.gitlab/.gitlab-webide.yml`.
diff --git a/doc/user/clusters/applications.md b/doc/user/clusters/applications.md
index 88382648b04..9c1908f3d25 100644
--- a/doc/user/clusters/applications.md
+++ b/doc/user/clusters/applications.md
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ Supported applications:
 - [PostHog](#install-posthog-using-gitlab-cicd)
 - [Prometheus](#install-prometheus-using-gitlab-cicd)
 
-### Usage
+### Prerequisites
 
 You can find and import all the files referenced below
 in the [example cluster applications
@@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ applications you have configured. In case of pipeline failure, the
 output of the [Helm Tiller](https://v2.helm.sh/docs/install/#running-tiller-locally) binary
 is saved as a [CI job artifact](../../ci/pipelines/job_artifacts.md).
 
-#### Usage in GitLab versions earlier than 13.5
+#### Prerequisites in GitLab versions earlier than 13.5
 
 For GitLab versions 13.5 and earlier, the Ingress, Fluentd, Prometheus, and Sentry
 apps were fetched from the central Helm stable repository (`https://kubernetes-charts.storage.googleapis.com/`).
diff --git a/doc/user/project/description_templates.md b/doc/user/project/description_templates.md
index 6c17964f3a5..6cdf2d888d0 100644
--- a/doc/user/project/description_templates.md
+++ b/doc/user/project/description_templates.md
@@ -116,6 +116,8 @@ You might also be interested in templates for various
 
 ### Set a default template for merge requests and issues **(PREMIUM)**
 
+> The `default.md` template becoming the default [introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/76326) in GitLab 14.7.
+
 In a project, you can choose a default description template for new issues and merge requests.
 As a result, every time a new merge request or issue is created, it's pre-filled with the text you
 entered in the template.
@@ -125,17 +127,29 @@ Prerequisites:
 - On your project's left sidebar, select **Settings > General** and expand **Visibility, project features, permissions**.
   Ensure issues or merge requests are set to either **Everyone with access** or **Only Project Members**.
 
-To set a default description template for merge requests:
+To set a default description template for merge requests, either:
 
-1. Go to your project's **Settings**.
-1. Select **Expand** under the **Merge requests** header.
-1. Fill in the **Default description template for merge requests** text area.
-1. Select **Save changes**.
+- [Create a merge request template](#create-a-merge-request-template) named `default.md` and save it in `.gitlab/merge_request_templates/`.
+  **If a `default.md` file exists, it's used as the default template even if you select another one in the project settings.**
+- Select the default template in project settings:
 
-To set a default description template for issues:
+  1. On the top bar, select **Menu > Projects** and find your project.
+  1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings**.
+  1. Expand **Merge requests**.
+  1. Fill in the **Default description template for merge requests** text area.
+  1. Select **Save changes**.
 
-1. Select **Expand** under **Default issue template**.
-1. Fill in the **Default description template for issues** text area.
+To set a default description template for issues, either:
+
+- [Create an issue template](#create-an-issue-template) named `default.md` and save it in `.gitlab/issue_templates/`.
+  **If a `default.md` file exists, it's used as the default template even if you select another one in the project settings.**
+- Select the default template in project settings:
+
+  1. On the top bar, select **Menu > Projects** and find your project.
+  1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings**.
+  1. Expand **Default issue template**.
+  1. Fill in the **Default description template for issues** text area.
+  1. Select **Save changes**.
 
 Because GitLab merge request and issues support [Markdown](../markdown.md), you can use it to format
 headings, lists, and so on.
diff --git a/doc/user/project/settings/project_access_tokens.md b/doc/user/project/settings/project_access_tokens.md
index e401e20d85e..6199b3c4a98 100644
--- a/doc/user/project/settings/project_access_tokens.md
+++ b/doc/user/project/settings/project_access_tokens.md
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ To create a group access token:
 1. Run the following commands in a [Rails console](../../../administration/operations/rails_console.md):
 
    ```ruby
-   # Set the GitLab administration user to use. If user ID 1 is not available or is not an adinistrator, use 'admin = User.admins.first' instead to select an admininistrator.
+   # Set the GitLab administration user to use. If user ID 1 is not available or is not an administrator, use 'admin = User.admins.first' instead to select an administrator.
    admin = User.find(1)
 
    # Set the group group you want to create a token for. For example, group with ID 109.
diff --git a/locale/gitlab.pot b/locale/gitlab.pot
index 7bbbb6f7966..23ecff3f0b6 100644
--- a/locale/gitlab.pot
+++ b/locale/gitlab.pot
@@ -27970,6 +27970,12 @@ msgstr ""
 msgid "ProjectSettings|Highlight the usage of hidden unicode characters. These have innocent uses for right-to-left languages, but can also be used in potential exploits."
 msgstr ""
 
+msgid "ProjectSettings|If a %{code_start}default.md%{code_end} file exists in %{code_start}.gitlab/issue_templates%{code_end} in the repository, it overrides this setting."
+msgstr ""
+
+msgid "ProjectSettings|If a %{code_start}default.md%{code_end} file exists in %{code_start}.gitlab/merge_request_templates%{code_end} in the repository, it overrides this setting."
+msgstr ""
+
 msgid "ProjectSettings|If merge trains are enabled, merging is only possible if the branch can be rebased without conflicts."
 msgstr ""
 
diff --git a/qa/qa/service/praefect_manager.rb b/qa/qa/service/praefect_manager.rb
index cf0a651fbf5..9b63b1bc20f 100644
--- a/qa/qa/service/praefect_manager.rb
+++ b/qa/qa/service/praefect_manager.rb
@@ -83,13 +83,6 @@ module QA
 
       def start_node(name)
         shell "docker start #{name}"
-        wait_until_shell_command_matches(
-          "docker inspect -f {{.State.Running}} #{name}",
-          /true/,
-          sleep_interval: 3,
-          max_duration: 180,
-          retry_on_exception: true
-        )
       end
 
       def stop_node(name)
@@ -180,7 +173,6 @@ module QA
         start_node(@praefect)
 
         wait_for_health_check_all_nodes
-        wait_for_reliable_connection
       end
 
       def verify_storage_move(source_storage, destination_storage, repo_type: :project)
@@ -192,21 +184,15 @@ module QA
       end
 
       def wait_for_praefect
-        wait_until_shell_command_matches(
-          "docker inspect -f {{.State.Running}} #{@praefect}",
-          /true/,
-          sleep_interval: 3,
-          max_duration: 180,
-          retry_on_exception: true
-        )
+        QA::Runtime::Logger.info("Waiting for health check on praefect")
+        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 120, sleep_interval: 1, raise_on_failure: true) do
+          # praefect runs a grpc server on port 2305, which will return an error 'Connection refused' until such time it is ready
+          wait_until_shell_command("docker exec #{@gitaly_cluster} bash -c 'curl #{@praefect}:2305'") do |line|
+            break if line.include?('curl: (1) Received HTTP/0.9 when not allowed')
 
-        QA::Runtime::Logger.info('Wait until Praefect starts and is listening')
-        wait_until_shell_command_matches(
-          "docker exec #{@praefect} bash -c 'cat /var/log/gitlab/praefect/current'",
-          /listening at tcp address/
-        )
-
-        wait_for_gitaly_check
+            QA::Runtime::Logger.debug(line.chomp)
+          end
+        end
       end
 
       def wait_for_sql_ping
@@ -220,72 +206,35 @@ module QA
         ['error when pinging healthcheck', 'failed checking node health'].include?(msg)
       end
 
-      def wait_for_no_praefect_storage_error
-        # If a healthcheck error was the last message to be logged, we'll keep seeing that message even if it's no longer a problem
-        # That is, there's no message shown in the Praefect logs when the healthcheck succeeds
-        # To work around that we perform the gitaly check rake task, wait a few seconds, and then we confirm that no healthcheck errors appear
-
-        QA::Runtime::Logger.info("Checking that Praefect does not report healthcheck errors with its gitaly nodes")
-
-        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 120) do
-          wait_for_gitaly_check
-
-          sleep 5
-
-          shell "docker exec #{@praefect} bash -c 'tail -n 1 /var/log/gitlab/praefect/current'" do |line|
-            QA::Runtime::Logger.debug(line.chomp)
-            log = JSON.parse(line)
-
-            break true unless health_check_failure_message?(log['msg'])
-          rescue JSON::ParserError
-            # Ignore lines that can't be parsed as JSON
-          end
-        end
-      end
-
-      def wait_for_storage_nodes
-        wait_for_no_praefect_storage_error
-
-        Support::Waiter.repeat_until(max_attempts: 3, max_duration: 120, sleep_interval: 1) do
-          nodes_confirmed = {
-            @primary_node => false,
-            @secondary_node => false,
-            @tertiary_node => false
-          }
-
-          wait_until_shell_command("docker exec #{@praefect} bash -c '/opt/gitlab/embedded/bin/praefect -config /var/opt/gitlab/praefect/config.toml dial-nodes'") do |line|
-            QA::Runtime::Logger.debug(line.chomp)
-
-            nodes_confirmed.each_key do |node|
-              nodes_confirmed[node] = true if line =~ /SUCCESS: confirmed Gitaly storage "#{node}" in virtual storages \[#{@virtual_storage}\] is served/
-            end
-
-            nodes_confirmed.values.all?
-          end
-        end
-      end
-
       def wait_for_health_check_all_nodes
-        wait_for_health_check(@primary_node)
-        wait_for_health_check(@secondary_node)
-        wait_for_health_check(@tertiary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@primary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@secondary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@tertiary_node)
       end
 
-      def wait_for_health_check(node)
+      def wait_for_gitaly_health_check(node)
         QA::Runtime::Logger.info("Waiting for health check on #{node}")
+        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 120, sleep_interval: 1, raise_on_failure: true) do
+          # gitaly runs a grpc server on port 8075, which will return an error 'Connection refused' until such time it is ready
+          wait_until_shell_command("docker exec #{@praefect} bash -c 'curl #{node}:8075'") do |line|
+            break if line.include?('curl: (1) Received HTTP/0.9 when not allowed')
+
+            QA::Runtime::Logger.debug(line.chomp)
+          end
+        end
         wait_until_node_is_marked_as_healthy_storage(node)
       end
 
       def wait_for_primary_node_health_check
-        wait_for_health_check(@primary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@primary_node)
       end
 
       def wait_for_secondary_node_health_check
-        wait_for_health_check(@secondary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@secondary_node)
       end
 
       def wait_for_tertiary_node_health_check
-        wait_for_health_check(@tertiary_node)
+        wait_for_gitaly_health_check(@tertiary_node)
       end
 
       def wait_for_health_check_failure(node)
@@ -311,7 +260,6 @@ module QA
           shell sql_to_docker_exec_cmd("SELECT count(*) FROM healthy_storages WHERE storage = '#{node}';") do |line|
             result << line
           end
-          QA::Runtime::Logger.debug("result is ---#{result}")
           result[2].to_i == 0
         end
       end
@@ -322,21 +270,10 @@ module QA
           shell sql_to_docker_exec_cmd("SELECT count(*) FROM healthy_storages WHERE storage = '#{node}';") do |line|
             result << line
           end
-
-          QA::Runtime::Logger.debug("result is ---#{result}")
           result[2].to_i == 1
         end
       end
 
-      def wait_for_gitaly_check
-        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 120, sleep_interval: 1, raise_on_failure: true) do
-          wait_until_shell_command("docker exec #{@gitlab} bash -c 'gitlab-rake gitlab:git:fsck'") do |line|
-            QA::Runtime::Logger.debug(line.chomp)
-            line.include?('Done')
-          end
-        end
-      end
-
       # Waits until there is an increase in the number of reads for
       # any node compared to the number of reads provided. If a node
       # has no pre-read data, consider it to have had zero reads.
@@ -354,12 +291,6 @@ module QA
         data.find(-> {{ value: 0 }}) { |item| item[:node] == node }[:value]
       end
 
-      def wait_for_reliable_connection
-        QA::Runtime::Logger.info('Wait until GitLab and Praefect can communicate reliably')
-        wait_for_sql_ping
-        wait_for_storage_nodes
-      end
-
       def wait_for_replication(project_id)
         Support::Waiter.wait_until(sleep_interval: 1) { replication_queue_incomplete_count == 0 && replicated?(project_id) }
       end
@@ -476,7 +407,7 @@ module QA
       end
 
       def repository_replicated_to_disk?(node, relative_path)
-        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 300, sleep_interval: 3, raise_on_failure: false) do
+        Support::Waiter.wait_until(max_duration: 300, sleep_interval: 1, raise_on_failure: false) do
           result = []
           shell sql_to_docker_exec_cmd("SELECT count(*) FROM storage_repositories where relative_path='#{relative_path}';") do |line|
             result << line
diff --git a/qa/qa/specs/features/api/3_create/gitaly/automatic_failover_and_recovery_spec.rb b/qa/qa/specs/features/api/3_create/gitaly/automatic_failover_and_recovery_spec.rb
index 51927a30987..6a9be19efdd 100644
--- a/qa/qa/specs/features/api/3_create/gitaly/automatic_failover_and_recovery_spec.rb
+++ b/qa/qa/specs/features/api/3_create/gitaly/automatic_failover_and_recovery_spec.rb
@@ -49,7 +49,6 @@ module QA
         # for Gitaly to be ready for writes again
         praefect_manager.stop_primary_node
         praefect_manager.wait_for_primary_node_health_check_failure
-        praefect_manager.wait_for_gitaly_check
 
         Resource::Repository::Commit.fabricate_via_api! do |commit|
           commit.project = project
diff --git a/spec/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper_spec.rb b/spec/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper_spec.rb
index 6b05bab7432..768ce5975c1 100644
--- a/spec/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/helpers/issuables_description_templates_helper_spec.rb
@@ -72,6 +72,37 @@ RSpec.describe IssuablesDescriptionTemplatesHelper, :clean_gitlab_redis_cache do
           ].to_json
         expect(helper.available_service_desk_templates_for(@project)).to eq(value)
       end
+
+      context 'when no issuable_template parameter or default template is present' do
+        it 'does not select a template' do
+          expect(helper.selected_template(project)).to be(nil)
+        end
+      end
+
+      context 'when an issuable_template parameter has been provided' do
+        before do
+          allow(helper).to receive(:params).and_return({ issuable_template: 'another_issue_template' })
+        end
+
+        it 'selects the issuable template' do
+          expect(helper.selected_template(project)).to eq('another_issue_template')
+        end
+      end
+
+      context 'when there is a default template' do
+        let(:templates) do
+          {
+            "" => [
+              { name: "another_issue_template", id: "another_issue_template", project_id: project.id },
+              { name: "default", id: "default", project_id: project.id }
+            ]
+          }
+        end
+
+        it 'selects the default template' do
+          expect(helper.selected_template(project)).to eq('default')
+        end
+      end
     end
 
     context 'when there are not templates in the project' do
diff --git a/spec/services/issues/move_service_spec.rb b/spec/services/issues/move_service_spec.rb
index 36af38aef18..ef501f47f0d 100644
--- a/spec/services/issues/move_service_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/services/issues/move_service_spec.rb
@@ -259,6 +259,16 @@ RSpec.describe Issues::MoveService do
 
         it_behaves_like 'copy or reset relative position'
       end
+
+      context 'issue with escalation status' do
+        it 'keeps the escalation status' do
+          escalation_status = create(:incident_management_issuable_escalation_status, issue: old_issue)
+
+          move_service.execute(old_issue, new_project)
+
+          expect(escalation_status.reload.issue).to eq(old_issue)
+        end
+      end
     end
 
     describe 'move permissions' do