Kanban board
Route: /org/tasks?view=kanban · Permission: View Tasks
To move a task: Change Status of Task
1. What the Kanban view is
One column per status, in the order you configured them, with every task as a card. Dragging a card between columns is a status transition — the same operation as changing the status in the detail panel.
| Kanban | List | Table | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columns are | Statuses | — | Fields |
| Grouping produces | Swimlanes | Headings | Group rows |
| Primary action | Change status | Read and expand | Edit fields |
| Shows hierarchy | Flattened, with a breadcrumb | Nested | Nested |
| Respects the workflow | Yes — visibly | n/a | n/a |
2. How the board relates to configuration
3. Using the board — step by step
Step 1 · Read a column
| # | Element | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colour dot | The status colour |
| 2 | Status name | Uppercase |
| 3 | Count pill | Number of cards in the column |
| 4 | Collapse | Narrows the column to a vertical label with its count |
An empty column shows a dashed drop zone reading Drop items here.
Columns render a limited number of cards and offer Load More (n) at the foot when there are more.
Step 2 · Read a card
Everything on the card comes from the task's own configuration: the flag takes the priority colour, the icon is the task type's, and the percentage is actual hours against the estimate.
The breadcrumb above the title only appears on a subtask — on this board it is the only sign that a card has a parent.
| # | On the card | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Breadcrumb | The parent chain, shown only on subtasks — Parent > Child |
| 2 | Task key | Monospace reference |
| 3 | ⚑ Priority | Flag glyph in the priority colour, with its name |
| 4 | Type icon | The type's icon, tooltipped with its name |
| 5 | BILLABLE pill | Present when the task is billable |
| 6 | Hours and % | Actual against estimate, as a percentage capped at 100 |
| 7 | Log Time | Opens the log-time modal without leaving the board |
| 8 | Add Comment | Opens the comment modal |
| 9 | Due date | Formatted MMM d |
| 10 | Assignee avatar | A ? when unassigned |
Kanban flattens the hierarchy — subtasks are cards in their own right, sitting in whatever column their own status puts them. The breadcrumb above the title is the only indication that a card has a parent.
Step 3 · Move a card
Drag it. The target column shows a dashed overlay reading Drop Here — "to move to <status>".
The board reads the project's workflow and computes the legal destinations from the card's current status. A column that is not a permitted target does not accept the drop, and the move is refused silently — no toast, no error.
If a drop appears to do nothing, that is why. Check the workflow graph.
The board falls back to allowing a move to any status when the project has no transitions defined. So a project that has never had its workflow drawn is more permissive than one that has.
Step 4 · Group into swimlanes
Setting Group by turns the board into horizontal swimlanes, each with a full set of status columns:
| Group by | Swimlane per | Trailing lane |
|---|---|---|
Category | Task category | Uncategorized, only if any exist |
Tag | Tag | Untagged |
Project Phase / Milestone | Milestone | Unaligned / Backlog |
Each swimlane header carries the group's icon, name and a count.
4. Field reference — what the board does and does not do
| Control | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| Drag a card | Transits the task. Blocked by the workflow and by Change Status of Task |
| Click a card | Opens the detail panel |
| Log Time | Modal; logs against that task |
| Add Comment | Modal; posts a comment |
| Collapse a column | Visual only, not persisted |
| Load More | Reveals more cards in that column |
Which statuses appear as columns
Columns come from the project's status configuration, sorted by order. With Hide Done on, any
status whose category is Done is removed — and, for statuses with no category recorded, the ids
done and cancelled are removed as a fallback.
Kanban decides by status category; List and Table decide by hard-coded status id. A custom
Closed status in the Done category disappears from the board and stays in the list.
What a drop actually sends
A drop calls the task transition endpoint with the new status id, then refetches the board. It does not go through the generic task update — so the workflow's transition actions and conditions apply to it exactly as they would to a status change made anywhere else.
5. The admin contract
| Prerequisite | Without it |
|---|---|
| At least one status | No columns |
| A saved workflow | Every column accepts every card |
| Change Status of Task | Cards can be dragged but the move is rejected |
| Status order set sensibly | Columns appear in a confusing sequence |
| Status categories set correctly | Hide Done misbehaves, and completion metrics are wrong |
6. Downstream
| Action | Effect |
|---|---|
| Drop a card | Status changes; workflow actions fire; the activity log records it |
| Log Time from a card | A time log against the task, visible in Time logs and timesheets |
| Add Comment from a card | A comment, with the usual notifications |
7. Don't confuse this with…
| Thing | Where | Why it is different |
|---|---|---|
| Kanban (this page) | ?view=kanban | Columns are statuses |
| List grouping | List | Groups are headings, not columns |
| Swimlanes | Here, with Group by | Rows of columns, not a different view |
| Resolution Queue | /org/resolve/queue | Tickets, not tasks |
| Timelines | Gantt | Time, not status |
8. Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Cause |
|---|---|
| A drop does nothing | The workflow does not permit it — silently refused |
| A drop is refused for one user only | They lack Change Status of Task |
| A status has no column | Hide Done removed it, or it is not in the status config |
| Columns in the wrong order | Set order on the Statuses tab |
| A card shows a breadcrumb | It is a subtask |
| Not all cards are visible | Columns cap what they render — use Load More |
| Hide Done differs from the list | The two views decide "done" differently |
| Every column accepts every card | No workflow has been saved |
Related
- Workflow — what makes a drop legal
- Statuses — what makes a column
- Task detail · Time logs