Kanban manual order

Inside a Kanban cell, cards can follow automatic rules or an order you set by hand. Every preset has a permanent Board sorting fallback, and selected status columns can have their own Pipeline column sorting override. This lets one board mix automatic columns with hand-arranged columns.

Board sorting and column overrides

Board sorting supplies the mode and rules for every column that has no override. When the column property is Status, use Pipeline column sorting to choose a pipeline status and add an override for that column. These overrides do not apply to other column properties or to Status used only in rows; changing the axis does not delete the saved overrides. A new override starts as an independent copy of the current Board sorting; changing it does not change the fallback or another column. A status can be added only once, and removing its override immediately returns that column to Board sorting.

At either level, the order mode is:

  • Automatic: Operon sorts the cards by rules you define, such as priority then due date. The order updates itself as tasks change.
  • Manual: cards follow the saved order for that cell. A cell you have not arranged yet uses its effective sorting rules. Tasks not in a saved order appear after the saved cards, ordered by those rules.

Automatic rules can use task fields such as priority, dates, text, or Project Serial. Each column resolves its own effective mode and rules, so an Automatic source column and a Manual target column behave independently during a drag.

Setting a manual order

With Manual mode effective for a column, drag a card up or down within a cell. Operon saves that cell's order. Switching to Manual alone does not create saved orders for every cell; cells you have not arranged continue to follow the sorting rules.

Moving to another cell applies its column and row property values. A Manual target keeps the insertion position you chose; an Automatic target re-sorts by its rules. With list properties, the source card can remain because the move adds membership. Its source order is retained while it still belongs there. See Kanban swimlanes.

Order belongs to the preset and the particular column-and-row intersection. It is not shared by every visible copy of a task. Changing axes does not apply one property's saved cell order to an unrelated property.

When to use which

  • Automatic suits boards where a rule already captures what matters, like priority or deadline. See Task priorities.
  • Manual suits boards where the order is a judgment call: a plan of attack, a publishing sequence, a triage line.

You can mix both across different boards and across columns of the same board: automatic where a field decides and manual where you do.

FAQ

Does manual order survive reloads? Yes. The order you set by dragging is kept with the board.

Does reordering change task properties? Reordering within the same cell does not. Moving between cells changes their axis properties; Status changes only when a target Status differs.

Can one column be Manual while another is Automatic? Yes, when columns use Status. Add a Pipeline column sorting override for the column that should differ. Columns without an override continue to use Board sorting.

Settings

Operon settings for this live in Settings → Operon → Views → Kanban and in the Kanban preset's quick settings. Board sorting defines the fallback. Pipeline column sorting adds, edits, or removes overrides for individual pipeline statuses.