WIP-limit overload detection
The board’s silent-WIP-creep alarm. Per-column WIP limits drive a three-band visual escalation, and moving a task into a column that would push it past its limit triggers a confirmation prompt.
Where this lives in the story
Section titled “Where this lives in the story”Step 6 (Execute) of the hybrid PM flow. Companion to the Capacity preflight panel: capacity catches over-commitment at plan time; this catches WIP creep at execution time.
What you see
Section titled “What you see”Three column states:
| State | Condition | Visual |
|---|---|---|
| Under | count < limit | neutral chip {N}/{limit} — no special chrome |
| At | count == limit | semantic-at-risk chip {N}/{limit} WIP + amber column header band |
| Over | count > limit | semantic-critical chip {N}/{limit} — over WIP limit + red column header band |
Moving a task into a column that would push it past its limit:
This column is at its WIP limit (3/3). Move anyway? [ Cancel ] [ OK ]
Both drag-and-drop and the keyboard “Move to…” menu route through the same guard. Declining cancels; accepting proceeds with the existing status mutation.
Where to find it in the app
Section titled “Where to find it in the app”- Route:
/projects/:projectId/board - Configure WIP limits in board settings (board column config panel)
Backwards compatibility
Section titled “Backwards compatibility”Columns with wip_limit=null render the unchanged neutral count chip. The default board ships with WIP limits on IN_PROGRESS=5 and REVIEW=3; everything else is unlimited.
Related ADRs
Section titled “Related ADRs”- ADR-0039 — Board column config (where
wip_limitlives)
If you are…
Section titled “If you are…”- Tom (engineer) — the over-limit chip says “this column is full.” Don’t pile on; finish what’s in flight first.
- Maya — the at-limit / over-limit chips are your standup signal. If REVIEW is over-limit two days running, something downstream is blocked.