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Relates to links on cards

Blocking links say something can't move until something else does. Most links between issues say much less than that: these two are about the same thing. GitLab and GitHub both call that "relates to", and until now the board ignored it.

Cards now show it. A Relates to chip, with a link icon and the number of related issues, sits after the blocking chips. It is deliberately plain: it uses the board's neutral colours rather than red or violet, because a related issue doesn't hold anything up. Point at it or click it and the same panel as the blocking chips lists the related issues, rings the related cards on the board and draws lines to them. Those lines are dashed and muted, so they never read as a blocking link.

A few things worth knowing:

  • Only real links. The chip shows the "relates to" links people made in GitLab or GitHub. GitGumbo never guesses a link from issues that mention each other.
  • It works on GitLab Free. "Relates to" is the one link type GitLab Free lets you create, so it is the one link chip a GitLab Free project shows.
  • GitHub too. GitHub made its "Relates to" link generally available at the end of September, and GitGumbo reads it the same way. Adding one on GitHub doesn't mark the issue as changed, so the ordinary background sync can't see it: GitGumbo picks it up in its hourly re-read of every open issue, or sooner if you choose Full Sync or the ↻ on the card. On GitLab, a new link arrives with the next background sync, every 5 minutes on Pro and every 15 minutes on Free.
  • The first 10. GitGumbo reads up to 10 related issues per card. With more, the chip reads 10+.
  • Other projects stay private. A related issue in a different project or repository is listed as "Issue in another project", without its title or a link, because GitGumbo can't check that you can see that project. The same now applies to blocking links.

The filter bar gains a Related toggle, which shows only cards with a "relates to" link. It is separate from Blocked/Blocking, and relates-to links never count toward that filter or the Blocking most sort.

If you'd rather not see them, Settings → Board display → Show 'Relates to' links on cards hides the chip, its lines and the Related toggle, for you only. GitGumbo keeps reading the links either way, so turning it back on shows them without waiting for a sync.