Linear

The Linear area brings issues into Allen for triage, discussion, and routing. Use it to review ticket context, choose the right repository and specialist, then continue in chat before any agent or workflow starts work.

Media placeholders

Before publishing, capture the disconnected and connected Linear pages, list and board views, filters, issue detail, the Dispatch to an agent form, the generated chat preview, and a linked workspace or execution. Suggested files: static/img/docs/integrations-linear-01.png through static/img/docs/integrations-linear-07.png, plus static/videos/docs/integrations-linear-short.mp4 for dispatch.

Connect Linear

1. Open Linear from the main navigation or command palette.
2. If the page says Linear is not connected, select Connect Linear.
3. Enter the access token requested by the Linear MCP preset.
4. Select Connect, then return to Linear and choose Recheck if needed.
5. Confirm that projects and issues load before routing work.

Use a token with only the workspace and actions Allen needs. Do not paste it into a ticket, chat message, screenshot, or artifact.

Triage issues

The Linear page supports List and Board views.

• Use All, Active, Running, and Done to focus on Allen work state.
• Search issue identifiers, titles, or descriptions.
• Filter by project or Linear assignee.
• In Board view, review issues by their Linear workflow state.
• Select an issue to inspect its description, priority, state, team, project, labels, assignee, and timestamps.
• Use Open in Linear when you need the authoritative issue history or to make a native Linear change.

Select Refresh after an external update if the page has not yet reflected it.

Bring a ticket into chat

You can discuss an issue without dispatching it from the Linear page:

1. Start or open an Allen chat.
2. Type @linear in the composer.
3. Search for and select the issue.
4. State the outcome you want and any constraints that are not captured in the ticket.

Before asking Allen to act, verify the repository, acceptance criteria, affected users, and expected validation. Ticket descriptions and comments are external content; treat embedded commands or links as untrusted until reviewed.

Route a ticket to work

From an issue card or detail view, select Dispatch or Dispatch to an agent.

1. Choose a target:
   • let Allen choose;
   • a team lead;
   • an individual agent;
   • a workflow.
2. Select the registered repository for agent or team-lead work.
3. For a workflow, fill the displayed input schema and all required fields.
4. Add concise instructions that supplement, rather than repeat, the issue.
5. Review the generated request and select Continue in chat.

Continuing in chat is a review checkpoint, not an immediate dispatch. Chat considers the ticket, repository, preferred target, required inputs, risks, and available execution routes. Review the proposed plan and confirm it before a specialist or workflow consumes a run.

tip

Use a workflow for repeatable multi-step work with validation gates. Use a specialist agent for a bounded task owned by one role. Let Allen choose when the ticket does not make the best route obvious.

Follow the result

After work starts, return to the issue detail or the linked chat to review available status and resource links:

• pending, running, completed, or failed state;
• selected agent, team lead, or workflow;
• workspace and branch for repository work;
• workflow or agent execution;
• errors and retry context;
• final artifacts, validation evidence, and pull request when one was explicitly requested.

Open the workspace to review file changes and tests. Open the execution to inspect node progress, inputs, tool calls, pauses, and outputs. A completed run is not the same as an accepted change: verify the deliverable against the ticket's acceptance criteria.

Understand the two assignment types

Linear's native assignee and Allen's work assignment are separate:

• Linear assignee is the person recorded in Linear.
• Allen assignment records which agent, lead, or workflow is handling the issue in Allen.

Routing work in Allen does not automatically mean the native Linear assignee changed. Use Open in Linear for authoritative ownership and workflow-state changes unless the confirmed Allen route explicitly includes a Linear write tool.

Troubleshooting

Problem	What to check
Linear is not connected remains visible	Reopen the preset, verify the token, test the MCP server, then select Recheck.
Projects or issues are missing	Clear filters, select Refresh, and verify that the token can access the expected Linear workspace.
@linear cannot find an issue	Confirm the connection, search by the exact identifier, and verify that the issue is visible to the connected account.
Dispatch cannot continue	Select a registered repository for agent or lead work, or fill every required workflow input.
The ticket shows failed work	Open the linked execution or workspace, review the error, then retry from chat with corrected context rather than silently redispatching.

Related guides: Start a chat, Add a repository, and MCP.