Complete a task with an agent
Take one task from start to finish: start a session, plan or build, review the diff, open a pull request, and move the task to Done.
This page walks through one task from start to finish. You start an agent session on the task, the agent plans and makes the change, you review the diff and the pull request, and then you move the task to Done.
Before you start
- Tasks are turned on and you have a task with a clear brief. See Create a task.
- To get a pull request, the team needs a GitHub connection and a linked repository. See Connect GitHub.
- The task needs an execution target: a cloud environment for the repository, or a computer you connected. See Cloud sessions and execution.
Open the task
A task with no sessions opens on Start work. The agent already has the task's title, brief, and properties, so add only what is new. Starting from this task brief shows the brief it will work from.
Start a session: plan first, or build straight away
Pick how to start. In the composer, choose a mode, type your instruction, and press Enter:
| You want | Do this |
|---|---|
| A plan to approve before any code changes | Switch the composer to Plan (the map icon; the composer gets a dashed outline). The agent reads the code without changing files and saves its plan to the task's Artifacts. |
| The agent to start building now | Leave the composer on Agent and send an instruction, or send the brief as it is. |
| To start with no extra instruction | Choose Start in the task header. It starts an Agent session on the task's execution target with the message "Let's begin working on this task." |
If the composer shows Choose an execution target before sending, pick a cloud environment or a computer first. Start stays disabled until the task has a target.
When you start the first session, a task in a Not started status such as Backlog or Todo moves to the team's first Active status (In Progress by default). The change appears in the task's activity.
Approve the plan (Plan mode only)
When the plan is ready, the transcript shows Plan ready for review. Read it with Open plan, or open it from Artifacts. Then:
- Accept Plan switches the session to Agent mode and the agent starts implementing the plan.
- Reject Plan stops there. Reply with what to change, and the agent revises the plan.
Follow the work
The turn shows Working for… while the agent edits files and runs commands. When it finishes, you see:
- A summary line such as Worked for 40s · Ran 6 commands, read 9 files and edited 3 files. Select it to see every step.
- The agent's reply.
To see everything that changed in the workspace, open the Changes panel on the right. See Session lifecycle for every turn state.
Iterate in the same session
Reply in the same composer to ask for fixes, more tests, or a different approach. You can send while the agent is still working: the message goes to the running agent, or runs after the current turn. To start a separate line of work on the same task, add a session tab with +.
Open a pull request
Ask the agent to commit, push, and open a pull request, or open one yourself. In Changes, commit the staged files and choose Create PR; it pushes the branch first if it needs to.
Alan links the pull request to the task automatically when:
- the agent opens it from a session on the task, or
- the pull request's title or branch name contains the task ID, for example
ENG-42.
To link one by hand, choose Task actions (…) → Add pull request, or Link under Pull requests in Changes. Linked pull requests appear in Task Overview with their review and check status.
In the browser, Changes works for cloud sessions. For a session on a connected computer, use the Alan desktop app, or ask the agent to report the diff.
Review the result
Before you merge, check that the changed files match the task, tests ran or the gap is stated, and the pull request's checks pass. Use Artifacts for the plan and any test report. To get a review, see Review work.
Move the task to In Review, then Done
Opening or merging a pull request doesn't change the task's status, so update it yourself. In Task Overview, select Status and choose In Review while the pull request is reviewed, then Done once it's merged. You can also drag the task on the board, or ask the agent to update the status. When a task is Done or Cancelled, its header no longer shows Start.