add-linear

name	add-linear
description	Add Linear channel integration via Chat SDK. Issue comment threads as conversations.

Add Linear Channel

Adds Linear support via the Chat SDK bridge. The agent participates in issue comment threads. Every comment on a Linear issue triggers the agent — no @-mention needed.

Prerequisites

Recommended: Create a Linear OAuth application so the agent posts as an app identity, not as you. This prevents the adapter from filtering your own comments as self-messages.

1. Go to Linear Settings > API > OAuth Applications
2. Create an app (e.g. "NanoClaw Bot")
   • Developer URL: your repo URL (e.g. https://github.com/your-org/nanoclaw)
   • Callback URL: http://localhost
3. After creating, click the app and enable Client credentials under grant types
4. Copy the Client ID and Client Secret

Alternative: Use a Personal API Key (LINEAR_API_KEY) for simpler setup. The agent will post as you, and your own comments will be filtered (other team members' comments still work).

Install

NanoClaw doesn't ship channels in trunk. This skill copies the Linear adapter in from the channels branch and patches the Chat SDK bridge to support catch-all message forwarding (Linear OAuth apps can't be @-mentioned).

Pre-flight (idempotent)

Skip to Credentials if all of these are already in place:

• src/channels/linear.ts exists
• src/channels/index.ts contains import './linear.js';
• @chat-adapter/linear is listed in package.json dependencies
• src/channels/chat-sdk-bridge.ts contains catchAll

Otherwise continue. Every step below is safe to re-run.

1. Fetch the channels branch

git fetch origin channels

2. Copy the adapter

git show origin/channels:src/channels/linear.ts > src/channels/linear.ts

3. Append the self-registration import

Append to src/channels/index.ts (skip if the line is already present):

import './linear.js';

4. Patch the Chat SDK bridge for catch-all message forwarding

Linear OAuth apps can't be @-mentioned, so the bridge's onNewMention handler never fires. Add catchAll support to src/channels/chat-sdk-bridge.ts:

4a. Add catchAll?: boolean to the ChatSdkBridgeConfig interface:

  /**
   * Forward ALL messages in unsubscribed threads, not just @-mentions.
   * Use for platforms where the bot identity can't be @-mentioned (e.g.
   * Linear OAuth apps). The thread is auto-subscribed on first message.
   */
  catchAll?: boolean;

4b. Add this handler block right after the chat.onNewMention(...) block (before the DMs block):

      // Catch-all for platforms where @-mention isn't possible (e.g. Linear
      // OAuth apps). Forward every unsubscribed message and auto-subscribe.
      if (config.catchAll) {
        chat.onNewMessage(/.*/, async (thread, message) => {
          const channelId = adapter.channelIdFromThreadId(thread.id);
          await setupConfig.onInbound(channelId, thread.id, await messageToInbound(message));
          await thread.subscribe();
        });
      }

5. Install the adapter package (pinned)

pnpm install @chat-adapter/linear@4.27.0

6. Build

pnpm run build

Credentials

1. Set up a webhook

1. Go to Linear Settings > API > Webhooks > New webhook
2. Label: NanoClaw
3. URL: https://your-domain/webhook/linear (the shared webhook server, default port 3000)
4. Team: select the team you want to monitor
5. Events: check Comment
6. Save — copy the signing secret

Note: Linear webhook delivery may be delayed 1-5 minutes for new webhooks. This is normal.

2. Configure environment

Add to .env:

# OAuth app (recommended)
LINEAR_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
LINEAR_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret

# OR Personal API key (simpler, but agent posts as you)
# LINEAR_API_KEY=lin_api_...

LINEAR_WEBHOOK_SECRET=your-webhook-signing-secret
LINEAR_BOT_USERNAME=NanoClaw Bot
LINEAR_TEAM_KEY=ENG

• LINEAR_BOT_USERNAME: display name for the bot (used for self-message detection when using a Personal API Key)
• LINEAR_TEAM_KEY: the Linear team key (e.g. ENG, NAN). Find it in Linear under Settings > Teams. All issues in this team route to one messaging group.

Sync to container: mkdir -p data/env && cp .env data/env/env

Wiring

Ask the user: Is this a private or public Linear workspace?

• Private workspace — use unknown_sender_policy: 'public'. Only workspace members can comment.
• Public workspace — use unknown_sender_policy: 'strict' and add trusted members (see GitHub skill for member registration example).

Run /manage-channels to wire the Linear channel to an agent group, or insert manually:

-- Create messaging group (one per team)
INSERT INTO messaging_groups (id, channel_type, platform_id, name, is_group, unknown_sender_policy, created_at)
VALUES ('mg-linear-eng', 'linear', 'linear:ENG', 'Engineering', 1, 'public', datetime('now'));

-- Wire to agent group
INSERT INTO messaging_group_agents (id, messaging_group_id, agent_group_id, trigger_rules, response_scope, session_mode, priority, created_at)
VALUES ('mga-linear-eng', 'mg-linear-eng', '<your-agent-group-id>', '', 'all', 'per-thread', 10, datetime('now'));

The platform_id must be linear:<TEAM_KEY> matching the LINEAR_TEAM_KEY env var. Use per-thread session mode so each issue comment thread gets its own agent session.

Next Steps

If you're in the middle of /setup, return to the setup flow now.

Otherwise, restart the service (systemctl --user restart nanoclaw or launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.nanoclaw) to pick up the new channel.

Channel Info

• type: linear
• terminology: Linear has "teams" containing "issues." Each issue's comment thread is a separate conversation.
• how-to-find-id: The platform ID is linear:<TEAM_KEY> (e.g. linear:ENG). Find your team key in Linear under Settings > Teams. Each issue becomes its own thread automatically.
• supports-threads: yes (issue comment threads are native conversations)
• typical-use: Webhook-driven — the agent receives all issue comment events and responds automatically. No @-mention needed (Linear OAuth apps can't be @-mentioned).
• default-isolation: Use per-thread session mode. Each issue comment thread gets its own isolated agent session.