# Issue Ordering
The board uses two layers of ordering:
1. The default order from `order_by`.
2. A sparse `card_order` override for cards whose positions differ from that default.
## Default order
`order_by` controls the automatic per-column order:
- `created_at_desc`: newest first
- `created_at_asc`: oldest first
- `none`: keep the store order
If `card_order` is empty, the board renders exactly from `order_by`.
## Sparse manual order
`card_order` is not a full snapshot of the column.
It stores only the cards whose positions differ from the automatic order,
in the order they appear after the manual change.
Example:
- Default: `A B C D`
- User swaps `B` and `D`
- Stored `card_order`: `D B`
On reload, the board starts from the default order and replaces the cards at
the changed positions with the stored sequence.
This keeps `tix.toml` small while still restoring the exact manual layout.
## Drag behavior
When you drag a card within the same column, the board saves the changed cards
for that column only. Unchanged cards are not written to `card_order`.