Add subtasks feature to project tasks

Backend:
- Add self-referencing parent_task_id FK on project_tasks with CASCADE delete
- Add Alembic migration 002 for parent_task_id column + index
- Update schemas with parent_task_id in create, nested subtasks in response
- Chain selectinload for subtasks on all project queries
- Validate parent must be top-level task (single nesting level only)

Frontend:
- Add parent_task_id and subtasks[] to ProjectTask type
- ProjectDetail: expand/collapse chevrons, subtask progress bars, inline
  subtask rendering with accent left border, add/edit/delete subtask buttons
- TaskForm: accept parentTaskId prop, include in create payload, context-aware
  dialog title (New Task vs New Subtask)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

backend/alembic/versions/002_add_subtasks.py

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+"""Add subtask support with parent_task_id
+
+Revision ID: 002
+Revises: 001
+Create Date: 2026-02-15 00:00:00.000000
+
+"""
+from typing import Sequence, Union
+
+from alembic import op
+import sqlalchemy as sa
+
+
+# revision identifiers, used by Alembic.
+revision: str = '002'
+down_revision: Union[str, None] = '001'
+branch_labels: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+depends_on: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+
+
+def upgrade() -> None:
+    op.add_column('project_tasks', sa.Column('parent_task_id', sa.Integer(), nullable=True))
+    op.create_foreign_key(
+        'fk_project_tasks_parent_task_id',
+        'project_tasks',
+        'project_tasks',
+        ['parent_task_id'],
+        ['id'],
+        ondelete='CASCADE'
+    )
+    op.create_index('ix_project_tasks_parent_task_id', 'project_tasks', ['parent_task_id'])
+
+
+def downgrade() -> None:
+    op.drop_index('ix_project_tasks_parent_task_id', table_name='project_tasks')
+    op.drop_constraint('fk_project_tasks_parent_task_id', 'project_tasks', type_='foreignkey')
+    op.drop_column('project_tasks', 'parent_task_id')

backend/app/models/project_task.py

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 from sqlalchemy import String, Text, Integer, Date, ForeignKey, func
-from sqlalchemy.orm import Mapped, mapped_column, relationship
+from sqlalchemy.orm import Mapped, mapped_column, relationship as sa_relationship
 from datetime import datetime, date
-from typing import Optional
+from typing import Optional, List
 from app.database import Base
 
 
@@ -10,6 +10,9 @@ class ProjectTask(Base):
 
     id: Mapped[int] = mapped_column(primary_key=True, index=True)
     project_id: Mapped[int] = mapped_column(Integer, ForeignKey("projects.id"), nullable=False)
+    parent_task_id: Mapped[Optional[int]] = mapped_column(
+        Integer, ForeignKey("project_tasks.id", ondelete="CASCADE"), nullable=True
+    )
     title: Mapped[str] = mapped_column(String(255), nullable=False)
     description: Mapped[Optional[str]] = mapped_column(Text, nullable=True)
     status: Mapped[str] = mapped_column(String(20), default="pending")
@@ -21,5 +24,13 @@ class ProjectTask(Base):
     updated_at: Mapped[datetime] = mapped_column(default=func.now(), onupdate=func.now())
 
     # Relationships
-    project: Mapped["Project"] = relationship(back_populates="tasks")
+    project: Mapped["Project"] = sa_relationship(back_populates="tasks")
-    person: Mapped[Optional["Person"]] = relationship(back_populates="assigned_tasks")
+    person: Mapped[Optional["Person"]] = sa_relationship(back_populates="assigned_tasks")
+    parent_task: Mapped[Optional["ProjectTask"]] = sa_relationship(
+        back_populates="subtasks",
+        remote_side=[id],
+    )
+    subtasks: Mapped[List["ProjectTask"]] = sa_relationship(
+        back_populates="parent_task",
+        cascade="all, delete-orphan",
+    )

backend/app/routers/projects.py

@@ -15,13 +15,18 @@ from app.models.settings import Settings
 router = APIRouter()
 
 
+def _project_with_tasks():
+    """Eager load projects with tasks and their subtasks."""
+    return selectinload(Project.tasks).selectinload(ProjectTask.subtasks)
+
+
 @router.get("/", response_model=List[ProjectResponse])
 async def get_projects(
     db: AsyncSession = Depends(get_db),
     current_user: Settings = Depends(get_current_session)
 ):
     """Get all projects with their tasks."""
-    query = select(Project).options(selectinload(Project.tasks)).order_by(Project.created_at.desc())
+    query = select(Project).options(_project_with_tasks()).order_by(Project.created_at.desc())
     result = await db.execute(query)
     projects = result.scalars().all()
 
@@ -40,7 +45,7 @@ async def create_project(
     await db.commit()
 
     # Re-fetch with eagerly loaded tasks for response serialization
-    query = select(Project).options(selectinload(Project.tasks)).where(Project.id == new_project.id)
+    query = select(Project).options(_project_with_tasks()).where(Project.id == new_project.id)
     result = await db.execute(query)
     return result.scalar_one()
 
@@ -52,7 +57,7 @@ async def get_project(
     current_user: Settings = Depends(get_current_session)
 ):
     """Get a specific project by ID with its tasks."""
-    query = select(Project).options(selectinload(Project.tasks)).where(Project.id == project_id)
+    query = select(Project).options(_project_with_tasks()).where(Project.id == project_id)
     result = await db.execute(query)
     project = result.scalar_one_or_none()
 
@@ -84,7 +89,7 @@ async def update_project(
     await db.commit()
 
     # Re-fetch with eagerly loaded tasks for response serialization
-    query = select(Project).options(selectinload(Project.tasks)).where(Project.id == project_id)
+    query = select(Project).options(_project_with_tasks()).where(Project.id == project_id)
     result = await db.execute(query)
     return result.scalar_one()
 
@@ -114,14 +119,22 @@ async def get_project_tasks(
     db: AsyncSession = Depends(get_db),
     current_user: Settings = Depends(get_current_session)
 ):
-    """Get all tasks for a specific project."""
+    """Get top-level tasks for a specific project (subtasks are nested)."""
     result = await db.execute(select(Project).where(Project.id == project_id))
     project = result.scalar_one_or_none()
 
     if not project:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Project not found")
 
-    query = select(ProjectTask).where(ProjectTask.project_id == project_id).order_by(ProjectTask.sort_order.asc())
+    query = (
+        select(ProjectTask)
+        .options(selectinload(ProjectTask.subtasks))
+        .where(
+            ProjectTask.project_id == project_id,
+            ProjectTask.parent_task_id.is_(None),
+        )
+        .order_by(ProjectTask.sort_order.asc())
+    )
     result = await db.execute(query)
     tasks = result.scalars().all()
 
@@ -135,21 +148,43 @@ async def create_project_task(
     db: AsyncSession = Depends(get_db),
     current_user: Settings = Depends(get_current_session)
 ):
-    """Create a new task for a project."""
+    """Create a new task or subtask for a project."""
     result = await db.execute(select(Project).where(Project.id == project_id))
     project = result.scalar_one_or_none()
 
     if not project:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail="Project not found")
 
+    # Validate parent_task_id if creating a subtask
+    if task.parent_task_id is not None:
+        parent_result = await db.execute(
+            select(ProjectTask).where(
+                ProjectTask.id == task.parent_task_id,
+                ProjectTask.project_id == project_id,
+                ProjectTask.parent_task_id.is_(None),  # Parent must be top-level
+            )
+        )
+        parent_task = parent_result.scalar_one_or_none()
+        if not parent_task:
+            raise HTTPException(
+                status_code=400,
+                detail="Parent task not found or is itself a subtask",
+            )
+
     task_data = task.model_dump()
     task_data["project_id"] = project_id
     new_task = ProjectTask(**task_data)
     db.add(new_task)
     await db.commit()
-    await db.refresh(new_task)
 
-    return new_task
+    # Re-fetch with subtasks loaded
+    query = (
+        select(ProjectTask)
+        .options(selectinload(ProjectTask.subtasks))
+        .where(ProjectTask.id == new_task.id)
+    )
+    result = await db.execute(query)
+    return result.scalar_one()
 
 
 @router.put("/{project_id}/tasks/{task_id}", response_model=ProjectTaskResponse)
@@ -178,9 +213,15 @@ async def update_project_task(
         setattr(task, key, value)
 
     await db.commit()
-    await db.refresh(task)
 
-    return task
+    # Re-fetch with subtasks loaded
+    query = (
+        select(ProjectTask)
+        .options(selectinload(ProjectTask.subtasks))
+        .where(ProjectTask.id == task_id)
+    )
+    result = await db.execute(query)
+    return result.scalar_one()
 
 
 @router.delete("/{project_id}/tasks/{task_id}", status_code=204)
@@ -190,7 +231,7 @@ async def delete_project_task(
     db: AsyncSession = Depends(get_db),
     current_user: Settings = Depends(get_current_session)
 ):
-    """Delete a project task."""
+    """Delete a project task (cascades to subtasks)."""
     result = await db.execute(
         select(ProjectTask).where(
             ProjectTask.id == task_id,

backend/app/schemas/project_task.py

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 from pydantic import BaseModel, ConfigDict
 from datetime import datetime, date
-from typing import Optional
+from typing import Optional, List
 
 
 class ProjectTaskCreate(BaseModel):
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ class ProjectTaskCreate(BaseModel):
     due_date: Optional[date] = None
     person_id: Optional[int] = None
     sort_order: int = 0
+    parent_task_id: Optional[int] = None
 
 
 class ProjectTaskUpdate(BaseModel):
@@ -26,6 +27,7 @@ class ProjectTaskUpdate(BaseModel):
 class ProjectTaskResponse(BaseModel):
     id: int
     project_id: int
+    parent_task_id: Optional[int] = None
     title: str
     description: Optional[str]
     status: str
@@ -35,5 +37,9 @@ class ProjectTaskResponse(BaseModel):
     sort_order: int
     created_at: datetime
     updated_at: datetime
+    subtasks: List["ProjectTaskResponse"] = []
 
     model_config = ConfigDict(from_attributes=True)
+
+
+ProjectTaskResponse.model_rebuild()

frontend/src/components/projects/ProjectDetail.tsx

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { useState } from 'react';
 import { useParams, useNavigate } from 'react-router-dom';
 import { useQuery, useMutation, useQueryClient } from '@tanstack/react-query';
 import { toast } from 'sonner';
-import { ArrowLeft, Plus, Trash2, ListChecks } from 'lucide-react';
+import { ArrowLeft, Plus, Trash2, ListChecks, ChevronRight, Pencil } from 'lucide-react';
 import api from '@/lib/api';
 import type { Project, ProjectTask } from '@/types';
 import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';
@@ -20,18 +20,25 @@ const statusColors = {
   completed: 'bg-green-500/10 text-green-500 border-green-500/20',
 };
 
-const taskStatusColors = {
+const taskStatusColors: Record<string, string> = {
   pending: 'bg-gray-500/10 text-gray-500 border-gray-500/20',
   in_progress: 'bg-blue-500/10 text-blue-500 border-blue-500/20',
   completed: 'bg-green-500/10 text-green-500 border-green-500/20',
 };
 
-const priorityColors = {
+const priorityColors: Record<string, string> = {
   low: 'bg-green-500/10 text-green-500 border-green-500/20',
   medium: 'bg-yellow-500/10 text-yellow-500 border-yellow-500/20',
   high: 'bg-red-500/10 text-red-500 border-red-500/20',
 };
 
+function getSubtaskProgress(task: ProjectTask) {
+  if (!task.subtasks || task.subtasks.length === 0) return null;
+  const completed = task.subtasks.filter((s) => s.status === 'completed').length;
+  const total = task.subtasks.length;
+  return { completed, total, percent: (completed / total) * 100 };
+}
+
 export default function ProjectDetail() {
   const { id } = useParams();
   const navigate = useNavigate();
@@ -39,6 +46,20 @@ export default function ProjectDetail() {
   const [showTaskForm, setShowTaskForm] = useState(false);
   const [showProjectForm, setShowProjectForm] = useState(false);
   const [editingTask, setEditingTask] = useState<ProjectTask | null>(null);
+  const [subtaskParentId, setSubtaskParentId] = useState<number | null>(null);
+  const [expandedTasks, setExpandedTasks] = useState<Set<number>>(new Set());
+
+  const toggleExpand = (taskId: number) => {
+    setExpandedTasks((prev) => {
+      const next = new Set(prev);
+      if (next.has(taskId)) {
+        next.delete(taskId);
+      } else {
+        next.add(taskId);
+      }
+      return next;
+    });
+  };
 
   const { data: project, isLoading } = useQuery({
     queryKey: ['projects', id],
@@ -105,6 +126,21 @@ export default function ProjectDetail() {
     return <div className="p-6 text-center text-muted-foreground">Project not found</div>;
   }
 
+  // Filter to top-level tasks only (subtasks are nested inside their parent)
+  const topLevelTasks = project.tasks?.filter((t) => !t.parent_task_id) || [];
+
+  const openTaskForm = (task: ProjectTask | null, parentId: number | null) => {
+    setEditingTask(task);
+    setSubtaskParentId(parentId);
+    setShowTaskForm(true);
+  };
+
+  const closeTaskForm = () => {
+    setShowTaskForm(false);
+    setEditingTask(null);
+    setSubtaskParentId(null);
+  };
+
   return (
     <div className="flex flex-col h-full">
       <div className="border-b bg-card px-6 py-4">
@@ -128,69 +164,178 @@ export default function ProjectDetail() {
         {project.description && (
           <p className="text-muted-foreground mb-4">{project.description}</p>
         )}
-        <Button onClick={() => setShowTaskForm(true)}>
+        <Button onClick={() => openTaskForm(null, null)}>
           <Plus className="mr-2 h-4 w-4" />
           Add Task
         </Button>
       </div>
 
       <div className="flex-1 overflow-y-auto p-6">
-        {!project.tasks || project.tasks.length === 0 ? (
+        {topLevelTasks.length === 0 ? (
           <EmptyState
             icon={ListChecks}
             title="No tasks yet"
             description="Break this project down into tasks to track your progress."
             actionLabel="Add Task"
-            onAction={() => setShowTaskForm(true)}
+            onAction={() => openTaskForm(null, null)}
           />
         ) : (
           <div className="space-y-2">
-            {project.tasks.map((task) => (
+            {topLevelTasks.map((task) => {
-              <Card key={task.id}>
+              const progress = getSubtaskProgress(task);
-                <CardHeader>
+              const hasSubtasks = task.subtasks && task.subtasks.length > 0;
-                  <div className="flex items-start gap-3">
+              const isExpanded = expandedTasks.has(task.id);
-                    <Checkbox
+
-                      checked={task.status === 'completed'}
+              return (
-                      onChange={() =>
+                <div key={task.id}>
-                        toggleTaskMutation.mutate({ taskId: task.id, status: task.status })
+                  <Card>
-                      }
+                    <CardHeader>
-                      disabled={toggleTaskMutation.isPending}
+                      <div className="flex items-start gap-3">
-                      className="mt-1"
+                        {/* Expand/collapse chevron */}
-                    />
+                        <button
-                    <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
+                          onClick={() => hasSubtasks && toggleExpand(task.id)}
-                      <CardTitle className="text-lg">{task.title}</CardTitle>
+                          className={`mt-1 transition-colors ${hasSubtasks ? 'text-muted-foreground hover:text-foreground cursor-pointer' : 'text-transparent cursor-default'}`}
-                      {task.description && (
+                        >
-                        <CardDescription className="mt-1">{task.description}</CardDescription>
+                          <ChevronRight
-                      )}
+                            className={`h-4 w-4 transition-transform duration-200 ${isExpanded ? 'rotate-90' : ''}`}
-                      <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mt-2">
+                          />
-                        <Badge className={taskStatusColors[task.status]}>
+                        </button>
-                          {task.status.replace('_', ' ')}
+
-                        </Badge>
+                        <Checkbox
-                        <Badge className={priorityColors[task.priority]}>{task.priority}</Badge>
+                          checked={task.status === 'completed'}
+                          onChange={() =>
+                            toggleTaskMutation.mutate({ taskId: task.id, status: task.status })
+                          }
+                          disabled={toggleTaskMutation.isPending}
+                          className="mt-1"
+                        />
+                        <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
+                          <CardTitle className="text-lg">{task.title}</CardTitle>
+                          {task.description && (
+                            <CardDescription className="mt-1">{task.description}</CardDescription>
+                          )}
+                          <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mt-2">
+                            <Badge className={taskStatusColors[task.status]}>
+                              {task.status.replace('_', ' ')}
+                            </Badge>
+                            <Badge className={priorityColors[task.priority]}>{task.priority}</Badge>
+                          </div>
+
+                          {/* Subtask progress bar */}
+                          {progress && (
+                            <div className="mt-3">
+                              <div className="flex justify-between text-xs mb-1">
+                                <span className="text-muted-foreground">Subtasks</span>
+                                <span className="font-medium">
+                                  {progress.completed}/{progress.total}
+                                </span>
+                              </div>
+                              <div className="h-1.5 bg-secondary rounded-full overflow-hidden">
+                                <div
+                                  className="h-full bg-accent rounded-full transition-all duration-300"
+                                  style={{ width: `${progress.percent}%` }}
+                                />
+                              </div>
+                            </div>
+                          )}
+                        </div>
+
+                        {/* Add subtask */}
+                        <Button
+                          variant="ghost"
+                          size="icon"
+                          onClick={() => openTaskForm(null, task.id)}
+                          title="Add subtask"
+                        >
+                          <Plus className="h-4 w-4" />
+                        </Button>
+                        <Button
+                          variant="ghost"
+                          size="icon"
+                          onClick={() => openTaskForm(task, null)}
+                          title="Edit task"
+                        >
+                          <Pencil className="h-4 w-4" />
+                        </Button>
+                        <Button
+                          variant="ghost"
+                          size="icon"
+                          onClick={() => deleteTaskMutation.mutate(task.id)}
+                          disabled={deleteTaskMutation.isPending}
+                          title="Delete task"
+                        >
+                          <Trash2 className="h-4 w-4" />
+                        </Button>
                       </div>
+                    </CardHeader>
+                  </Card>
+
+                  {/* Subtasks - shown when expanded */}
+                  {isExpanded && hasSubtasks && (
+                    <div className="ml-9 mt-1 space-y-1">
+                      {task.subtasks.map((subtask) => (
+                        <Card key={subtask.id} className="border-l-2 border-accent/30">
+                          <CardHeader className="py-3 px-4">
+                            <div className="flex items-start gap-3">
+                              <Checkbox
+                                checked={subtask.status === 'completed'}
+                                onChange={() =>
+                                  toggleTaskMutation.mutate({
+                                    taskId: subtask.id,
+                                    status: subtask.status,
+                                  })
+                                }
+                                disabled={toggleTaskMutation.isPending}
+                                className="mt-0.5"
+                              />
+                              <div className="flex-1 min-w-0">
+                                <CardTitle className="text-sm font-medium">
+                                  {subtask.title}
+                                </CardTitle>
+                                {subtask.description && (
+                                  <CardDescription className="mt-0.5 text-xs">
+                                    {subtask.description}
+                                  </CardDescription>
+                                )}
+                                <div className="flex items-center gap-2 mt-1.5">
+                                  <Badge
+                                    className={`text-xs ${taskStatusColors[subtask.status]}`}
+                                  >
+                                    {subtask.status.replace('_', ' ')}
+                                  </Badge>
+                                  <Badge
+                                    className={`text-xs ${priorityColors[subtask.priority]}`}
+                                  >
+                                    {subtask.priority}
+                                  </Badge>
+                                </div>
+                              </div>
+                              <Button
+                                variant="ghost"
+                                size="icon"
+                                onClick={() => openTaskForm(subtask, task.id)}
+                                title="Edit subtask"
+                              >
+                                <Pencil className="h-3 w-3" />
+                              </Button>
+                              <Button
+                                variant="ghost"
+                                size="icon"
+                                onClick={() => deleteTaskMutation.mutate(subtask.id)}
+                                disabled={deleteTaskMutation.isPending}
+                                title="Delete subtask"
+                              >
+                                <Trash2 className="h-3 w-3" />
+                              </Button>
+                            </div>
+                          </CardHeader>
+                        </Card>
+                      ))}
                     </div>
-                    <Button
+                  )}
-                      variant="ghost"
+                </div>
-                      size="icon"
+              );
-                      onClick={() => {
+            })}
-                        setEditingTask(task);
-                        setShowTaskForm(true);
-                      }}
-                    >
-                      Edit
-                    </Button>
-                    <Button
-                      variant="ghost"
-                      size="icon"
-                      onClick={() => deleteTaskMutation.mutate(task.id)}
-                      disabled={deleteTaskMutation.isPending}
-                    >
-                      <Trash2 className="h-4 w-4" />
-                    </Button>
-                  </div>
-                </CardHeader>
-              </Card>
-            ))}
           </div>
         )}
       </div>
@@ -199,10 +344,8 @@ export default function ProjectDetail() {
         <TaskForm
           projectId={parseInt(id!)}
           task={editingTask}
-          onClose={() => {
+          parentTaskId={subtaskParentId}
-            setShowTaskForm(false);
+          onClose={closeTaskForm}
-            setEditingTask(null);
-          }}
         />
       )}
 

frontend/src/components/projects/TaskForm.tsx

@@ -20,10 +20,11 @@ import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';
 interface TaskFormProps {
   projectId: number;
   task: ProjectTask | null;
+  parentTaskId?: number | null;
   onClose: () => void;
 }
 
-export default function TaskForm({ projectId, task, onClose }: TaskFormProps) {
+export default function TaskForm({ projectId, task, parentTaskId, onClose }: TaskFormProps) {
   const queryClient = useQueryClient();
   const [formData, setFormData] = useState({
     title: task?.title || '',
@@ -44,7 +45,7 @@ export default function TaskForm({ projectId, task, onClose }: TaskFormProps) {
 
   const mutation = useMutation({
     mutationFn: async (data: typeof formData) => {
-      const payload = {
+      const payload: Record<string, unknown> = {
         ...data,
         person_id: data.person_id ? parseInt(data.person_id) : null,
       };
@@ -52,6 +53,9 @@ export default function TaskForm({ projectId, task, onClose }: TaskFormProps) {
         const response = await api.put(`/projects/${projectId}/tasks/${task.id}`, payload);
         return response.data;
       } else {
+        if (parentTaskId) {
+          payload.parent_task_id = parentTaskId;
+        }
         const response = await api.post(`/projects/${projectId}/tasks`, payload);
         return response.data;
       }
@@ -76,7 +80,7 @@ export default function TaskForm({ projectId, task, onClose }: TaskFormProps) {
       <DialogContent>
         <DialogClose onClick={onClose} />
         <DialogHeader>
-          <DialogTitle>{task ? 'Edit Task' : 'New Task'}</DialogTitle>
+          <DialogTitle>{task ? 'Edit Task' : parentTaskId ? 'New Subtask' : 'New Task'}</DialogTitle>
         </DialogHeader>
         <form onSubmit={handleSubmit} className="space-y-4">
           <div className="space-y-2">

frontend/src/types/index.ts

@@ -62,6 +62,7 @@ export interface Project {
 export interface ProjectTask {
   id: number;
   project_id: number;
+  parent_task_id?: number | null;
   title: string;
   description?: string;
   status: 'pending' | 'in_progress' | 'completed';
@@ -71,6 +72,7 @@ export interface ProjectTask {
   sort_order: number;
   created_at: string;
   updated_at: string;
+  subtasks: ProjectTask[];
 }
 
 export interface Person {