Avoid Scheduling Conflicts

[Andplas]

I ' m trying to figure out the following.

I have a sequence of 4 tasks each one linked to another on a FS
relationship. The fourth task is a deadline and has a constraint ''Must
Finish On''. Between the third and fourth task there is a slack.
If i try to extend the duration of the first task by exceeding the available
slack I receive a message if i want to allow or avoid the scheduling conflict
..
I press OK - ''Cancel and avoid the scheduling conflict'', and duration of
the first task returns to its original value.
If i try again to extend the duration by the same amount i receive no
message - the link between my first task and the second one no longer exists
(although i can see it in the predecessors column!!!!) and the first task has
moved far away from the deadline. Why this is happened?
Should the programm notify me again about the new conflict or not??

 

[Rob Schneider]

I ' m trying to figure out the following.

I have a sequence of 4 tasks each one linked to another on a FS
relationship. The fourth task is a deadline and has a constraint ''Must
Finish On''. Between the third and fourth task there is a slack.
If i try to extend the duration of the first task by exceeding the available
slack I receive a message if i want to allow or avoid the scheduling conflict
.
I press OK - ''Cancel and avoid the scheduling conflict'', and duration of
the first task returns to its original value.
If i try again to extend the duration by the same amount i receive no
message - the link between my first task and the second one no longer exists
(although i can see it in the predecessors column!!!!) and the first task has
moved far away from the deadline. Why this is happened?
Should the programm notify me again about the new conflict or not??

Andplas,

Why do you have a constraint on the last task? If it's because your boss
or your made a promise to make it so, that's not a good enough reason!

Keep it ASAP as that is what you want. You want to get it done as soon
as possible and you want Project to tell you what that ASAP date is.
Hopefully that date is before your deadline. If not, then change the plan.

Never put constraints in a schedule unless there is actually a
constraint. There is nothing to say that this fourth task MUST finish
on that date other than somebody probably made a promise. Promises don't
mean that how you model the project in Project will agree.

get rid of all containts. Try again. you can "remember" the deadline
for task for by setting the "deadline" field. Project will even warn
you in the Indicators field when the computed complete date for task 4
is beyond your deadline.

Also, remember ASAP is AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. It is risky to promise ASAP
dates to bosses, customers, and investors.

 

[Steve House]

As Roy said. I explain it as a Deadline entry models the requirement of the
task, an objective ... "This task must finish on or before July 1st!" A
Constraint models a physical reality that your schedule must reflect "The
Macy's Christmas parade always starts on Thanksgiving Day, whether our float
for it is ready to roll or not." You control whether or not you'll make
your deadlines by organizing the workflow and resource assignments.
Constraints always describe what WILL happen and nothing you do will change
the behaviour they describe, not even if you do nothing at all.

 

[Ben Wiegers]

Andplas,

what you're experiencing is a so called undocumented feature of Project
(especially version 2007).
If you, on purpose or by accident, create a scheduling conflict, Project
will give you a warning.
After cancelling and retrying, Project will not warn you again, because it
did so at an earlier stage.
If you would have made other changes to the schedule first, Project would
have warned you again.
You have to live with that.

Ben Wiegers
Twice IT Training