Delete Task in Project 2007 corrupts project files

[AJBopp]

I"m using Project 2007 and have been consistently seeing my files
getting corrupted. Here's the scenario as best I can describe it right
now...

I create a simple project and save it in either 2003 or 2007 format.
203 lines, one resource. There are linked tasks, but all are one-to-
one relationships. There are no links to/from summary tasks. I have an
18 task template that I use repeatedly for each phase of my project.
The structure looks like this:

Project Phase Name
Milestone - Requirements Complete
Requirements 1 milestone
Requirements 2 milestone
Milestone - Software Handoff
Documentation Summary Task
Document 1
Document 2
Tool Creation Summary Task
Tool 1
Tool 2
Execution Summary Task
Functional Execution Summary Task
Task 1
Task 2
Migration Execution
Performance Execution
Handoff

This basic skeleton is repeated several times in the project file.
Note that I have not assigned resources or durations to most of the
tasks yet, although there are links from things like Document 1 to
Task 1, etc. The project is 203 lines long.

Now then, if I delete a task, save the project, close it, and reopen
it, I get a warning about circular references. Clicking through this,
I see that when the tasks load up, there are several problems:

-Numbering is wrong. The numbers go: 20, 21, 23, 204, 25, 26, 205, 58,
28....So I now have new numbers that are greater than the project
originally started out being.

-Indenting and outdenting is wrong. This is only true on tasks for
which the numbering is wrong - but it is not true in every case that
numbering is wrong, just most of them. Some items are indented 4 or 5
times and they should only be indented once. Some items are outdented
also in a similar fashion.

-Some tasks have nothing in the Task Name field.

-Using a copy of the file I made before the corruption happened, I can
see that if I delete the same task, the file always shows exactly the
same corruption.

I have sent the 2003 version of the file file to someone using Project
2003. They deleted task 22, saved, closed and reopened, and there was
no task corruption. I don't know anyone I can send the file to who
also runs 2007, so I can't try that test.

Urgent assistance would be greatly appreciated. How can I discover and
correct what is really causing the file to go bad on my system?

Thanks!

 

[Jim Aksel]

This seems to be a known issue. Here is a link and some potential work
arounds.
https://connect.microsoft.com/feedback/ViewFeedback.aspx?FeedbackID=255404&SiteID=235

See if any of that helps
--
If this post was helpful, please consider rating it.

Jim

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for FAQs and more information
about Microsoft Project

 

[AJBopp]

Wow...6.5 months after the first report and still no progress on
fixing this?

 

[Jim Aksel]

The problem seems to be sporatic. For instance, I have been using P2007 for
about 6 months and have never seen the issue. That makes it quite
challenging for Microsoft to correct.

If you can document specific steps to reproduce the error consistently every
time, then post it up to the website I gave you earlier. The best way to do
it is with small file sizes and very very specific steps.

Remember, to get MS the most beneficial information, you need to be able to
describe how to get the error starting from a blank Project1.mpp file. Then
clear it out, close Project. Start again and reproduce the same error with
the same steps.

If you can do that, and document it up to that website, you will really be
helping. Of course, you have just as much time as the rest of us....that
being nothing.
--
If this post was helpful, please consider rating it.

Jim
It''s software; it''s not allowed to win.

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for FAQs and more information
about Microsoft Project

Wow...6.5 months after the first report and still no progress on
fixing this?

 

[AJBopp]

Well, being a software tester by trade, I understand the need to
document how to replicate a problem. My issue is that that it seems
more difficult to not reproduce than to reproduce. I've had to
uninstall 2007 and revert to 2003, so there's not much more I can do
to narrow down the steps beyond what I've already done. However, I do
have examples I could share if you can give me a place to send them.

I have the original file that is not corrupted, and a corrupted
version of the same file. The only difference that there *should* be
between the two files in that I deleted line 22. The corrupt file is
10K larger than the original one (there are appx 30 additional tasks
that are mysteriously created in the corrupt file). The files are
roughly 260K. Comparing the two files in Notepad (a poor test, I know)
I can see that in the corrupt file there is a significant amount of
extra data at the end. For example, in the good file, the end of the
file looks like this in Notepad:

{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss
\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}}
{\*\generator Riched20 12.0.4518.1014;}\viewkind4\uc1
\pard\qc\f0\fs16 Page &P\par
}
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss
\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}}
{\*\generator Riched20 12.0.4518.1014;}\viewkind4\uc1
\pard\f0\fs16 Project: &p\par
Date: &D\par
}

But in the corrupt file there is about 5.25K of largely unprintable
text after the block of text above.

Anyway, if there is a place I can send these files that it would be of
help, I'll be happy to do so.

AJ

 

[JulieS]

Hello Shrivathsa,

I cannot see the message you are referring to. So, let's start at
the beginning -- do you have service pack 1 and the infrastructure
update installed to Project 2007?

I hope this helps. Let us know how you get along.

Julie
Project MVP

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for the FAQs and additional
information about Microsoft Project

 

[&e7]

Does anyone know what causes this?

I just had a catrasrophic failure on my project file in 2007. It's been
dodgy for a while and I've tried all the usual things to try to rid it of
whatever hidden corruption has been in the file for some time. It seems to
happen mostly when saving, it saved out 1.5 Gb of junk then crashed.

I had to resort to copying and pasting as many columns of data as I could
from my last viewable copy of the file into a brand new blank file. Although
the indent levels couldn't be copied, so I had to write a bit of VBA to copy
those from one file to another.

This is a REALLY fristrating problem, and like many who have been bitten by
it before, I now simply don't trust project any more.

Incidntally, I've been saving as 2003 format for the benefit of others on
the team who don't have 2007.

 

[JulieS]

Hello &37,

Do you have SP-1 and the Infrastructure update installed? Start
there.

You don't note specifically what "usual" things you've tried -- Save
as XML?

I hope this helps. Let us know how you get along.

Julie
Project MVP

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for the FAQs and additional
information about Microsoft Project