Duration of Critical Path in MS Project

[Aravind G]

Hi,

Can anyone clearly explain how to calculate the duration of critical path in
MS Project? I use Project 2007.

 

[Rob Schneider]

Simplistically, display the critical path in a Gantt Chart and show
start and finish dates in the columns. Subtract the computed start date
of the first task on the critical path from the date of the computed
finish date of the last task on the critical path. That will be the
duration in calendar days. Remove any non-working days between these
those two dates to get the duration in work days.

--rms

www.rmschneider.com

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi Aravind ,

Welcome to this Microsoft Project newsgroup

Try Tools/Options.../View tab and at the bottom select to show the project
summary. This summary task shows the Duration for you.

FAQs, companion products and other useful Project information can be seen at
this web address: http://project.mvps.org/faqs.htm

Hope this helps - please let us know how you get on

Mike Glen
MS Project MVP
See http://tinyurl.com/2xbhc for my free Project Tutorials

 

[Steve House]

Easiest and fastest method. Display the Project Summary Task (Tools /
Options menu, View tab, lower right-hand corner, turn on the checkbox Show
Project Summary Task). This adds a zero'th level summary task at the top of
the Gantt chart task list running from project start to project end. Look
in the duration field. Since the critical path is the sequence of tasks
whose length determines the project completion date, its duration is the
duration of the Project Summary task. Of course for this to work, it
assumes your project's task network is set up correctly (the project has at
least a start milestone and a finish milestone and all activities have at
least one predecessor and one successor - if no other activity is a task's
predecessor, the start milestone is its predecessor and if no other activity
is a task's successor, the finish milestone is. It also assumes there are
no constrained tasks within the project that cause the critical path to
begin later in the project than at its start - SNET constraints are
particularly troublesome in that regard. Then you have to decide just
exactly what you are looking for when you ask the "the duration of the
critical path" - is it the duration of the project or the sum of the
durations of the tasks that lie on the critical path.