Project Calculation- Manual example

[rad2]

I tried creating an example Project with Project calculation set to MANUAL.

Also, created Project task and child Project task. and played around with changing the planned dates for these tasks. the Project seem to be updated with the child planned task. in the documentation it says

• Dates on tasks do not automatically reflect any changes from dependent tasks.

what dates are not updated automatically. Could anybody help with an example in comparison with Automatic calculation?

[Rajesh_Singh]

@rad2 

when you create a project with the project calculation set to MANUAL, it means that the project dates, such as start and end dates, are not automatically updated based on the tasks and their dependencies. You have to manually update these dates as needed.

On the other hand, when the project calculation is set to AUTOMATIC, the project dates are updated automatically based on the tasks, their start and end dates, and their dependencies. This is helpful for keeping the project on track and ensuring that the project timeline is always accurate.

Here's an example to illustrate the difference between MANUAL and AUTOMATIC calculation:

1. Automatic Calculation:

• Project A has two tasks, Task 1 and Task 2.
• Task 1 has a start date of April 1 and an end date of April 10.
• Task 2 is dependent on Task 1 and has a start date of April 11 and an end date of April 20.
• If Task 1's end date changes to April 15, Task 2's start date will automatically change to April 16, and its end date will change to April 25.
• The project's start date will still be April 1, but its end date will now be April 25.

2. Manual Calculation:

• Project B also has two tasks, Task 3 and Task 4.
• Task 3 has a start date of April 1 and an end date of April 10.
• Task 4 is dependent on Task 3 and has a start date of April 11 and an end date of April 20.
• If Task 3's end date changes to April 15, Task 4's start and end dates will NOT change automatically. You have to manually update the start and end dates of Task 4 and the project's end date.

In your case, when you change the planned dates for the tasks in a project with MANUAL calculation, you need to manually update the project start and end dates, as well as the dates of other dependent tasks. If you want the project dates to be updated automatically based on the tasks and their dependencies, you should use AUTOMATIC calculation.