Copying Tasks across Projects in Project Server -

[Ubernacht]

Okay - So i have a reproduceable error trying to copy tasks across projects.

Repro -
1. Open Project A (Master Project turned on)
2. Insert Project B
3. Select the entire row or rows of tasks from Project B and Right-click/Copy.
4. Insert enough empty rows in Project A and Right-click/Paste Special.
Select 'Paste Link' and 'Text Data'.

NOTICE - The Pasted tasks have the correct gray triangle in lower right
corner of the Task Name field indicated the function has worked.

5. Delete Project B (The inserted Project).
6. Save Project A.


RESULT - Project Crashes.

Is this common in Project Server now? Is there a work-around so I can paste
dynamic links between projects? As far as I'm concerned, this is critical
functionality and I'm tempted to return to using file sharing for these
results.

 

[Rod Gill]

This is common in any version of project!! Paste link uses old DDE
information and information about the link is stored at both ends of the
link, in your case in Project A and Project B. If you delete your copy of
Project B (the one inserted into the master) then you corrupt the link and
this often corrupts one or both projects and in this case project itself.

With paste link you have to be VERY careful you never rename either file,
over-write or move it. Doing so will corrupt sooner or later (but not every
time.

Note that if you are using Project Server 2003 master projects are not
recommended as they cause all sorts of data problems.

--

Rod Gill
Project MVP

Project VBA Book, for details visit:
http://www.projectvbabook.com

NEW!! Web based VBA training course delivered by me. For details visit:
http://projectservertraining.com/learning/index.aspx

 

[Ubernacht]

Thanks for the information.

So if i'm hearing correctly, one is not supposed to use this feature. Since
'Link to External Task' is not an option on Project Server, then how am I to
create these dynamic links between projects?

Simply creating links between my tasks does not give me the aggregate or
summary views across multiple tasks.

Since I am forced to 'Insert' an entire project into the master rather than
just a task, I am unable to arrange the subset of these tasks from each and
so I delete the inserted projects after I have made the copies.

This will corrupt the projects?

Can you provide an alternate method of achieving the desired results -?

thanks again

 

[Dale Howard [MVP]]

Ubernacht --

As Rod clearly pointed out, you started down the wrong path. Refer to the
following FAQ for the correct procedure:

http://www.projectserverexperts.com/Shared Documents/interprojectlinks.htm

Hope this helps.