Subproject will not open

[KatiefromAurora]

I work with a team of people and we help manage a plan in Microsoft Project
2003. The plan is huge, so it has been broken into several subprojects.
Once in awhile, a few of the subproject plans will not open. When we go to
open them, an error pops up that reads "project not found", or wording
similar to that. If we try to select the subproject within the main plan, we
get the same error. We have had to rebuild a few of these subprojects. Is
there a reason why this keeps happening? Our links within the subprojects
seem correct. Could it have something to do with any changes made to the
main plan? Any help will be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[John]

I work with a team of people and we help manage a plan in Microsoft Project
2003. The plan is huge, so it has been broken into several subprojects.
Once in awhile, a few of the subproject plans will not open. When we go to
open them, an error pops up that reads "project not found", or wording
similar to that. If we try to select the subproject within the main plan, we
get the same error. We have had to rebuild a few of these subprojects. Is
there a reason why this keeps happening? Our links within the subprojects
seem correct. Could it have something to do with any changes made to the
main plan? Any help will be appreciated. Thank you.

KatiefromArurora,
Linked files in Project are rather fragile and subject to corruption
unless set up and maintained with rigorous discipline. First of all, all
the files should ideally be in a single folder on a single PC. Second,
do not move the files around. Third, do not save off linked files for
backup. By not following the above, your linked file structure is
subject to bloat and eventual corruption.

Simply making changes to individual files or to the master file should
not cause any problems. But, if you make changes to a subproject through
the master, I recommend you then also open that subproject individually
and use Save As to the same filename and then save the master. That
helps limit file bloat and preserves the integrity of the link structure.

Finally, if you are working with a large team and a huge Project file,
you might want to consider switching to Project Server. It is
specifically set up for enterprise projects.

Hope this helps.

John
Project MVP

 

[KatiefromAurora]

I have a few more questions on this topic.

We are not changing anything in the master, but sometimes formatting changes
are made (i.e. headings, margins). Would those changes corrupt the file?

Below in John's response it is mentioned to save everything in a single
folder on a single PC. Everything is in a single folder, but it is on a
shared corporate directory. Is that ok?

Also written below, it is mentioned to not save off linked files for back
up. Can I get clarification on this? What does that mean? IT backs up our
organization's files weekly.

Thanks again for any help.