PSI - Rescheduling a Project

[agriffin]

I am using the PSI for making changes to a project. If a task is getting moved out to a different date to start date, I know that I change the Constraint Type/Date, but if there is already and Actual Start Date entered, the task won't get pushed out. I want to clear that Actual Start Date. How do I do that with the PSI?

[agriffin]

If I run a SQL statement and just clear the TASK_ACT_START field from the SQL Server, that seems to work. However, when I set the Constraint after that, it doesn't seem that the task is always moving with the Constraint.

Using the TaskRow method SetTaskActStartNull() does set the field to null in the DataRow, but it doesn't seem to have any effect on the that task on the Server when I run the QueueUpdateProject and QueuePublish publish methods for the project. The TASK_ACT_START does not change on the server.

Are these Set...Null() methods only for the Nulling the DataRow field, but the Null value is not actually pushed up to the project on the server? I did notice that when I took the project dataset and used the GetXml() method and then looked at the xml for the dataset that when you use the Set..Null() method for any task that the field that you are setting to Null does not show up in the xml. Being that the field is not in the xml, I would assume that there is no update to the field in SQL when project makes the updates.

[ssanderlin]

Originally Posted by agriffin

I am using the PSI for making changes to a project. If a task is getting moved out to a different date to start date, I know that I change the Constraint Type/Date, but if there is already and Actual Start Date entered, the task won't get pushed out. I want to clear that Actual Start Date. How do I do that with the PSI?

The task should only have an Actual Start Date if it has actuals against it. Have you tried changing both the Start Date and Actual Start Date to the new date in addition to changing the Constraint Type/Date and instead of nulling out Actual Start?

I do not believe you can set the Actual Start to NULL if you have actuals in the task (without clearing the actuals).

[agriffin]

The Start Date can not be changed in the PSI, it is read-only. But, I could try changing the Actual Start Date with the Constraint Date in order to make sure that the Start Date gets pushed to where it needs to be.

The client that I am doing this project for is using project at a very basic level, so there shouldn't be any actuals except for the Actual Start Date, Actual Finish Date, and the Work Percent Complete.

[ssanderlin]

Originally Posted by agriffin

The Start Date can not be changed in the PSI, it is read-only. But, I could try changing the Actual Start Date with the Constraint Date in order to make sure that the Start Date gets pushed to where it needs to be.

The client that I am doing this project for is using project at a very basic level, so there shouldn't be any actuals except for the Actual Start Date, Actual Finish Date, and the Work Percent Complete.

D'oh! You are correct -- my mistake.

You can try moving the Actual Start Date and see if that works... you could also try using SetTASK_START_DATENull to clear the Start Date in addition to moving the Actual Start, although I expect that this will not work.

I apologize, I'm not in a position to code a test for you, so I'm doing this from memory.

[agriffin]

That is alright. I will see if this works.