Microsoft Project 2013: The Missing Manual

Linking Tasks

Task dependencies (a.k.a. task links or task relationships) are what transform a ragtag group of tasks into a well-mannered project schedule, so Project offers several ways to create and modify all types of task dependencies. This section describes your options and the pros and cons of each one, and then walks you through several methods for creating task dependencies, starting with the most common type—finish-to-start.

How Tasks Affect One Another

Clearly defined task dependencies are essential to creating an easy-to-maintain schedule. Like a baton passed from one relay runner to the next, the start or finish date of one task (the predecessor) determines when the second task (the successor) starts or finishes. (That doesn’t necessarily mean the predecessor task starts before the successor—the predecessor task is just the one that triggers the start or finish of the successor.)

When you get your task dependencies in place (and use Project’s automatic scheduling), project tasks snuggle cozily into sequence, and the program can automatically calculate task start and finish dates—and from those, the end date of the entire project.

As Figure 7-5 illustrates, Project indicates task dependencies with small arrows showing how the start or end point of each task relates to the start or end of another.

Figure 7-5. Although the tasks in a relationship are called successor and predecessor, ...