Chapter 9: Configuring Project Server Application Options

Overview

In the previous chapter you learned the basics you need to proceed with configuration. Assuming that you’ve done your requirements homework, you should be ready to dive in. The order in which you do things, to some degree, makes a difference. I suggest that you approach things in this order:

1. Create custom fields.

2. Set application options.

3. Configure security.

4. Import resources.

5. Import projects.

6. Build custom views.

Beginning with your field customizations makes sense because you’ll need these to apply to your resources and projects, and because your custom views are likely to be dependent on them. It’s time to introduce a model for this configuration discussion, as it’s much easier to understand examples when they come together as a whole.

I expect that about half this book’s readers are involved in the information technology (IT) field. IT challenges beg for project-based solutions. An IT department for a growing company serves as the deployment example for this and the rest of the chapters in this part. The example is oversimplified, but deep enough to demonstrate the power of the solution when configured correctly.

In this chapter you’ll learn how to set Project Server’s application options to best serve your company’s needs. I assume that you’ve created your custom fields. The fields shown in Table 9-1 make up the custom fields and outline codes configured in your sample system.

Table 9-1: Custom Fields and Outline Codes for an Example IT Department

FIELD LABEL	FIELD	MANDATORY	VALUES	DEFAULT	NOTES
Project
Program	EPOC01	N	Process Imp, Supply Chain, HR Sys, WinXP Upg,Whse Upg, Maintenance	N/A	Describes program the project belongs to
Sponsor	EPOC02	Y	Gen Business, Finance, Logistics, HR, IT, Purchasing, Marketing, Stores	N/A	Consumer of project work product
PM	EPOC03	Y	J. Murray, K. Patel, M. Berg
Phase	EPOC04	Y	Request, Approved, Discovery, Design, Development/Quality, Delivery, Complete
Resource
Location	EROC01	Y	LA, Chgo, NYC, Balt, Buffalo	N/A
Skill	EROC02,SK	Y	Proj Mgr, Anal Mgr, Q/A Mgr, Sys Mgr, Architect, DBA, Analyst, P/A, P/A Lead, Q/A, Q/A Lead, Sysop, Sysop Lead, Security, Security Lead, SME, Stakeholder
System	EROC03, SH:EPOC02	Y
RBS	EROC30	Y	Dev Mgr > Dev, Q/A Mgr > Q/A, Sys Mgr > Sys, Anal Mgr > Anal
Task
Phase	ETOC01, SH:EPOC04	Y