| Some of the most common problems that arise in the Project 2003 implementation are related to security, accessibility, and data errors. This section outlines some of the most common scenarios and the appropriate fixes for the problems. Project Web Access Administrator Account Does Not Work As Expected Possible causes: Improper IIS and Windows Server security. Improper IIS integration with Project Server. SQL Server database for Project Server is not operational. Core Project Server ASPs are not installed and are not functioning. Connection Manager Service is not operational. Project Server does not recognize user machine configuration details. User account on local machine cannot download and install ActiveX components. ActiveX downloads were not installed as expected.
Suggested remedy is to check the installation and make sure that the user has enough security permissions on IIS and Windows Server.  PAGE 109.
Cannot Create Project Web Access Windows-Authenticated Accounts Possible causes: Improper Project Server and Windows Server security integration. Improper IIS integration with Project Server. Project Server accounts: MSProjectServerUser is not functioning.
Suggested remedies: Check domain names and usernames. Make sure that users have proper security permission on Project Server and Windows Server. Check the Project Server and Windows Server installation.
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Timesheets Do Not Show Expected Data Entry Mode A possible cause for this is that Project Web Access (PWA) Tracking Settings were not configured properly. Suggested remedies: Project Managers Cannot Open a Schedule in Project Professional 2003 When Clicking on the Project in Line in Project Web Access Possible causes: Suggested remedies: User belongs to a group that has permission to open the schedule. User is assigned to a category that allows users to open a project. Project Professional is installed and that it connects to Project Server.
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Resource Managers Cannot See Any Resource Information Possible causes: Suggested remedies: Check permissions and make sure that the user belongs to a group that has permission to see the resource information. Make sure that the user is assigned to a category that allows users to see the resource information and that the user is assigned to the appropriate branch of the RBS.
Some Users Can Access Project Portfolio Feature Although They Are Not Supposed to See It A possible cause of this problem is that the user belongs to a group that has permission to access Portfolio Analyzer. Suggested remedies: Check permissions on security template for the group and the categories that the user can access. Make sure that the user does not have access to Portfolio Analyzer through a combination of groups and categories permissions.
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Project Portfolio Security Issue It is possible that project managers can access Project Portfolio, and they can see all projects and resources, although they are not supposed to see them according to the categories that they can access. A possible cause for this problem is that categories do not control individual settings for Portfolio Analyzer. A suggested remedy for this is when a user is granted access to Portfolio Analyzer, she can view all projects and resources in the enterprise and their respective metrics. User Cannot See the Projects and Resources According to His Group Security Permissions Possible causes: Suggested remedies: Check the groups' permissions and make sure that the groups can access the right categories. PAGE 209.
TIP If a set of resources has special data permission needs, create a new group and assign the new category to it before assigning the special resources to the group. This method makes security management significantly easier than maintaining the security system based on a mix of group and individual user permissions.
Make sure that the appropriate views have been defined and that the user groups can access these views.
User Cannot Save a Project Schedule As a Template A possible cause is that the user does not have sufficient permission to save a project template in the groups to which she belongs. Suggested remedies: Check the security templates of the relevant groups for the user. Check the security permission (Save Project Template) for the groups relevant to the user. This permission allows users to create and save a project as an Enterprise Project Template from Project Professional to the Project Server database.
User Does Not Receive Email Notification When She Has Been Assigned a New Task Possible causes: Project Server is not properly processing the alerts. Project Server connections to SMTP email are not functioning correctly. The user cleared the check boxes in the Notification section that allow the system to send email notifications.
Suggested remedies: User Cannot See Documents, Risks, and Issues Possible causes: Windows SharePoint Services site links are not created, and WSS is not functioning as expected. User does not have access to view Documents, Risks, and Issues.
Suggested remedies: Check to make sure that Project Server and Windows SharePoint Services integration is functioning correctly. Verify that the Windows SharePoint Services SQL Server configuration database is working properly. Make sure that Windows SharePoint Services SQL Server database repository for documents is enabled. Check to make sure that the COM+ subsystem is functioning properly. Ensure that the Project Server and Windows SharePoint Services database table cross-references are updated as expected. Check the security permissions (View Documents, View Issues) assigned to user. Make sure that the user is granted permission to View Risks, Issues, and Documents in the categories that he or she can access.
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User Cannot Delegate Tasks Possible causes: Suggested remedies: Check the security permissions (Delegate Task) for the groups relevant to the user. Check with the system administrator to make sure that denying delegation at the server level is an appropriate setting. Ensure that the user is not a member of a category that allows users to Assign Resources.
User Cannot Create a New Task and Insert It Into Any Available Project A possible cause for this problem is that the user does not have sufficient security permissions to create a new project task. Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that the user is allowed by the business process to create a new task. Check the security permissions (New Project Task) for the groups relevant to the user. This is a global permission that allows users to access the Create a New Task page in the Tasks center of PWA. Check the security permissions to make sure that the user has access to the projects to which he wants to create and insert the task.
Users Cannot Assign Themselves to an Existing Task in Projects That Have Been Published to Project Server A possible cause for this problem is that users do not have sufficient security permissions to assign themselves to an existing project task. Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that users are allowed by the business process to assign themselves to a project task. Check the security permissions (New Task Assignment) for the groups relevant to the user. This is a global permission that allows users to access the Assign Myself to an Existing Task page in the Tasks center of PWA. Check the security permissions to make sure that the user has access to the projects to which he wants to create and insert the task. Users must also have the category permission Create New Tasks or Assignment, and they must also have access to the projects to which they want to assign themselves.
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Users Cannot Manage Status Report Requests A possible cause for this problem is that the user does not have sufficient security permissions to manage Status Report requests. Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that the user is allowed by the business process to manage status report requests. Check the security permission (Manage Status Report Requests) for the groups relevant to the user. This is global permission that allows users to access the Request a Status Report feature and to view team reports. Check the security permission (View Status Report List) to make sure that the user can view the list of status reports.
MERGING STATUS REPORTS The Merge check box shown in the Resources Who Should Respond box defines whether the response from each individual automatically is included in the consolidated status report group. If you want to review the responses before adding them to a consolidated report, leave the check box unchecked. |
User Cannot Create and Manage To-Do Lists A possible cause for this problem is that users do not have sufficient security permissions to create and manage To-Do lists. Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that the user is allowed by the business process to create and manage To-Do lists. Check the security permissions (Create and Manage To-Do List) for the groups relevant to the user. This is a global permission that allows users to access the Manage My To-Do Lists and Create a New Personal or Shared To-Do List pages in Project. If the user needs to assign activities on her To-Do list to other members of the team, they need to be granted the Assign To-Do List Tasks global permission. This is necessary to make available to the user a list of individuals that she can assign the To-Do list activities.
User Cannot Find a Specific Task That He Was Working on in His Timesheet A possible cause for this problem is that the user hid, intentionally or by mistake, the specified task. A task that has been deleted using the Hide Task method removes the item from the Project Server database, but it will not be deleted from the actual project schedule. To make it visible again, the project manager must republish the project schedule to the Project Server database. User Cannot Add a New Resource to His Project/Organization A possible cause for this problem is that the user has insufficient security rights to add new resources. Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that users are allowed by the business process to add new resources. Check the security permissions (New Resource) for the groups relevant to the user. This permission allows users to add new resources to the Enterprise Resource Pool using Project Professional or the Project Data Service (PDS). If your organization is using the Active Directory synchronization feature, it is better to deny this permission and grant it only to IT administrators in your organization.
Team Member Did Not Get His Task Assignment on the Timesheet Page, Although the Project Manager Saved the Project Schedule A possible cause of this problem is that new task assignments have not been published to Project Server. To remedy this situation, the project manager must publish the task assignments for the team members to be able to see these assignments on their timesheet. Project Managers Cannot Change the Method for Reporting Progress on Projects A possible cause of this problem is that business processes have been defined to "not allow" project managers to change the default method for reporting progress. Suggested remedies: Make sure that Tracking Settings have not been set to Force Project Managers to Use the Progress Reporting Method Specified Above for All Projects. If this is the case, project managers cannot change the progress reporting method. Select the Allow Project Managers to Change the Default Method for Reporting Progress If a Different Method Is Appropriate for a Specific Project option in the Tracking Settings page.
Project Managers Cannot Save the Baseline Possible causes: Suggested remedies: Check with the system administrator to make sure that users are allowed by the business process to save the baseline for the project. Check the security permissions (Save Baseline) for the groups relevant to the user. This permission allows users to save a baseline or clear a baseline associated with an enterprise project published to the Project Server database. Make sure that users have the category permission Save Project, and they must also have access to the projects to which they want to save the baseline.
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