Microsoft Project Resources blog

Critical Information about the SharePoint Server 2010 October Cumulative Update

2010-11-11T07:06:00.000-08:00

Please see the posting on the SharePoint blog regarding an issue recently discovered with the October CU for SharePoint Server 2010 that also affects Project Server 2010 - http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sharepoint/archive/2010/11/05/critical-information-about-the-sharepoint-server-2010-october-cumulative-update.aspx. The current recommendation is to not load the CU, and SharePoint have also released details of a workaround if you have already loaded the October CU - http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sharepoint/archive/2010/11/06/details-and-workaround.aspx.

Packages Impacted

The Cumulative Update packages affected are the Server Packages for SharePoint Foundation, SharePoint Server and Project Server 2010, specifically;

• SharePoint Server Package 2394320

• Project Server Package 2394322

The downloads for both of these packages have been removed from our servers. If you have already downloaded them you SHOULD NOT install them. They will be republished.

Issue Details

The October Cumulative Update for the packages listed above makes some changes and updates to the user profile database. Unfortunately there are certain situations where this update does not complete as expected and leaves the update in an inconsistent state. This causes issues with several SharePoint features that use the User Profile Application such as MySites, People and Expertise Search & Ratings.

For details of the workaround please see the SharePoint blog above.

This issue affects the SharePoint features that use the User Profile Application

Project and Project Server August 2010 Cumulative Updates

2010-10-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

Project / Project Server 2007

Individual Product Packages:
•Description of the SharePoint Server 2007 hotfix package (sts-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276469
•Description of the Project Server 2007 hotfix package (Pjsrvapp-x-none.msp; Pjsrvwfe-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276475
•Description of the Office Project 2007 hotfix package (project-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2289175

Server Rollup Packages:
◦Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (WSS server-package): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276474
◦Description of the Office SharePoint Server 2007 Cumulative Update server hotfix package (MOSS server-package): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276472

Project / Project Server2010

Individual Product Packages:
•Description of the SharePoint Foundation 2010 hotfix package (Sts-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2266423
•Description of the SharePoint Server 2010 hotfix package (spswfe-x-none.msp, pplwfe-x-none.msp, osrchwfe-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276339

Note: If you load the Project Server 2010 hotfix 2276341 you will also need to load at least 2266423 listed above. http://blogs.msdn.com/b/brismith/archive/2010/09/17/project-server-2010-applied-august-cu-and-having-problems-with-jsgrid.aspx

•Description of the Project Server 2010 hotfix package (Wosrv-x-none.msp, Pjsrvwfe-x-none.msp, Osrv-x-none.msp): August 31, 2010 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2276341
•No August update for Microsoft Project 2007 Standard or Professional 2010

Server Rollup Packages:
•Description of the SharePoint Foundation 2010 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (SharePoint Foundation server-package): August 31, 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2352346
•Description of the SharePoint Server 2010 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (MOSS server-package): August 31, 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2352342
Note: Does not include Project Server patch

•Description of the SharePoint Server 2010 and Project Server 2010 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (MOSS server-package, Project server-package): August 31, 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2352345

Project Server February Cumulative Update

2010-03-03T10:14:00.000-08:00

The Server CU is released in two different versions. The first version is in Individual Packages specific to a particular product like WSS and Project Server. These are smaller downloads but they do not include language packs or patches for other products so patches for those products would have to be downloaded and installed separately.

The second version is the Server Rollup Packages. This is a set of two rollup packages which contains all the fixes for WSS, Project Server and MOSS. These packages should be used when MOSS is part of the deployment and/or you have language packs installed. The Server Rollup Packages are much larger (~200MB each) but they will greatly simplify MOSS patch deployment.

You can read about the fixes included in the February CU from the following articles:

Server Rollup Packages:

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (WSS server-package): February 23, 2010

Description of the Office SharePoint Server 2007 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (MOSS server-package): February 23, 2010

Individual Product Packages:

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Cumulative Update Server hotfix package (Sts-x-none.msp): February 23, 2010

Description of the Office Project Server 2007 hotfix package (Pjsrvapp-x-none.msp, Pjsrvwfe-x-none.msp): February 23, 2010

Description of the Office Project 2007 hotfix package (Project-x-none.msp): February 23, 2010

Follow-Up Cumulative Update for Project Server:

Note: There has been a follow-up CU build that was released just after the February CU. This CU contains three fixes that are not included in the February CU. Please check http://support.microsoft.com/kb/980854 to see if these are fixes you need. This CU also contains all of the fixes in the February CU so you will not need to install the February CU if you install this fix unless you are a MOSS user. Customers running MOSS will want to install the server rollup fixes and then the post-February CU. This CU will not be downloadable from the KB so you will need to open a Support Case in order to obtain it. Customers with existing cases open for the February CU do not need to open another case.

Note: A shortcut link to download the follow-up CU build directly is http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=980854&kbln=en-us.

New from Microsoft on Project 2010

2009-12-16T11:51:00.000-08:00

Microsoft has released some new documents for those looking forward to the next release of Microsoft Project:

What's new with Project Server 2010? ProjectServer_WhatsNew
Compare Project Server 2010 with earlier versions: EPM 2010 Comparison
What's new with Project Desktop 2010? ProjectDesktop_WhatsNew
Compare Project Desktop 2010 with earlier versions: Project 2010 Comparison

The Microsoft Update Center - an idea that was long overdue

2009-11-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

We've talked about this for ages: a site where all the updates that Microsoft makes available to partners like ourselves and anyone else who takes the time to go looking for them but in an easy to access index.

Well, Microsoft's ears must have been burning cause here it is:

The Update Center has updates for Microsoft Office (including Microsoft Project), Servers (including Microsoft Project Server) and "related products.

Microsoft unveils Project 2010 Beta

2009-11-28T17:17:00.000-08:00

Yes, you too can get a preview of what’s coming in Microsoft Project 2010. Microsoft has released the beta for Microsoft Project Professional 2010 and Microsoft Project Server 2010. We’ve seen these products in the office for some time as HMS is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner who has the Microsoft EPM Competency plus I worked on Microsoft’s EPM Partner Advisory Council for years and completed my participation on that council only recently.

But now you can start seeing what will be coming in the new product.

Among functionality that I think will be well received you’ll see:

In Project Professional:

Timeline View. This is like the Visio timeline bar that many people like for summary views
Team Planner. This interactive view lets team managers drag and drop tasks onto a team member’s schedule
The ribbon menu (also known as the fluid user interface)

In Project Server:

Integrated Portfolio and Project Server functionality. Yes, they’re together at last.
Project Data Pages. Not enough has been said about these but I think they may end up being the most powerful aspect of what people will now do with Project Server. The PDPs let you create forms to gather data and then use workflow to move data into different parts of the EPM system based on the context of the data at that stage of the workflow.

You can find the beta for Project Professional 2010 at: www.microsoft.com/project/2010/en/us/default.aspx.

The Project Server 2010 beta is at: www.microsoft.com/global/project/2010/en/us/RichMedia/secondary/server_home.html.

What’s coming in Project Desktop 2010?

2009-10-18T10:09:00.001-07:00

(Crossposted from my EPMGuidace blog:http://www.epmguidance.com/)

With all the talking I’ve done about Project Server 2010 and its new functionality, I didn’t want to forget about Project Desktop. The desktop versions of Project 2007 are still divided into two flavours: Standard and Professional but there are a few differences and some interesting new features.

First of all, Standard and Professional 2010 will be available in both 32bit and 64bit versions. If a 64bit architecture doesn’t sound attractive you’ve never loaded a mega project into Project Standard. The great news about a 64bit environment and a 64bit version of Project is that it can access memory beyond the 2GB limit of 32bit. If you are loading large projects or many projects as part of a program then this is a huge improvement.

One change that is common to both Project Standard 2010 and Project Professional 2010 is the Fluent UI – you may have heard this referred to as the Menu Ribbon. This new feature was completely expected since the release of the Ribbon in Office 2007. The ribbon will make the look and feel of Project Desktop match the rest of Office.

The new Timeline view is one of my favourites. It shows a single bar at the top of the screen very similar to the timeline object in Visio that represents the entire project schedule. A zoom control shows how much of the total timeline bar is being shown in the schedule at the bottom. Want to zoom to the 2nd half of the schedule? Want to see the whole schedule? Want to slide forward to the end of the year?

In previous versions of Project Standard vs. Project Professional the major distinction was Project Professional’s ability to connect to Project Server. That distinction is still present in Project Desktop 2007. However, there are several features in Project Professional that will not be present in Project Standard. Microsoft sees this as an opportunity to entice users to move up from Standard to Professional. These “Project Professional only” features include:

One of the other features that’s sure to be popular with Project Desktop 2010 is the enhancement to the copy/paste functionality. Now tasks from Excel can be copied and pasted while retaining formatting and other key data.

Team Planner View
This new view in Project Professional 2010 is a new dynamic view in the desktop application that shows unassigned tasks in one window and above it a list of tasks organized by resource. So a team leader can see the existing work for their team and then drag tasks into the schedule of their team.

Inactive Tasks
A much-requested feature that appears in Project Professional 2010 but not in Standard 2010 is the ability to declare a task as inactive without having to delete it. An inactive task will no longer affect the schedule but it may contain critical information such as actual costs or baseline information that we’d like to maintain.

Sync with SharePoint tasks
Project Professional 2010 will include an ability to load a list of tasks from SharePoint and then to keep that schedule synchronized with the SharePoint list.

What about backwards compatibility?
You’ll be happy to know that Project Standard and Professional 2010 are able not only to open a Project Standard or Professional 2007 with reduced functionality in a compatibility mode and save the files in the older format. The new desktop tools can also open and save data in Project 2000-2003 or Project 98 formats. Project Standard and Professional 2010 can even create a new project and save it in these older formats. Of course some functionality may not be available in these older compatibility formats.

There’s lots more but as you can see there’s been a big focus on the Desktop for the 2010 release!.

Stand by for Project 2010 news...

2009-09-14T20:47:00.001-07:00

I'm at the Microsoft Project Conference this week where shortly there''ll be a bunch of news to share on Project 2010. Until Wednesday, September 17th however, mum's the word as everyone is under NDA to not share any details.

I'll be publishing a number of posts on my EPM Guidance blog at http://www.epmguidance.com/ starting Wednesday so stop by there to find out more.

Project Conference 2009 in Phoenix next week

2009-09-11T09:01:00.001-07:00

Stay tuned. Updates from the Microsoft Project Conference 2009 in Phoenix Arizona will be in this space next week as it happens.

Project and Project Server August 2009 Cumulative Update

2009-09-08T16:13:00.001-07:00

Microsoft has released a new cumluative update for Project 2007 and Project Server 2007. dated August 25, 2009. Information on the key elements is linked below. See Microsoft's guidance on deploying cumulative updates for more information on how to deploy these updates if they're applicable to you. The links below include both descriptions and download links so you can see if fixes you require are included in this cumulative update.

Office 2007 Cumulative Update for August 2009

Description of the Project 2007 hotfix package (Project.msp): August 25, 2009
Download of the Project 2007 hotfix package (Project.msp): August 25, 2009

Description of the Project Server 2007 hotfix package (Pjsrvapp.msp, Pjsrvwfe.msp): August 25, 2009
Download of the Project Server 2007 hotfix package (Pjsrvapp.msp, Pjsrvwfe.msp): August 25, 2009

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (Sts.msp): August 25, 2009
Download of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (Sts.msp): August 25, 2009

Description of the SharePoint Server 2007 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (Coreserver.msp): August 25, 2009
Download of the SharePoint Server 2007 Cumulative Update Server Hotfix Package (Coreserver.msp): August 25, 2009

2009-07-24T07:55:00.000-07:00

If you are using Project Portfolio Server 2007, then you’ll be happy to hear that Service Pack 2 is now available.

Key new features:

Support for SQL 2008

Support for Portfolio Server on Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V

Plus:

Over 40 fixes which are described here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971363

Go to the Project Portfolio Server 2007 SP2 download page to access the service pack. If you have trouble with that page, get the download directly from here here.

A description of the service pack can be found at: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971205

Getting blogs to link

2009-07-11T12:20:00.000-07:00

I'm spending a few minutes getting the blogs I'm contributing to or writing to connect to each other. For those who care about such things, here's where those are:

EPM Guidance
This is my main blogsite where you'll find the bulk of articles I've written, information about Microsoft Project and the other project management tools I've had experience with and my general ramblings and rants about project management systems.

Microsoft Project Resources blog
This site. I needed a place to keep track of the incredible volume of material that comes out of Microsoft and its partners about Microsoft Project and Project Server and it's foolhardy to think that just because I found it somewhere else once that I'll be able to find it there again.

TimeControl blog
This is where I'm working with the HMS Software staff to write about tips, techniques, best practices and news about enterprise timesheet systems in general and TimeControl in particular.

Technorati link: fjy2e4nkr8

Enterprise Global issue with Microsoft Project Server 2007 SP2

2009-07-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

The Microsof Office Project Support blog is reporting an issue that has appeared for users of Project Server 2007, Service Pack 2 and its connectivity to Project Professional when trying to update the Enterprise Global settings.

There is a fix in the pipeline which should see the light of day in August which we will report to you here.

There is both a description of the problem and Microsoft’s suggested workaround.
Description:The problem and fix is for Project Professional 2007, but only in an Enterprise environment with connectivity to Project Server 2007. the views that are referenced here are the views within the client application.

When you open the Enterprise Global from Tools, Enterprise Options, Open Enterprise Global and then go to edit a view (View, More Views) you will find that the view it brings up for editing is not the one you thought you should see, but a random view from the list.

Suggested Workaround:The suggested workaround is that those few administrative users who need the ability to open the enterprise global should hold off installing SP2, but instead install SP2 with the August Cumulative Update when it becomes available.

If you have already upgraded to SP2 then just for those few admins who need to open the EGT you could return to pre-SP2. First make sure that for the user who needs to be “downgraded” that their projects are checked in, then uninstall Project Professional, then remove your cache files from :\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Microsoft\MS Project\Cache (or for Vista and Windows 7 users :\Users\\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\MS Project\Cache) and then re-install to the level you were at prior to SP2.

The reason for checking in your projects first is that deleting from the Cache will lose any local changes that have not been saved.

If you prefer not to go dabbling and deleting in the OS then another option would be to create a new connection account that would then give you a brand new cache. This refers to the account you set up in Office Project Professional 2007 on the Microsoft Office Project Server Accounts page. You can access this page by clicking the Tools menu and then clicking Enterprise Options.
For more information on the local cache can be found at Understanding the Local Project Cache feature.

TimeControl Timesheet blog

2009-05-27T10:23:00.001-07:00

We've started a blog for those interested in HMS Software's TimeControl timesheet system or generally in the timesheet industry. You can find it at blog.timecontrol.org. For those who are looking beyond the Project Server timesheet for a timesheet that will link to Project Standard, Project Professional and Project Server and which also includes the financial controls to link to Finance ERP systems such as Microsoft Dynamics, SAP or Oracle Financials, then TimeControl may be of interest. More information on TimeControl can be found at http://www.timecontrol.com/ and best practices about timesheets and in particular the TimeControl timesheet can be found at the new blog at blog.timecontrol.org.

SP2 converts SharePoint into Trial version

2009-05-21T10:10:00.000-07:00

News out of Microsoft today that we've already seen here with at least one client. It seems that upgrading your Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) or Microsoft Project Server environments to SP2 results in your SharePoint environment being converted back into a Trial version. If not changed back, you may see a message saying that "the trial edition will expire in October 2009" or to some other date or even "trial edition has expired".

The fix is pretty easy. You'll need to re-enter the Product Key in the WSS Central Administration page.

April 2009 Cumulative Update

2009-05-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

Please refer to this TechNet article for deployment guidance: Deploy cumulative updates (Project Server 2007)

After applying the April CU, the database version should be: 12.0.6504.5000 (see article above for instructions on how to verify the installation).

Please refer to this post from the Office Sustain Engineering team for more information about SP2 and the April CU: FAQ concerning Service Pack 2 and the Cumulative Updates for April 2009 for the 2007 Microsoft® Office System and Microsoft Office servers

Knowledge Base Articles and Downloads

Description of the Project 2007 hotfix package (Project.msp): April 30, 2009
969409
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/969409
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=969409

Description of the Project Server 2007 hotfix package (Pjsrvapp.msp, Pjsrvwfe.msp): April 30, 2009
968860
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968860
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=968860

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 cumulative update package: April 30, 2009
968850
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968850
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=968850

Description of the SharePoint Server 2007 cumulative update package (MOSS server-package): April 30, 2009
968859
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968859
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=968859

Related links:
Deploy cumulative updates (Project Server 2007)
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd239177.aspx
Checklist for deploying Project Server 2007 updates
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd630729.aspx

For more information consult my blog at: http://www.epmguidance.com/?page_id=391.

Project 2007 Service Pack 2 (April 2009)

2009-04-29T09:19:00.000-07:00

Description of Office Project 2007 Service Pack 2 and Office Project Language Pack 2007 Service Pack 2
953326
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/953326

Description of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Service Pack 2 and of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Language Pack Service Pack 2
953338
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/953338

Description of the 2007 Microsoft Office servers Service Pack 2 and the 2007 Microsoft Office servers Language Pack Service Pack 2
953334
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/953334

Service Pack 2 (SP2) Download Center Page
Office Project 2007 (x86)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=C126FA4A-B43F-4F7E-A9D4-522E92A6CFEE

Office Project Language Pack
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=B7DF323E-73B8-4344-826A-A01E6F920B1B

WSS (both x86 and x64)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=79BADA82-C13F-44C1-BDC1-D0447337051B&displaylang=en

WSS Language Pack (x86)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=085E5AC8-58F6-4CF9-8012-33B95EE36C0F&displaylang=en

WSS Language Pack (x64)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=2C2B6CAF-B46D-45EB-AC4D-DEAAA48C3A2C&displaylang=en

Office Servers (x86 and x64)
(contains Project Server SP2)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=B7816D90-5FC6-4347-89B0-A80DEB27A082&displaylang=en

Office Servers Language Pack (x86)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=01C6A3E8-E110-4956-903A-AD16284BF223&displaylang=en

Office Servers Language Pack (x64)
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=66C5026F-9F47-4642-8378-2526918009FA&displaylang=en

Service Pack 2 (SP2) Deployment Resources
Deploy Service Pack 2 for Office Project Server 2007
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd637740.aspx

Deploy Project Server 2007 updates
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd630752.aspx

Deploy software updates for Windows SharePoint Services 3.0
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc288269.aspx

Deploy software updates for Office SharePoint Server 2007
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc263467.aspx

Create an installation source that includes software updates (Windows SharePoint Services 3.0)
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc287882.aspx

Create an installation source that includes software updates (Office SharePoint Server 2007)
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc261890.aspx

Service Pack 2 (SP2) Related Technical Resources
Issues Fixed by Service Pack 2 (SP2) in the 2007 Office Desktop Applications (Excel 2007 format)
http://download.microsoft.com/download/C/2/C/C2C36159-600C-4EEA-B80A-F988EE7A418F/2007%20Office%20Service%20Pack%202%20Changes.xlsx

Customers can also go to this KB article for a full list of downloads for Office System 2007 SP2.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968170

Service Pack 2 for SharePoint Products and Technologies (whitepaper)
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=148374

Issues Fixed by Service Pack 2 (SP2) in Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (Excel 2007 format)
http://download.microsoft.com/download/7/A/3/7A3E2E01-5454-4427-95CB-28CE84523B0A/Windows%20SharePoint%20Services%203.0%20Service%20Pack%202%20Changes.xlsx

Issues Fixed by Service Pack 2 (SP2) in the 2007 Office Server Products
http://download.microsoft.com/download/4/1/F/41F3A698-55E8-40B4-A306-AD6CF1F95394/2007%20Office%20Servers%20Service%20Pack%202%20Changes.xlsx

Updates Resource Center for SharePoint Products and Technologies
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb735839.aspx

Project Service Pack 2 High Level Benefits:
Project Standard and Project Professional
The scheduling engine, Active Cache, and Gantt charts all have improvements.
There is additional reliability with earlier versions of the .mpp format.

Project Server
Better memory management in the queue service.
Performance to certain database table indexes is improved.
Resource plans, build team, cost resources, and the server scheduling engine have improved.
Once your farm has been properly updated the new SP2 product version will be: 12.0.6422.1000 (please refer to the TechNet deployment article for instructions on how to verify an installation).

March 2009 Cumulative Fixes

2009-03-29T09:23:00.000-07:00

Guidance on loading Project Server 2007 Cumulative Hotfixes

Description of March 2009 Project Server Hotfixes

Download March 2009 Project Server Hotfixes

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 cumulative update package: February 24, 2009

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 cumulative update package: February 24, 2009

Description of the SharePoint Server 2007 cumulative update package (MOSS server-package): February 24, 2009

Download of the SharePoint Server 2007 cumulative update package (MOSS server-package): February 24, 2009