Inserting Sub-Project - "Already linked through another task chain" error

Question

Hi,

I am trying to insert an unlinked sub-project into a master project and I am receiving the following error "these tasks can't be linked because they're already linked through another task chain".

I have done some investigating essentially stripping down the (sub-)project into a small number of tasks and have found that the source of the error is due to the fact that I have more than one task with the same predecessor (i.e the project kick off milestone task).

Is there a way-around to prevent this error? If I ignore this error when I link the sub-project kick-off milestone task to the master project kick-off milestone task the tasks in the sub-project do not update to follow sequentially and remain with the same dates in the sub-project.

My intention is to add a number of large sub-projects consisting of multiple tasks within summary tasks.

Thankyou in advance

Answer 1

Hi John,

Thankyou for your reply.

I was in the process of replying and trying to figure out what I was doing wrong as it seemed such a simple thing. However, coincidentally I have had an MS office update this morning and now everything seems to be running normal. Exact same files - no issues. 

Thankfully relieved, however lost half my hair in frustration.

Thanks once again.

Answer 2

markymarek80,

You're welcome and thanks for the feedback. I'm glad you got it working.

John

Answer 3

Markymarek80,

Based on your description I'm trying to visualize what you have but without actually seeing your file structure, I can only guess what may be happening.

There is no problem having a project kick off milestone as the predecessor to multiple tasks and there is no problem linking that subproject kick off milestone to a kick off milestone in the master. However, if the link path ends up being duplicated through multiple subprojects I can see the possibility of potential circular relationships if there are also links between subtasks in one subproject with those in another.

You might also see a problem is you used a template to create a series of subprojects and then attempted to insert those into a dynamic master.

If you create a very basic link structure (kick off milestone with a couple of subtasks) in a couple of simple subprojects and then create a dynamic master with its own kick off milestone, can you duplicate the error? And if so, can you send me the files so I can take a first hand look?

John