Question about various versions of Microsoft Project; Project Professional, "Office 365 Version of MPP", Project Server, etc...

Question

I am working as a SME, My manager is trying to host a project plan in SP that will allow for maximum collaboration (more than one user accessing at once). He has in his mind that there is a "Office 365" version of MSP that will allow for this. In my mind Office 365 is simply a collection of Office packages that does not include MPP, notable Excel, Work, Access, etc. The version of MPP that will do what he wants is Microsoft Project Server. I don't believe that we have that. I have discovered something else called Microsoft Project Online which may be what we want, but that has some caveats associated with it. There is some confusion around MPP Professional as well. In my mind, Professional is just the version of MPP that is for professional and not for home use. It is nothing special. it is being mixed up with project server.

So, in my mind there are 2 versions of MPP, perhaps 3 if you include the version for non-professional home use; there is Microsoft Project, Microsoft Project Server, and maybe a version for home use. Is there an Office 365 version?

Any feedback is helpful. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Dear respected John,

Good day! Thank you for posting to Microsoft Community. We are happy to help you.

As per your description, Microsoft Project, (MPP is the file extension for Project files), is a project management software. Here's a breakdown to clarify the different offerings:

Microsoft Project Standard:

This is a standalone version of Microsoft Project designed for a single user.It doesn't include collaboration features that support multiple users working on a single project simultaneously.

Microsoft Project Professional:

This is also a standalone version of Microsoft Project but with additional features to the Standard version, including the ability to collaborate with others through Project Server or Project Online.

Microsoft Project Server: This is an on-premises server solution for project management, which allows multiple users to access and work on projects simultaneously. It's designed for enterprise-level project management and collaboration.

Project for the web:

This is Microsoft's most recent offering, which is also part of the Microsoft 365 suite. It is different from Project Online and offers a more modern experience with a simpler interface.

Microsoft Project Online:

This is a cloud-based solution that operates under the Office 365. It offers similar capabilities to Project Server but is hosted by Microsoft and available on a subscription basis. It allows for collaboration, resource management, scheduling, and more.

These are different subscription plans(Project Plan 1, Plan 3, and Plan 5) within Microsoft 365 that offer varying levels of functionality in Project Online. Plan 1 is the most basic, while Plan 5 includes all features such as demand management and portfolio analysis.

There isn't a separate "Office 365 version" of Microsoft Project, but rather Project Online and Project for the web are offered as part of the Microsoft 365 suite,

As for collaboration and hosting a project plan in SharePoint for multiple users to access at once, Microsoft Project Online would be the solution you're looking for. It integrates with SharePoint Online and allows multiple users to collaborate on project plans.

Appreciate your patience and understanding and thank you for your time and cooperation.

Sincerely,

Waqas Muhammad

Answer 2

John --

Let me see if I can summarize Microsoft's project management tools for you:

1. The Microsoft Project desktop is the "old reliable" PM tool that has been around for decades. I contains all of the functionality need to manage projects of any size and any type. It comes in two flavors: Professional and Standard. The only difference between the tool is that the Professional version is required to connect to either Project Online or Project Server, plus it includes several other features such as Generic resources and the Team Planner view.
2. Project Server and Project Online are Microsoft's PPM (Project Portfolio Management) tools. The primary difference between the two is that Project Server is hosted on your company's own servers, while Project Online is hosted by Microsoft in the cloud. The functionality between the two is nearly identical. Microsoft Project Professional will be used with either Project Online or Project Server, as all projects should be created and managed in Microsoft Project. In Project Server and Project Online, all of the project data is stored in a database (SQL Server DB in Project Server and Azure DB in Project Online), which means that you can do incredible reporting about projects and people using tools like Power BI.
3. Project for the Web is Microsoft's newest PM application. It is aimed at low end, simple projects, managed by people who have little or no project management training or experience. Project for the Web contains a very small subset of the features found in Microsoft Project. For example, Project for the Web does not currently offer baselines, nor will it allow you to track and analyze project variance. The one feature it does have is co-editing, during which multiple PMs can edit the project at the same time. Microsoft Project, Project Online, and Project Server DO NOT offer co-editing.

If you are looking for someone to partner with your organization to implement any of these tools, I hope you will reach out to me and give me an opportunity to earn your business. Thanks! Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Hi respected John,

I'm writing a follow up this case, and I haven’t received any information from you, may I know have you checked reply? Feel free to post back if you need further assistance.

Have a good day and stay safe 😊

Sincerely,

Waqas Muhammad

Answer 4

Hello,

I downloaded a trial of Plan 3 but this looks super basic. Which version is like the classic/desktop version? Is that just "standard" and if so, is there a trial for that?

Answer 5

Waqas;

I very much appreciate your effort in responding to me, as well as Dale's efforts. Your answers were very thorough and informative. It has helped me to successfully establish some coherent strategy in our work environment. If there are any further ideas that I could use feedback on, I will let you know.