Archive for September, 2008
RSS Readers will now get my full postings again!
29 September 2008Back in June I flicked a switch on my blog that meant that after about 4 lines you would get a “read more” link and if I had grabbed your attention you might even click and read the rest. Today I have flicked the switch back again after feedback that people prefer to get the full post rather than having to go look for the rest of it.
The reason I had set it this way was that it did at least give me some indication of what was being read – because I could see the visits to the pages. The RSS hits don’t really give me that information. However, I appreciate that many readers may consume these posts offline – or even if you are online it is extra clicks and time to get the full story. In return for my setting this back to the way you want it I ask that if you like or don’t like a posting – let me know!
The stats I get from adCenter break down into 3 groups in terms of inbound referrals to the pages – search, direct traffic and referring websites. For September so far I am running at just over 61% search, around 24% for direct traffic, and the final 15% from referring websites. I am guessing that much of the direct traffic is from RSS readers hitting the “read more” link – and probably a few that have links saved – it will be interesting to see how the figures change over the coming weeks and months as the changed setting comes into play.
Do let me know how you feel about this change.
Popularity: 1% [?]
How do you know what feature to deliver next?
29 September 2008On the Real Options yahoo list, focusing on the infoQ article written by Chris Matts and Olav we've had a great discussion about this very question. As I understand it, a fundamental concept is to leave decision making until the last responsible moment. Also the idea of your saying that options should have value, and options expire are fundamental to this concept. Chris and Olav mention starting with Black Scholes options forumlas from the financial markets as a method to help in decision making for software development.
Currently in agile methodology, many groups use stakeholders to set the priorities for their features. In my experience I sometimes suspect that the highest business value feature is not always selected using this method. Especially in an enterprise situation, once the project has been approved. In my experience, there is not a rigorous method to assist in determing business value once the funds have been approved.
Corey Ladas of Modus Operandi, has a great piece on using Options in a Kanban that helps with selection method. That has helped clarify some plaaning concepts for me in the kanban world. But I still want a better way to determine business value. In the email group we are discussing using costs, and wisdom of crowds for better decision making to get features from planning state, into the kanban. So the question is, can we put actual value into our features using costs? Can we use mechanisms from social web to help us collect information from different groups? I don't have the answers yet, but I feel those 2 questions lead us to the right answers. If you are doing something like this to decide, I'd like to hear about it.
Popularity: 1% [?]
SQL 2005 Cumulative Update 10 for SP2
28 September 2008
Popularity: 1% [?]
Announcing the release of the August Cumulative Update for Project and Project Server 2007
28 September 2008The Microsoft Office team has changed the way that it delivers hot fixes for reported problems by moving away from the current priority-driven hot fix release model to a scheduled delivery model. This change comes in the form of cumulative updates and critical on-demand (COD) hotfixes. The objective is to deliver high-quality fixes in an acceptable time and on a predictable schedule-every two months so its creates more predictability for customers.
Customers who need an emergency fix can request a shorter turnaround time for a COD hotfix.
Please refer to the following knowledge based article for more information: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/953878
The August Cumulative Update (CU) for Project 2007 and Project Server 2007 (as well as the rest of the Office suite) is the first CU release. Releases will now happen very two months so the next ones are scheduled for October 08, December 08, etc…
Install or not to Install?
Our general guideline for applying hotfix is:
- Each hotfix package is intended to correct only the applications that are listed in the knowledge base article.
- Apply the packages only to systems that are experiencing these specific problems.
- If you are experiencing any of the two known issues described in KB 953750 (Infrastructure Update).
- If you are not severely affected by any of these problems, we recommend that you wait for the next 2007 Office suites service pack that contains the hotfixes in these cumulative update packages.
- If additional issues occur or any troubleshooting is required, you might have to create a separate service request.
- The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for a specific cumulative update package. To create a separate service request, visit the following Microsoft Web site: http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support
on Order
Assuming you are running the released version of Project Server 2007, here is a high level procedure, please refer to the TechNet articles for detailed deployment steps:
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Step |
Related Links |
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1. Deploy Service Pack 1
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ef=”http://blogs.msdn.com/chrisfie/archive/2007/12/12/announcing-the-release-of-epm-2007-service-pack-1.aspx”>Announcing the release of EPM 2007 Service Pack 1 (includes links to KB, downloads and deployment documentation) |
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2. Deploy the Infrastructure Update (IU). We recommend deploying the IU first because you will get all the latest updates for WSS and SharePoint Server. |
Announcing the availability of the Project and Project Server 2007 Infrastructure Update Microsoft Project Infrastructure Update Webcast Slides Deploy the Infrastructure Update for Office Project Server 2007 Install the Infrastructure Update for Microsoft Office Servers (Office SharePoint Server 2007) |
See links below for KB and download location. |
onal 2007 and Project Server 2007 should be on the same version but it is not a requirement:
- Project + IU with Project Server + IU + August CU
- Project + IU + August CU with Project Server + IU
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Knowledge Base Articles and Downloads
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Title |
ID |
KB URL |
Download URL |
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Cumulative update packages for August 2008 for the 2007 Microsoft Office core suite applications and 2007 Microsoft Office servers |
957022 |
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Description of the Project 2007 hotfix package: August 26, 2008 |
956060 |
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=956060 |
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Description of the Project Server 2007 hotfix package: August 26, 2008 |
956061 |
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=956061 |
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Description of the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 hotfix package: August 26, 2008 |
957109 |
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=956057 |
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Description of the SharePoint Server 2007 hotfix package: August 26, 2008 |
956056 |
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/956056 (not published yet) |
http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=956056 |
Popularity: 2% [?]
Project Server 2007: August Cumulative Update – KB Articles are now posted!
28 September 2008 Christophe has a great blog with full details of the KB’s for WSS (KB956057) MOSS (KB956056) and Project Server (KB956061) which are now available. Everything you need to know about the August Cumulative Update is there – links to articles, links…(read more)
Popularity: 1% [?]
Using the Project API with Required Enterprise Custom Fields
28 September 2008Chris Elwell from the Project Test team wanted me to share the following details around the Project API:
Summary
The Project API (the SOAP methods contained within project) enables the user to create and manage projects on Project Server without the need for the Project Professional client application. Project API functionality includes the ability to create, update, and delete Enterprise Custom Field data within a project; however, the API imposes some restrictions that are not intuitively obvious, especially when the server contains Required Custom Fields.
We’ll cover each one of the major methods within the Project API and discuss the main concerns related to their use with Enterprise Custom Fields. We won’t discuss every method within the Project API; rather, we’ll focus solely on commonly-used methods which have heavy integration with Enterprise Custom fields. Our discussion focuses on the behavior of regular Text fields; although other Custom Field types may impose additional restrictions, the fundamental concepts will remain largely the same.
QueueCreateProject
When calling QueueCreateProject, you must provide values for any required project custom fields. If the initial project data set contains any tasks, you must also supply values for any required task Custom Fields. However, the API does not require that you supply values for required resource Custom Fields if you have added local resources to your project. This behavior is consistent with Project Professional 2007.
Note that the project data set passed into QueueCreateProject is not required to contain a Project Summary Task. If the data set contains no Project Summary Task, one will be created automatically; however, in subsequent calls to QueueAddToProject, QueueUpdateProject, and so forth, you will have to provide any required Custom Field value s for this task.
QueueAddToProject
When calling QueueAddToProject, it is usually sufficient to add your tasks, resources, or assignments, add any applicable required Custom Field values, and then call GetChanges() on the data set. However, you should first verify that the project stored on the server already meets requirements.
Specifically, a Project Summary Task must have values for all required task Custom Fields before any modifications to the project can be processed successfully. Project Professional does not enforce this requirement, and Project Summary Tasks that were automatically generated by QueueCreateProject also do not necessarily have values for these fields. If you do not set values for all required Custom Fields on the Project Summary Task, calling QueueAddToProject will fail with a SOAP exception. This applies to any tasks you’ve added, as well.
QueueAddToProject expects that any “core” Project data must have the “Added” DataRowState. However, it does not enforce this requirement on any of the Custom Fields tables; rather, it uses DataRowState to determine whether the user intends to add, update, or delete values. For example, the only task changes permitted in QueueAddToProject are additions. However, you can modify an existing task Custom Field value, and a call to QueueAddToProject will update the corresponding data on the server.
Using DataRowState, QueueAddToProject will permit you to add, delete, and modify Custom Field values within a Project. You may not, however, put the project into a state where it is missing any required Custom Field values. As noted, the API will also not permit you to use QueueAddToProject to add data to a project that is already in such a state (missing Custom Field values for the Project Summary task, for example) unless you supply the missing data.
QueueUpdateProject
Similar to QueueAddToProject, this method strictly enforces that all changes to the “core” project data must have the “Modified” DataRowState. As long as you do not violate this restriction, though, you’re allowed to add, delete, or modify Custom Field values as you see fit, and these changes (as in QueueAddToProject) are applied based on their DataRowState. As with the QueueAddToProject method, this method will fail and emit a SOAP exception if the project is already missing required Custom Field data and the data set you’ve sent doesn’t supply the missing information.
QueueDeleteFromProject
This method simply takes an array of GUIDs containing entities you wish to delete from a project. When you delete one of the “core” entities (such as a task or resource) from a project, the related Custom Field values should be deleted automatically. However, using this method to directly delete Custom Field values has no effect. If you wish to delete a Custom Field value from a project, you must call the DataRow.Delete method on the row you wish to delete, then use GetChanges to produce a data set appropriate for use with QueueAddToProject or QueueUpdateProject.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Microsoft Project Server 2007 IT Professional TechNet Webcast Series
26 September 2008I just wanted to pass on word that starting October 1st, 2008, Michael Jordan (Lead Architect – MCS EPM Global Practice | WW COE for EPM) will present a series of Project Server 2007 webcast on TechNet targeted at IT Professionals.
These 60 minutes webcasts will present in details key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007 specifically:
· Solution Overview and System Elements
· Solution Elements and Data Flow
· Workload Scenarios and Reference Architecture
· Network Communication
· Server Administration
· Maintenance and Monitoring
· Deployment into a SharePoint Server Intranet Farm
· Disaster Recovery
· Virtualization
You need to register for the free of charge webcast by clicking the link; then you get emailed a link to sign on and participate in the web cast on its date and time (please note only the first two webcast are available for registration at this stage).
Each TechNet webcast is recorded for later viewing which should be through the same registration URL.
For a listing of all EPM webcasts on TechNet check the following: http://www.microsoft.com/events/series/epm.aspx
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Webcast Title
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>Abstract
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Date
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Solution Overview and System Elements
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>In this webcast, we introduce the Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 solution and the main product components. We describe key concepts such as high availability and scalability, which should be taken into account when planning and deploying Project Server 2007. This introductory webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007. We discuss the main considerations when planning for high-availability deployments—when to scale up and out, points of failure, and software/hardware boundaries.
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Wednesday, October 1, 2008
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Solution Elements and Data Flow
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>In this webcast, we describe the elements of the Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 solution (Microsoft Office Project Professional 2007, Application Server, Microsoft SQL Server), and we cover Data Flow components and key areas for scalability. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007. We discuss the main considerations when planning for high-availability deployments—when to scale up and out, points of failure, and software/hardware boundaries.
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Wednesday, October 22, 2008
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Workload Scenarios and Reference Architecture
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Workload Scenarios and Reference Architecture to help you plan your deployment. We discuss typical product operations broken out by user roles and how it affect performance. We present typical reference architecture based on key capacity planning characteristics. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, November 12, 2008
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Network Communication
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Network Communication and specifically ports, protocols and network traffic. We present network considerations when deploying Project Server and Project Professional 2007, this includes an overview of the Project Professional’s Active Cache mechanism. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, December 3, 2008
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Server Administration
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Server Administration best practices. We discuss SharePoint’s Central Administration, Shared Service Provider Administration and Project Web Access Administration. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, January 14, 2009
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Maintenance and Monitoring
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Maintenance and Monitoring best practices. This session will cover maintenance plans that should be put in place as well as performance counters that should be monitored. We also discuss how to deploy software updates for both Project Server and Project Professional 2007. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, February 25, 2009
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Deployment into a SharePoint Server Intranet Farm
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Deployment best practices into a SharePoint Server intranet farm (out of the box Project Server 2007 is deployed on top of Windows SharePoint Services V3). We discuss SharePoint Server deployment pre-requisites, deployment scenarios and best practices. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, March 18, 2009
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Disaster Recovery
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Server Disaster Recovery options and best practices. We discuss how to recover from a catastrophic failure on your SharePoint/Project Server far;, this includes what are the options to recover from a loss of any component of your SharePoint/Project Server farm: SQL server, Application Server, Disk etc … We present farm and database restore options. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, April 8, 2009
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
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Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 - Virtualization
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=MsoNormal style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>This webcast covers Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 Server Virtualization best practices using Windows Server 2008’s Hyper-V. We discuss deployment best practices with respect to virtualization, including optimum architecture configuration (which component should be deployed on a virtual environment and which ones should be deployed on a physical environment), and how to architect a high availability virtual farm. This webcast is part of a webcast series targeted at IT professionals. In the series, we present in detail key aspects to consider when you evaluate, plan, deploy, and operate Project Server 2007.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
11:00 A.M.–12:00 P.M. Pacific Time |
Michael Jordan’s Biography
Michael Jordan is the Lead Architect for Microsoft Services’ EPM Global Practice and member of the World Wide Center of Excellence. Michael has been with Microsoft for 8 years serving in technical roles from Application Development, Systems Engineering, SQL Database and Project Management. He has been working with EPM for the last 4 years architecting, troubleshooting and implementing large deployments at priority customer sites. As a member of the EPM Global Practice he performs a role as an extension to the Product Group by providing field feedback, spec reviews, product guidance and running customer programs for marketing initiatives.
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Key Resources |
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Enterprise Project Management
· EPM Connect: The Business Exchange for EPM Solutions and Services
· EPM University: Online, instructor-led, deep dive technical training on EPM
· EPM Solution Office online EPM Home Page
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tyle=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>Project Desktop
· Easier with Project: Project Desktop Home Page
· Microsoft Project on Office Online
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IT Professionals
· Project TechCenter on TechNet
· Project Portfolio TechCenter on TechNet
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al style=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>Developers
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Popularity: 1% [?]
Latest resources for Project Server and PerformancePoint Server Integration
26 September 2008The EPM data structures represent two decades worth of investment and refinement in the field of project management. This mission critical line of business application with its predefine and extendable schema can be enhanced and delivered by the Microsoft Business Intelligence capabilities. So a recurring question these days is where can I find information on how to integrate Project Server 2007 and PerformancePoint Server 2007 for instance. Here are a couple pointers to start with, bottom line is expect content published on that topic in the next few months (TechNet webcast, TechNet virtual lab, session at the next BI Conference):
- Project Server and PerformancePoint Server 2007 session at Business Intelligence Conference
- TechNet Virtual Lab coming soon; plus see the Performance Point Server / Project Server advanced data visualization in person! (thanks to Joanne)
- Using Performance Point Server for Project Server advanced data visualization (thanks to Joanne)
To keep up to date with Microsoft’s PerformancePoint Server/Business Intelligence, bookmark this blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/normbi
Popularity: 1% [?]
Project Server 2007: Moving a copy of Production to Test – Part 2
26 September 2008 I will be going deeper in this posting, particularly on the scenario of moving just the databases and then re-provisioning the site. But don’t expect me to be mentioning every single dialog box and permission that you require. I will be writing…(read more)
Popularity: 1% [?]
Upcoming Developer Courses
26 September 2008Hello,
Larry Duff will be conducting online Office Project Server 2007 Developer Training:
- 26-29 Jan 2009 at 10:45 am EST
- 26-29 May 2009 at 10:45 am EST
For more information, visit: www.msepmu.com
Chris Boyd
Popularity: 2% [?]