Adding Tasks to Office 365 Project Online Plan Schedules Using Microsoft Flow - Automate Project Management Process

Here let us look how to automate the addition of tasks into Project online using Microsoft Flow. Let us trigger this automation, on mail arrival. This article helps in automating project management processes.

As you are aware, MS flow helps connecting systems, with only condition that the services should be exposed. In this article, I have leveraged the inbuilt triggers and actions to achieve our requirement. This flow creates tasks on Office 365 project web app online plans, when an email arrives on to Office 365 outlook mailbox.

Scenario & Flow

Trigger can be from anything. Here for our basic understanding, I have thought of leveraging mailbox. So let us look at the flow.

• Trigger - In this use case, I have considered email trigger. i.e., mail arrives with specific subject. The subject contains the task detail. 
• Flow will be triggered, on arrival of any mail to the mailbox mentioned. 
• Flow checks few conditions. i.e., mail subject contains text for addition of task to project. 
• If condition is satisfied, then process the following. 
• Checkout project 
• Add task with task name. (Task name will be extracted from the subject of email) 
• Publish & Check-in the project. 

CSOM: Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks - Part II

This article explains steps for adding, updating or deleting a task to/from Office 365 Project Online plan schedules.

This article series focuses on working with  office 365 project online plan schedule tasks using Client Side Object model approach. In the previous post, we have seen multiple ways of retrieving tasks from the project plans.

• CSOM: Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks - Part I

Adding a Task: 

A task can be added to the Office 365 project plan schedule by the following steps.

• Required project needs to be checked-out before any operation. 
• Task collection is retrieved from the draft project. 
• Task creation object is created with necessary OOB field values, and will be added to the task collection. 
• Then the draft project will be updated and published. 

CSOM: Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks - Part I

This article series focuses on working with office 365 project online plan schedule tasks using Client Side Object model approach.

Previously we have seen how the same operations works using JSOM approach. Both approaches are identical.

• JSOM: Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks - Part I

Creating Console App and Importing Package: 

SharePoint and Project Server online libraries are required to work with the project server data using CSOM model. The libraries can be downloaded from Nuget packages. The required libraries are packaged under one single package. i.e., Microsoft.SharePointOnline.CSOM

Create a visual studio console application. From Tools -> Nuget Package Manager -> Manage Nuget Packages for Solution. From the browse tab, Find for “Microsoft.SharePointOnline.CSOM”. Select and install the package for the current solution.

Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks using JSOM - Part II

In this article, let us look at updating or deleting tasks on Office 365 project online using JavaScript Object Model.

This article series focuses on working with office 365 project online plan schedule tasks using JSOM approach. The previous article explains creating or retrieving tasks on project online schedules using JSOM approach.

• Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks using JSOM - Part I  

Update Task on Project Schedule 

To update a task on the project online, the following operations are performed.

• Check-out a project – This operation involves get project by GUID and check-out. (If already checked out, this step is not required) 
• Update task (OOB/custom fields can be updated) - This operation involves steps like get project by GUID, then get the project draft, get the task collection from the project draft, get task using task GUID, set necessary fields (OOB or custom) with values and updating project draft. 
• Publish & check-in the project. - This operation involves get project by GUID, get the project draft, publish/check-in the project. (If other actions are involved, this step is not required)

Working with Office365 Project Online Tasks using JSOM - Part I

This article series focuses on working with office 365 project online plan schedule tasks using JSOM approach. The operations like create, retrieve, update or delete project task operations are explained.

Here in this article, let us look at creating or retrieving project schedule tasks using JSOM approach. 

Office 365 Microsoft Project Online helps creating project plans, managing schedules and collaborating with other resources virtually. Project plans, task schedules and other objects on the Microsoft Project online can be accessed or created or updated programmatically. Microsoft documentation site  provides REST endpoints for working with project online objects. 

Load prerequisite files and context: 

To get the project server context working, first let us see the prerequisite files to be loaded for getting the project online contexts. The following piece of code shows how the required Project Server/SharePoint files and contexts (PS/SP) are loaded. 

Accessing Office 365 Project Web App Objects using REST API

This article describes accessing the objects present on the Office 365 project web app site collection using REST API.

PWA abbreviated as Project Web App, is available on Office 365, and it used for easily and efficiently planning projects, track status, and collaborate with other virtually. It is an application built on top of SharePoint, which has collaborating features. Any PWA site collection will have the project web app settings feature enabled on the site collection. To know more about PWA, refer to the official documentation available on the MSDN site.

Let us see the high level REST API (service end points), which can be used for accessing objects available on Office 365 PWA site collections.

Note: Replace the Office 365 PWA url with your respective URL.

To access the project server and list of available objects,

https://nakkeerann.sharepoint.com/sites/pwa/_api/ProjectServer

The REST APIs used for accessing objects available on the project servers are explained below.

Custom Fields:

The enterprise custom fields are created on the project plans for managing additional project attributes. The custom field can be at project or task level. The following API is used to access all the enterprise custom fields.

https://nakkeerann.sharepoint.com/sites/pwa/_api/ProjectServer/CustomFields

One specific field can be accessed using the field GUID:

https://nakkeerann.sharepoint.com/sites/pwa/_api/ProjectServer/CustomFields('xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx')