Build a project and check the day's schedule
Create a multi-step project by hand or from a saved workflow, then read the Schedule page's day timeline and mark a tech out of office.
What you will have
- Start a project two ways: build its sub-ticket tree by hand, or run a saved workflow.
- Know what a fixed-fee project does and why the Board list can come up empty.
- Read the Schedule page's day timeline of every pod, tech and scheduled ticket.
- Pull in outside calendar changes with Sync now.
- Mark a tech out of office and see which of their tickets move.
Why it works this way
The Board dropdown on New Project only ever lists boards flagged as a project board at Settings > Service Desk > Ticket Boards - every other board is hidden on purpose, so an MSP with no project board set up sees an empty list until one is turned on.
The Schedule page is read-only by design: it exists to show who is working what and when, not to move tickets from. A ticket's own scheduling card is where a time actually changes.
Steps
Open New Project from the plus-New menu at the top of any admin page.
The menu also opens a new ticket, a new client, an invoice, a quote or a device from the same place.
Open New Project from the plus-New menu at the top of any admin page. Pick who the project is for, then confirm the Board.
Board only lists boards flagged as a project board, so on a tenant with one such board it is already selected. Choosing a Contact fills in their organization for you.
Pick who the project is for, then confirm the Board. Stay on the Custom tab and type a Project Name and Description.
Custom builds the sub-ticket tree by hand; the other tab, From Workflow, runs a saved template instead.
Stay on the Custom tab and type a Project Name and Description. Add each step under Sub-tickets with Add sub-ticket.
Every row can be dragged onto another one: dropping on top nests it as a sub-ticket underneath, dropping above or below just reorders the list. Each row also has its own grip, Move up and Move down.
Add each step under Sub-tickets with Add sub-ticket. Turn on Fixed-fee project for work billed as one flat price instead of by the hour.
A Contract amount box opens under the switch the moment it is on. Leave the switch off for hourly work.
Turn on Fixed-fee project for work billed as one flat price instead of by the hour. Click Create Project.
This saves the parent ticket and every sub-ticket in the tree in one step.
Click Create Project. The page opens the project it just made, with its sub-tickets listed underneath.
Project Progress, Total Time Logged and the Fixed-Fee Contract amount all sit above the list and update as the sub-tickets are worked.
The page opens the project it just made, with its sub-tickets listed underneath. To run a saved template instead, pick the Contact and Board first, then open the From Workflow tab.
Contact and Board carry over from whichever tab is showing, so there is no need to pick them twice.
To run a saved template instead, pick the Contact and Board first, then open the From Workflow tab. Pick a Workflow and click Run Workflow.
Only published workflows are listed here - a draft workflow does not appear until someone publishes it from the Workflows library. Running one builds the same kind of project and sub-ticket tree as the Custom tab, straight from the template.
Pick a Workflow and click Run Workflow. Open Schedule, under Service Desk in the left nav, to see the day timeline.
The read-only note above the timeline says how to actually move something: open the ticket and use its own scheduling card. A personal event a tech adds in Outlook still shows up here, as a grey Busy block, without anyone doing anything on this page.
Open Schedule, under Service Desk in the left nav, to see the day timeline. Click Sync now to pull in outside calendar changes right away.
Without this, the same changes still arrive on their own within the hour. The button only shows for someone with Team edit permission.
Click Sync now to pull in outside calendar changes right away. Read the result next to the button.
It counts how many blocks moved and how many were removed. Nothing moved or was removed this time, so the result read zero for both.
Read the result next to the button. Click the small plane icon next to a tech's name to mark them out of office.
This icon only shows for someone with admin-level Tickets permission.
Click the small plane icon next to a tech's name to mark them out of office. Set the From and Until times, then click Preview affected tickets.
Both boxes default to today, 9 AM to 5 PM, in the MSP's own time zone, named right under them. The Reflow not-started tickets to other techs switch is on by default.
Set the From and Until times, then click Preview affected tickets. Read the preview, then click Mark OOO.
It names how many not-started tickets will move to other techs and how many in-progress ones stay put because someone is already working them. Nothing moves until Mark OOO is actually clicked - this tech had no not-started tickets in the window, so the preview read none.
Read the preview, then click Mark OOO. Read the confirmation once it applies.
It names how many tickets were reassigned to another tech, how many went back to the queue instead, and how many in-progress tickets were left alone.
Read the confirmation once it applies. If the day looks empty, it is either genuinely quiet or there are no pods yet.
The timeline is drawn from pods: with none set up, the page says No pods yet and there is nothing to draw. Set up a pod, put techs in it, and schedule tickets to them, and the day starts filling in. A day can also just be empty because nothing happens to be scheduled for it.
If it did not work
- If the Board list has nothing in it, no board is flagged as a project board yet - turn one on at Settings > Service Desk > Ticket Boards.
- If Run Workflow stays disabled, a Contact, a Board and a Workflow all need a value first.
- If Sync now or the out-of-office plane icon does not show up at all, the signed-in account is missing the Team or ticket admin permission that control needs.
Questions this page answers
What is the New Project page for?
It builds a project in one go: one parent ticket with sub-tickets under it. That way a job with many steps lands as one tree, not as a pile of loose tickets. The page has two tabs. "Custom" builds the tree by hand. "From Workflow" runs a workflow you saved before.
How do I build a project by hand?
Stay on the "Custom" tab. Pick the person in "Contact" and pick a "Board" at the top. Type a "Project Name". Add each step under "Sub-tickets" with "Add sub-ticket". Drag one step onto another to nest it. Then click "Create Project". The page opens the project it just made.
How do I run a saved workflow instead?
Pick the "Contact" and the "Board" at the top of the page first. Then open the "From Workflow" tab and pick one in "Workflow". Only published workflows are listed there. Click "Run Workflow" and the project is built from that workflow.
What does the fixed-fee switch do?
Turn on "Fixed-fee project" and a "Contract amount" box opens under it. Type the price you agreed on. It is saved with the project. Leave the switch off for work you bill by the hour.
Why does the Board list have nothing in it?
Only project boards can hold a project, so this page hides every other board. An empty list means no board is set up as one yet. Turn on "Project Board" for a board at Settings > Service Desk > Ticket Boards, then come back here.
Why can I not drag a ticket to a different time here?
This page is read-only, and it says so above the timeline. To move a ticket, open it and use its scheduling card. Personal events a tech adds in Outlook come in on their own and show as a grey block.
What does "Sync now" do?
It pulls calendar changes made outside the portal into the tickets right away, instead of waiting for the hourly sync. It tells you how many blocks moved and how many were removed. You need edit permission on Team to see the button at all.
A tech called in sick. What do I do here?
Click "Mark out-of-office" next to their name. Pick the window they are away for. Click "Preview affected tickets" and the box tells you how many not-started tickets would be reflowed to other techs and how many in-progress ones stay where they are, because someone is already working them. Then click "Mark OOO". Nothing moves until you press it.
The page says "No pods yet". Why is my day empty?
This timeline is drawn from pods. With no pods there are no rows to draw. Set up a pod, put techs in it, and schedule tickets to those techs, and the day fills in. A day can also be genuinely empty: nothing is scheduled for that date.
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