You can now have Forecast move dependent tasks for you when a task’s dates change.
When you push a task later, the tasks that depend on it move later too, all the way down the chain, so your dependencies stay intact without manual repairs.
An admin turns this on for the whole company from a new Task Dependencies settings page.
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What’s New at a Glance
- Dependent dates move automatically. When you move a task later or extend it, the tasks that depend on it move forward to keep the dependency intact.
- New admin setting. Automatically move dependent task dates under Admin → Projects → Task Dependencies. It’s off by default.
- Completed tasks are protected. Forecast asks before moving any task that’s already marked done.
- Synced projects are left alone. Projects connected to Jira or Azure DevOps keep their dates managed by the integration.
Feature Details
Turn it on
Only admins can change this setting.
- Go to Admin → Projects → Task Dependencies.
- Turn on Automatically move dependent task dates.
The setting applies to all projects immediately.
Note: Turning the setting off stops future date changes from moving dependent tasks. It doesn’t undo dates that have already moved.
How it works
When you change a task’s dates so it finishes later, Forecast moves each task that depends on it just far enough forward to keep the dependency, then does the same for the tasks after those, to the end of the chain. This works for both dependency types:
- Finish-to-Start: the dependent task starts the working day after its predecessor finishes.
- Finish-to-Finish: the dependent task finishes no earlier than its predecessor.
A few rules keep your schedule predictable:
- Tasks only move later, never earlier. If you move a task earlier or shorten it, the tasks after it stay where they are.
- Tasks with room to spare don’t move. A dependent task moves only if the change would push it past where it already sits. If it already had a gap in front of it, only the overflow carries through.
- Multiple predecessors are handled. If a task depends on several others, its dates are based on whichever predecessor finishes last.
- Task length is kept. A moved task keeps the same number of working days.
- Weekends are skipped. Dates are calculated using your company’s working week, and a moved task always lands on a working day.
- Predecessors never move. Changes only flow down the chain, never back up it.
Dates move automatically when you edit task dates in Scoping, drag a task or chain on the Timeline, or edit dates for several tasks at once. Other users see the updated dates straight away.
Note: Public holidays aren’t taken into account when dates move, so a task can land on a holiday that falls on a working weekday.
Completed tasks
If a task that’s already done would need to move, Forecast leaves it where it is and shows a Move completed tasks? dialog.
- Click Move them to move the completed tasks and anything that depends on them.
- Click Leave them to keep their dates. Tasks further down the chain are then calculated from the completed task’s existing dates.
Projects connected to Jira or Azure DevOps
If a project is linked to Jira or Azure DevOps and your company’s connection is active, dependent dates in that project don’t move, because the integration manages them. If your edit would have moved a task, a message lets you know why it didn’t. If the connection is turned off, the project behaves like any other.
What hasn’t changed
- Right-click Fix dependency chain works as before.
- With chain lock off, you can still drag a task off its dependency line on the Timeline to break the chain on purpose. Forecast won’t stop or reverse that.
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