Activity dates

Start

For started activities, the Actual Start date. For not started activities, set to the Project Planned Start date until the project is scheduled. When scheduled, set to the Remaining Early Start date.

Finish

For completed activities, the Actual Finish date. For not started and in progress activities, set to the Planned Finish date if the project has not been scheduled. When scheduled, set to the Remaining Early Finish date.

Actual Start

The date on which the activity is actually started.

Actual Finish

The date on which the activity is actually finished.

Early Start

The earliest possible date the remaining work for the activity can begin. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. The Early Start equals the Remaining Start unless you preserve the scheduled early dates during leveling. If you schedule a project using Retained Logic this date will always be visible, even if an activity is completed.

Early Finish

The earliest possible date the activity can finish. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. The Early Finish equals the Remaining Finish unless you preserve the scheduled early dates during leveling. If you schedule a project using Retained Logic this date will always be visible, even if an activity is completed.

Late Start

The latest possible date the remaining work for the activity must begin without delaying the project finish date. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. The Late Start equals the Remaining Late Start unless you preserve the scheduled late dates during leveling. If you schedule a project using Retained Logic this date will always be visible, even if an activity is completed.

Late Finish

The latest possible date the activity must finish without delaying the project finish date. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. The Late Finish equals the Remaining Late Finish unless you preserve the scheduled late dates during leveling. If you schedule a project using Retained Logic this date will always be visible, even if an activity is completed.

Project Planned Start

For an activity that has not started, the date the activity is scheduled to begin. This date is set equal to the early start date by the project scheduler but can be updated manually by the project manager. This date is not changed by the project scheduler once you apply an Actual Start date.

Planned Finish

For an activity that has not started, the date the activity is scheduled to finish. This date is set equal to the early finish date by the project scheduler but can be updated manually by the user. This date is not changed by the project scheduler once you apply an Actual Finish date.

Anticipated Start

The expected start date of the project, EPS node, or WBS level, used during the planning phase. This date is manually entered and is not affected by scheduling. An anticipated start date cannot be entered at the activity level.

Anticipated Finish

The expected finish date of the project, EPS node, or WBS level, used during the planning phase. This date is manually entered and is not affected by scheduling. An anticipated finish date cannot be entered at the activity level.

Remaining Start

The earliest possible date the remaining work for the activity is scheduled to begin. This date is calculated by the project scheduler but can be updated manually by the user. Before the activity is started, the Remaining Start is the same as the Project Planned Start. Once the activity has started, the Remaining Start is equal to the Data Date. When the activity is complete, the Remaining Start is blank.

Remaining Finish

The earliest possible date the remaining work for the activity is scheduled to finish. This date is calculated by the project scheduler but can be updated manually by the user. Before the activity is started, the Remaining Finish is the same as the Planned Finish. When the activity is complete, the Remaining Finish is blank.

Remaining Late Start

The latest possible date the remaining work for the activity must begin without delaying the project finish date. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. When the activity is complete, the Remaining Late Start is blank.

Remaining Late Finish

The latest possible date the activity must finish without delaying the project finish date. This date is calculated by the project scheduler based on activity relationships, schedule constraints, and resource availability. When the activity is complete, the Remaining Late Finish is blank.

Expected Finish

The date the activity is expected to finish, according to the primary resource. Typically, the primary resource enters this date. When scheduling your projects, you can choose to use the Expected Finish dates or not.

Constraint Date

The constraint date for the activity is the date for which the activity's constraint applies. You can enter a primary and secondary constraint. Depending on the constraint type, this date could be a start date or a finish date. For example, if the constraint is a Finish On constraint, the constraint date is the date on which the activity must finish.

If the activity does not have a constraint, this field will be empty.

Suspend Date

The date on which an activity’s progress was, or is planned to be, suspended. The activity must have an actual start date before you can enter a suspend date. The amount of time an activity’s progress is suspended is considered nonworktime based on activity and resource calendar definitions. You can only enter a suspend date on Task Dependent and Resource Dependent activities. When you enter a suspend date, the activity is suspended at the beginning of the specified day.

Resume Date

The date on which an activity’s progress was, or is planned to be, resumed. When you enter a resume date, the activity is resumed at the beginning of the specified day.