STEP 1: Gantt LWC - Conversion Guide for Existing Inspire Planner Customers

Introduction to Gantt LWC Upgrade

The Gantt Lightning Web Component (Gantt LWC) represents a significant advancement from the traditional Gantt Visualforce component, aligning with the latest Salesforce platform architecture. This upgrade introduces a more intuitive user interface, improved performance, and enhanced scalability. As we continue to enhance Gantt LWC, we recommend bookmarking this article for easy access to updates and new considerations.

Please Note:

These materials are provided for you so that you can perform your own validation and conversion. If you need additional support, please reach out to customer.success@inspireplanner.com for a conversion quote.

Best Practices for Conversion
 

• Version Switching Caution: Once a Gantt Visualforce project has been converted to Gantt LWC, you cannot go back to Gantt Visualforce as this could lead to project disruptions and data integrity issues due to some features being only supported in Gantt LWC. The conversion process is designed with the intent of converting Gantt Visualforce projects to Gantt LWC and then leading with Gantt LWC moving forward.
   
• Scheduling Mode Switching Caution: You should not be switching the project scheduling mode (manual vs. automatic) for in-flight projects as this will have a major impact on scheduling and how constraints are set. When you convert a Gantt Visualforce project to Gantt LWC, you should keep the scheduling mode as is.
   
• Create a Backup: Use the Data Export Service in Salesforce to create a weekly backup of your data. This provides you a copy of the data that can be recovered in case of data corruption or accidental deletion.
   
• Set History Tracking: Enable field history tracking for fields in project and project task object. See attached Conversion checklist for the list of specific fields.
   
• Conversion Checklist: Use the conversion checklists attached to these guides. The conversion checklist ensures that you are following the recommended steps as you convert your Gantt Visualforce projects to the new Gantt LWC.
   
• Full Data Sandbox: If you have custom triggers and flows in your Salesforce org that are designed to interact with projects and project tasks, we recommend creating a full data sandbox environment as our validation process involves cloning an existing project. To avoid any custom triggers and flows from firing during the validation process, perform your validation and testing in the sandbox environment. This will allow you to see any potential impacts on existing projects when they are converted from Gantt Visualforce to Gantt LWC. 
   
• Scheduling Direction Switching Caution: Scheduling Direction in Gantt LWC is introduced with the Jun 2024 - Major Release (1.356). Gantt Visualforce Projects that are converted to Gantt LWC will have Scheduling Direction set to NULL. Gantt LWC will then assume a forward-scheduled project. You should not switch the scheduling direction for projects in-flight as this will have a major impact on how tasks are scheduled and how constraints are set. If you would like backward-scheduled projects, you should create new projects and set the Scheduling Direction to "Backward".
  
   

Cross-Version Considerations

• Copying and Pasting Tasks: Avoid copying and pasting tasks between projects with different Gantt Version values to prevent data inconsistencies and errors. Ensure tasks are copied within projects of the same Gantt version.
   
• Project Template Compatibility: Avoid applying templates between different Gantt versions. Templates in Gantt Visualforce should only be applied to Gantt Visualforce projects. Likewise, templates in Gantt LWC should only be applied to Gantt LWC projects. Therefore, we recommend that you convert your project templates first from Gantt Visualforce to Gantt LWC. This will provide your users with the ability to start creating new projects in Gantt LWC.
   
• Global Default Project Settings: The same rule above applies to your Global Default Project Setting. We recommend that you convert the template you are using for your Global Default Project Setting to Gantt LWC first so that new projects created in Gantt LWC correctly inherit the settings from your Global Default Project template that is also in Gantt LWC.

Exclusions

• Automatic Project Scheduling: The Automatic Project Scheduling Mode is supported with the Feb 2024 (1.353.4) - Maintenance 2 release (see Release Notes). Please reference steps in the conversion checklists for what is not applicable to projects that are in automatic scheduling mode.
  
   

Nuances

• Task Date Recalculation: This is only applicable to projects that are in "Manual" Scheduling Mode.
   
  • If there are project tasks that have been manually re-scheduled away from their predecessor in Gantt Visualforce, these will recalculate in Gantt LWC according to their predecessor relationship.
     
  • If there are project tasks without predecessors, these will be recalculated according to the project start date.
    
    This means that when you first open the project in Gantt LWC, you will see "Unsaved changes detected" on top and you will need to save the changes.
    
    Please Note: To support your ability to review and correct projects that may fall within this criteria, we have prepared a script that can be installed and run to allow you to easily identify project tasks for your review. The link to install the Gantt LWC Conversion Toolkit package is included in the Gantt LWC Admin Guide.
     
• Milestone Tasks: With the Feb 2024 (1.353.4) - Maintenance 2 Release (see Release Notes), Milestone Tasks are now considered as part of the Parent Task % Complete calculation. Milestone tasks account for 1% of the Parent Task % Complete. This means that if all subtasks are complete but there is one or more milestones under the parent task that are still open, then the parent task % complete will display as 99%.
   
• Column Order: The Gantt LWC introduces a frozen panel. The action icons (File Attachment Indicator, Project Task Chatter, Checklist Items, Salesforce Tasks and Open Project Task Icon) and Task Subject are part of the frozen panel by default. When a Gantt Visualforce project is converted to Gantt LWC, any columns that appear before the Task Subject (apart from the action icons) in Gantt Visualforce will display as the first column in the task details. You will then need to move it to the frozen panel in Gantt LWC and move it before the Task Subject if you would like the same column order in Gantt LWC.
   
• Kanban View: The Kanban View icon in Gantt Toolbar in Gantt Visualforce is no longer available in Gantt LWC. If you would like to manage tasks in a Kanban view, we recommend adding the Kanban Board to your Project Lightning record page instead. Please see the Admin Guide - Adding the Kanban Board to Waterfall Projects for instructions.
   

Getting Started with Gantt LWC
 

• Understanding the Gantt Version Field: The Gantt Version field is critical for managing your conversion effectively. Adding this field to your project layouts helps minimize confusion and errors, allowing teams to differentiate between Gantt Visualforce and Gantt LWC projects easily. 
  
  The primary purpose of the Gantt Version field in the project is to determine which version of the Gantt component to display - Gantt Visualforce or Gantt LWC. When all of your existing projects have been converted to Gantt LWC, the Gantt Version field is no longer needed. The expectation is that moving forward, new projects will only be created and managed in Gantt LWC.
   
• Enabling Gantt LWC: Follow the detailed steps in the Gantt LWC Admin Guide to enable and configure Gantt LWC in your Salesforce org.

Next Step

Once you've reviewed the information above and are ready to begin your validation process, download the attached conversion checklist and go to Step 2: Gantt LWC - Validation Process for Converting Gantt Visualforce to Gantt LWC.

Stay Updated

As Gantt LWC continues to evolve, this guide will be updated with new features, instructional videos, and articles to support your conversion. Bookmarking this page will ensure you have the latest information.