Manage Tasks | Online Help | Zoho Projects

Manage Tasks

Efficiently handle tasks with unique IDs, customizable prefixes, and recurring task features. Set reminders, log hours, and manage work hours effortlessly. Import and export tasks, and reopen completed tasks when needed.

 Task ID 

Tasks and issues will have an auto-generated unique ID with a prefix. Unique IDs are efficient to track, identify, and search for tasks.
  1. You can enable/disable Task ID in Portal configuration.
  2. You can edit the task prefix when you edit a project.
Once a task is deleted, the task ID number of that task will also be deleted. All task IDs are unique, a deleted task ID will not be reused for subsequent tasks.

Recurring Tasks  

Adding recurring tasks in Zoho Projects can save time when dealing with repetitive tasks. Users have the option to set a schedule for these tasks, either when creating a new task or editing an existing one. This feature eliminates the need to create a new task for each instance manually.
Available in our Premium and Enterprise plans.

Set a New Task as Recurring

  1. Click the Tasks module from Overview and click Add Task.
  2. Fill in the details of the task.
  3. Click the Recurrence field.
  4. Set Recurring Frequency as None, Daily, Weekly, Monthly, or Yearly.
  5. Set how often the task should recur in the Once Every field. For example, if you set the frequency as Daily and set Once Every field to 3, the task will recur once every 3 days.
  6. Set End After. For example if this is set as 2, the tasks will stop recurring after 2 instances (Original task + 2 instances). Set it to Never for creating infinite instances of the task.
  7. Select Retain comments for subsequent recurrences. This will carry the comments from the current active task forward to the recurring task when it becomes active.
  8. Select Create next recurrence after the close of current task. This will create the next recurring task only after the current instance is marked as complete even if the scheduled date is reached.
  9. Click Done.

Monthly and Yearly frequencies give an additional option. If the next instance falls on a holiday as defined in the Org Settings, the recurring task will be scheduled on the previous business day.

Set an Existing Task as Recurring   

  1. Click the Task module from Overview, open either the List or Gantt View, and click on a task.
  2. Click on the Recurrence field in the Task Information section.
  3. Set Recurrence Frequency and click Save.

Task Reminders

Working on multiple tasks can be tedious and can cause you to lose track of your work. Task reminders can help you stay on top of your work by sending timely emails. With task reminders in Zoho Projects, you don't miss a single task.

 Set Reminder while adding task 

  1. Click the Tasks module and select Add Task.
  2. Click the Reminder field.
  3. Reminders can be set based on due date or on a specific Date.
  4. Based on due date lets you set reminders daily, on the due date, or on certain days before the due date. Enter the number of days if you select the Day(s) before due date option.
  5. Specific date allows user to set a date and get notification on that particular date.
  6. Set the time.
  7. Select users or teams in the Notify Users field.
  8. Click Set Reminder.
  9. In Remind on, if you select:
  1. Daily: The reminder mail will be daily until the due date.
  2. On due date: A reminder mail will be sent on the due date.
  3. Day(s) before due date: A reminder email will be sent before the due date based on the number of days set.

Log Hours for Tasks 

Time logs help track the time spent on a task. Users can log hours from the List or Gantt views in the Task module inside a project.
  1. Scroll to the Timelog Total column against the task.
  2. Click on the field corresponding to the task.
  3. Enter the details in the New Time Log form and click Add.

Set Work Hours 

Set work hours (planned hours) for your tasks to track time taken by users. The Planned VS Actual report can be used to measure performance. Work hours are also required for forecasting project costs.
   
Benefits
  1. Track progress by measuring planned vs actual hours spent on tasks
  2. Forecast project costs based on work hours
 
By default, if you do not set the work hours manually, then:
Task Work Hours = (Task Duration * Number of Resources) assigned for the task.

 Set Default Work Hours   

  1. Click    in the top-right corner of the top navigation bar.
  2. Navigate to Customization  > Layouts and Fields > Tasks.
  3. Cliick on the desired Layout, under Task Information, click  beside Work Hours .
  4. Click Edit Properties and select the work hour format and the default value.
    1. Business Hours: While creating a task, Work Hours will be prefilled with Business Hours.
    2. Empty:  While creating a task, Work Hours will be empty.
  5. Click Done and click Save Layout.

 Set Standard Work Hours in New Task 

  1. Navigate to the Task module in a project and click Add Task in the top-right corner.
  2. Enter the work hours, then click Add.
Work Hours can be set in three different formats:
  1. Work hours per day - You can set the number of hours a task owner is expected to spend on the task each day.The hours per day is the number of hours a user must spend on the task each day across the task schedule. If the work per day is four hours for a span of five days, then the task is allotted 20 hours for completion.
  2. Work % per day - You can set the work percentage for the task owner for each day. If the business hours per day is eight hours, and the resource is allocated only 50%, then the task is allotted four hours per day.
  3. Work hours - You can set the total work hours for the task owner. The work per day is automatically calculated based on the task duration. If the task is allotted a total of 20 hrs, and the duration of the task is five days, then the work per day is automatically set as four hours per day.

 Set Work While Editing a Task 

  1. Click on a task to open the Task Details page (click open a task to view its Task Details page)
  2. Click the Work Hours field in the Task Information section.
  3. Make the necessary changes, then click Save.
In the Group by Task List (Classic) view, you can also edit the WORK HOURS PLANNED column inline.
  1. In the List view of tasks, you can view the planned work hours and actual hours taken to complete the task.
  2. The Work and Time Log columns indicate if you have logged fewer or more hours than the planned work hours.
  3. A green arrow in the Time Log column indicates that you have logged fewer than the planned hours displayed in the Work column. 
  4. A red arrow indicates that you have exceeded the planned hours.

 Set Flexible Work Hours in a Task   

For any task, the flexible work hours is set by dividing the total work hours and assigning them on different days. Flexible Work hours can be allocated based on the start and end dates or the duration.
If a user wants to set the total work hours as 10, they can either select standard work hours and set two hours for five days, or select flexible work hours and set three, three, and four hours for each day.
 
Select a project from the Recent Projects section or the Projects tab in the left navigation panel.
  1. Click the Tasks tab in the top navigation band.
  2. Click on a task to open the details page.
  3. Click the Work Hours field and select Flexible.
  4. Enter the number of hours for each day.
  5. Click Done
Users can select either Standard or Flexible option for a task.
The work hours can also be entered in % based on Business Hours.
If your portal was created before Dec 15, 2020, please contact support@zohoprojects.com to enable this feature.

Import Tasks   

  1. Select a project from the Recent Projects section or the Projects tab in the left navigation panel.
  2. Click the Tasks tab in the top band.
  3. Click  in the top-right corner and click Import Tasks.
  4. Select the File Type and choose a file that you want to upload.
  5. Click Import.
  6. Map the columns in the MPP file with the list of fields available in the tasks module.
  7. Select if you want to keep the tasks unassigned or mapped to project users.
  8. Click Continue to import the tasks into Zoho Projects.

Export Tasks

Portal users can export tasks in XLS or CSV file. Users can select the specific task view (default or custom) and also choose the columns they want to export.

Export Tasks Without Filter and Custom Views

  1. Select a project and select the Task module.
  2. Click  in the upper-right corner and select Export Tasks.
  3. You can select a task view to export. For example, if you select Unscheduled Tasks in predefined views, then all the tasks which are not scheduled will be exported. You can also export tasks based on a custom view.
  4. Select the file format.
  5. You can choose the columns to export.
  6. The Selected pane lists the fields that you have selected in Customize task columns. The fields listed in this pane will be exported.
  7. The Available pane lists the fields that you haven’t selected in the Customize task columns. Hover over a field name and click to move it from the Available section to the Selected section, or you can drag and drop the columns between the sections.
  8. Check the Export with file information box to export tasks along with the task metadata.
  9. Click Export.
A download link will be generated. Click on it to download the file.

Click Show export history to view the history of exports.
You can also export tasks across all projects. Navigate to Work Overview > Tasks >  and select Export Tasks.

 Export Tasks with Filter and Custom Views 

  1. Select a project in Projects and choose the Task module.
  2. Select in the top-right corner.
  3. Choose the filter values and click Find.
  4. Click Save as, then click New Custom View. Save the custom view.
  5. Click  in the top-right corner and select Export Tasks.
  6. Select the custom view from the Task View field.
  7. Click Export.

 Reopen a Completed Task 

Tasks can be marked as complete when a user is done working on them. Sometimes, users might need to rework on an already completed task. In such instances, a task can be reopened.
  1. Click  in the top-right corner and choose Closed in Task Status.
  2. Click Find to filter closed tasks.
  3. Click on a closed task to open it.
  4. Change the status to Open.

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