Summary: Microsoft Project Server is a companion program to Project Professional and is the platform that supports the project and resource management and collaboration capabilities in the Microsoft Enterprise Project Management EPM solution. So please note that you won’t be able to use Microsoft Project Server separately. The software is designed for managing and reporting on portfolios of projects in a company with traditional project management approach. This is a robust application with numerous features, applied mostly by experienced project managers and suitable for large organizations. Microsoft Project Server is meant mostly for internal use, meaning it will be hard to involve your clients and partners in the collaboration process.

Project management features: Microsoft Project Server is designed to implement the traditional waterfall project management approach within an organization with a professional project management team. It comes with various complex project management instruments: milestones, Gantt charts, recurring tasks, critical path methods, resource allocation and more. The software features portfolio builder, portfolio optimization, advanced portfolio analysis proposal management, multiple resource attributes, resource leveling, earned value calculations and many more aspects that are used by sophisticated project managers. To get complete control over how your project is visually represented, you’ll need to master all the customizing options. The version tracker feature was made for you to graphically compare changes to your project plan.

Collaboration features: To utilize Microsoft Project Server for collaboration over your projects, you need to buy and install a number of other software applications, including Microsoft Office Project Professional, Microsoft Office Project Server and Microsoft Office Project Web Access. You’ll find the prices below. You’ll also need Project Server licenses, Network access and a network identification. To save, retrieve and interact with Project Server data, users have to connect to Project Server through Project Professional and Project Web Access, and this process might take some time. You probably will have to adjust to the collaboration procedure the way it’s supposed to be in Microsoft Project, and it might take several days or maybe weeks. There are several steps that have to be taken one-by-one. A project manager creates a task in Microsoft Project Professional and publishes it by logging in to Microsoft Project Server. To view the task, a team member also has to log on to Project Server and use Project Web Access. He can than add the task updates and send them to the project manager. When responses are received from the team members, the project manager is able to update the schedule. Microsoft Project can send notification messages to the team members’ inboxes if they are connected via the e-mail system. The process is not automated, which means you’ll have to push the corresponding button each time you want your staff to know about the updates. If there’s no internal e-mail connection, they will have to check Project Server regularly for new or changed assignments, so be ready for some team work delays. To provide detailed information about your accomplishments, goals, issues, and other factors that affect the team members’ work, Microsoft software developers created status reports. These reports are forms with text boxes that team members can fill out in Project Web Access to describe the status of their work. You won’t be able to update your numerical information about a project using this report, though.

Usability/training: The software was designed for long-term projects, and it will be difficult to make immediate corrections in your project plans. It is never easy to manage a complex project, and it won’t ever be easy to use a complex project management tool. You will be able to get acquainted with the software interface and functions using a 180-day trial version, which is available online for free. However, be prepared to spend a couple of hours downloading and installing the software. To download Microsoft Project Server, you’ll have to get through the multistep registration at Microsoft Download Center. Don’t forget that you won’t be able to try Microsoft Project Server without downloading Microsoft Project Professional. If you are a confident project manager, you might want to download the Microsoft Project Server guide, which is available as a Microsoft Word document. If you are a newbie at project management and want to learn how to use all the Microsoft Project Server advanced features, you’ll have to take training courses. You may also buy a book with detailed explanations of how to apply every feature.

Pricing: If you want to take advantage of the weighty software, get ready to pay for its huge feature set. Prices may vary, depending on the store. User licenses for Project Server 2003 will cost you about $1,100-$1,400. This product will not include the End User Application.

Installation/Upgrades: Microsoft Project Server is a robust application and has to be installed in a number of steps. You will need the product key, which will be sent to your e-mail address after your registration at Microsoft Download Center. If you’re not an experienced computer user, you will most likely want to download the Project Server Installation guide, which is a separate program helping you to install Microsoft Project Server correctly. To upgrade your software, you will have to buy every new product release.

Help/Support: Support is available online at www.support.microsoft.com. This is an endless source of product information. For example, there you’ll find exhaustive information on all the requirements for the software to run productively. Microsoft Corporation encourages its product users to submit comments on the software. The option is available at their Website; however, don’t expect them to personally contact you back. There are a number of other sites listed here, which might help you in getting adjusted to the software or in finding the answers to your questions.

Anyway, if you have a number of complex projects and you need to predict various scenarios and estimate your expenses in full detail, this software is what you need. Microsoft Project Server might not suit you if you practice agile project management, if your project plans change quickly or if you want update real progress manually. Sometimes Gantt charts with numerous tasks can be hard for your team members to understand.