Migrate from Project Central to Microsoft Project

Project Central Projects map to Microsoft Project project files (MPP format for desktop, or Project for the web project records for the cloud). Project name, description, start date, and status migrate directly. The Project Central health indicator and percentage-complete fields map to Microsoft Project summary task fields or custom project-level fields. We set the project calendar from the source Start Date and any configured working days.

Project Central Tasks map to Microsoft Project Task rows within the project file. Parent-child hierarchy between summary tasks and sub-tasks is preserved using Outline Level and WBS fields. Task name, start date, due date, percent complete, and description migrate directly. We flag which tasks have Owners assigned and create corresponding resource assignments in Microsoft Project during import. Status values from Project Central (Not Started, In Progress, Completed, On Hold) map to Microsoft Project Task Status or custom fields depending on the destination configuration.

Project Central Tags are multi-value metadata applied at the project or task level. Tags migrate to Microsoft Project custom task-level or project-level custom fields using a Text custom field or multi-value lookup table. We extract the distinct tag values during scoping, create the corresponding lookup table entries in Microsoft Project, and map each task's tag collection to the custom field. If a task carries multiple tags, we concatenate them with a delimiter or use a multi-select custom field if the destination version supports it.

Project Central stores no native attachments; it references files stored in SharePoint Online document libraries. We extract the SharePoint URLs during extraction and map them as hyperlinks on the corresponding Microsoft Project tasks. If the destination is Microsoft Project for the web, links are preserved as task hyperlinks. If the destination is the desktop client, links are added as external hyperlinks on the task or as a custom field containing the URL for reference. Actual file blobs are not moved since Project Central holds no file content.

Project Central custom fields defined at the project level migrate to Microsoft Project project-level custom fields. We extract the field names, data types, and values during scoping, create matching custom fields in the destination project using the CustomFields feature in Project Desktop or the Project for the web API, and populate values during the task and project import phase. Lookup table-based custom fields in Project Central require manual creation of equivalent lookup tables in Microsoft Project.

Project Central task-level custom fields map to Microsoft Project task-level custom fields. The migration extracts field definitions (name, type, options) and maps field values to the corresponding Microsoft Project custom fields by task name and outline number. Custom fields referencing users in Project Central map to resource assignments in Microsoft Project if the custom field type is a user picker.

Project Central task Owners map to Microsoft Project Resources. We extract unique Owner names from all tasks and create corresponding Resource records in Microsoft Project. Owner email addresses are stored in the Resource Notes field. If a Microsoft Project license is required for a specific resource, we flag this during scoping. Generic resources are created for any Owner that cannot be resolved to a named resource in the destination.

Project Central time entries are scoped out of the standard migration because Microsoft Project does not have a native time-tracking object. Time entries are exported as a structured reference document listing the task, resource, hours logged, and date. The customer's admin uses this document to recreate time-tracking using Microsoft Project Online timesheets, a third-party time-tracking add-in, or a separate PSA tool such as Dynamics 365 Project Operations.

Project Central does not support task dependencies, which means no predecessor-successor relationships exist in the source data to migrate. However, organizations moving to Microsoft Project specifically to use dependency modeling should be aware that this is a greenfield: task dependencies are not carried over because they were never in Project Central. We document this gap in the mapping spec and recommend that the customer identify critical task sequences during post-migration planning to reconstruct dependencies in Microsoft Project.

Project Central status workflows model Kanban-style task state transitions at the project level. Microsoft Project does not have a native workflow state engine for tasks; instead, status is tracked through Task Status, custom fields, or integration with Power Automate for workflow automation. We extract every configured Project Central status workflow (states, transition rules, and trigger conditions) and deliver a written workflow inventory with a recommended Power Automate equivalent for each transition. The admin rebuilds these in Power Automate post-migration.

Project Central Views (My Tasks, Board, Timeline, and any custom views) are scoped to each project and user. Microsoft Project views (Gantt Chart, Task Sheet, Resource Sheet, Timeline) are configured per project file rather than portfolio-wide. We extract the full list of Project Central views with their filter, group, and sort configuration and deliver a written view inventory that maps each Project Central view to the closest Microsoft Project equivalent. Views are not migrated as data; the admin recreates them in each destination project file after migration.