Locked lesson.

Upgrade

About this lesson

Learn how to import an existing Project Plan.

Quick reference

Import a Project Plan

Import a project plan created in Project Online.  

When to use

We can import project plans that have been created in other versions of Project so we can take full advantage of the collaborative features of Project for the Web. 

Instructions

There are a few reasons why we might want to import a project plan into Project for the Web from other Project versions. 

Plans created in Project Online/Desktop are not as accessible as plans created in Project for the Web. Project for the Web has been built with collaboration in mind so it's much easier to share plans and work on them with our team.

Plans that live in Project for the Web are part of the Microsoft 365 family of applications. This means we can access our plans from wherever we have an internet connection via the Microsoft 365 online portal. 

Finally, Microsoft has stated that all new innovations in Project will occur in Project for the Web. So, it's a good idea to start moving projects created in other versions across to Project for the Web as soon as possible. 

Import a Project

  • From Project Home, click New Project. 
  • In the Create group, click Import project. 

A message will pop up letting you know that this will create a new Project for the Web project separate from your Project Desktop project. 

  • Click Choose .mpp file. 
  • Navigate to the folder where the file is stored. 
  • Select the file and click Open. 

At this stage, if Project finds features in the file we are trying to import that aren't supported in Project for the Web, we will get a pop-up box that shows us a list of the unsupported features.

We can then make an informed decision as to if we can import this file into Project for the Web or if we should keep it in Project Desktop. 

  • Click OK to proceed with the import. 

Hints & tips

  • Some Project desktop features can't be imported into Project for the Web. 
Login to download
  • 00:04 In this section of the course, the real work begins.
  • 00:08 And we're going to start out in this particular lesson by taking a look at
  • 00:13 how we can import a project plan from a Project Professional,
  • 00:17 Project Desktop, Project Online, into Project for the Web.
  • 00:21 Now, why might you want to do this?
  • 00:23 Well, as I've already mentioned numerous times, Project for the Web is
  • 00:28 where all new innovation, when it comes to project, is going to be carried out.
  • 00:33 And Microsoft has stated that very clearly on their website.
  • 00:36 So Project for the Web is going to be a product that continuously evolves based
  • 00:41 on user feedback.
  • 00:43 So it might be that if you're currently doing all of your projects in
  • 00:47 Project Professional or Project Desktop,
  • 00:49 you might want to import that project into Project for the Web.
  • 00:53 Or maybe you have a project that you created in Project Desktop, but
  • 00:57 you're finding it hard to collaborate with other team members in the desktop version.
  • 01:03 And because Project for the Web is built for team collaboration,
  • 01:07 you might want to transfer it from Project Desktop into Project for the Web.
  • 01:11 And the good news is, this process is extremely simple.
  • 01:15 So, let's take a look at it.
  • 01:17 So, I have a project here that I've created in Project Professional.
  • 01:21 And if you've never seen Project Professional before,
  • 01:24 this is the more complex version of project that I keep mentioning.
  • 01:27 As you can see, we have a whole host of different utilities in here.
  • 01:31 And it's definitely not as easy to use as Project for the Web.
  • 01:36 But regardless, I have this server upgrade project that I'm currently working on.
  • 01:41 And what I want to do,
  • 01:43 is I want to take it from Project Professional into Project Online, so
  • 01:47 myself and my team can carry on managing and tracking progress on this project.
  • 01:53 So let's close this project down and go back to Project for the Web.
  • 01:58 Now the first thing we need to do here,
  • 02:00 is click on the New project button at the top.
  • 02:03 And we went in here briefly a bit earlier on, and you'll notice at the top here
  • 02:08 underneath create, one of the options that we have is to import a project.
  • 02:13 So this is the one we want.
  • 02:14 Let's click it.
  • 02:15 And it says, import from Project Desktop.
  • 02:18 This will create a new Project for
  • 02:20 the Web project separate from your Project Desktop project.
  • 02:24 Note that some Project Desktop features can't be imported into Project for
  • 02:29 the Web, and then we have a Learn More link.
  • 02:31 And I would definitely recommend that you do have a little read through this
  • 02:36 Learn More sections, so you really understand what you're doing here.
  • 02:40 So what this paragraph basically says,
  • 02:41 is it's going to create a copy of your project.
  • 02:43 It's not going to move it from Project Desktop into Project for the Web.
  • 02:49 It's simply going to make a brand new copy that exists separately from the original.
  • 02:53 And it's also warning you there, that the features that you're used to using in
  • 02:58 Project Desktop might not be available in Project for the Web.
  • 03:01 And that's a really important point to note when you're thinking about,
  • 03:05 if you should do this.
  • 03:06 If you use all of the features in Project Desktop,
  • 03:09 such as setting up resources, assigning costs, running complex reports,
  • 03:15 then you might want to leave your project in Project Desktop.
  • 03:19 Because currently Project for the Web doesn't have all of those features.
  • 03:24 Project for the Web allows you to manage projects and
  • 03:27 has some of the most useful and popular utilities.
  • 03:30 But it doesn't have everything that's available in Project Desktop.
  • 03:34 So just bear that in mind and
  • 03:36 read that Learn More link before you transfer your project across.
  • 03:40 Saying that, because it is creating a copy,
  • 03:42 it's not going to cause you any harm if you import it anyway.
  • 03:46 So let's click on Choose.MPP file.
  • 03:50 Now I've saved my server upgrade project file into the course files folder.
  • 03:54 And this is available for you to download if you want to practice importing.
  • 03:58 So all we need to do here, is select the project and click on Open.
  • 04:03 And that is pretty much all you need to do.
  • 04:05 You can see in a couple of seconds, it's now imported everything into Project for
  • 04:09 the Web.
  • 04:10 Now, if we open up one of these tasks and take a look at it,
  • 04:13 we don't have a great deal of information in there.
  • 04:16 But it has brought across the task name, the duration, and things like that.
  • 04:21 We can then go in and start making our changes in Project for the Web.
  • 04:26 So importing an existing project you have stored in
  • 04:29 Project Desktop is really simple.
  • 04:32 Just click on New Project and then import the .MPP file.

Lesson notes are only available for subscribers.

Gift this course