Comparing P6 schedule updates: what changed on the critical path?
See the finish date movement, newly critical work, slips, float erosion and logic changes between two XER updates.
The problem
Every month the scheduler issues a new update, and the narrative rarely tells the whole story. Did the finish move? Which activities became critical? Where did float disappear? Were durations or logic changed in a way that hides a delay? Answering those questions means comparing two schedules activity by activity, which few people have time to do.
What to compare between two updates
- Data date and project finish date: how far did the finish move?
- The critical path: which activities joined it and which left it?
- Finish-date slips on individual activities, largest first.
- Float erosion: activities losing float even if they are not critical yet.
- Original duration changes, which can hide or absorb delays.
- Activities added or deleted, and relationships (logic) added or removed, especially on the critical path.
How DocuFinds handles it
Choose two or three .xer exports in the Compare versions skill. DocuFinds reads the activities, calendars and relationships and computes the comparison directly from the schedule data: data date and finish movement, the current critical path (float of zero or less, or on the driving path) with activities that joined or left it, the biggest slips, float erosion, duration changes, added and deleted activities and logic changes. An optional AI narrative explains the main changes using only those computed numbers.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare two P6 schedules?
Compare the data date and finish, the critical path membership, activity finish dates, total float, original durations, and the activity and relationship lists. DocuFinds' Compare versions skill computes all of these from two or three .xer files.
How does DocuFinds decide what is critical?
An activity counts as critical when it is not complete and its total float is zero or less, or when P6 marks it on the driving path.
Does it need Primavera installed?
No. It reads the .xer export directly.
Can it explain the changes in plain language?
Yes. It can write a short narrative of the main changes, using only the numbers it computed from the schedules.
Try it on your own documents
Upload a project and ask your first question. Every answer links to the exact page.
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