Projects messages and what to do
The messages you can meet in Projects, what they mean and how to fix them.
Messages
| Message | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 'You do not have permission for this action.' | Your role lacks the permission for that button or tab. Buttons are shown even when you cannot use them. | Ask your administrator for the permission named in the guide. |
| 'This is required.' | A required field is empty. | Fill the field and save again. |
| 'The finish cannot be before the start.' | The finish date is earlier than the start date on a project or task. | Correct one of the dates. |
| 'That project code is taken.' | The code already exists in the company. | Leave the code blank or choose another. |
| 'Customer PO is required by this company.' | The administrator made this field required. The same applies to location, description and contract number. | Fill it in, or ask the administrator to change Fields. |
| 'Somebody else changed this project. Reload it and try again.' | Another user saved first. Tasks show a similar message. | Reload the page and make your change again. |
| 'A closed or cancelled project is read-only. Reopen it through an authorised correction first.' | You tried to change a closed or cancelled project. | Have someone with the right permission reopen it (Actions > Completed), then make the change. |
| 'Finish the close checklist first:' (followed by items) | Some of the eleven close checklist items are not ticked. | Check each item, tick it, Save checklist and close again. |
| 'A planning project cannot become closed.' | The status move is not on the allowed path. | Move step by step. See Change status and close a project. |
| 'That link would make a loop in the schedule.' | The dependency would make tasks wait for each other. | Remove or change a link. |
| 'Choose two different tasks.' | Predecessor and successor are the same task. | Pick two tasks. |
| 'Time is logged on this task. Cancel it instead of deleting it.' | A task with time cannot be deleted. | Set the task status to Cancelled. |
| 'Somebody other than who submitted it must approve it.' | You tried to approve your own budget. | Ask another approver. |
| 'Somebody other than who asked for it must decide it.' | You tried to approve your own budget change. | Ask another approver. |
| 'Only a draft budget can be edited; revise the approved one instead.' | The budget is approved or frozen. | Press New revision, edit and resubmit. |
| 'Only a draft estimate can be edited; make a new revision.' | The estimate was submitted or approved. | Copy it as a new estimate. |
| 'An approved BOQ is never edited; make a revised version.' | The BOQ is approved. | Create a new version of kind Revised. |
| 'The resource would be 110% allocated. Reduce the allocation or move the dates.' | The resource would pass 100% on some day across all projects. The percentage in the message varies. | Lower the allocation or change the dates. |
| 'Enter between 0 and 24 hours.' | Hours on one time entry are out of range. | Enter more than 0 and at most 24. |
| 'Somebody else approves your time.' | You tried to approve your own time entry. The expense version says 'your expense'. | Ask another approver. |
| 'Submitted time is changed by its approver only.' | A submitted entry is locked. | Ask the approver to reject it, then edit. |
| 'There is no approved time or expense waiting to post.' | Nothing is left to post. | None needed. |
| 'Add lines to a draft request, then submit it.' | A purchase request without lines cannot be submitted. | Add a line. |
| 'Only an approved request can be ordered.' | The request is not approved yet. | Have an approver approve it. |
| 'Choose the vendor first.' | A purchase order needs a vendor on the request. | Choose the vendor and save. |
| 'Activate the subcontract before claims.' | Claims need an active subcontract. | Press Activate. |
| 'Cannot certify more than was verified.' | The certified amount is above the verified amount. | Certify no more than the verified amount. |
| 'Post the claim's vendor bill first.' | You pressed Post retention before the bill was posted. | Ask Accounting to post the bill. |
| 'The project needs a customer to invoice.' | The project has no customer. | Set one in Edit Project. |
| 'This billing step is already invoiced.' | A step can be invoiced once. | Open the invoice from the Billing tab. |
| 'Complete the milestone before invoicing it.' | The billing step belongs to a milestone that is not completed. | Complete the milestone. |
| 'There is no approved billable time or expense to bill.' | Nothing approved and billable is waiting. | Approve entries, or tick Billable. |
| 'Finish the open application first.' | Another progress claim is still open. | Certify and invoice it, or reject it. |
| 'Progress cannot go back from the last certified claim.' | Cumulative % is lower than the last certified claim. | Enter at least the last certified %. |
| 'Record who certified it (the customer's representative).' | You raised the claim, so a certifier name is required. | Type the representative's name in Certified by. |
| 'Somebody other than who raised the change must decide it.' | You raised the change order and tried to approve it. | Ask a person with project.change.approve. |
| 'A change in Approved cannot move to Billed.' | Change order steps cannot be skipped. | Move step by step. |
| 'A change under customer review or approved is not edited; raise another change.' | The change is locked. | Raise a new change order. |
| 'Change orders is disabled for this company.' | The feature is switched off. | Ask an administrator. The same pattern applies to BOQ, procurement, subcontracts and recognition. |
| 'Nothing to recognise: the ledger already matches the project.' | Recognition is up to date. | None needed. |
| 'Plan some tasks before taking a baseline.' | The project has no dated tasks. | Add tasks first. |