Working with WBS Associated with a Task

WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) codes let you assign outline numbers to tasks according to the needs of your business. They provide a customized outline scheme for structuring and analyzing a project. Aspose.Tasks for .NET fully supports working with WBS values programmatically.

Working with Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in Aspose.Tasks for .NET

In Microsoft Project, the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) is a hierarchical outline that defines the structure of tasks within a project. It helps project managers organize, identify, and track project deliverables. Aspose.Tasks for .NET provides full support for working with WBS values programmatically. You can use the following properties of the Tsk class:

• WBS – returns or sets the full hierarchical WBS code of a task (e.g., 1.2.3).
• WBSLevel – returns or sets the depth (level) of the task within the WBS hierarchy.

These properties allow developers to read and update task structures when processing Microsoft Project files (MPP/XML).

Viewing WBS in Microsoft Project

To view WBS information in Microsoft Project:

1. Open the Task Entry form.
2. On the Insert menu, select Column.
3. Add the WBS column to display task WBS values.

Example: Reading Task WBS

The following example shows how to get a task’s WBS value using Aspose.Tasks:

Project project = new Project("New Project.mpp");

// Create a ChildTasksCollector instance
ChildTasksCollector collector = new ChildTasksCollector();

// Collect all the tasks from RootTask using TaskUtils
TaskUtils.Apply(project.RootTask, collector, 0);

// Parse through all the collected tasks
foreach (Task task in collector.Tasks)
{
    Console.WriteLine(task.Get(Tsk.WBS));
    Console.WriteLine(task.Get(Tsk.WBSLevel));

    // Set custom WBS
    task.Set(Tsk.WBS, "custom wbs" + task.Get(Tsk.WBS));
}

Example: Adding WBS Code Definitions

Aspose.Tasks for .NET allows defining custom WBS code rules using the WBSCodeDefinition class. This enables generating structured WBS codes similar to Microsoft Project.

Project proj = new Project();

proj.WBSCodeDefinition = new WBSCodeDefinition();
proj.WBSCodeDefinition.GenerateWBSCode = true;
proj.WBSCodeDefinition.VerifyUniqueness = true;
proj.WBSCodeDefinition.CodePrefix = "CRS-";

WBSCodeMask mask = new WBSCodeMask();
mask.Length = 2;
mask.Separator = "-";
mask.Sequence = WBSSequence.OrderedNumbers;
proj.WBSCodeDefinition.CodeMaskCollection.Add(mask);

mask = new WBSCodeMask();
mask.Length = 1;
mask.Separator = "-";
mask.Sequence = WBSSequence.OrderedUppercaseLetters;
proj.WBSCodeDefinition.CodeMaskCollection.Add(mask);

Task task = proj.RootTask.Children.Add("Task 1");
Task child = task.Children.Add("Task 2");

proj.Recalculate();
proj.Save("AddWBSCodes_out.xml", SaveFileFormat.XML);

Example: Renumbering WBS Codes

Just like Microsoft Project provides the Renumber function, Aspose.Tasks for .NET can also renumber WBS codes programmatically:

Project project = new Project("New Project.mpp");

Console.WriteLine("WBS codes before: ");

// output: ""; "1"; "2"; "4"
foreach (Task task in project.RootTask.SelectAllChildTasks())
{
    Console.WriteLine("\"" + task.Get(Tsk.WBS) + "\"" + "; ");
}

project.RenumberWBSCode(new List<int> { 1, 2, 3 });
// project.RenumberWBSCode(); // this overload can be used instead

Console.WriteLine("WBS codes after: ");

// output: ""; "1"; "2"; "3"
foreach (Task task in project.RootTask.SelectAllChildTasks())
{
    Console.WriteLine("\"" + task.Get(Tsk.WBS) + "\"" + "; ");
}

Key Notes

• WBS codes provide a hierarchical view of project tasks.
• You can read, assign, and customize WBS codes with Aspose.Tasks.
• The WBSCodeDefinition class gives fine control over WBS formatting and structure.
• WBS codes can be renumbered programmatically to maintain consistency.
• Supported for both MPP and XML formats.

FAQ

Q: Can I define a custom WBS code pattern?

• Yes. Use the WBSCodeDefinition class to create custom rules.

Q: How is WBS different from task outline numbers?

• Outline numbers are system-generated, while WBS codes can be customized to match business rules.

Q: Can WBS codes be changed after task creation?

• Yes. WBS values can be updated or renumbered at any time.

Q: Does renumbering overwrite existing custom codes?

• Yes. Renumbering regenerates WBS codes according to the defined scheme.