Add a Baseline

Adding project baselines enables you to track progress throughout the project lifecycle. If no baseline exists for a project, the first baseline must be an original or unofficial baseline. Any subsequent baselines can be original, current, supplementary, or unofficial baselines. You can also change the type of existing baselines. Only one original, current, and supplementary baseline can exist at a time, but you can maintain an unlimited number of unofficial baselines.

You can add, edit, and delete project baselines from the Baselines page or Activities page.

To add a project baseline:

1. Navigate to the Baselines page
   1. In the object selector, select ﱆ Project, select View Projects List, and then select a project name.
   2. From the  Main Menu, select  Scope or  Schedule, and then select Baselines.
2. Select  Add.
3. In the Add Baseline dialog box, enter the following information:
   • Name: The name of the baseline.
   • Source: The source of the baseline data. Select Current Schedule, Scenario, Baseline, or From History.
     • If you selected Current Schedule as the source, continue to type selection.
     • If you selected Baseline as the source, use the Baseline list to choose an existing baseline with data you want to copy.
     • If you selected Scenario as the source, use the Scenario list to choose an existing scenario with data you want to copy.
     • If you selected From History as the source, use the Baseline Date picker to choose the date of the project data captured by the baseline. Select a date in the past to use project data from that date. The default value is the current date and time
   • Type: The type of baseline. Select Original, Current, Supplementary, or leave the value blank.

     Notes:

     • Unofficial baselines do not have a Type. Select the blank row in the list to add an unofficial baseline.
     • The dialog box displays the baseline type selected as the earned value baseline. This can be changed in the project settings.
   • Category: The baseline categories are available in your project's owning workspace to help organize data. If there are no categories in the list, then none have been created. See Baseline Categories Overview for more information about baseline categories.
4. (Optional) Enter a description for the new scenario.
5. Select Add.
6. All changes made to this page are saved automatically.

Tips

• To access your baselines from the Activities page, select the Actions  menu, and then select Manage Baselines. You can also add baselines from the Manage Baselines dialog box. Baselines added in this manner automatically set the current schedule as the scenario source.
• To add baselines directly from the Activities page, select the Actions  menu, and then select Add Baseline.
• If you do not see a newly added baseline on the Activities page or in the Manage Baselines dialog box, select  Refresh.
• The Data Date field shows the data date value as of the Baseline Date. This is useful when determining the progress point of your project at the time represented by the baseline.
• The Baseline for Earned Value field shows which baseline is being used as the project's earned value baseline.
• To delete a baseline, on the Baselines page, in the Manage Baselines dialog box, or on the Activities page, select the  Context menu, and then select Delete. You cannot delete an original baseline if a current or supplementary baseline exists. If you delete the baseline designated as the earned value baseline, all earned value calculations will be reset when you recalculate costs.
• You cannot remove or change the original baseline if you have any scope changes, installed or actual scope quantities, or at least one closed reporting period.
• When a new scenario is created, a notification message is displayed and you can review the full message in the Inbox.