Parallel dependency network

How it works

1. Define parallel work

   Add API design, interface design, and migration planning after discovery, then join the delivery paths before acceptance and release.

2. Calculate dependency stages

   Calculate the schedule and create a dependency network. The Project renderer places stages in columns and parallel work in separate lanes.

3. Export a zoomable diagram

   Use a 300-DPI PNG for fixed-size sharing, SVG for vector zoom, and PDF for review or printing. Save the calculated project as XML too.

The example below shows the document API and layout used for this report. Follow the Project guide for package setup in your own project.

using OfficeIMO.Drawing;
using OfficeIMO.Project;
using OfficeIMO.Workflows;

namespace OfficeIMO.Examples.Showcase.Workflows;

/// <summary>Shows parallel work, dependency joins, and task status in a network report.</summary>
internal static class ProjectDependencyNetwork {
    internal static void Create(string folder) {
        using var project = ProjectDocument.Create();
        project.Name = "Platform release / dependency map";
        project.Calendar = project.Calendars.AddStandardWorkingWeek();
        project.Settings.StartDate = new DateTime(2026, 10, 5, 8, 0, 0);
        string[] names = { "Discovery", "API design", "Interface design", "Migration plan", "Build and integrate", "Migration rehearsal", "Acceptance", "Release" };
        var tasks = names.Select((name, index) => {
            var task = project.Tasks.Add(name);
            task.Duration = ProjectDuration.WorkingDays(index == 7 ? 0 : index == 4 ? 4 : 2);
            return task;
        }).ToArray();
        foreach (var (from, to) in new[] { (0, 1), (0, 2), (0, 3), (1, 4), (2, 4), (3, 5), (4, 6), (5, 6), (6, 7) })
            project.Dependencies.Add(tasks[from], tasks[to]);
        tasks[0].ActualStart = project.Settings.StartDate;
        tasks[0].ActualDuration = ProjectDuration.WorkingHours(16);
        tasks[0].RemainingDuration = ProjectDuration.WorkingHours(0);
        tasks[1].ActualStart = new DateTime(2026, 10, 7, 8, 0, 0);
        tasks[1].ActualDuration = ProjectDuration.WorkingHours(8);
        tasks[1].RemainingDuration = ProjectDuration.WorkingHours(8);

        var schedule = project.CalculateSchedule(new ProjectScheduleOptions { CalculateAssignments = true });
        schedule.Report.ThrowIfErrors();
        var view = project.CreateView(schedule, new ProjectViewOptions {
            Kind = ProjectViewKind.Network, NetworkLayout = ProjectNetworkLayout.Dependency,
            PageWidth = 1600, PageHeight = 900
        });
        project.ApplySchedule(schedule);
        project.Save(Path.Combine(folder, "example.xml"));

        string fonts = Path.Combine(AppContext.BaseDirectory, "Assets", "Fonts");
        var faces = new OfficeFontFaceCollection()
            .Add("Arial", File.ReadAllBytes(Path.Combine(fonts, "Carlito-Regular.ttf")))
            .Add("Arial", File.ReadAllBytes(Path.Combine(fonts, "Carlito-Bold.ttf")), OfficeFontStyle.Bold);
        var typography = new OfficeRenderingProfile("network-report", faces, OfficeManagedTextShapingProvider.Instance);
        var images = new ProjectImageExportOptions().UseRenderingProfile(typography).UseQuality(OfficeImageExportQuality.Print);
        File.WriteAllBytes(Path.Combine(folder, "preview.png"), ProjectReportWorkflow.ExportImages(view, options: images).Single().Bytes);
        File.WriteAllText(Path.Combine(folder, "preview.svg"), ProjectReportWorkflow.ToSvg(view, typography).Single());
        File.WriteAllBytes(Path.Combine(folder, "preview.pdf"), ProjectReportWorkflow.ToPdf(view, typography: typography));
    }
}

Use this in your project

Change the dependency pairs to match your workflow. For larger graphs, consume every exported page instead of Single(); continuation references identify the linked task page.

The Project guide explains package setup and related document APIs.

Continue with another example

• ProjectDelivery Gantt with progress
• ProjectRelease milestone timeline