Add activities, durations and predecessors. Get early/late start and finish, total float and the critical path using the forward and backward pass.
| ID | Duration | Predecessors (comma separated) |
|---|
All dependencies are treated as finish-to-start with no lag. Use activity IDs like A, B, C in the predecessor column.
EF = ES + Duration.LS = LF − Duration; LF of an activity = the smallest LS among its successors.LS − ES (or LF − EF). Activities with zero float form the critical path.Free float is how long an activity can slip without delaying its successor's early start. Total float is how long it can slip without delaying the project end date.
The critical path is the longest path through the network and has the least float. A project can have more than one critical path, which raises schedule risk.
Yes. If a non-critical activity uses up all its float, or a critical activity is crashed or fast-tracked, a different path can become critical.
Crashing adds resources to critical activities to shorten duration (cost goes up). Fast tracking runs activities in parallel that were planned in sequence (risk goes up).
Yes. Negative float means the schedule cannot meet a required date and you must compress it.