Desktop P6 Professional workflow. Menu labels are aligned with Oracle’s current Version 26 help; older 24.x deployments may show minor wording or privilege differences.
Key takeaways
- The activity table, Gantt, and Activity Details are different views of the same selected schedule record.
- A saved layout is a repeatable review configuration, not a separate copy of the schedule.
- Before editing, confirm the open project, active filters, grouping, data date, and displayed baseline.
The five regions to recognize
The primary professional workspace is Project, Activities. Read it from left to right and top to bottom: navigation and menus, WBS or grouping bands, the activity table, the time-scaled Gantt, and Activity Details. A field displayed in one pane may be calculated from data entered in another, so reviewers should move between table, logic, status, and details rather than editing from a single view.
Layouts are operating controls
Columns, filters, grouping, bars, timescale, and lower-pane tabs are saved as a layout. A good organization maintains controlled layouts for planning, status collection, quality review, critical-path review, baseline comparison, and printing. The layout is not the schedule, but it determines which evidence the user can see.
Orient a controlled Activities workspace
Use this sequence when opening an unfamiliar database, project, or layout.
Menu path: Enterprise > Projects, then Project > Activities
Before you start
- Read access to the project
- A known project ID
- A named working or review layout
Confirm the open project
Open Enterprise > Projects and verify the Project ID, project name, status, planned start, data date, and responsible manager before opening the project.
Verify: The title bar and Project Details identify the intended project and current data date.
Caution: Do not edit an identically named project in the wrong EPS branch or environment.
Open Activities
Choose Project > Activities and apply the organization’s named working layout.
Verify: The activity table and Gantt show the same selected project.
Expose Activity Details
Choose View > Show on Bottom > Details, then inspect General, Status, Relationships, Resources, Codes, Steps, and Notes as applicable.
Verify: Selecting a row changes the detail record shown below.
Check the visible controls
Record active filters, grouping, sorting, columns, bars, timescale, and displayed baselines.
Verify: The layout can be reproduced or compared with the controlled standard.
Save safely
Use Layout > Save As when experimenting; give personal layouts a clear owner and purpose.
Verify: The shared or global layout remains unchanged.
- Project and data date confirmed
- Filters disclosed
- Baseline display confirmed
- Working layout saved under the correct ownership
Field-ready control
P6 workspace orientation check
- Correct EPS and project are open.
- Data date and project status are visible.
- Active filters and groupings are disclosed.
- The intended primary baseline is displayed.
- Activity Details and relationship evidence are accessible.
- Experimental changes use a personal copy of the layout.
Common questions
Why does my screen look different from another scheduler’s?
Layouts, user preferences, privileges, database connection type, and P6 version can all change what is visible. Compare the saved layout definition and user privileges before assuming schedule data differ.
Sources and scope
Follow the reference trail.
This guide is original educational commentary. Kairos reference records identify the source organizations, editions and scope behind this guidance. The original publishers retain their publications and rights.
Activities WindowOracle · checked 2026-08-01Primavera P6 Professional User Guide, Version 26Oracle · checked 2026-08-01Schedule Assessment Guide: Best Practices for Project SchedulesU.S. Government Accountability Office · checked 2026-08-01