Forum Discussion
Resource calendars
I have spent a couple days exploring this feature but I'm still not sure how it works.
As a test, I created a new Premium Plan. Schedule mode is set by default to Fixed duration (I'm waiting for my IT dept to allow PM overrides so I can set future Plans to Fixed work or Fixed units.)
The test plan has one task with a one-day duration (8 hrs) that I assigned to myself.
In Planner Premium, I select the Resource calendars option.
Then I go over to Power Apps and pull up the Project app. Inside the app, I open my plan and locate myself as an Active Bookable Resource.
I open my Work Hours tab, limit my availability to four hours on the same day that the Planner task is scheduled, and click Save. (I can't enter a fractional capacity number; it apparently has to be "1").
Why doesn't the Planner task automatically adjust to a two-day duration in recognition of the fact that I'm only available for a 1/2 day?
If I was guessing, I would say it's because the Plan is set to Fixed duration. But what that effectively means is that by default clicking the Resource calendars box does nothing, as far as I can see, unless the PM is allowed to override the default schedule mode. Is that a true statement?
The other thing I'm confused about is whether it's possible to set different availabilities per project. In other words, do the hours I set on the Work Hours tab (incl. capacity setting of "1") apply simultaneously to all Planner Premium projects where I'm assigned? For example, can I not set this up to reflect that I'm available to work on Project A for 4 hours per day and Project B for 3 hours per day? Or Project A on M,W, & F and Project B on T & Th? If that could be configured, assigning me to a 5-hour Thursday task on Project A would cause a duration adjustment or an overallocation flag, or something. I have read about this forthcoming (GA Oct 2026) "Capacity View", but even with that it's not clear that it will recognize capacity of less than one on a given project.
If the short answer to these questions is that I'm expecting Planner Premium to do things intended for Dynamics 365 Project Operations, that's fine. But then I just don't understand what this "Resource calendars" option in Planner Premium is supposed to enable unless it's strictly tied to the PM's ability to override fixed duration schedule mode.
1 Reply
Your test combines two separate controls: the resource’s working calendar and a plan configured to keep task duration fixed. Fixed duration does not preserve eight hours of effort when other scheduling inputs change, so a two-day result is not guaranteed. Display effort, duration, and assignment allocation together before and after changing availability. Then test a newly created plan using Fixed effort, after IT permits project-level overrides, and compare identical assignments. Microsoft documents that scheduling mode is selected during project creation, not changed after saving. The bookable-resource calendar describes that resource’s availability; it is not a separate allocation calendar for each project. Keep its capacity at one and represent project allocation through assignments rather than fractional calendar capacity. Resource calendars therefore are not inherently pointless in Fixed duration. I cannot confirm the forthcoming Capacity View’s exact behavior from these settings alone.
