PRJ2000: Error Message: There Was a Problem Accessing the Microsoft Project Central Server (257749)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Project 2000
This article was previously published under Q257749

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Project, when you perform any of the following tasks
  • Update Project to Web Server
  • Send a TeamAssign, TeamUpdate, or TeamStatus message
  • Create a user account
you receive the following error message:
There was a problem accessing the Microsoft Project Central server.

Try one of the following:
  • Make sure the URL is correct. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Workgroup tab.
  • If the browser is offline, put it back online by clicking Work Offline on the File menu.
  • The server may be temporarily unavailable. Try again at a later time.
  • There may be a problem with the server. Contact the administrator for the server.

CAUSE

This behavior may be caused by any of the following conditions.

Cause 1

You typed an incorrect Uniform Resource Locator (URL) in the Microsoft Project Central Server URL box.

Cause 2

Microsoft Internet Explorer is set to work offline.

Cause 3

The Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) is unavailable.

Cause 4

Anonymous access to the Project Central Database is not allowed, or is using an invalid user name or password.

Cause 5

The user account that Microsoft Project Central uses to communicate with the database does not have database owner permissions for the Project Central Database, or the specified user name or password is incorrect.

Cause 6

The project manager's account is not enabled in Microsoft Project Central (where "project manager" is the user that is sending the workgroup message or creating the account in Microsoft Project 2000).

Cause 7

The Microsoft Project Central database is set to Single User mode.

Cause 8

The SQL scripts were not run on the database.

Cause 9

The Internet options for your computer specify to use a proxy server for local addresses.

Cause 10

The Default Web Site that hosts the Microsoft Project Central Web site does not have a static Internet Protocol (IP) address, and the intranet that you are connected to does not automatically resolve Web site names when an IP address changes.

Cause 11

The Execute Permissions setting on the ProjectCentral virtual directory is set to Scripts Only.

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, use the appropriate method for your situation.

Workaround for Cause 1

Use Internet Explorer to verify that the URL is correct. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. In Microsoft Project, click Options on the Tools menu, and then click the Workgroup tab.
  2. In the Microsoft Project Central Server URL box, select and copy the URL.
  3. Start Internet Explorer, and then paste the URL that you copied in step 2 into the Internet Explorer address bar.
  4. If Internet Explorer successfully displays the Microsoft Project Central logon page, select and copy the URL from the Internet Explorer address bar, and then paste it back in the Microsoft Project Options dialog box.
If Internet Explorer does not successfully display the logon page, check with the Microsoft Project Central server administrator to verify the correct URL.

Workaround for Cause 2

Verify that Internet Explorer is not offline. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Start Internet Explorer.
  2. On the File menu, locate Work Offline.
  3. If the Work Offline check box is selected, click to clear the Work Offline check box.

Workaround for Cause 3

Verify that the server is available. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. In Microsoft Project, click Options on the Tools menu, and then click the Workgroup tab.
  2. In the Microsoft Project Central Server URL box, select and copy the URL.
  3. Start Internet Explorer, and then paste the URL that you copied in step 2 into the Internet Explorer address bar.
  4. If Internet Explorer successfully displays the Microsoft Project Central logon page, the server is available.
If Internet Explorer does not successfully display the logon page, have your Web server administrator verify that the server computer is running, that the Internet Services Manager is running on the server, and that the Default Web Site service in Internet Services Manager is not stopped.

Workaround for Cause 4

Verify that anonymous access to the Project Central Database has been enabled, and that the user name and password used for anonymous access are valid. To do this, follow these steps:

NOTE: These steps must be performed by someone who has administrative access to Internet Services Manager on the server that manages the Microsoft Project Central Server Web site.
  1. Verify that anonymous access is enabled.
    1. Start Internet Services Manager.
    2. In the Console Tree (left pane), double-click the server that contains the Microsoft Project Central Web site.
    3. Under the server, double-click Default Web Site.
    4. Under Default Web Site, double-click the Project Central virtual directory.
    5. Under the Project Central virtual directory, select the ISAPI folder.
    6. In the view pane (right pane), select Pjdbcomm.dll, and then click Properties on the Action menu.
    7. In the Pjdbcomm.dll Properties dialog box, click the File Security tab.
    8. Under Anonymous Access and Authentication Control, click Edit, and then verify that the Anonymous Access check box is selected (checked). If it is not selected, anonymous access is not enabled.
  2. Verify that the user name and password are valid.
    1. If necessary, click to select the Anonymous Access check box, and then click Edit.
    2. In the Anonymous User Account dialog box, valid user names for anonymous access are either of the following:

      F
      • IUSR_Computer name (where Computer name is the name of the computer where the Web server is running)

        NOTE: If this user name is specified, then the Enable automatic password synchronization option (in IIS version 4) or the Allow IIS to control password option (in IIS version 5) must be selected.

        -or-

      • Any valid domain account and password, with the user name entered in the form domain\username

        NOTE: If a user name of this type is specified, and if the user account has a password that changes periodically, you must manually change the new password in the Anonymous User Account dialog box. IIS cannot synchronize the password in this situation.
      With either type of user name, the specified user cannot be a member of the Guest user group if the Guest group has been disabled.
NOTE: For full functionality with Microsoft Project Central project views, the account used for anonymous access must also have access to the network shares where project files are stored.

Workaround for Cause 5

Verify that the user name that Microsoft Project Central is using to communicate with the database is a valid user account in the database, that the password for the user account is valid, and that the user account has database owner permissions for the Project Central database.

The database user account and password used by Microsoft Project Central to communicate with the Project Central Database are stored in the UserName and Password values of the following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\9.0\MS Project\WebClient Server\ProjectCentral

NOTE: Either of the following conditions must be true to avoid the error message described in the "Symptoms" section of this article.

Condition 1

Microsoft Project Central is using the same user name as the account that owns the tables (normally the user name that was used to create the tables).

If the user name that Microsoft Project Central is using is not the same user name that owns the tables in the Project Central database, you receive the error message described in the "Symptoms" section of this article, unless Condition 2 is met. This error message occurs even if both users have database owner permissions.

Condition 2

The Project Central database tables are owned by the built-in dbo user account. If the database tables are owned by dbo and the user name that Microsoft Project Central uses has database owner permissions, the error does not occur.

Modify the Scripts to Create the Tables with dbo as Owner

To modify the scripts to create the tables with dbo as owner of the tables instead of a single user, follow these steps in addition to the steps listed in SvrSetup.htm:
  1. Edit the Crttable.sql script.
  2. Replace all instances of CREATE TABLE with CREATE TABLE dbo. Note that in the Replace box, CREATE TABLE must have a space character following the text.
  3. Run the script.

Workaround for Cause 6

Reactivate the project manager's Microsoft Project Central account. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Log on to Microsoft Project Central as Administrator.
  2. Under Admin, click Users.
  3. Under User Account, select the project manager's account.
  4. Click Modify User.
  5. In the Account Status list, click Active.
  6. Click Save Changes.

Workaround for Cause 7

Set the user mode for Project Central to Normal. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Log on to Microsoft Project Central as Administrator.
  2. Under Admin, click Server Mode.
  3. Under Server Mode, click Normal.
  4. Click Save Changes.

Workaround for Cause 8

Run the SQL scripts as described in Svrsetup.htm. For information about where to find Svrsetup.htm, see the "More Information" section later in this article.

Workaround for Cause 9

Change the Internet options to bypass the proxy server for local addresses. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. In Control Panel, double-click the Internet Options icon.
  3. In the Internet Properties dialog box, click the Connections tab.
  4. Click LAN Settings.
  5. Click to select the Bypass proxy server for local addresses check box. Click OK.
  6. Click OK to close the Internet Properties dialog box.
  7. Close Control Panel.

Workaround for Cause 10

To resolve this problem, your system administrator or Web server administrator needs to determine the best solution depending on how the local intranet is managed. Some possibilities are:
  • Change the IP address for the Default Web Site to a static address.
  • Set up a separate Web site for Microsoft Project Central that uses a static IP address.

Workaround for Cause 11

Set Execute Permissions on the ProjectCentral virtual directory to Scripts and Executables (in IIS 5.0) or Execute (including Script) (in IIS 4.0). To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Start Internet Services Manager.
  2. Click the plus sign (+) next to Default Web Site.
  3. Right-click the ProjectCentral virtual directory, and then click Properties on the shortcut menu.
  4. Click the Virtual Directory tab.
  5. Use the appropriate method for your version of Microsoft Windows:

    Microsoft Windows NT 4.0

    Under Permissions, click Execute (including Script).

    Microsoft Windows 2000 or Microsoft Windows XP

    Under Application Settings, in the Execute Permissions list, click Scripts and Executables.
  6. Click OK and close Internet Services Manager.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about configuring Microsoft Project Central Server, review the file Svrsetup.htm. This file is located in the \PJCNTRL\HELP\1033 folder on the Microsoft Project 2000 CD, or on the Microsoft Project Central server.

You can also find information about how to install, configure, and administer Microsoft Project Central Server in the Microsoft Project 2000 Resource Kit, which is available at the following Microsoft World Wide Web site:

Microsoft Project 2000 Resource Kit

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:11/18/2002
Keywords:kbbug KB257749
©2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.