---
title: "BigPicture Gantt End Date Calculation: Intentional Design and Overdue Task Management"
canonical: "https://support.appfire.com/space/SUPPORT/3504504973/BigPicture%20Gantt%20End%20Date%20Calculation%3A%20Intentional%20Design%20and%20Overdue%20Task%20Management"
format: markdown
---
This article documents a resolved support case involving BigPicture Gantt end date calculation behavior when developers log work irregularly. The customer expected the end date to automatically shift forward when work was not logged for several days, but this is intentional design behavior.

**Outcome:** The customer was informed that BigPicture intentionally does not auto-update the end date when there is a delay. Instead, it marks the task as overdue so Project Managers can track delayed tasks via the Overdue view.

# Issue summary

A customer configured BigPicture to calculate end dates from start date, time spent, and remaining estimate. The calculation worked correctly when the assignee logged work daily. However, when a developer was blocked and did not log work for several days, the end date remained unchanged and could end up in the past.

The customer expected BigPicture to automatically recalculate the end date based on the last date of time tracking activity.

# Symptoms observed

- End date calculation configured using start date + time spent + remaining estimate.
- End date remained at the originally calculated value even when the developer paused work for multiple days.
- After resuming work, the end date did not shift forward to account for the gap.
- The end date could show a date in the past if enough delay accumulated.

# Root cause

This is **intentional behavior** in BigPicture. When there is a delay in work, BigPicture does not automatically shift the end date forward. Instead, it retains the originally planned end date and flags the task as overdue.

**Design rationale:** This approach gives Project Managers immediate visibility into which tasks are behind schedule. If end dates were automatically adjusted, delays would be silently absorbed and the PM would lose visibility into schedule slippage.

# Resolution

The customer was informed about the intentional design and directed to use BigPicture's overdue tracking features:

1. **Infobar Overdue Report** — Available in the sidebar, it shows a list of all delayed/overdue tasks.
2. **Gantt Chart Overdue Visualization** — Delayed tasks can be displayed directly on the Gantt chart with visual indicators.

> Customer confirmation: "Your understanding is correct. I will use the overdue view to track these tasks."

# How to handle similar cases

1. **Confirm the configuration**  
Verify how the customer has configured end date calculation (start date + estimates vs. fixed dates).
2. **Explain the design intent**  
BigPicture intentionally keeps the planned end date unchanged so that overdue tasks are visible to the PM.
3. **Show the overdue features**  
Point the customer to:
  - Infobar > Overdue report (sidebar)
  - Gantt chart overdue task visualization
4. **If customer needs auto-shifting behavior**  
This is not currently supported. If the customer requires it, suggest filing a feature request.

# Key takeaway

BigPicture's Gantt module prioritises schedule visibility over automatic correction. When work is not logged on schedule, the system intentionally shows the task as overdue rather than silently adjusting the plan. This helps Project Managers identify and address delays proactively.

# Best practices

- When configuring end date calculations, inform customers about the overdue behavior upfront.
- Recommend using the Overdue report in the Infobar for schedule monitoring.
- If a customer needs automatic end-date recalculation, document it as a feature request for the product team.
- This behavior applies to all BigPicture editions (Cloud and Data Center).