A task that moved yesterday but stays still today may have received two different kinds of change. Record whether yesterday's action created the dependency, while today's action only changed the predecessor. That distinction is more useful than repeatedly deleting and recreating the link.

In Project desktop for Windows, a manually scheduled successor can be placed relative to its predecessor when the link is first created. Later changes to the predecessor do not automatically move that manual successor. Automatic task scheduling uses dependencies to recalculate dates; a one-time move is not proof that the successor is automatic.

Compare the two events separately

Make a disposable two-task plan with recognisable names, Draft and Review. Give Draft a two-day duration and Review one day, with valid dates. Note their scheduling modes. Keep a before-link record of each start and finish, rather than relying on memory of the bar positions.

Inspect File, Options, Schedule and record Update manually scheduled tasks when editing links. Clearing that option prevents the manual task from moving when linked. Its value is therefore part of the explanation for the initial event, not a promise about later propagation.

With the option enabled for the trial, create a finish-to-start dependency from Draft to the manually scheduled Review. Record the initial placement. Then extend Draft to four days without removing or recreating the dependency. Compare Review's start before and after that second action.

Decide what the stationary date means

Repeat in a separate copy with an automatically scheduled Review and otherwise matching inputs. Keep the first-link observation and the later-duration-change observation in separate columns. The useful evidence is which event moved which task, not simply whether the final plans have different finish dates.

For the real schedule, ask whether Review can actually begin before the revised draft is available. A date held deliberately for negotiation and a date accepted as feasible are different decisions. Record the unresolved dependency if the displayed plan still shows an impossible sequence.

Changing task mode deserves review rather than a blanket conversion of the file. Microsoft notes that switching to automatic scheduling can reinterpret incomplete or textual duration information. Preserve the original plan, decide which tasks should follow dependency changes, and inspect their resulting dates before issuing a revised schedule.

Sources: Microsoft: manual task scheduling.