The Gantt Chart Timeline Viewer is the date-based schedule view in OrbitalWP. It helps teams see when tasks and dated subtasks start, when they are due, how work lines up over time, and which scheduled tasks need attention.
How This Fits In OrbitalWP
Timeline View is one of the shared task views on the Task Views page, alongside Board View, List View, and Calendar View. It uses the same task access rules, filters, closed- task preferences, and task details panel as the other task views.
Where To Find It
In the WordPress admin, open Orbital and choose Kanban & Timeline. The page heading is Task Views. Select Timeline View from the view buttons above the task area.
Before You Start
- You need access to the Kanban & Timeline page. Access can come from task permissions, task-specific access, or assigned tasks.
- A parent task needs both a start date and a due date to appear as a normal Timeline task.
- Subtasks can appear in Timeline View when their parent task has both dates. A subtask without its own dates may be shown on the parent task’s date range and marked Missing Dates.
- Date editing requires edit access for that task. Read-only users can view accessible tasks but cannot reschedule them from the Timeline.
What You Can Do
- View scheduled tasks as Gantt bars across a timeline.
- Open a task from the Timeline to view its task details panel.
- Switch the timeline scale between 6 Hours, 12 Hours, Day, Week, Month, and Year.
- Use zoom controls and horizontal scroll controls to inspect shorter or longer schedules.
- Use task filters to narrow the Timeline to matching tasks.
- Drag or adjust Timeline task bars when you have permission to edit the task dates.
- Use the View Report button, when available, to review accessible tasks that are missing dates.
Basic Workflow
- Open Orbital > Kanban & Timeline.
- Select Timeline View on the Task Views page.
- Use Preferences, Categories, Tags, Related Posts, Parent Tasks, and any available assignee filters to narrow the view.
- Choose a View scale such as Week, Month, or Year.
- Click a task bar or task label to open the task details panel.
- If you have edit access, adjust the task dates from the Timeline or from the task details panel.
Important Controls And Settings
The Timeline toolbar includes View controls for 6 Hours, 12 Hours, Day, Week, Month, and Year. It also includes Zoom controls and Scroll left and Scroll right buttons for moving across the Gantt chart.
The Preferences menu includes My Tasks and Closed Tasks options: Show All Tasks, Hide Closed Tasks, and Show Only Closed Tasks. My Tasks narrows the view to tasks created by the current user.
The filter area can include Categories, Tags, Assignees, Related Posts, and Parent Tasks. The Clear button removes active filters. The Group tasks by control applies to Board View and is hidden when Timeline View is active.
Administrators can adjust Timeline display options under Orbital > Plugin Settings > Kanban / Timeline > Gantt Chart Display. The available settings include Include Subtasks When Filtering (Timeline View), Show Progress Bars, Color-Code Progress, and Display Style. Display Style can be Progress Bar Only, Percentage Text Only, or Bar + Percentage.
What Affects What You See
Timeline View only shows tasks the current user is allowed to access. Two users can open the same page and see different tasks if their role permissions, assignments, or task-specific access are different.
Dates matter. Tasks without both a start date and a due date do not render as normal Timeline bars. Those tasks may still appear in Board View or List View.
Filters and closed-task preferences also change the Timeline. Hide Closed Tasks removes closed tasks from the normal view, while Show Only Closed Tasks focuses the view on closed tasks.
Progress display depends on the Gantt Chart Display settings. If progress bars or percentage text are disabled, the Timeline can still show scheduled tasks without showing progress details.
Deeper Notes
Timeline View is schedule-focused. It is best for comparing task timing, finding missing dates, and seeing how parent tasks and subtasks line up over time.
When a task cannot be edited by the current user, Timeline View treats it as read-only. Dragging or changing a read-only task will not save a new date.
If a Timeline move affects subtasks but the needed subtask data cannot be loaded, OrbitalWP blocks the move instead of saving only part of the schedule change.
Common Problems
- I cannot see Kanban & Timeline. Ask an administrator to check your task access. You need page access through task permissions, a task-specific override, or assigned tasks.
- Timeline View says there are no tasks with dates. Add both start and due dates to the tasks you want to schedule. The empty state says: No tasks with dates to display. Add start and due dates to your tasks to see them on the timeline.
- A task is missing from Timeline View. Check whether the task has both dates, whether filters are active, whether closed tasks are hidden, and whether the current user has access to that task.
- I can see a task but cannot move it. Date changes require edit access for the task. A locked or approved task can also prevent movement for users who do not have the required authority.
- A date move failed. Check that the start date is not after the due date. If the message says subtasks could not be loaded, refresh the page and try again.
- I see a missing-dates warning but no View Report button. The View Report button appears only for users who can access reports. Other users may still see the warning count without the report link.
- Progress is not visible on the Gantt chart. Ask an administrator to check Gantt Chart Display settings, especially Show Progress Bars and Display Style.