Dependent tasks in Aico refer to both the predecessor and successor tasks that form a chain of dependency in a workflow:

• The successor task cannot be started until the predecessor task is in the completed status. 
• Where a predecessor task is configured then the successor task remains in the created status until the predecessor is completed by the user.

How to configure a dependent task.

Dependent tasks are configured in the Automation manager task template area. 

In Automation Manager, go to:

1. Manage

2. Task templates

3. Open the template to which you want to configure the dependent task(s). 

4. In the final Details section, select which tasks should be the predecessors and/or successors of the task you are building. You can set both predecessors and successors on each template, but you do not need to as they will automatically appear in the corresponding tasks.

This behaviour is managed by Automation Manager, which is monitoring task statuses. When the predecessor task(s) is in the completed phase, it will change the status of the successor task from Created to Waiting for Preparer.

There are two important things to understand when considering dependent tasks:

1. Monitoring of tasks by Automation manager only happens whilst the Automation manager task is running. 

This is between the start and end time of the associated schedule group. Once the end time arrives Automation manager automatically completes the Automation manager task, not the Aico document itself, and this will in turn release the dependent task.  

You can learn more about schedule group start and end times here.

2. Successor tasks do not start before their predecessors are completed AND the start time of the schedule group has arrived. 

For example, you want to run an Accounts Receivable report, which is 50,000 lines (and therefore very heavy on the ERP) in the middle of the night. However, you do not want to run this report until the last manual postings have been performed. 

In this scenario, you would make the manual postings task the predecessor which should be completed on Workday 2 and make the start time of the Account Receivable report Workday 3 at 02:00 AM. Assuming the user completes the manual posting task on Workday 2 at 18:00 then the Account Receivable report will start at 02:00 on Workday 3. 

But, if the user does not complete the manual posting task until 10:00 on Workday 3, only then will the depreciation run be released. It will start immediately at 10:00 on Workday 3 as its schedule group start time is now in the past.