Welcome to the definitive resource for enhancing your project management and team collaboration with Team Foundation plugins for Excel. Discover how seamlessly integrating Excel with Azure DevOps and Team Foundation Server (TFS) transforms your workflow, enabling both online and offline modes for maximum productivity. On this page, we'll delve into the intricacies of Team Foundation, explore the dynamic plugins bridging Team Foundation and Excel, examine common use cases to optimize your project tracking and reporting, and address frequently asked questions to streamline your experience. Unlock the power of efficient work item management and robust project connections right from Excel, fostering an agile and responsive environment for development teams.
Team Foundation Server is a Microsoft TFS product designed to enable teams to collaborate and manage their projects efficiently. It encompasses a suite of tools that support version control, issue tracking, and application lifecycle management, aimed at improving team productivity and project oversight.
Created in 2005, Team Foundation Server has significantly evolved to address the growing needs of development teams, particularly in areas where user experience was historically not a primary focus for Microsoft. It offers a dedicated ALM tool and has been a preferred choice for Agile development, especially in organizations that benefit from existing Microsoft licenses.
Despite the advent of distributed version control systems like Git, Microsoft TFS continues to be a viable option for certain companies. It may be favored due to factors such as team size, geographic distribution of developers, management of large files, and specific automation requirements.
Team Foundation Version Control, a key component of Team Foundation Server, is a centralized version control system that maintains historical data on the server, permitting a single version of each file on development machines. It also allows granular access control and provides straightforward auditing of changes made to files, thus streamlining the process of code review and accountability.
The Team Foundation Office Integration Add-in is a free tool that allows for the integration of Team Foundation Services with Microsoft Excel. It is an Excel add-in that facilitates bulk import and updating of work items, enhancing productivity and project management capabilities. This add-in requires running Excel as an administrator and adds a dedicated Team ribbon to Excel for easier access to its features.
For integrating Team Foundation Service with Office, the Azure DevOps Office Integration Add-in is used. It is necessary to have an installed version of Visual Studio or the free Azure DevOps Office Integration 2019 to utilize this add-in for Excel. However, this add-in does not support the TFSFieldMapping command, which is also not supported by Visual Studio 2019 and Azure DevOps Office Integration 2019.
The Team Foundation Office Integration Add-in supports various platforms and versions, such as Azure DevOps Server 2019 and later, Azure DevOps Services, and GANTT charts. Contrary to some information, it is indeed supported on Visual Studio 2019. It should be noted, however, that it does not support Microsoft Project integration or the TFSFieldMapping command.
To install the software, either the Azure DevOps Office Integration Add-in or the Team Foundation Office Integration Add-in can be used. In cases where the Team ribbon does not open the New List dialog in Excel, repairing Visual Studio may be necessary. If there are errors when refreshing and publishing, clearing the IdentityService folder may resolve these issues. Additionally, running the Gacutil tool can help ensure that the Team Foundation Add-in loads properly in Excel.
The plugin requires an installed version of Visual Studio or Azure DevOps Office Integration 2019, and Microsoft Excel 2010 or later versions, including Microsoft Office Excel 365.
Authentication errors after a password change may be due to a token issue, which can be resolved by removing the token from the registry.
This error can occur when opening a TFS work item list in Excel from Team Explorer. It might be necessary to update the registry LoadBehavior value to 3 or repair Visual Studio.
No, the Microsoft Project Integration and the TFSFieldMapping command are not supported for Visual Studio 2019 and later versions. Alternatives include delivery plans and Marketplace extensions.
Publishing errors can occur due to data conflicts, validation errors, or inaccuracies in summary values. Invalid links in a tree list also need to be corrected before publishing.
Team Foundation plugins for Excel offer a seamless integration, enabling users to efficiently manage work items in Excel without requiring the full Team Explorer package. They cater to both technical and non-technical team members, allowing bulk edits and data copying from various sources with ease. Despite occasional issues that may arise, such as authentication errors or COM object casting problems, these can be addressed with specific troubleshooting steps like using the Gacutil tool or manual registry edits. For those looking for an even more streamlined process to import data directly into a spreadsheet without the need for plugins, Sourcetable provides a robust alternative. Sign up for Sourcetable to get started and enhance your data management experience.