Data Management Capabilities > Managing Projects and Programs > Project Planning Preferences
  
Project Planning Preferences
Preference settings determine some project, program, and plan behavior. For more information, see Preference Management.
The visibility of preferences is determined by how you access the Preference Management utility:
• Some preferences can be set at the user level.
To view and modify your individual user preferences, select Quick Links > My Settings > Preferences. Expand the Project Planning preferences group.
• Some preferences must be set at context, organization, or site level by an administrator.
From the Navigator, select Utilities under a specific context, organization, or site. Click Preference Management under the Business Administration utility category. Expand the Project Planning preferences group.
If a preference is visible but cannot be edited, then this preference has been locked at a higher level.
* 
In the tables below, “Visibility” indicates the lowest level at which the preference can be set. For example, “Site” means that only site administrators can view or set the preference. “User” means that an individual user, context administrator, organization administrator, and site administrator can view or set the preference. However, your local administrators might change the default preference visibility.
To change a preference, select Set Preference from the right-click actions menu of the preference you want to change. For more information, see Setting a Preference.
Preference Management > Display
Automatically Start Project and Program Check Box
Default
Yes
Visibility
Organization
Description
When you create a new project or program, you have the option to automatically start the project or program and immediately send invitations to team members. This behavior is controlled by the Start project and send invitations to team checkbox. If you do not select this option, then the context owner can manually start the project at a later date.
This preference determines whether the Start project and send invitations to team checkbox is selected by default.
For more information, see Create a Project.
Hide Program
Default
Yes
Visibility
Site
Description
This preference determines whether programs are hidden in the Navigator:
• To hide programs, select Yes.
• To show programs, select No.
Project Utilities Page
Default
No
Visibility
Organization
Description
When set to No, only site and organization administrators can access the Utilities page under a project or program.
When set to Yes, all project managers can access the Utilities page.
Validate Project/Program Name
Default
Yes
Visibility
Site
Description
Determines if the project or program name is to be validated for the following special characters: / \ : * ? < > | " ,
When set to Yes, special characters are not allowed.
To allow special characters, set this preference to No.