Dependencies & Critical Path
Jira Gantt chart dependencies that actually model how work flows
Most Jira timeline plugins only support basic Finish-to-Start links. Simple Gantt gives you all four dependency types, visual arrows on your timeline, critical path highlighting, and slack calculation — so you can see exactly which tasks drive your project deadline.
What you get
- ✓ All four dependency types: Finish-to-Start, Start-to-Start, Finish-to-Finish, and Start-to-Finish
- ✓ Color-coded dependency arrows rendered directly on the Gantt timeline
- ✓ One-click critical path highlighting to see what drives your end date
- ✓ Slack calculation on every task showing available buffer
- ✓ Automatic circular dependency detection and prevention
- ✓ Critical Path Summary panel with full impact analysis
- ✓ Dependencies work across any level of your task hierarchy
Four dependency types for realistic scheduling
Real projects have more complex relationships than "Task B starts after Task A finishes." A design review might need to start at the same time as development (Start-to-Start). A deployment can't finish until testing finishes (Finish-to-Finish). Simple Gantt supports all four standard dependency types so your Gantt chart reflects how your team actually works.
Each dependency type is rendered as a visual arrow on the timeline. The arrow style indicates the type, and color-coding distinguishes normal dependencies from those on the critical path. You can create, edit, and delete dependencies directly from the chart — no need to navigate away.
Critical path analysis inside your Jira Gantt chart
Toggle critical path mode with a single click, and Simple Gantt highlights the longest chain of dependent tasks that determines your project end date. Every task on the critical path is visually distinct so you can focus your attention where delays will actually push back your deadline.
Tasks not on the critical path show their slack — the amount of time they can slip before they affect the project end date. This lets you make informed tradeoffs: if a low-priority task has three weeks of slack, you know it's safe to deprioritize. If a task has zero slack, any delay directly pushes your deadline.
The Critical Path Summary panel gives you a consolidated view: total path length, number of tasks on the path, the chain from first task to last, and the impact of slipping any single task.
Circular dependency prevention
When you create or modify a dependency, Simple Gantt validates the entire dependency graph in real time. If a new link would create a circular dependency — an impossible schedule where Task A depends on Task B which depends on Task A — the app blocks it and tells you exactly which tasks form the cycle. You never end up with a broken schedule.
Why this matters for your team
Without dependency tracking, a Gantt chart is just a list of bars on a timeline. Dependencies turn it into a schedule — one where changing a task's dates ripples through to everything that depends on it. Critical path analysis tells you which tasks to protect and which ones have room to breathe.
Teams use Simple Gantt's dependency features to run planning sessions, communicate schedule risks to stakeholders, and make informed decisions about scope changes. When someone asks "what happens if this task slips by a week?" — you have the answer in seconds.
Built on Atlassian Forge — your dependency data stays within Atlassian infrastructure. No external servers.