# Quickstart

> Sign up, create a project, add your first tasks and get your team working — in about ten minutes.

> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/llms.txt).

Source: https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/get-started/quickstart

---
**Create your workspace**

    Sign up at [orangescrum.com](https://www.orangescrum.com/signup). You get a
    **14-day free trial** with no card required.

    Your workspace name becomes part of your URL, so pick your organisation's
    name rather than a project name.

**Create your first project**

    **Projects → Create.** Give it a name and a short name — the short name
    prefixes every task reference, so keep it to two or three letters.

    Start with one real project rather than a test one. You will keep it, and
    seeing your own work in the tool tells you more than sample data.

- [Project setup in detail](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/projects/create-a-project): Dates, status, members and settings.

**Add tasks**

    Add five to ten tasks that reflect what is actually in flight. For each,
    set an assignee and a due date — those two fields drive nearly every view
    and report in the product.

    Do not spend time on estimates or custom fields yet.

**Pick a view that matches how you work**

    | You work in | Use |
    | --- | --- |
    | Flowing work, no fixed iterations | [Kanban board](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/views/kanban-board) |
    | Fixed-length sprints | [Agile & Scrum](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/agile/overview) |
    | Dated plans and dependencies | [Gantt chart](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/views/gantt-chart) |
    | Deadline-driven delivery | [Milestones](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/views/milestones) |

    You can change your mind later — the data is the same underneath.

**Invite your team**

    **Users → Invite.** Add people, assign roles, and add them to the project.

> **Invitation without project membership does nothing useful**
>
> A new user who is not a member of any project signs in to an empty
> workspace. Add them to the project in the same sitting.

- [Roles and invitations](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/get-started/invite-your-team): Who should get which role.

**Start tracking time (optional)**

    If you bill clients or care about estimates versus actuals, turn on time
    tracking now rather than later — retrofitting it means a gap in your data.

- [Time tracking](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/time/time-tracking): Timer, manual entry and timesheets.

## Your first week

- **Day 1 — one real project**: Real tasks, real assignees, real dates.

- **Day 2 — get everyone in**: Invite the team and add them to the project. Adoption fails when only one person is in the tool.

- **Day 3 — pick your view**: Board or sprints. Agree it as a team rather than each person choosing.

- **Day 5 — review together**: Look at the board in a standup. That is what makes it stick.

## Common early mistakes

**Creating a project per sprint**

    Projects are containers for a deliverable or a team. Sprints live inside a
    project — see [Sprints](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/agile/sprints).

**Configuring everything before using anything**

    Custom fields, statuses and automation are easier to design once you have
    seen real work flow through. Start plain.

**Importing years of history on day one**

    Import what is active. Archived work adds noise and hides the tasks that
    matter.

**Leaving tasks unassigned**

    An unassigned task is nobody's job. It will not move.

- [Next: the workspace tour](https://helpdesk.orangescrum.com/guide/cloud/get-started/workspace-tour): Where everything lives.