Endpoint Services, MECM, Useful MECM logs for troubleshooting
Overview
Follow this guide for a summary of relevant log files.
Systems
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (MECM)
Intended Audience
University of Illinois IT Pros leveraging MECM, hosted by Technology Services' Endpoint Services team
General Information
Use Support Center for client troubleshooting, real-time log viewing, or capturing the state of an MECM client computer for later analysis. This application is available in MECM as 'Configuration Manager Support Center - Latest'.
Microsoft's documentation at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sccm/core/plan-design/hierarchy/log-files has useful information on relevant log files including the following information originally from https://www.ronnipedersen.com/2014/08/12/sccm-2012-r2-smsts-log-located/:
- Task Sequences -
smsts.log
is the log for troubleshooting task sequence issues, and Endpoint Services will ask for the log if a ticket is submitted. The location of the log depends on where the task sequence fails: - Windows PE
(Before the hard disk is formatted)x:\windows\temp\smstslog\smsts.log
- Windows PE
(After the hard disk is formatted)x:\smstslog\smsts.log
and copied toc:\_SMSTaskSequence\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log
- Windows Operating System
(Before the SCCM client is installed)c:\_SMSTaskSequence\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log
- Windows Operating System
(After the SCCM client is installed)c:\windows\ccm\logs\Smstslog\smsts.log
- Windows Operating System
(When the Task Sequence is complete)c:\windows\ccm\logs\smsts.log
- Application Deployment
AppDiscovery.log
inc:\windows\ccm\logs\AppDiscovery.log
checks to see whether applications that should be installed on the system are installedAppEnforce.log
inc:\windows\ccm\logs\AppEnforce.log
documents the deployment action once it has been initiatedAppIntentEval.log
inc:\windows\ccm\logs\AppIntentEval.log
works with the above logs to determine the behavior of a deployment
Troubleshooting and logs for other areas (device collection, user collection, group policy, software packaging, imaging, etc.)
Log file locations depend on the MECM component generating the log, therefore Microsoft recommends searching for the name of the log file rather than directing IT Pros to a particular directory to find the logs.
The log files can be opened with Support Center (OneTrace) or CMTrace, a log file analysis tool you can download from Microsoft which will help you find potential errors and look up obscure error codes. CMTrace is also automatically installed along with the Configuration Manager client. It's added to the client installation directory, which by default is %WinDir%\CCM\CMTrace.exe.
Additional sources for more information
- CMTrace is part of the System Center Configuration Manager Toolkit
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=50012 - CMTrace can look up error codes as well
https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/configmgrdogs/2012/06/06/trace32-execmtrace-exe-hidden-features/