Location logfiles during Task Sequence WinPE
During the Task Sequence you can check for a log file smst.log which allow you troubleshooting of operating system failures:
It depending on deployment phase, SMSTS.log file will have the location below:
Logfile
During OSD
| Phase | Location |
| Windows PE (WinPE) -Before the harddisk is formatted and partitioned | x:\windows\temp\smstslog\smsts.log |
| Windows PE (WinPE) – After harddisk formatted | x:\smstslog\smsts.log and will copied to C:\_SMSTaskSequence\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log |
After OSD and when the Operation System is installed
| Phase | Location |
| Operating System – Before SCCM agent is installed | C:\_SMSTaskSequence\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log |
| Windows 32 bit – after SCCM agent is installed | C:\windows\system32\ccm\logs\Smstslog\smsts.log |
| Windows 64 bit – after SCCM agent is installed | C:\windows\sysWOW64\ccm\logs\Smstslog\smsts.log |
After Task Sequence is complete
| Phase | Location |
| Windows 32 bit | C:\windows\system32\ccm\logs\smsts.log |
| Windows 64 bit | C:\windows\sysWOW64\ccm\logs\smsts.log |
Best practice
You can copy the SMSTS.log file to a USB key for troubleshooting.
When the error appears in WinPE, click on F8 to display the command prompt window.
Use xcopy to copy the logfile from local to usb key.