Configuration Manager OSD Logs: Finding Your Task Sequence Log Files

Where to Find OSD Task Sequence Log Files

Task sequence log locations move around depending on which stage the deployment is at, which is exactly what makes them so frustrating to track down when something’s gone wrong mid-deployment. Here’s where to look at each stage:

• During WinPE (before the OS is applied): X:\Windows\Temp\SMSTSLog\smsts.log
• After the OS is applied, but still within the task sequence: C:\_SMSTaskSequence\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log
• Once the task sequence has fully completed: C:\Windows\CCM\Logs\Smstslog\smsts.log (it gets copied here from the temporary location as one of the final task sequence steps)

If a task sequence fails and reboots before completing, check the WinPE location first via a command prompt (F8 during OSD, where enabled, brings up a command prompt you can use to browse to it) — that’s usually where the freshest failure detail lives if the machine never made it to the post-OS-apply stages. CMTrace (bundled with the Configuration Manager client at %windir%\CCM\CMTrace.exe, or available standalone) is by far the easiest way to read these logs, since it colour-codes warnings and errors and lets you tail the file live as the task sequence progresses.

CMTrace Has a Newer Sibling: OneTrace (Updated for 2026)

CMTrace remains bundled at the path above and works exactly as described, but Microsoft’s current documentation now promotes OneTrace — the log viewer built into Support Center — as the actively-developed successor for reading Configuration Manager and task sequence logs, with a more modern interface and the same colour-coded warning/error highlighting. Both tools can read the exact same log files at the exact same locations, so if CMTrace is already part of your troubleshooting workflow there’s no urgency to switch, but it’s worth knowing OneTrace exists if you’re setting up tooling on a fresh admin workstation today.

Resources

• OSD