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Logging

Theme: Troubleshoot
Who Is It For? System Administrator

What is it?​

The Windows Agent and its supporting components write several log files to record processing activity, configuration changes, and errors. All logs are written to the <Output Directory>\MSLSAM\Log\ directory.

  • Review MSLSAM.log for agent processing and configuration information
  • Enable trace logging to capture detailed diagnostic messages in MSLSAMTrace.log
  • Access archived logs in date-organized folders under the Archives directory

When to use​

  • When troubleshooting agent startup failures, job execution problems, or communication issues with the OpCon server.
  • When diagnosing JORS output retrieval failures or file transfer errors using the component-specific log files.
  • When enabling trace logging temporarily to capture detailed diagnostic information for support.

Benefits​

  • Log files are automatically archived when they reach maximum size, preventing disk fill while maintaining a rolling history of agent activity.
  • Each agent component writes to its own log file, making it straightforward to isolate whether a problem is in the agent, JORS, or SMAFT.
note

The Output Directory was configured during the installation. For more information, refer to File Locations in the Concepts online help.

The log files include:

  • MSLSAM.log: The agent writes processing information to the MSLSAM.log file. The agent also writes all configuration information to the log when it starts or when it detects a change to the MSLSAM.ini file.
  • MSLSAMTrace.log: If tracing is activated, the agent writes detailed messages to the MSLSAMTrace.log file.
  • SMAFTAgent.log: The SMAFTAgent writes processing information to the SMAFTAgent.log file.
  • SMAFTAgentTrace.log: If tracing is activated, the SMAFTAgent writes detailed messages to the SMAFTAgentTrace.log file.
  • MSJORS.log: The MSJORS service writes processing information to the MSJORS.log file. This information includes job output requests and file transfer requests.

When log files reach a user-configured maximum size, the agent archives them. The <Output Directory>\MSLSAM\Log\Archives\ folder is the location of all archived log files.

A folder exists in the Archives folder for each day the agent processes. The folder names use the following naming convention: yyyy_mm_dd (Weekday). For example, the folder name for January 11, 2008 would be 2008_01_11 (Friday).

As each log file fills up, the agent moves the log file into the current archive folder and renames it using the following naming convention: LogName StartTime - StopTime.log. For example, an MSLSAM archive file for the time range of 12:58:16 to 13:58:00 would be MSLSAM 125816 - 135800.log.

By default, the agent retains 10 days of archived logs. Configure the MSLSAM.ini file to adjust this setting. For information on log and debug settings, refer to Debug options.

note

The agent does not purge any archive folders if files other than archived files are present.

Configuration options​

The following MSLSAM.ini settings control log file behavior. For complete setting descriptions, refer to MSLSAM.ini configuration file.

SettingWhat It DoesDefaultNotes
MaximumLogFileSizeMaximum size in bytes for each log file before it is archived and a new file is started.150000Dynamic — no service restart needed.
ArchiveDaysToKeepNumber of days of archived log folders to retain before automatic cleanup.10Dynamic — no service restart needed.
TraceLevelLogging detail level. 0 = standard logging; 1 = more detailed logging written to MSLSAM.log.0Dynamic — no service restart needed.
TraceSAMMessagesWhen ON, traces SMANetCom communication messages to MSLSAMTrace.log. Useful for diagnosing communication issues.ONDynamic — no service restart needed. Case-sensitive.

Glossary​

MSLSAMTrace.log — A log file written when trace logging is enabled. Captures detailed SMANetCom messages useful for diagnosing communication issues between the agent and OpCon.

Archives — The subdirectory under the agent's Log folder where log files are automatically moved and renamed when they reach the configured maximum size. Organized into date-named subfolders.

ArchiveDaysToKeep — The MSLSAM.ini setting that controls how many days of archived log folders the agent retains before automatic cleanup.