To enable Windows Installer logging

To enable Windows Installer logging yourself, open the registry with Regedit.exe and create the following path and keys:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer

Reg_SZ: Logging

Value: voicewarmupx

The letters in the value field can be in any order. Each letter turns on a different logging mode. Each letter's actual function is as follows for MSI version 1.1:

V              - Verbose output
o              - Out-of-disk-space messages
i               - Status messages
c              - Initial UI parameters
e              - All error messages
w             - Non-fatal warnings
a              - Startup of actions
r               - Action-specific records
m             - Out-of-memory or fatal exit information
u              - User requests
p              - Terminal properties
+              - Append to existing file
!               - Flush each line to the log
x              - Extra debugging information.

The "x" flag is available only on Windows Server 2003 and later operating systems, and on the MSI redistributable version 3.0, and on later versions of the MSI redistributable.

NOTE: This should be used only for troubleshooting purposes and should not be left on because it will have adverse effects on system performance and disk space.

Where do I find the log file?

In most cases, the Windows Installer log starts with msi, ends with a .log extension, and includes a group of characters. For example, the Windows Installer log will have a file name that resembles the following:

msib3a6g.log

On computers that are running Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Server 2003, the installer log is located in the following directory:

C:\Documents and Settings\{UserName}\Local Settings\Temp\

Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 or later, the installer log is located in the following directory:

C:\Users\{UserName\AppData\Local\Temp

To open this directory, click Start, click Run, type %temp%, and then click OK.

NOTE: This information assumes that Windows is installed to the default drive C. If this is not the case, adjust the drive letter for the folder path to match the installation drive.