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Collecting Verbose Skype For Business Client Logs

While troubleshooting issues involving the Skype for Business client, it may be required to collect logs for support to review. Here I will outline the steps for collecting these logs, so that the best possible data is available.

First we want to ensure logging is enabled. Note that some organizations control this by policy, so the option may not be changeable.

  1. Within the Skype for Business client, open your options by clicking the gear icon () in the upper right corner.
  2. This should open the Skype for Business – Options window, on the General section.
  3. Locate the drop down for “Logging in Skype for Business”
  4. Ensure the “Full” option is selected in the drop down.

Next we want to maximize the logging verbosity.  This should only need to be done once on the machine where the logs are being collected from.

  1. Download LyncTracing.zip and extract it.
  2. Run MaxLyncTracing.reg
  3. Restart the Skype for Business client to allow these keys to take effect.

Next we want to locate our Tracing folder. Skype for Business writes tracing data to a specific location that will depend on the version of the client you are running:

  • For Lync 2013/SfB 2015 the Tracing folder is located at:
    • %localappdata%/Microsoft/Office/15.0/Lync/Tracing
  • For SfB 2016 the Tracing folder is located at:
    • %localappdata%/Microsoft/Office/16.0/Lync/Tracing

Finally we will attempt to reproduce the behavior and collect the logs:

  • If the issue is easily reproducible then follow these steps:
    1. Exit the Skype for Business client.
    2. Navigate to the Tracing folder outlined above.
    3. Delete the contents of the folder.
      • Some items may not be able to be deleted if other applications such as Outlook are running.  These can be safely skipped.
    4. Launch the Skype for Business client and reproduce your issue.
    5. Once completed, exit the Skype for Business client.
    6. ZIP the entire Tracing folder.
  • If the issue is intermittent or unpredictable, then follow these steps:
    1. Continue to use your client until the issue occurs.
    2. If possible, exit the client as soon as possible after the issue reproduces.
    3. ZIP the entire Tracing folder.
  • Once you have the ZIP file containing your Tracing folder, provide it to the support individual you are working with.

Depending on the nature of the issue being looked at, the following may also be helpful:

  • A description with the timeframe and steps taken to get the issue.
  • Screenshots of the behavior.
  • If requested, supplemental logs from another source, such as a network trace or Fiddler trace.