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Legacy Update Help

Diagnose update issues using log files

Legacy Update and the Windows servicing system have log files that can be used to assist with diagnosing issues.

Windows Update logs

On Windows 2000 through Windows 8.1, you can find the Windows Update log at C:\Windows\WindowsUpdate.log. You can also click View Log on the System page to open the log file in Notepad.

As of Windows 10, Windows Update stores log messages using Event Tracing for Windows (ETW). Therefore, an extra step is necessary to view the Windows Update log.

  1. Right-click on the Start button, and click Windows PowerShell or Terminal.

  2. If you don’t see a PS prompt, type powershell and press Enter.

  3. Type Get-WindowsUpdateLog and press Enter.

  4. Wait for the command to complete. On your Desktop, you will see a new file named WindowsUpdate.log. This is the Windows Update log file.

Clicking View Log on the System page will perform these steps automatically.

Legacy Update logs

As of Legacy Update 1.13, there are additional logs for Legacy Update itself.

On Windows 2000 and Windows XP, you can find the main Legacy Update log at C:\Windows\Temp\LegacyUpdate.log. On Windows Vista and later, it can be found at C:\Windows\Logs\LegacyUpdate.log.

In cases where Legacy Update is not running as an administrator, it will store a log file in your user profile. It is less likely that you will need to refer to this. This can be found at %temp%\LegacyUpdate.log.

In even less likely situations, when Internet Explorer is running in Protected Mode (also known as “low integrity”), an additional log may be found at %temp%\Low\LegacyUpdate.log. This log file usually should not exist. Legacy Update Setup configures legacyupdate.net as a trusted site, which disables Protected Mode (“medium integrity”).

Description Operating System Paths
System Windows 2000 and XP C:\Windows\Temp\LegacyUpdate.log
Windows Vista and later C:\Windows\Logs\LegacyUpdate.log
User Windows 2000 and XP C:\Documents and Settings\Bill Gates\Local Settings\Application Data\Temp\LegacyUpdate.log
Windows Vista and later C:\Users\Bill Gates\AppData\Local\Temp\LegacyUpdate.log
User (Protected Mode) Windows Vista and later C:\Users\Bill Gates\AppData\Local\Temp\Low\LegacyUpdate.log

Other logs

These log files may be useful for diagnosing issues in other areas of the Windows servicing system.

Description Paths
Windows 2000 and XP updates: Most updates on these versions of Windows use the Service Pack Update Service. C:\Windows\svcpack.log
C:\Windows\spupdsvc.log
C:\Windows\updspapi.log
C:\Windows\KB#######.log
Component Based Servicing: Used on Windows Vista and later for installation of Windows system updates. C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log
Dism: Used on Windows 7 and later for installation of Windows system updates. C:\Windows\Logs\DISM\dism.log
Dism (Legacy Update Setup): Logs specific to Dism when executed by Legacy Update Setup. C:\Users\Bill Gates\AppData\Local\Temp\LegacyUpdate-Dism.log
C:\Windows\Temp\LegacyUpdate-Dism.log