Troubleshooting scvmm 2012, 2019 and 2022.

Fast triage (10–15 minutes)

1. Check services & console basics

• On the VMM server: services.msc → System Center Virtual Machine Manager and VMM Agent running? If the console won’t start or setup failed, open %ProgramData%\VMMLogs\ and read SetupWizard.log first. Microsoft Learn

2. Event Viewer first look

• Open Event Viewer → Windows Logs (Application/System) and Applications and Services Logs → Microsoft → … → Virtual Machine Manager to catch immediate errors/ETW providers. Microsoft Learn

3. Rerun the failed job with debug trace ON (see section 1 below), then recheck the job’s Details and error code (e.g., 2606, 2912). Microsoft publishes per-code guidance. Microsoft Learn

Collect the right logs & traces (SCVMM 2012/2019/2022)

A. Setup / console / server logs

• Default location: %SystemDrive%\ProgramData\VMMLogs\ (hidden). Start here for install/console issues. Microsoft Learn+1

B. Turn on VMM debug tracing (ETW) – do this before reproducing the issue
On the VMM server (or the target host if the action runs there):

# Prep folder
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path C:\VMMLogs -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Out-Null

# Reset any old collector
logman delete VMM 2>$null

# Create collector (Microsoft official recipe)
logman create trace VMM -o C:\VMMLogs\VMMLog.etl -p Microsoft-VirtualMachineManager-Debug -nb 10 250 -bs 16 -max 512 -ets
# Reproduce the problem, then stop:
logman stop VMM -ets

You can convert ETL to readable text with netsh trace convert. Microsoft Learn

C. Old 2012 storage service tracing (if relevant)
Some 2012/2012 R2 storage-mgmt issues require enabling that specific debug logging (KB 3037626). Microsoft Learn

D. Central Microsoft troubleshooting hub
Microsoft’s SCVMM troubleshooting portal indexes common scenarios and fixes; keep it handy. Microsoft Learn

SQL connectivity & permissions (very common)

• Service account must be db_owner on the VMM DB. Removing db_owner causes console logins to fail. Validate in SSMS: Security → Logins and DB → Security → Users → Membership. Microsoft Learn

• If ownership got orphaned (often after password/account changes), repair DB owner (example fix shows re-authorizing to sa—adjust to your policy):

  ALTER AUTHORIZATION ON DATABASE::[VirtualManagerDB] TO [sa];
  

  (Use your chosen owner; example shown in community guidance.) the-teqnician.nl

• If setup/console fails, read %ProgramData%\VMMLogs\SetupWizard.log and %WINDIR%\Temp\MSI*.log (search for “Return value 3”) to pinpoint the failing prerequisite/SQL step. ProVirtualzone - Virtual Infrastructures

• Confirm SQL services and standard connectivity (e.g., default 1433 unless you use a named instance/other port) per SQL service account best-practices. Microsoft Learn

WinRM / Agents / Host communications

Many Error (2912) and 20506 / 20552 families trace back to WinRM, permissions, or the VMM agent on the host. Checklist:

• WinRM running and listening on hosts?

  winrm quickconfig
  Test-WSMan <hostname>
  

  (2912 remediation often starts here.) Microsoft Learn

• VMM agent healthy on hosts; if corrupt/out-of-date, uninstall/redeploy from VMM. (2912 “HostAgentFail” articles emphasize Agent & WS-Man.) Microsoft Learn

• Concurrent job locks → Error 2606: wait for the locking job to finish or cancel it; then retry. This is by design when DB rows are locked. Microsoft Learn

• Legacy patterns (2012/2012 R2): common trio during cluster refresh—20506/20552/2606—usually WinRM/permissions and concurrent job locks. danielthomasclarke.wordpress.com

• If a VM or action is left in Failed state, try VMM’s repair cmdlet:

  Get-SCVirtualMachine -Name "<VM>" | Repair-SCVirtualMachine
  

  (Creation/Migration/Update/Delete Failed states are supported.) Microsoft Learn

Library & shares (templates/ISOs not mounting, refresh storms)

• Manually refresh a library share (GUI or PS) when content seems “invisible” or metadata is stale:

  Refresh-SCLibraryShare -Name "MSSCVMMLibrary"
  

  (Handy for 2019/2022; forces reindex.) Microsoft Learn

• Library refresh cadence and how to adjust/disable it (useful for very large libraries or IO spikes). Microsoft Learn

• If mounting ISO fails with 2912 on 2019, re-check WinRM and the host agent per guidance. Microsoft Learn

Clusters / S2D / Hyper-V actions (add/refresh cluster, CSV, etc.)

• Adding a cluster fails with 2912 (common in 2012/2012 R2 and still relevant patterns): validate WinRM, Kerberos/Constrained delegation as needed, and host agent. Microsoft’s targeted fix article covers known causes. Microsoft Learn

• Job won’t start / new jobs error because objects are locked (2606): identify the locking job and let it complete, or cancel/retry. Microsoft Learn

Known good references by scenario

• Master troubleshooting landing page (Microsoft) – browse by symptom/domain. Microsoft Learn

• Resources for troubleshooting VMM (2022/2025 docs) – “Troubleshooting Guide,” error codes, and legacy VMM Configuration Analyzer (VMMCA) information. (VMMCA is legacy but still useful on older estates.) Microsoft Learn

• Enable VMM debug logging (official) – step-by-step logman recipe. Microsoft Learn

• Collect legacy storage traces (2012/2012 R2) – KB 3037626. Microsoft Learn

• Install/console log location reminder – %ProgramData%\VMMLogs\. Microsoft Learn

• Library management & refresh behavior – how refresh works and how to tune it. Microsoft Learn

• Specific errors

  • 2606 (locked records / by design). Microsoft Learn

  • 2912 (adding cluster / host agent / WinRM). Microsoft Learn

Suggested step-by-step flow (put this on your runbook)

1. Scope & capture: Note the failing job ID and error code → turn on debug tracing → reproduce once. Microsoft Learn

2. Logs: Pull %ProgramData%\VMMLogs\ and the new C:\VMMLogs\*.etl (convert with netsh trace convert). Microsoft Learn

3. SQL quick checks: VMM service account exists, can connect, and is db_owner on VirtualManagerDB; SQL service/instance reachable. Microsoft Learn

4. Host comms: Validate WinRM and VMM agent on affected hosts; fix 2912/20506-style issues; retry job. Microsoft Learn

5. Library angle (if templates/ISOs/Profiles): run a manual Library refresh; confirm path/permissions; retry deployment. Microsoft Learn

6. Cluster specifics: if cluster discovery/refresh fails, check nodes for WinRM/agent consistency; re-add with trace running to catch RPC/kerb details. Microsoft Learn

7. Retry/repair: use Repair-SCVirtualMachine or rerun the job after clearing locks (2606). Microsoft Learn

Handy PowerShell one-liners

• Tail the newest log from setup failures

  Get-ChildItem "$env:ProgramData\VMMLogs\*.log" | Sort-Object LastWriteTime -Desc | Select-Object -First 1 | Get-Content -Wait
  ``` :contentReference[oaicite:36]{index=36}
  
  

• List stuck/failed jobs

  Get-SCJob | Where-Object {$_.Status -in 'Failed','Running'} | Select Name,Status,StartTime,ErrorInfo
  

• Force a library refresh

  Get-SCLibraryShare | Refresh-SCLibraryShare
  ``` :contentReference[oaicite:37]{index=37}
  
  

• Quick WS-Man test against a host

  Test-WSMan <hostname>
  ``` :contentReference[oaicite:38]{index=38}
  

Tools you’ll use (and when)

• Event Viewer (Windows Logs + Apps & Services → VMM ETW providers) – first stop for red flags. Microsoft Learn

• VMM Debug Trace (logman) – definitive capture during a repro. Microsoft Learn

• VMM Troubleshooting hub – curated scenarios/how-tos. Microsoft Learn

• VMM Resources page (2022/2025) – error codes, guides, and legacy tools like VMMCA for old environments. Microsoft Learn

• Library management docs – for refresh behavior and tuning. Microsoft Learn