Logging Robocopy Operations

by Barry Dysert
(last updated November 6, 2017)

By default, when a Robocopy operation is completed, a summary of what happened is displayed on the console. This summary can appear a bit cryptic as it displays in the Command Prompt window. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. Robocopy's default summary output.

If you want to change the default logging behavior, there are many options to choose from. Some of the more interesting options include:

Switch Meaning
/L List only: don't copy, timestamp or delete any files.
/X Report all eXtra files, not just those selected.
/V Produce Verbose output, showing skipped files.
/ETA Show an Estimated Time of Arrival of copied files.
/LOG:file Output status to a specified log file. If the file exists, overwrite it.
/LOG+:file Output status to a specified log file. If the file exists, append to it.

These switches, which you add to the Robocopy command line, are fairly self-explanatory, but a couple are worth noting. The /L switch, for example, is handy when you want to see what would happen if you executed the command, but without any copy actually occurring.

If you want to capture to a file the output of Robocopy, then the /LOG and /LOG+ switches are what to use. As is usually the case, there are several other logging options. The complete list can be obtained by invoking Robocopy with the /? switch.

 This tip (13220) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.

Author Bio

Barry Dysert

Barry has been a computer professional for over 35 years, working in different positions such as technical team leader, project manager, and software developer. He is currently a software engineer with an emphasis on developing custom applications under Microsoft Windows. When not working with Windows or writing Tips, Barry is an amateur writer. His first non-fiction book is titled "A Chronological Commentary of Revelation." ...

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