Have you received the following error installing FIM/MIM?
Most likely you have because there are many prerequisites that must be met for a successful install. And what makes matters worse, the error message reported is very non-descript and there are rarely any useful information found logged anywhere on the computer. And finally, the setup wizard requires many inputs from the user and when you re-run it, the previously entered information has to be re-entered. Arghhhh!!!!
Thankfully, there is a trick to installing FIM so that when an error occurs, information is logged which can be used to determine the cause. And, it’s very simple to employ this technique:
- Create a folder “Temp” at C:\
- Open PowerShell and change directories to the one containing the msi install file
- Run the following command (as appropriate):
MIM Service and Portal
msiexec /i “Service and Portal.msi” /L*v c:\temp\MIM_Service_Install.log
MIM Sync
msiexec /i “Synchronization Service.msi” /L*v c:\temp\MIM_Sync_Install.log
- Now when the install fails, you can review the log file for clues as to what is causing the error. Be warned, the log file is very long, and it may take some time to find clues as to what caused the error.
- Press ctrl+f to find the word ERROR. They typically come in bunches, followed by some rollback actions.
Common Errors
- The most common issue found is related to SharePoint permissions. Make sure the FIM Service account has the proper permissions in the SharePoint Farm (Farm Admin), as well as on the server itself.
- Another error revolves around files or directories that are missing. In most cases, the installer is simply checking for the existence of the file or directory, and you can bypass this error by simply creating the content manually.
- In other cases, the installer is reading the contents of those files. If you find this to be true, you should copy the file(s) it is looking for from another FIM install.
