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The Zappl agent sends log output to Apple’s Unified Log. This offers a simple way of collecting and filtering through logs with a set category or from a set timeframe.
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To stream all current Zappl logs with Terminal, launch Terminal and input the following command, then press enter.
log stream --predicate 'subsystem == "com.dare.zappl"' --info --debug
Alternatively, you can stream the current Zappl logs using the Console app. To do so, launch Console, then in the filter field select SUBSYSTEM and enter com.dare.zappl as the subsystem name.
You can use the Terminal app to run any of the below commands to gather historical Zappl logs using Apple’s unified logging.
Display all Zappl logs from the last hour (to alter the timeframe, change the last value, e.g., 1d for 1 day)
log show --predicate 'subsystem == "com.dare.zappl"' --info --debug --last 1h
Export all Zappl logs from the last hour to a .log file on the desktop
log show --predicate 'subsystem == "com.dare.zappl"' --info --debug --last 1h > ~/Desktop/ZapplLastHour.log
Display all available errors outputted by the Zappl agent
log show --predicate 'subsystem == "com.dare.zappl" AND messageType == error'
Display only logs relating to the scheduled update category from the last day (see the categories table below for a full list of available categories)
log show --predicate 'subsystem == "com.dare.zappl" AND category == "ScheduledUpdates"' --info --debug --last 1d
| Category Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Initialising | Contains log information related to the Zappl agent's initialisation tasks such as the validation of license keys and connecting to the Zappl server. |
| AppInstalls | Contains log information about app installations. Please note this is not related to app updates. |
| BackgroundUpdates | Contains log information relating to silent updates which occur in the background for apps that are not in use. |
| ForcedUpdates | Contains log information relating to the forced update mechanism. |
| Reporting | Contains log information relating to the reporting mechanism responsible for collecting app and computer data and submitting data to the Zappl reporting portal. |
| ScheduledUpdates | Contains log information relating to the recurring scheduled updates mechanism responsible for prompting users to quit any apps which need to quit in order to update. |
/var/log/zappl.log
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This log stores all historical information outputted by the Zappl agent, from informational output to any errors and warnings encountered.
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Filtering through the log using Error: as the search term will display any historical errors outputted by Zappl.
The excerpt below demonstrates log output displayed during a typical app installation.
Thu Oct 03 16:02:20 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Initialising the Application install mechanism...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:20 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Show progress flag specified
Thu Oct 03 16:02:23 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: The Zappl server is reachable
Thu Oct 03 16:02:23 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: This installation of Zappl is licensed to Acme LTD
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Firefox found in the Zappl App catalog.
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Initialising Firefox install...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Preventing idle sleep...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Checking for sufficient disk space for the Firefox install...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Sufficient free disk space for the Firefox install
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Checking macOS version requirements...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: 15.0.0 is the same or greater than the minimum required macOS version (10.15)
Thu Oct 03 16:02:30 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Downloading universal Firefox installer...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:37 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Download complete
Thu Oct 03 16:02:37 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Mounting disk image...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:47 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Successfully mounted the Disk Image
Thu Oct 03 16:02:47 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Extracting Firefox-v131.0.dmg...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:47 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Downloaded installer hash: cd243b44746f56ee2042572cccab2736c0c6d419f85f90ad163a4ba04979ccb2
Thu Oct 03 16:02:47 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: The installer hash matches the expected sha256 hash. Continuing...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:47 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Verifying signing information...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:48 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Found signature: Mozilla Corporation (43AQ936H96)
Thu Oct 03 16:02:48 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Signing verification complete. The App matches the expected code signing. Continuing...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:48 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Writing Firefox.app to /Applications/Firefox.app...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Setting permissions - Mode: 755, Owner: root, Group: admin
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Detaching disk image...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: "disk18" ejected.
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Removing downloads...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Allowing idle sleep...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:57 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Running post install tasks...
Thu Oct 03 16:02:58 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Firefox found at path: /Applications/Firefox.app
Thu Oct 03 16:02:58 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: The Firefox install was successful.
Thu Oct 03 16:03:00 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Displaying install success message to the user. Asking if Firefox should be launched...
Thu Oct 03 16:03:07 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: User clicked Yes. Launching Firefox...
Thu Oct 03 16:03:08 XG17QVWYLX zappl[17950]: Exiting...
The Zappl agent sends any errors or warnings it generates to the device records in the Online Portal . These records are stored for 30 days, providing an easy way to view issues without sifting through the main Zappl logs. For more information, see Logs.
<aside> <img src="/icons/info-alternate_blue.svg" alt="/icons/info-alternate_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Using an MDM tool like Jamf Pro, we can capture Zappl logs remotely from a Mac, and upload to the relevant Inventory Record for download and further investigation.
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The script used for Log Collection can be found in Collect Logs Script.
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Navigate to Settings > System > API Roles and Clients > API Roles
Create a new API role, giving it a relevant name.
The only privileges needed for this workflow are Read Computers and Create Computers.
We can then create an API Client which utilises this role.
Navigate to Settings > System > API Roles and Clients > API Clients
Create a new API Client, giving it a relevant name.
Choose the API Role you created in the prior step.
Under the Enable/disable API Client option, click on Enable API Client. Upon clicking Save, this provides you with an option to Generate a Client Secret.
Clicking on this option presents a popup. Click on Create Secret and you will be provided with a Client ID and Client Secret. Be sure to copy these details to your clipboard, as the Secret cannot be viewed again without rotating it. We will be using these details with our Collect Logs script in the next steps.
In Jamf Pro, navigate to Computers > Policies, and click on Create New.
Give your Policy a relevant name, and choose how you want the Policy to trigger.
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We’d generally recommend a trigger of Recurring Check-In, with a frequency of Once Per Computer. This allows the script to trigger silently when the Mac next checks in with Jamf Pro, and requires no user-input.
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Click on the Scripts payload and select the Collect Logs script you should have uploaded earlier.
Enter the necessary parameter details as follows;
Parameter 4 | Jamf Cloud URL (https://acme.jamfcloud.com)
Parameter 5 | Client ID (Copied from the earlier API Client steps)
Parameter 6 | Client Secret (Copied from the earlier API Client steps)
Set the Scope of the Policy to your preference.
Once the Policy has completed on the desired Mac(s), navigate to the relevant Inventory Record(s).
From here, in the Inventory tab select the Attachments option, and you should see a Zappl Log uploaded.
You are then able to download this log to your own computer for further troubleshooting.