Guide: How to get a debug log (BFront2.log) file

[Marth8880]

After realizing there's no single tutorial (that I know of) explaining how to get a debug log, I figured I'd might as well write one myself. And yes, while this is technically sorta explained in question #4 of the FAQ, it's a little harder to find and link to.

• 1) Make sure you have the correct debug executable of the game:
  • If you own the CD version of the game, this executable is BF2_modtools.exe, and it is located in the BF2_ModTools root folder (usually 'C:\BF2_ModTools').
  • If you own any other version of the game (DVD, Steam, GOG, etc.), you will need to download the modified version of the executable that bypasses the disc requirement. It can be downloaded HERE.
    • I personally strongly recommend using this version of the debug executable, since it also includes the modification that removes the large green block as described HERE.
    • Please note that this is a ZIP file, so you'll need to extract the executable file from it. See HERE if you don't know how to do that.
  2) Copy and paste the debug executable into the same directory as BattlefrontII.exe, which is usually:
  • 'C:\Program Files (x86)\LucasArts\Star Wars Battlefront II\GameData' or
    'C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Star Wars Battlefront II\GameData'
  3) Now you're able to get a debug log! To do so, simply run the debug executable (from the GameData directory, of course) and the debug log ('BFront2.log') will start being outputted to the same directory!
  • a) If you can't find your BFront2.log it may be saved to this location:
    'C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\LucasArts\Star Wars Battlefront II\GameData'
    or click on the Compatibility Files button in the GameData folder.

Further reading:

• BFront2.log errors explained
• Using the BF2Modtools.exe debug interface
• How to customize your debug executable
• How to monitor the contents of BFront2.log in real-time