Proper stsadm commands to update SharePoint Solution/Feature

Many tasks in SharePoint are queued and then executed via timer job. An IISReset causes the web applicationt to be reloaded into memory and for configuration information for example the web.config to be reloaded.

To give SharePoint a "nudge" and cause jobs to execute you might try:

stsadm -o execadmsvcjobs

SharePoint uses a lot of different logging mechanisms. Most importantly you can configure the location of the logs through Central Admin. To give you an understanding of the logs involved, here is a quote from http://raiumair.wordpress.com/2007/06/19/quick-a-to-z-of-sharepoint-logs/

All file based logs can be read by text editors and can be parsed by using popular log parsing tools (Log Parser 2.2 from Microsoft or Funnel Web). It will also be a good idea to read the IIS Logs which are generally saved at (System Drive):\WINDOWS\system32\LogFiles

a) Diagnostics Logs

· Event Throttling Logs – These end up going to the Windows Event Log and can be viewed in the Event Viewer. They show Errors and Warnings.

· Trace Logs – These show detailed line by line tracing infomration emitted during a web request or service execution. They end up being stored at a known location on the front-end server. Default Location: (System Drive):\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\12\LOGS\

b) Audit Logs - They end up in the associated Content Database tables and can be viewed at Site Collection Level as well as Site Level using the web browser. WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007 use different pages to show Audit Log Reports.

c) Usage Logs – They get stored locally on the front-end servers and get processed both locally and at farm level via SSP (this is based on the setup as I understand the results from the local processing are merged by SSP) and can be viewed at both the Site Level and Site Collection Level. Default Location: (System Drive):\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\12\Logs

d) Search\Query Logs – These are saved in the associated SSP database but can be viewed at SSP level via the Web Browser and in MOSS at Site Collection Level by going to the settings page.

e) Information Management Logs – Stored in the associated Content Database and can be can be viewed at the Site Collection Level.

f) Content and Structure Logs – This option is only available after one enables the publication feature. This store is saved in the Content Database associated with the Site Collection and can be viewed at Site Collection level by going to the settings page.