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SCCM error 0x80070057 means ERROR_INVALID_PARAMETER: a Configuration Manager component received a value it could not use. The code does not identify which value is wrong. Find the first component and timestamp that logged the error, then follow the matching branch below: smsts.log for operating-system deployment, distmgr.log and ContentTransferManager.log for content and distribution, or the relevant site or client log for another workflow.
The same HRESULT can appear during disk partitioning, content-location requests, alternate-content-provider transfers, Office updates and other operations. Replacing a generic setting or reinstalling the client without identifying the failing step can leave the actual parameter unchanged.
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What SCCM error 0x80070057 means
Microsoft defines 0x80070057 as ERROR_INVALID_PARAMETER, “The parameter is incorrect.” In Configuration Manager, that is a diagnosis category rather than a complete explanation. A parameter can be a disk number, a disk-style choice, a path, a content-location response, a command-line argument, a requirement value, a variable expansion or an update-build reference.
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Match the symptom to the likely owner
| Where the failure occurs | First log to inspect | Typical parameter area |
|---|---|---|
| Operating-system deployment or imaging | smsts.log |
Disk number, disk-number variable, GPT/MBR choice, boot-disk flag, partition settings, command or condition variables |
| Content distribution or content-location processing | distmgr.log on the site server |
Package/application content, distribution-point processing and content location |
| Client content transfer | ContentTransferManager.log on the client |
Transfer request, distribution-point response or alternate content provider |
| Office 365 version 1910 incident | The Office update and Configuration Manager logs | Affected 1910 build and its catalog entry |
Capture the exact context before changing anything
Write down the details while the failure is reproducible. This prevents a fix for one Configuration Manager operation from being applied to an unrelated one.
- Identify the device and deployment. Record the device name, collection, application, package, software update or task-sequence name.
- Record the exact step. For a task sequence, note the step label shown in the progress window. For a deployment, note whether the failure is during content-location discovery, download, installation or detection.
- Record the timestamp and phase. State whether the device is in Windows PE, the full Windows client, Software Center, or whether the site server is processing the request.
- Record versions. Capture the Configuration Manager client and site versions, and the Office build if Office is involved.
- Preserve the original log. Copy the relevant log before rerunning. The first error often contains the parameter value or preceding response that later retries obscure.
Open the log that owns the failing operation
Task-sequence log locations
The location of smsts.log changes as an operating-system deployment moves between phases:
- Before partitioning in Windows PE:
X:WindowsTempSMSTSLogsmsts.log - After partitioning in Windows PE:
X:smstslogsmsts.log - Later in the full Windows environment:
C:_SMSTaskSequenceLogssmstslogsmsts.logorC:WindowsCCMLogssmstslogsmsts.log
The read-only task-sequence variable _SMSTSLogPath always contains the path of the current log file. If you are unsure which phase is active, expose that variable in the debugger or inspect the current task-sequence log rather than guessing a path.
Content and distribution logs
On the site server, inspect distmgr.log for distribution-point and content-location processing. On the client, inspect ContentTransferManager.log for the transfer request and response. Microsoft’s release documentation includes examples such as “Failed to locate content error code: 0x8007057 … the parameter is incorrect” and CTM encountered error processing reply from DTS. Code 0x80070057. The surrounding lines show whether the bad value was produced while locating content, selecting a distribution point or processing a transfer response.
Use CMTrace and preserve chronology
Open the log in CMTrace, sort or view it in time order, and start several lines before the HRESULT. Look for the first component that rejects a value; later messages may only report the failure passed back by another component. Save the relevant block with its timestamp so a change to a task sequence, distribution point or package can be correlated with the next test.
Fix an operating-system deployment or task-sequence failure
When the failure appears during imaging, the Format and Partition Disk step is the first place to check. A disk operation can fail even when the physical drive is healthy if the task sequence addresses the wrong disk or supplies incompatible partition settings.
1. Verify the target physical disk
- Open the task sequence in the Configuration Manager console and locate Format and Partition Disk.
- Check the configured physical disk number. Disk numbering starts at the value exposed by the deployment environment; do not assume the intended drive is always disk 0 when systems contain multiple storage devices or virtual disks.
- If the step uses a disk-number task-sequence variable, confirm that the variable exists in the active collection or task-sequence environment and resolves to an integer. An empty, misspelled, nonnumeric or out-of-range value can be interpreted as an invalid parameter.
- Compare the rendered value in
smsts.logwith a known-good task sequence on comparable hardware.
Microsoft’s Set-CMTSStepPartitionDisk reference exposes the relevant choices as -DiskNumber, -DiskNumberVariable, -DiskType, -IsBootDisk and -PartitionSetting. Use the option that matches the way your task sequence is designed; do not populate both a fixed disk number and a variable unless the step’s configuration explicitly supports that arrangement.
2. Match GPT or MBR to firmware boot mode
Check whether the device is booted in UEFI or legacy BIOS mode, then compare that mode with the disk style selected in the partition step. A GPT layout intended for UEFI and an MBR layout intended for legacy boot are not interchangeable. Correct the task-sequence disk type or the deployment firmware configuration so they describe the same target.
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3. Confirm the boot-disk selection
Ensure the disk that receives the system and boot partitions is marked as the boot disk. If a secondary disk is selected as bootable, the partition operation can receive a combination of flags that the deployment engine cannot apply. On multi-disk devices, verify the boot-disk choice against the actual disk number rather than the drive letter shown later in Windows.
4. Validate partition settings
Review every partition entry for a valid size, file system and role. Remove contradictory settings, such as a layout that requires a boot partition type incompatible with the selected disk style. If you changed the layout recently, compare it with the last task sequence that completed successfully and reintroduce changes one at a time.
5. Check variables, conditions and custom commands
If the error follows a custom command, condition or variable expansion, inspect the values immediately before the Format and Partition Disk step. Compare the command as rendered in smsts.log, not just the text in the console. Correct empty values, spelling errors, unsupported ranges and mutually exclusive switches. A condition that evaluates differently in Windows PE than in the full client can also route the sequence into a step with missing inputs.
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6. Use the task-sequence debugger safely
Microsoft’s Configuration Manager task-sequence debugger can pause execution at breakpoints and open the current smsts.log in CMTrace. Use it against a small test collection or a disposable test device when the sequence can safely be interrupted. Set a breakpoint before the suspected step, inspect the variables and rendered command, then resume only after confirming the disk and partition values.
7. Test the corrected sequence
Run the revised sequence on a controlled device with the same firmware mode and storage topology as the failing device. Confirm that the partition step completes and that the original invalid-parameter entry does not recur. Record the corrected disk number, variable, disk type or partition revision so a later change does not silently reintroduce the problem.
Fix application, package and content-transfer failures
1. Confirm that content is distributed
In the Configuration Manager console, verify that the application, package or software-update content is distributed to the distribution point the client is expected to use. A client cannot download content that the selected point does not hold. Check the distribution status and wait for processing to complete before testing again.
2. Check boundary-group selection
Confirm that the client’s current boundary belongs to a boundary group that has the intended distribution point associated with it. Follow the content-location request in the client log and compare the returned point with the point you updated. If the client is receiving a different point, correct the boundary-group relationship or test from a device whose boundary is known to select the intended server.
3. Trace the request and transfer sequence
Read the client’s ContentTransferManager.log around the first 0x80070057, then correlate its timestamp with distmgr.log on the site server. Determine whether the invalid value appears while locating content, while processing the distribution response or after an alternate content provider returns an error. Do not treat a transfer response as proof that the package itself is corrupt until the preceding content-location messages have been checked.
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4. Validate application deployment metadata
For MSIX or other application deployments, inspect the deployment type’s source path, package metadata, certificate and dependency requirements, and detection and requirement rules. A malformed path, missing dependency or requirement value can be surfaced as a generic invalid-parameter error. Compare the failing deployment type with a known-good type and correct one field at a time.
5. Recheck content after changes
After correcting a source path, deployment type or distribution-point assignment, redistribute the changed content and wait for the status to become successful. Then trigger a fresh policy evaluation and content-location request on the client. Use new log timestamps so an old cached response is not mistaken for validation of the fix.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Handle the documented Office 365 version 1910 case
Microsoft documented a specific 80070057 incident affecting certain Office 365 version 1910 builds. This branch applies only when the device and logs match that incident; it is not a general fix for every Configuration Manager error with this code.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsDevices that have not installed the affected build
Microsoft states that affected catalog entries were removed and that build 12130.20410 or later is available for devices that have not yet installed the affected build. Confirm the Office channel and build before approving or deploying an update.
Devices already affected
For devices that already have the affected build, use Microsoft’s published fix tool and deployment directions through Configuration Manager. Verify that the tool and instructions correspond to the version 1910 incident, then test on a small collection before broad deployment. Document the Office build and the remediation package used.
When the failure is another Configuration Manager operation
Configuration Manager can emit 0x80070057 during site or client operations beyond imaging and content transfer. If neither smsts.log nor the content logs contains the first error, identify the component named in the message and open that component’s log. Preserve the operation name, timestamp and preceding parameter text, then compare the value with the supported format for that component. The generic HRESULT is not a reason to change disk settings, redistribute every package or reinstall every client.
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Use a workflow-based decision matrix
| Workflow | Execution phase | Owning log | Parameter to verify first | Change scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OS deployment | Windows PE or full client | smsts.log |
Disk number, disk variable, GPT/MBR, boot-disk flag or partition settings | One task sequence or test device |
| Application or package deployment | Client content location and download | ContentTransferManager.log |
Distribution point, boundary-group result, source path or deployment metadata | Deployment type, content and selected distribution points |
| Distribution processing | Site server | distmgr.log |
Content-location and distribution processing values | Package or application distribution |
| Office 365 version 1910 incident | Office update deployment | Office and Configuration Manager logs | Affected catalog entry or Office build | Office update package or affected client collection |
Common mistakes that prolong troubleshooting
- Searching only for the HRESULT. Search for the first occurrence and read the component name and preceding request.
- Editing the wrong log. A site-server distribution failure will not be explained by a client-only log, and a WinPE partition failure will not be explained by Software Center history.
- Assuming disk 0 is always correct. NVMe drives, USB storage, virtual disks and vendor recovery devices can change the ordering visible to Windows PE.
- Mixing firmware and disk styles. Select GPT or MBR together with the boot mode the device actually uses.
- Trusting a task-sequence variable without checking its value. The variable name can be correct while its value is empty, misspelled or outside the accepted range.
- Redistributing content without checking the boundary group. The client may continue requesting a different distribution point.
- Applying the Office fix to unrelated errors. The version 1910 remediation is relevant only when the Office build and symptoms match Microsoft’s documented incident.
- Changing many settings at once. Make one controlled change, rerun the same workflow and compare timestamps so the effective fix is identifiable.
Validate and document the repair
- Reproduce the original workflow on a controlled test device or small collection.
- Confirm that the corrected parameter is visible in the relevant log.
- Verify that the original
0x80070057entry is absent or no longer occurs at the failing step. - For content deployments, confirm successful distribution, correct boundary-group selection and a completed client download.
- For task sequences, verify partitioning, boot files and the next deployment step before expanding the rollout.
- Record the task-sequence revision, variable value, partition layout, distribution-point change, Office build or remediation package that resolved the issue.
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