"Failed swizzling the service" returned in ArcGIS Server Manager logs

Description

When publishing a service in ArcGIS for Server, the following error message is written to the ArcGIS Server Manager log file.

Error: Failed swizzling the service.

Cause

This issue is commonly seen on machines with ArcGIS for Server 10.4 or 10.4.1 installed. The issue is due to a bug, which is addressed here: BUG-000096292.

In ArcGIS for Server, swizzling is the process of renaming paths for layers, and other data within a map document to ready the MXD before it is used by ArcGIS for Server after being published. At publishing, the MXD is placed into a service definition file (.sd), copied to the ArcGIS for Server machine, and un-packaged for use in the service. When data is copied to ArcGIS for Server, the paths must be changed to point to the ArcGIS for Server directories where the copied MXD and data reside.

Note:
If a registered data store is part of the workflow where the ArcGIS for Server and publishing locations do not match, the corresponding paths are swizzled. The following document provides an in-depth explanation when the publisher machine and ArcGIS for Server are working with different databases: About registering your data with ArcGIS Server.

Solution or Workaround