 Harris's ship escorted convoys between the United States, Hawaii, Australia and the Fiji Islands.After seeing a convoy safely to Fiji in July, "San Francisco" joined the expeditionary force bound for the Solomon Islands, in the initial assault phase of Operation Watchtower, the invasion of Guadalcanal.His ship covered the landings on August 7, and, following a logistics period at Nouméa, New Caledonia, covered a supply convoy to Guadalcanal.