Microsoft KB Archive/219602

= Random Dr. Watson Errors in Services.exe =

Article ID: 219602

Article Last Modified on 11/1/2006

-

APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Developer Edition
 * Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 Enterprise Edition

-



This article was previously published under Q219602



IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry



SYMPTOMS
After you add or modify one of the values in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services registry key on your computer running Windows NT 4.0, you may receive random or intermittent Dr. Watson error messages with the Services.exe file as the source.



CAUSE
This problem occurs because the DependOnService value type for one or more Windows NT services may be corrupt or incorrect. The registry may have become corrupt, or a service's value may have been improperly configured.



RESOLUTION
WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

To resolve this problem, verify that the value type for the DependOnService value is set to REG_MULTI_SZ for all services that contain value entries. To do this, perform one of the following:  Use Registry Editor to examine each DependOnService value for the correct value type. To do this:  Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).  Locate the following key in the registry:    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services  Click each service to display to attendant DependOnService value for that key. If the value type is not listed as REG_MULTI_SZ, go to the How To Correct This Issue section. </li> Export the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services key to an external file, and then use a standard text editor to check the individual DependOnService values for the correct value type:  Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).</li>  Locate the following key in the registry:  <pre class="fixed_text">  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services </li> On the Registry menu, click Save Subtree As, type a unique name for the file, and then click Save.</li> Quit Registry Editor.</li> Use a standard text editor, such as Notepad, to review the file and confirm that the DependOnService value is associated with the correct value type. For each entry that is not listed as REG_MULTI_SZ, go to the How To Correct This Issue section.</li></ol> </li> Use the Windows NT Diagnostics tool to identify incorrect value types for the DependOnService value.  Click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools (Common), and then click Windows NT Diagnostics.</li> Click the Services tab, highlight each individual service, click Properties, and then click Dependencies.</li> If you are experiencing this exact issue, the Service Dependency window may contain values that look like this:

MSExchangeIS

end||

ee|e|e

e|||

NOTE:The Above characters "e" and "|" were substituted for the illegible symbols that may be displayed.

</li> Make a note of the service that contains these invalid entries and then proceed to the How To Correct This Issue section.</li></ol> </li></ul>

How To Correct This Issue:
 Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).</li>  Locate the following key in the registry:  <pre class="fixed_text">  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services </li> <li>Highlight the DependOnService value, make a note of the current value entries, and then press DELETE.</li> <li> On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value: <pre class="fixed_text">  Value Name: DependOnService Data Type: REG_MULTI_SZ Value:     <dependent on each unique service> </li> <li>Quit Registry Editor, and then restart the computer.</li></ol>

<div class="moreinformation_section">

MORE INFORMATION
The Dr. Watson log, located in the %SystemRoot% folder, may also show a call similar to the following in the stack trace below the faulted function:

services!ScReadDependencies

Windows NT reads the service dependencies for the service attempting to start, identifies any incorrect value types, and then generates a Dr. Wastson error message.

For additional information about the DependOnService value, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

193888 How to Delay Loading of Specific Services

Keywords: kbenv kbinterop kbprb KB219602

-

[mailto:TECHNET@MICROSOFT.COM Send feedback to Microsoft]

© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.