Microsoft KB Archive/928124

= The status of a dynamic volume unexpectedly changes to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; after the system detects bad blocks on a Windows Server 2003-based computer =

Article ID: 928124

Article Last Modified on 10/26/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition (32-bit x86)
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Web Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition (32-bit x86)
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Standard x64 Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise x64 Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Datacenter x64 Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition for Itanium-based Systems
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition for Itanium-Based Systems

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SYMPTOMS
On a Microsoft Windows Server 2003-based computer, the status of a dynamic volume unexpectedly changes to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; after the system detects bad blocks. In this situation, you cannot create a software mirror.

Additionally, events that resemble the following are logged in the System event log:

Event ID 29
Event Type: Information

Event Source: dmio

Event Category: None

Event ID: 29

Computer:

Description: dmio: Harddisk1 read error at block : status

Event ID 26
Event Type: Information

Event Source: dmio

Event Category: None

Event ID: 26

Computer:

Description: dmio: Found a bad block on disk  at block number

Event ID 23
Event Type: Information

Event Source: dmio

Event Category: None

Event ID: 23

Computer:

Description: dmio: Reassigning bad block number  on disk

Event ID 24
Event Type: Information

Event Source: dmio

Event Category: None

Event ID: 24

Computer:

Description: dmio: Reassign bad block(s) on disk  succeeded



CAUSE
This problem occurs because of an error in the Dmio.sys module. The Dimo.sys module does not process bad blocks correctly as specified in the &quot;SCSI Sector Sparing&quot; technology specifications. Therefore, some reassignment requests fail unexpectedly. The disk status changes to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; if the reassignment fails.

Note This hotfix corrects only the reassignment problem. The disk status still changes to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; even if the reassignment is successful. Therefore, you need to reactivate the disk manually.



Hotfix information
A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft. However, it is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. This hotfix may receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, we recommend that you wait for the next Windows Server 2003 service pack that contains this hotfix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Customer Support Services to obtain the hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Support Services telephone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support

Note In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

Prerequisites
To apply this hotfix, you must have Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 or Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 installed on the computer. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

889100 How to obtain the latest service pack for Windows Server 2003

Restart requirement
You must restart the computer after you apply this hotfix.

Hotfix replacement information
This hotfix does not replace any other hotfixes.

File information
The English version of this hotfix has the file attributes (or later file attributes) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time item in Control Panel.

Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 2, x64-based versions
Note The disk status changed to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; even if the reassignment is successful.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the &quot;Applies to&quot; section.



MORE INFORMATION
SCSI disks support the SCSI Sector Sparing technology. If the system detects a bad block, the system automatically tries to map defective blocks to new locations on the disk. The disk status remains healthy if the reassignment is successful. The disk status changes to &quot;Online (Error)&quot; if the reassignment fails. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

325615 Cannot create software mirror if disk contains bad blocks

For more information about the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

824684 Description of the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates

Keywords: kbexpertiseinter kbwinserv2003postsp2fix kbbug kbfix kbhotfixserver kbqfe kbpubtypekc KB928124

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