Microsoft KB Archive/910932

= Memory usage may increase over time when a computer that is running Windows Server 2003 uses the SMTP service to process many outgoing messages =

Article ID: 910932

Article Last Modified on 10/11/2007

-

APPLIES TO


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

-



Important This article contains information about how to modify the registry. Make sure to back up the registry before you modify it. Make sure that you know how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up, restore, and modify the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows registry



SYMPTOMS
A computer that is running Microsoft Windows Server 2003 uses the SMTP service to process many outgoing messages that are sent to many distinct domains. When this occurs, memory usage may continue to increase over time. You must restart the computer or the SMTP service to reset memory and to resume typical Windows services.

Note For more information about how to monitor memory usage in this scenario, see the &quot;More Information&quot; section.



Service pack information
To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows Server 2003. 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

Prerequisites
You must install Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 (SP1) before you apply the hotfix.

Note X64-based versions of Windows Server 2003 do not require Windows Server 2003 SP1. 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
If the SMTP service is running when you apply the hotfix, you must restart the computer after you apply the 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) 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 tool in Control Panel. Microsoft Windows Server 2003, x64-based versions

Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition for Itanium-based Systems

Microsoft Windows Server 2003, 32-bit versions

Warning Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.After you apply the hotfix, you must enable the following registry entry to resolve the problem. To do this, follow these steps:  Start Registry Editor. Locate and then click to select the following registry key:

 On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value:

Value name: ZombieDomainEntryThreshold

Data type: DWORD

Value data: 0000003E8 Exit Registry Editor.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the &quot;Applies to&quot; section. This problem was first corrected in Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2.



How to monitor memory usage
To monitor memory usage in the scenario that is described in the &quot;Symptoms&quot; section, monitor the following objects in Performance Monitor.

Memory
To monitor the memory that is available to Windows, you must monitor the value of the following counter:
 * Memory\Available Bytes - value decreases over time

IIS
To monitor the memory that is used by Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS), you must monitor the Working Set for Inetinfo.exe.
 * Process\Working Set\inetinfo - value increases over time

For more information about how to monitor IIS performance, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/WindowsServer2003/Library/IIS/9c31f53a-6f87-4872-8cc5-41a7bb76f6db.mspx



To monitor memory usage in the scenario that is described in the &quot;Symptoms&quot; section, monitor the following objects in Performance Monitor:
 * Memory that is available to Windows
 * Memory that is used by Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS)

To monitor the memory that is available to Windows, monitor the value of the &quot;Memory\Available Bytes&quot; counter. The value of this counter should decrease over time.

To monitor the memory that is used by IIS, monitor the value of the &quot;Process\Working Set\inetinfo&quot; counter. This counter is the Working Set for Inetinfo.exe. The value of this counter should increase over time.

For more information about how to monitor IIS performance, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/WindowsServer2003/Library/IIS/9c31f53a-6f87-4872-8cc5-41a7bb76f6db.mspx

<div class="references_section">