Dr. Watson Error Message When You Start the Spooler Service
ID: Q242054
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The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
SYMPTOMS
When you try to start the Spooler service, you may receive the following Dr. Watson error message:
An application error has occurred and an application error log is being generated.
Spoolss.exe
Exception: access violation (0xC0000005), Address:
Also, you may receive the following error message:
Application exception occurred:
App: spoolss.dbg (pid= )
Exception number: c0000005 (access violation)
CAUSE
This behavior can occur if a print monitor utility or printer spool file or files are damaged. This can occur when you use a third-party print monitor utility or Microsoft Windows NT print monitors.
RESOLUTION
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For more information about how to do this, view the 'Restoring a Registry Key' Help topic in Regedt32.exe.
NOTE: For information about how to edit the registry, view the 'Add and Delete Information in the Registry' and 'Edit Registry Data' Help topics in Regedt32.exe. You should back up the registry and update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD) before editing the registry.
CAUTION: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.
To resolve this issue, perform the following steps, testing to determine if the issue is resolved after each step, and if it is, do not perform the remaining steps:
Configure the print server for online use:
- Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click Services.
- Click Spooler, and then click Startup.
- Configure the Spooler service to log on using the System account and to interact with the desktop, and then click OK.
Eliminate any extra .shd and .spl files:
- Remove or rename the .shd and .spl files from the various spool folders located in the %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Printers folder. Note that you lose pending print jobs, but the configuration information should be intact.
- Remove or rename any unused or old .tmp files in the Temp folder.
Delete the printer through the registry, and then reinstall it:
NOTE: Normally, you can delete a printer by using the Delete Printer command. However, the printer is not actually deleted until the next time the Spooler service starts. Because in this case the Spooler service does not start, you cannot use the Delete Printer command. Deleting the following keys from the registry requires you to reinstall the printer drivers and recreate the printers, because the printer is deleted from the print share.
Use Registry Editor to delete the appropriate registry keys:
Local Printer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print \Environments\Windows NT x86\Drivers\Version-2\<printer name>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Printers\<printer name>
where <printer name> is the name of the local printer.
Network Printer
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Printers\Connections\<server name>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Providers\LanMan Print Services\Servers\<server name>\Printers\<printer name>
where <server name> is the name of the server the printer is on and <printer name> is the name of the network printer. - Restart the computer, and then reinstall the printer.
Delete the print monitor from the registry:
Use Registry Editor to locate and delete the print monitors from the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Monitors
NOTE: Each print monitor is listed in a subkey of this registry location. - Restart the computer.
MORE INFORMATION
For additional information, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Q102116 How to Manually Delete Print Shares or Printers
Q135406 Steps to Manually Remove and Reinstall a Printer Driver
Q102116 Steps to Manually Remove and Reinstall a Printer Driver
NOTE: If your computer spool folder is not in the default location, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Q123747 Moving the Windows NT Default Paging and Spool File
Additional query words: nt 4.0 exception spooler
Keywords : nt 4.0
Version : winnt:4.0
Platform : winnt
Issue type : kbprb
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