Microsoft KB Archive/280069

Knowledge Base

Games: How to Troubleshoot Invalid Page Faults and Exception Errors (Part 2)

Article ID: 280069

Article Last Modified on 3/29/2007

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APPLIES TO

• Microsoft Age of Empires Expansion: The Rise of Rome
• Microsoft Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion
• Microsoft Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
• Microsoft Age of Empires Gold Edition
• Microsoft Age of Empires II Gold Edition
• Microsoft Age of Empires
• Microsoft Allegiance
• Microsoft Baseball 2000
• Microsoft Baseball 2001
• Microsoft Best of Windows Entertainment Pack 1.0
• Microsoft Casino
• Microsoft Classic Board Games 1.0
• Microsoft Close Combat
• Microsoft Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far
• Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 2: WWII Pacific Theater
• Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator: WWII Europe Series
• Microsoft Crimson Skies
• Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 Professional Edition
• Microsoft Flight Simulator 98 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Golf 1999 Edition
• Microsoft Golf 2001
• Microsoft International Soccer 2000
• Microsoft Links 2001 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Links LS 2000
• Microsoft MechWarrior 4: Vengeance
• Microsoft Metal Gear Solid
• Microsoft Midtown Madness 2
• Microsoft Midtown Madness
• Microsoft Monster Truck Madness 2
• Microsoft Monster Truck Madness
• Microsoft Motocross Madness 2
• Microsoft Motocross Madness
• Microsoft NBA Full Court Press
• Microsoft NBA Inside Drive 2000
• Microsoft NFL Fever 2000
• Microsoft Outwars
• Microsoft Pandora's Box
• Microsoft Pinball Arcade
• Microsoft Plus! Game Pack: Cards & Puzzles
• Microsoft Return of Arcade
• Microsoft Return of Arcade 20th Anniversary Edition
• Microsoft Revenge of Arcade
• Microsoft Soccer
• Microsoft Starlancer
• Microsoft Urban Assault

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This article was previously published under Q280069

SUMMARY

This article is the second of two articles that describe how to troubleshoot "invalid page fault" and "fatal exception" error messages in the Microsoft games listed in the "Applies to" section of this article. This article contains troubleshooting questions and possible resolutions.

For more information about how to troubleshoot 'invalid page fault' and 'fatal exception' error messages, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

280068 Games: How to troubleshoot invalid page faults and exception errors (Part 1)

For more information about other troubleshooting strategies, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

275481 How to troubleshoot program faults with Dr. Watson

MORE INFORMATION

Does your computer meet the system requirements for the game?

Query the Microsoft Knowledge Base for information about the system requirements for the game at the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/?pr=kbinfo

Use the following parameters to query for the system requirements:

1. In the Search (KB) box, select the name of your game.
2. In the For solutions containing box, type System Requirements.
3. In the Using box, click All the words entered.

Note If you do not see the Using box, click Show Options.

Are you running Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 or Microsoft Windows 2000

Download and install the latest Service Pack. To do so, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/default.mspx

Are there any programs running in the background that conflict with the game?

If programs are running in the background, clean boot your computer.

To clean boot your computer, use the appropriate method for your version of Microsoft Windows.

Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

1. Click Start, and then click Run, type msconfig, and then click OK.
2. On the General tab, click Selective Startup.
3. Click to clear all the check boxes under Selective Startup except System.ini and Static Vxd.
4. On the Startup tab, click to select the *StateMgr check box.
5. Click OK, and then when you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
6. After the computer restarts, verify that your computer has clean booted. To do so, follow these steps:
   1. Click Start, click Run, type msconfig in the Open box, and then click OK.
   2. Examine the General tab to make sure that the check boxes you cleared are still cleared. If the check boxes are still cleared, continue to step 6. If you see an unavailable (shaded) check box, your computer is not properly clean-booted and you may require assistance from the manufacturer of the program that places a check mark back into Msconfig.
7. After you verify that your computer is clean-booted in step 5, you can isolate the issue. If the original issue does not reoccur after the clean boot, select one item at a time under Selective startup, and then restart the computer to see if the additional entry causes the original issue.

Microsoft Windows 98

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type msconfig, and then click OK.
3. On the General tab, click Selective Startup, and then click to clear the following check boxes:
   • Process Config.sys File
   • Process Autoexec.bat File
   • Process Winstart.bat File (if available)
   • Load Startup Group Items
4. On the Win.ini tab, click to clear the following check boxes:
   • Load=
   • Run=
5. Click OK. When you are prompted to restart the computer, do so.

For more information about how to clean boot Windows 98, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

192926 How to perform clean-boot troubleshooting for Windows 98

Note To restore your original Startup options, click Normal Startup on the General tab in the System Configuration Utility.

Microsoft Windows 95

1. Restart the computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then click Command Prompt Only on the Startup menu.
2. At the command prompt, type win, and then press ENTER. Press and hold down the SHIFT key until the Windows startup sequence is complete.
3. Turn off any anti-virus or disk tool programs installed on the computer.
   

For information about how to turn off these programs, see the printed or online documentation for the program.

1. Quit all running programs except Explorer and Systray. To do this, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE, click the program that you want to quit, and then click End Task. If you receive a message that the program is busy or not responding, click End Task again. Repeat this step to quit all programs except Explorer and Systray.

For more information about how to clean boot Windows 95, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

177604 Multimedia: Troubleshooting using clean boot of Windows 95

Note To restore your original Startup options, restart the computer normally, and then turn on any anti-virus or disk tool programs installed on the computer.

For information about how to turn on these programs, see the printed or online documentation for the program.

Is it DirectX?

DirectX is a Windows component that improves access to hardware. Games use DirectX to communicate with your hardware. For more information about DirectX, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/default.mspx

To download and install the latest version of DirectX, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/default.mspx

To install DirectX in Safe Mode, follow these steps:

• Restart Windows in Safe mode. To do this, use the appropriate method for your version of Microsoft Windows:

  Restart Windows 95

  Restart your computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then click Safe Mode on the Startup menu.

  Restart Windows 98 or Windows Me

  Restart your computer, press and hold down the CTRL key after the computer completes the Power On Self Test (POST), and then click Safe Mode on the Startup menu.
  
  When Windows starts in Safe mode, click OK.

  Restart Windows 2000

  Restart your computer, and when the Boot menu appears, press F8. When the "Windows 2000 Advanced Options" menu appears, select an option, and then press ENTER. When the Boot menu appears again, with the words "Safe Mode" displayed in red at the bottom, select the installation you want to start, and then press ENTER.
  
  Warning Do not select a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 installation.

For more information about how to obtain and install the latest version of DirectX, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

179113 How to download and install DirectX

Is there an issue with the video driver?

Games require plenty of information from your video adapter when you run or start a game. A damaged or outdated video driver can cause an invalid page fault or exception error to occur.

Contact your computer or video adapter manufacturer to inquire about how to obtain and install the latest version of the video driver for your video adapter.

Drivers are small programs that allow your operating system to communicate with the hardware in your computer. A driver acts as a translator between your hardware and operating system. The driver helps Microsoft Windows understand requests from your hardware. Beyond acting as a translator, a driver can also enhance the operation of a particular piece of hardware, such as a video adapter or a sound card.

A new video driver for your video adapter might allow your video adapter to use video features more efficiently or improve performance.

For information about how to contact your hardware manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and software vendor contact information, A-K

60781 Hardware and software vendor contact information, L-P

60782 Hardware and software vendor contact information, Q-Z

To determine the manufacturer and model of your video adapter, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System.
3. Click Device Manager.
4. Double-click Display adapters.
   

Note In the branch under Display adapters, the manufacturer and model of your video adapter should be displayed.

1. Close System Properties, and then close Control Panel.

If the issue continues to occur, go to the next method.

Change the Windows Color Palette setting to "High Color (16 Bit)"

To change the Windows Color Palette setting to High Color (16 bit), follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Display.
3. Click the Settings tab.
4. In the Color Palette or the Colors box, click High Color (16 bit).
5. Click OK, and then click OK again. If you are prompted to restart the computer, do so.
6. Close Control Panel.

If the issue continues to occur, go to the next method.

Reduce the graphics hardware acceleration

To reduce the graphics hardware acceleration, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System.
   
   In Windows 2000, double-click Display.
3. Click the Performance tab, and then click Graphics.
   
   In Windows 2000, click Settings, click Advanced, and then click the Troubleshooting tab.
4. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider until it is one notch to the right of None (the Basic acceleration setting).
5. Click OK, and then click Close.
6. When you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
   
   Note Do not reduce hardware acceleration for Motocross Madness 1.
   
   Note If you experience any problems after you reduce the hardware acceleration setting, follow these steps to restore the original setting:

   1. Restart Windows in Safe mode. To do this, use the appropriate method for your version of Microsoft Windows:

      Restart Windows 95

      Restart your computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then click Safe Mode on the Startup menu.

      Restart Windows 98, Windows Me

      Restart your computer, press and hold down the CTRL key after the computer completes the Power On Self Test (POST), and then click Safe Mode on the Startup menu.
      
      When Windows starts in Safe mode, click OK.

      Windows 2000

      Restart your computer, and when the Boot menu appears, press F8. When the "Windows 2000 Advanced Options" menu appears, select an option, and then press ENTER. When the Boot menu appears again, with the words "Safe Mode" displayed in red at the bottom, select the installation you want to start, and then press ENTER.
      
      Warning Do not select a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 installation.

   2. Repeat steps 1-6, but in step 4 move the Hardware Acceleration slider back to its original setting.

If the issue continues to occur, go to the next method.

Is there an issue with the sound driver?

To determine if the sound driver is causing the issue, turn off the sound card in Windows. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Multimedia or Sounds and Multimedia.
3. Click the Devices or the Hardware tab.
4. Expand Audio Devices.
5. Double-click your sound card.
6. Click to select the following check boxes:
   • Do not use this audio features on this device
   • Do not map through this device
   In Windows 2000, click to select the Do not use this device (disable) check box.
7. Click OK.
8. Restart your computer.

Note If you are running Motocross Madness 2, Crimson Skies, or StarLancer, do not turn off the sound card in Windows. Instead, update your sound card drivers.

To determine the manufacturer and model of your sound card, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System.
3. Click the Device Manager tab.
4. Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
5. Note the manufacturer and model of the sound card that is listed in the Sound, video and game controllers branch.
6. Click OK, and then close Control Panel.

If you do not receive an invalid page fault error message after you turn off your sound card, update your sound card drivers.

Please contact your hardware manufacture to obtain and install the latest drivers for your sound card.

For information about how to contact your hardware manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and software vendor contact information, A-K

60781 Hardware and software vendor contact information, L-P

60782 Hardware and software vendor contact information, Q-Z

If you update your sound card drivers and you still receive an invalid page fault error message, reduce Sound Acceleration in Windows. To do this:

Reduce hardware sound acceleration in Dxdiag

If you run the game on a computer that is running Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition (Me), or Windows 2000, reduce the Hardware Sound Acceleration setting. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, click Run, type dxdiag in the Open box, and then click OK.
2. Click the Sound tab.
3. Under DirectX Features, move the Hardware Sound Acceleration Level slider all the way to the left (the No acceleration setting).
4. Click Exit.

If the issue continues to occur, go to the next method.

Change the preferred playback device to the game-compatible device

Note These steps are only for Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Millennium Edition (Me). To change the preferred playback device to the game-compatible device, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Multimedia.
3. On the Audio tab, click Game Compatible Device in the Preferred device box under Playback.
4. Click to select the Use only preferred devices check box, and then click OK.
5. Close Control Panel.
6. Restart the computer.

If the Game Compatible Device is not listed, add the device by following the steps in the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

178637 Using game compatible device to troubleshoot sound problems

For more information about the game compatible device, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

177614 What is the game compatible audio device?

Are there duplicate devices in Safe Mode?

If the computer initializes multiple versions of a single CD-ROM drive, display adapter, or sound, video, or game controller when you start Microsoft Windows, the game may generate an error message. For more information about how to check for and turn off multiple devices, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

187916 Game stops responding or quits unexpectedly with multiple devices on Microsoft Windows

Was the game installed correctly?

Remove the game, clean boot your computer (see the "Are any programs running in the background conflicting with the game?" section), delete the game folder, and then reinstall the game. To remove, and then delete the game folder, follow these steps:

1. Insert the game CD into the CD drive. Press and hold down SHIFT when you insert the CD-ROM to prevent the program from starting automatically.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click Add/Remove Programs.
4. On the Install/Uninstall tab, click the game, and then click Add/Remove (Windows 2000 users, click Remove).
5. Follow the directions that appear on the screen to remove the game.
6. Delete the game folder. By default, most Microsoft games are installed in the following default folder:

   C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\

7. Reinstall the game.

Gather information in DirectX

1. Click Start, click Run, type dxdiag in the Open box, and then click OK.
2. First, note the version number.
3. Write down anything in the Notes section, except for the following: No problems found. Write down uncertified drivers.
4. Run tests for the following items:
   1. On the Display tab, click the Test DirectDraw button to test DirectDraw functionality.
   2. On the Display tab, click the Test Direct3D button to test Direct3D functionality
   3. On the Sound tab, click the Test DirectSound button to test DirectSound functionality.
   4. On the Music tab, click the Test DirectMusic button to test DirectMusic functionality.
5. Repeat step 4 until all tabs have been examined. For more information about DirectX tabs, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   190900 DirectX: Description of the DirectX Diagnostic Tool

Additional query words: kbimu homegame msgame trainsim

Keywords: kbtshoot kbinfo KB280069

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