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Q159307: XCON: MTA Stopping with Event ID 2143: Unrecoverable Error

Article: Q159307
Product(s): Microsoft Exchange
Version(s): winnt:4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbusage
Last Modified: 10-APR-1999

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Exchange Server, version 4.0 
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SYMPTOMS
========

The Microsoft Exchange message transfer agent (MTA) terminates unexpectedly with
an event similar to the following (as viewed in the Application Event Log):

  Event ID: 2143
  Source:MSExchangeMTA
  Type:Error
  Category:Internal Processing
  Description:
  A fatal MTA database server error was encountered. Call Microsoft Product
  Support.
  Unrecoverable error: ODXOINIU - Object does not exist. About to terminate.
  Called from MTA. Procedure 205. Object ID: 06000072. Attribute ID: 55.
  Attribute value number: 1. Referenced object: 00000000 (00000000 => N/A).
  Referenced object error 0. [1 DB Server XFER-IN 22 101] (16)

The following Application Event Log message may be seen as well:

  Event ID: 2186
  Source:MSExchangeMTA
  Type:Warning
  Category:Internal Processing
  Description:
  An MTA database server error was encountered while locking an object. Called
  from MTA. Procedure 100. Database error code: ODXOINIU - Object does not
  exist.
  Object at fault: 06000072. [DB Server XFER-IN 22 59] (14)

CAUSE
=====

When an MTA object is created, its reference count is initialized to one. When
the object is passed to an entity that can delete the object, the reference
count must first be incremented. When an object deletion is requested, the
reference count is decremented (and when the reference count for the object
reaches zero, the object is physically deleted).

There is a race condition in the MTA, where a newly initialized object (reference
count of one) is passed to an entity (the Microsoft Exchange Internet Mail
Connector) before the reference count is incremented. An object deletion is
requested by the Internet Mail Connector (IMC) (which decrements the reference
count to zero, and causes the object to be deleted). When the MTA attempts to
access the object, the object had already been deleted and an "ODXOINIU - Object
does not exist" complaint is raised by the MTA.

STATUS
======

The Microsoft MTA has been modified to ensure that the reference count for the
object is incremented prior to being passed to an entity that could delete it.

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Exchange version 4.0.
This problem was corrected in the latest Microsoft Exchange 4.0 U.S. Service
Pack. For information on obtaining the service pack, query on the following word
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (without the spaces):

  S E R V P A C K


Additional query words: failure crash deletion spurious ODXOINIU

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Keywords          : kbusage 
Technology        : kbExchangeSearch kbExchange400 kbZNotKeyword2
Version           : winnt:4.0
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbfix

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