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Q283102: Windows NT4.0 Print Servers Paged Pool Leak on FsRt Pooltag

Article: Q283102
Product(s): Microsoft Windows NT
Version(s): 4.0,4.0 SP6a
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbenv kbprint kbtool kbWinNT400nospFix kbWin2000SP2Fix
Last Modified: 11-JUN-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 4.0, 4.0 SP6a 
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IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry

SYMPTOMS
========

When you are using a Windows NT 4.0-based print server that is running any
service pack with spooler print notifications (pop-ups) enabled, the computer
may run out of Paged Pool if the users who are submitting the print jobs are not
logged on.

When you use the Poolmon tool for a few days, paged pool usage increases due to
pooltag elements of type FsRt.

This problem usually occurs on print servers when the print requests are
submitted from a Windows NT 4.0 service running under a dedicated service
account, and no user is logged on under that account to receive the spooler
notifications.

CAUSE
=====

The problem can occur when the spooler generates printing notifications faster
than the alerter-messenger remote procedure call (RPC) can dispatch them.

After a variable period of time (one week or more), the print server computer may
run out of paged pool and eventually stop responding (hang). This occurs because
the spooler notifications use the mailslots mechanism and the messages are
stored in paged pool on the server.

If the receiving user is not logged on somewhere on the network, these
notification messages cannot be delivered, and eventually exhaust paged pool.

RESOLUTION
==========

To work around this problem, use one of the methods in this section.

Method 1
--------

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems
that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot
guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor
incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

If you do not need the spooler notifications, you can disable them by setting the
NetPopUp value in the following registry key:

  Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Providers

  Value: NetPopUp
  Type: REG_DWORD
  Data value: 0

Method 2
--------

If you enable spooler notifications, verify that the user who should receive the
notification is logged on to the network. If the user never logs on
interactively (which is usually the case for a service account), printing
notifications are accumulated on the server. After a period of time, the paged
pool is exhausted and the print server must be restarted. Note that on a
computer running Windows NT 4.0, the paged pool size is limited to 192 megabyte
(MB).

STATUS
======

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products that are
listed at the beginning of this article.

This problem is resolved in Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 (SP2). The messenger is
redesigned so that it is multiple threaded in Windows 2000, and SP2 adds an
enabler hotfix.


Additional query words: spooler spoolss mailslots notification

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Keywords          : kbenv kbprint kbtool kbWinNT400nospFix kbWin2000SP2Fix 
Technology        : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNT400search kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400sp6 kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400
Version           : :4.0,4.0 SP6a
Hardware          : ALPHA x86
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbfix

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