NMI Error Message on Blue Screen May Be Garbled (174830)
The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 Terminal Server Edition
- Microsoft Windows NT Server, Enterprise Edition 4.0
- Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0
- Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0
This article was previously published under Q174830 SYMPTOMS
When you start your computer, the following symptoms may occur:
- You receive a blue screen with garbled or random characters.
- Your screen flickers.
- Windows NT stops responding (hangs).
CAUSE
This problem can occur if there are more Non-maskable Interrupt (NMI)
error messages being generated than can be processed by the CPU. As a
result, the error messages cannot be displayed properly.
RESOLUTIONTo resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows NT 4.0 or Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the
Microsoft Knowledge Base:
152734 How to Obtain the Latest Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack
NOTE: This fix only causes the NMI error messages to be displayed properly.
It does not resolve the error messages. To resolve the error messages, you
should correct the hardware problem that causes them. This fix prevents the
initial error message from being overwritten by subsequent error messages
so that you can determine the hardware problem.
STATUSMicrosoft has confirmed that this is a problem in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition. This problem was first corrected in Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4.0 and Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition Service Pack 4.MORE INFORMATION
When Windows NT starts, it uses a multitasking environment during error
processing. While error processing is occurring, it is possible for
multiple processes to detect problems. When this occurs, one error message
can be overwritten by another.
When physical memory, the system bus, or input/output (I/O) devices detect
parity errors, an error message is sent to the CPU using an NMI.
Modification Type: | Minor | Last Reviewed: | 9/23/2005 |
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Keywords: | kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbbug kbfix KB174830 |
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