Cannot Delete Directory Structure on FPNW Volume (150060)

SYMPTOMS

When you try to delete certain deep directory structures on a Windows NT 3.51 File and Print Services for NetWare (FPNW) volume, the client trying to do the deletion receives an "Access Denied" error, despite having all necessary rights to delete the directory structure.

NOTE: The actual message "Access Denied" is seen on a Windows 95 system. If a you use the DELTREE command from the command prompt, the command completes, but only the bottom directory is actually deleted.

The NETX client error is:

Shell-332-85: file in use during remove a subdirectory.
File: DirName\SVRName Abort, Retry, Fail?

The VLM client error is:

Sharing violation reading device Network.
Abort, Retry, Fail?

CAUSE

The FPNW server maintains a pool of search handles that are used whenever a client issues a request to search for a file or directory. When a very large number of search commands are issued in a very short period of time, FPNW may reuse a search handle before it should, and context information is lost.

This problem occurs when a very large directory tree with many subdirectories, each containing many files, is deleted.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, delete large directory trees a little at a time or delete the tree from the Windows NT server or from some client other than an FPNW client.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft File and Print Services for NetWare version 3.51. This problem was corrected in the latest Windows NT 3.51 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