Remote Link Doesn't Reconnect After Event 23 Outage 0x000A (159980)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft SNA Server 2.11 SP1
This article was previously published under Q159980

SYMPTOMS

SNA Server 2.11 Service Pack 1 includes support for distributed link services, where a distributed link service is configured to communicate over a native LAN session to a link service running on a remote SNA Server, over TCP/IP sockets, Netware IPX/SPX, or Banyan Vines.

If the distributed link service (SNAREM1, SNAREM2, etc) loses its LAN session to the remote link service (for example, due to a network outage), the following Windows NT application event log entry is logged by the distributed link service: 
   Event:  23
   Source: SNA Server
   Description: Connection TOKEN1   using Link Service SNAREM1  failed
                Qualifier = 000A
Once this occurs, the connection will remain "Inactive" and SNA Server will not reconnect to a remote link service on another server (assuming multiple remote link services were configured in the distributed link service setup dialog). The administrator will be unable to manually restart the connection unless the SNA Server service is stopped and restarted.

NOTE: When connecting over TCP/IP sockets between the distributed link service and the remote link, it will take over 2 minutes for a network outage to be detected. The TCP/IP socket "keep alive" interval used to detect network outages on SNA Server is controlled by the SNA Server WatchDogTimeout parameter (which defaults to 60 seconds), documented in the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

150511 Preventing SNA Server Keepalives on Idle LAN Connections

CAUSE

The cause of the initial network outage (leading to the Event 23 qualifier 0x0A) will require debugging using a network trace tool such as Network General Sniffer(TM) or Microsoft Network Monitor.

The cause of automatic reconnection problem was due to a problem in SNA Server. SNA Server (Snaservr.exe) started a link reactivation timer when in fact it was trying to deactivate the link to reuse it for an outgoing call.

RESOLUTION

There is no workaround for this problem, though there is an SNA Server 2.11 hotfix available from Microsoft. This problem is fixed in SNA Server 3.0.

NOTE: The cause of the network outage must be diagnosed separately, as described in the CAUSE section above.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in SNA Server version 2.11 Service Pack 1. This problem was corrected in the latest Microsoft SNA Server 2.11 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

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:6/13/2001
Keywords:kbbug kbnetwork KB159980
©2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.