Configuring Maximum IPX Packet Size in Windows 95 (166321)

SYMPTOMS

When you are using the IPX/SPX-compatible protocol that is included in Windows 95 to communicate across an IPX router, some communications may not work if the router requires a smaller packet size than is used by the LAN media (Ethernet or Token Ring, for example).

In some cases, NCP-based communications with NetWare servers may succeed, but operations using other protocols running over IPX, such as SPX or NetBIOS, may not work.

CAUSE

You may be able to work around such routing restrictions by manually limiting the size of IPX packets sent by the communicating systems. However, when you are using the version of the IPX/SPX-compatible protocol that is included in Windows 95 (all versions), it is not possible to manually specify a maximum IPX packet size.

RESOLUTION

An update for Microsoft Windows 95 and OEM Service Release 2 (OSR2) to provide this functionality is now available from Microsoft, but has not been fully regression tested and should be applied only to computers experiencing this specific problem. To resolve this problem immediately, contact Micros ft Technical Support to obtain the fix.

For a complete list of Microsoft Technical Support phone numbers and information on support costs, please go to the following address on the World Wide Web:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

This update for Windows 95 and OEM Service Release 2 should have the following file attributes (or later):

   File name     Version    Date      Time     Size
   ---------------------------------------------------------
   Nwlink.vxd    4.00.1112  4/23/97   11:12am  51,049 bytes

It may be possible to work around this issue by limiting the maximum packet size sent by the network adapter itself. Not all network adapter drivers provide such a feature, and implementing such a feature, if it exists, may vary among network adapter drivers. Contact your network adapter manufacturer for more information about this possible workaround.

It may also be possible to resolve this issue by a configuration change or updated software or firmware on the router itself. Contact your router manufacturer for more information about this possible workaround.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about Windows 95 updates, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

161020 Implementing Windows 95 Updates

For additional information about specifying the maximum IPX packet size for the IPX/SPX-compatible protocol that is included in Windows NT, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

99745 Tuning NWLINK Registry Parameters

103002 REG: Network Services Entries, Part 6

For information about how to contact third-party vendors, see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: