Intermittent File Corruption Problem (78303)
The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0
- Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0
This article was previously published under Q78303 SYMPTOMS
If files are rapidly accessed on a Windows NT file server, intermittent
data corruption may occur. Microsoft Internet News Server data files may
exhibit these symptoms. The problem is more likely observed on a
multiprocessor system.
CAUSE
If an application performs a write-extend of a file, the cache manager
read-ahead thread is also reading the current last page of the file as part
of a larger read. The read-ahead thread issues the read, and the write is
blocked while the read completes. Because of a timing problem that may
occur, the memory manager wakes the write thread associated with the I/O
operation. This thread will place null characters in the last page that is
beyond the current file size and then write the new data into the page. The
read thread wakes up and also zeroes the last page after the write thread
has written the new data. The update to the page is lost and null
characters are appended in the file instead of the data that should have
been committed for the I/O operation.
STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT version 4.0.
This problem was corrected in the latest Windows NT 4.0 U.S. Service Pack.
For information on obtaining the Service Pack, query on the following word
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (without the spaces):
| Modification Type: | Major | Last Reviewed: | 2/7/2002 |
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| Keywords: | kbnetwork KB78303 |
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