asked on

Kernel memory dump file is not created during repeated crashes on server 2003?

Hello, I have a server 2003 R2 on a HP DL360 G4 server.
The server restarts, up to 6 times a night but doesn't create a kernel memory dump file?
The current settings are:
4Gb of memory, page file is on the C drive, there is 15Gb of free space on the C drive. The path for the 'memory.dmp. file is pointing to
%systemroot%\memory.dmp
The server is set to 'auto restart' and to .Overwrite any existing dump file'.
There are no server problems according to HP's system management home page on the server.
There are no useful event log entries (hense my wanting to look at the log files).
I've read that a faulty SCSI card could be at fault..., any ideas anyone?
Thank you.

dreamyguy

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/130536 - Overview of memory dump file options for Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/254649 - Windows does not save memory dump file after a crash

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/learnmore/russel_02may13.mspx - Windows XP Shut Down and Automatic Reboot Problems

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/303021 - How to Generate a Memory Dump File When a Server Stops Responding (Hangs)

dreamyguy

Also check whether ASR is disabled in the BIOS.

dreamyguy

Generating an NMI within iLO is documented in the iLO User Guide

(http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c00553302/c00553302.pdf ) under the heading of â€œVirtual NMI buttonâ€

dreamyguy

also check the system event logs for the following event id's:

Event id: 6008 Source: Eventlog
Details: The previous system shutdown at xx:xx:xx on xx/xx/xxxx was unexpected

Event ID: 1090 Source: Server Agents
Details: System Information Agent: Health: The server is operational again.
The server has previously been shutdown by the Automatic Server Recovery (ASR) feature and has just become operational again.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Hello dreamguy and thanks for all of your info. I've previously read the URL's which bought me here. I get a Event id: 6008 Source: Eventlog
Details: The previous system shutdown at xx:xx:xx on xx/xx/xxxx was unexpected every time the system restart but do not get any Event ID: 1090 events?
Can I ask something. ASR is enabled in the BIOS, shouldn't this be left as is?
Thanks again.

dreamyguy

see,
ASR is a feature which automatically reboots the system when it's in a hung state without user intervention, which is why dumps dont get generated. If ASR is enabled then disable it. And yeah, when I looked at your question, I automatically came to know that you'd have looked at all the url's.

dreamyguy

From:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/244139 - Windows feature lets you generate a memory dump file by using the keyboard

Note If the server has a feature such as the Automatic System Restart (ASR) feature that is found in some Compaq computers, disable the feature. It can interrupt the dump process. On a Compaq computer, you can disable the ASR feature by modifying the basic input/output system (BIOS) settings.

dreamyguy

By the way, once we have a dump, u can compress and upload it to a ftp site and i'd be glad to look into it as well :)

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Thanks mate, the server rebooted a few times last night but still no dump file. I'm going to disable the ASR now, I'll let you know how i get on, thank you for now.

ChiefIT

I have seen issues with 4gb of memory on a 32 bit system. It seems 4Gb isn't divisible by 32. I just thought it was an interesting tidbit of information.

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/05/23/4gb-memory-problems/

dreamyguy

huh, interesting but how is that article relevant to this issue?
1. That article is about VISTA.
2. That article talks about windows not reporting the entire 4 GB.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Would you believe it, the system hasn't rebooted again, I know that it will as the rebbots have been happening for a few weeks almost everyday. I'll keep checking and report back.
Thanks you for now.

dreamyguy

yea, that's weird. Thanks for the update, though!

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Still no reboot, that's 2 days now... Do you think that the BIOS ASR could have caused the rebbot problem? It hasn't rebooted since I disabled it?

dreamyguy

The ASR causes the machine to reboot automatically so yes, that resolved your automatic reboot issue. But the ASR kicks in only when the server hangs.
What I'd suggest is that you keep ASR disabled and keep the server under monitor.
If the server hangs again, then post a new thread with a link to the dump for analysis.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Hello, I've just checked and have noticed a few reboots of the server last night, but still no log file is being generated? Should I configure the server to generate a minidump file, is there any point in that?
Thanks

dreamyguy

no there is no point. because mini dump, kernel dump or full dump, they all work on the same mechanism.
download and run the mps reports utility for setup_perf from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=CEBF3C7C-7CA5-408F-88B7-F9C79B7306C0&displaylang=en
and upload the .cab file that it generates to www.ee-stuff.com

this way ill have more data to work with to help me figure out why the dump is not being generated.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Thanks again. Which particular download file should i download from the web site above?

dreamyguy

Download and run MPSRPT_SETUPPerf.EXE which is 766kb in size.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Thank you.

Jay Thomas

ASKER

Hello, I've run the fil and generated a lot of files. Which of them should I be looking at in particular?
Thanks again for your help.

ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION

dreamyguy

membership

This solution is only available to members.

To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.

Start Free Trial

SerendipityToo

Whatever happened with this question? Did dreamguy find out from the uploaded files what was causing the server to reboot? I'm looking for an answer to our similar problem.
Thanks!