MS-DOS Application I/O Operations Cause Floppy Drive Access

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This article was previously published under Q171940

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SYMPTOMS

After you apply Service Pack 3 for Windows NT 4.0, MS-DOS applications may attempt to access the floppy disk drive when performing I/O operations such as File Open or File Save. The floppy disk drive light stays lit for a period of a few seconds up to a few minutes.

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CAUSE

With Windows NT Service Pack 3, the NTVDM subsystem has been updated to keep in synchronization with Win32. So, when the MS-DOS application changes the default drive, Windows NT verifies the current directory for the new default drive.

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RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows NT 4.0 or Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

152734 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/152734/EN-US/ ) How to Obtain the Latest Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack

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STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT version 4.0 Service Pack 3. This problem was first corrected in Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4.0 and Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition Service Pack 4.

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