Problems with a Damaged Removable Storage Manager Database

Article ID: 235032 - View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q235032
Notice
This article applies to Windows 2000. Support for Windows 2000 ends on July 13, 2010. The Windows 2000 End-of-Support Solution Center
(http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=http%3a%2f%2fsupport.microsoft.com%2fwin2000)
is a starting point for planning your migration strategy from Windows 2000. For more information see the Microsoft Support Lifecycle Policy
(http://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle/)
.
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SYMPTOMS

When you try to start the Removable Storage service, the service may stop responding (hang). Also, when you try to use the Windows 2000 Backup tool to restore a working Removable Storage Manager (RSM) database, you may receive the following error message and you may only receive the option to restore from a file:
Backup cannot connect to the Removable Storage service.
This service is required for use of tape drives and other backup devices.
You may also receive the following error message when you try to use the Removable Storage snap-in:
REMOVABLE STORAGE

Server Execution failed.
Or, you may receive the following error message:
The removable storage database failed to load. Check the event log.
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CAUSE

This issue can occur if either of the following conditions exist:
  • The DelayStart value in the registry is not set to a sufficient value.
  • The Removable Storage database is damaged.
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RESOLUTION

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
322756
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756/ )
How to back up and restore the registry in Windows
The RSM database is located in the %SystemRoot%\System32\NtmsData folder. Whenever you use Windows 2000 Backup to back up your %SystemRoot% folder, Backup automatically backs up the RSM database to two locations, the backup media itself, and the %SystemRoot%\System32\NtmsData\Export folder. Normally, you could use Windows 2000 Backup to restore the Ntmsdata folder, but this advanced restore option does not work if the Removable Storage database is damaged.

To resolve this issue:
  1. Perform the steps listed in the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base, test to determine if the issue is resolved, and if not, continue with the remaining steps:
    228987
    (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/228987/EN-US/ )
    Event ID 129 for Removable Storage Manager After Reboot
  2. Manually restore your Removable Storage database:

    NOTE: If you have never performed a %SystemRoot% backup using Windows 2000 backup, the %SystemRoot%\System32\NtmsData\Export folder does not exist. If this is the case, only perform steps 3-5, and then restart RSM or your computer. After RSM starts, it creates a new database that should permit your alternate backup program to use RSM and perform a restoration of the good database.
  3. In the Computer Management tool, double-click the Services and Applications branch to expand it, and then click Services.
  4. Locate and stop the "Removable Storage" service, or change the startup type from "Automatic" to "Disabled", and then restart your computer.
  5. Use Windows Explorer to view the %SystemRoot%\System32\NtmsData folder, and rename the existing files in this folder to a .old file extension, or copy them to a different folder.
  6. Use Registry Editor to view the following registry key:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\NTMS
    If the ImportDatabase REG_DWORD exists, change the value of the ImportDatabase REG_DWORD from 0 to 0x1. If it does not exist, add it with a value of 0x1:

    value name: ImportDatabase
    data type: REG_DWORD
    String: 1
  7. In the Computer Management tool, double-click the Services and Applications branch to expand it, and then click Services.
  8. Locate the Removable Storage service, try to start the service, or change the startup type from "Disabled" to "Automatic", and then restart your computer. This should import the database from the export folder, build a new index file, and be consistent from when the last %Systemroot% backup was performed.

    NOTE: Remote Storage Server (RSS) also automatically backs-up the Ntmsdata folder as part of a File Migration session. You could take this media to another computer and use Windows 2000 Backup to restore the RSM database files. You can then copy them to the %SystemRoot%\System32\NtmsData\Export folder of the original computer, and then follow the procedures listed earlier in this article.
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MORE INFORMATION

RSM makes it easy to manage online libraries (such as changers and jukeboxes) and track removable tapes and disks. RSM facilitates communication between removable-media storage systems and data management programs, such as Windows Backup and RSS. RSM labels, catalogs, and tracks all media, controls the drives, slots, and doors, and provides uniform drive cleaning operations.
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Properties

Article ID: 235032 - Last Review: February 27, 2007 - Revision: 3.5
APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional Edition
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server
Keywords: 
kbenv kberrmsg kbprb kbui KB235032
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