Console STDIN And STDERR Redirection May Cause Deadlock in 16-Bit MS-DOS-Based Program

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This article was previously published under Q274742

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SYMPTOMS

When console STDIN and STDERR are being redirected in a 16-bit MS-DOS-based program, the program may stop responding (hang). For example, if a 32-bit Windows-based program uses two pipes (for read and write) and redirects these pipes as console STDIN and STDERR for data communication with a 16-bit MS-DOS-based program, and the 32-bit Windows-based program and the 16-bit MS-DOS-based program are interdependent for data transfer, a deadlock may occur.

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CAUSE

This issue is caused by a problem in Ntvdm.exe.

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RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows 2000. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

260910 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/260910/EN-US/ ) How to Obtain the Latest Windows 2000 Service Pack

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later:

   Date        Time      Version        Size     File name
   -------------------------------------------------------
   10/24/2000  11:04 PM  5.0.2195.2563  395,024  Ntvdm.exe

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STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was first corrected in Windows 2000 Service Pack 2.

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MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about how to install Windows 2000 and Windows 2000 hotfixes at the same time, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

249149 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/249149/EN-US/ ) Installing Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows 2000 Hotfixes

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