Availability of a Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) update rollup package for Windows Server 2003 to resolve some VSS snapshot issues

An update rollup package is available to resolve some Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) snapshot issues in Windows Server 2003.

Issues that are fixed in this update rollup package

Issue 1

A Windows Server 2003-based computer may be unable to start successfully if VSS is enabled and if many volumes exist on the computer. For example, this problem occurs if more than 150 volumes exist on the computer.

Issue 2

After you restart a Windows Server 2003-based computer, VSS snapshots may be unexpectedly deleted.

Issue 3

VSS cannot create a volume snapshot even when VSS has sufficient memory space in Windows Server 2003.

Issue 4

VSS may leak private bytes and virtual memory when you use VSS to take frequent snapshots in Windows Server 2003 or in Windows XP.

Issue 5

Windows Server 2003 startup times increase after you use a backup program that uses VSS to create snapshot volumes. For example, the Windows startup time may increase to 20 minutes or longer.

Issue 6

More than seven backups are prevented from starting before the first backup finishes. Also, an event that resembles the following is logged in the event log:

Issue 7

VSS shadow copies may be corrupted if the data cannot be preserved when another shadow copy is created.

Update information

Note We recommend that you apply the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) update rollup package to all servers that use VSS in your environment.

The following files are available for download from the Microsoft Download Center:

Windows Server 2003 for x86-based Systems
Download the 940349 package now.

Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems
Download the 940349 package now.

Windows Server 2003 for x64-based Systems
Download the 940349 package now.

For more information about how to download Microsoft support files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Microsoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was posted. The file is stored on security-enhanced servers that help prevent any unauthorized changes to the file.

Prerequisites

To apply this hotfix, your computer must be running one of the following operating systems:

• An x86-based version of Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) or an x86-based version of Windows Server 2003 with SP2
• An Itanium-based version of Windows Server 2003 with SP1 or an Itanium-based version of Windows Server 2003 with SP2
• An x64-based version of Windows XP or an x64-based version of Windows Server 2003 with or without SP2

Restart requirement

You have to restart the computer after you apply this update.

Update replacement information

This update replaces the following previously released updates:

• KB931312
• KB940041
• KB940239
• KB940252
• KB939989

Registry information

To use this update, you do not have to make any changes to the registry.

File information

The English version of this update has the file attributes (or later file attributes) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time item in Control Panel.

Windows Server 2003, x86-based versions

Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP, x64-based versions

Windows Server 2003, Itanium-based versions

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: