DATA EXECUTION PREVENTION

[Gail at HOME COMPUTER TUTOR]

This is a terrific program ... runs on almost every make
of computer - my clients just LOVE IT! ...however on one
of my Dell Dimension 2400 machines with XP.ver 2 ...
there was this problem ... appears about 40 times before
I can get it to stop... can you help please?

PROBLEM:
DATA EXECUTION PREVENTION - MICROSOFT
to help protect your computer Windows has closed this
program.
Name: Generic Host Process for WIn 32 Services
Publisher: Microsoft
Data Execution Protection helps protect against damage
from viruses and other security threats.

 

[Robin Walker [MVP]]

PROBLEM:
DATA EXECUTION PREVENTION - MICROSOFT
to help protect your computer Windows has closed this
program.
Name: Generic Host Process for WIn 32 Services
Publisher: Microsoft
Data Execution Protection helps protect against damage
from viruses and other security threats.

I have seen this happen with certain HP network printer drivers: might that
be relevant in your case?

These messages tend to be stacked up to appear in bulk after the next
restart. If you examine the date and time of the incident, they might have
happened some time ago.

 

[Bill Sanderson]

OK - this is not a machine with hardware DEP, so what is in play is sofware
DEP. You can turn off DEP.

However, this is a risky procedure--you must edit boot.ini, which is a
Hidden, System, Read-only file in the root of the system partition (i.e. the
partition that contains the hardware-specific files needed to start
Windows,)

Here's the relevant line from my boot.ini:

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP
Professional" /fastdetect /NoExecute=Optin

(My system is unusual in that the system partition is different from the
boot partition--system partition is C, boot partition (the partition where
Windows is actually installed, is E))

If you modify that line to read /NoExecute=AlwaysOff, or, I think, remove
the /NoExecute clause completely, DEP will be turned off.

Editing this file by hand with notepad or another text editor is definitely
a risky procedure--errors in this file can render windows unbootable very
easily.

I like Robin Walker's idea much better--It would be a better idea to figure
out which third-party service running under that Generic Host process is at
fault.

 

[Gail at Home Computer Tutor]

Thanks for the post Robin ... I did install a network HP
printer before the Antispyware installation ... what
should I do ... unistall the hp print driver & re-install
again?

Gail

 

[Bill Sanderson]

I would go to HP's web site and check whether what is available there is a
newer version driver than what you have in place, and replace your current
driver with a newer one from the web site if there is one available. Often
the installation media, even with relatively new models, will be older than
what is available online.

Hp's site is generally quite easy to navigate, but write back with the
printer model number and how you are using it (i.e. is this a client
printing to a directly networked printer, or one connected to a server)--if
you have trouble choosing among the drivers available, or finding the right
one.

 

[Robin Walker [MVP]]

Thanks for the post Robin ... I did install a network HP
printer before the Antispyware installation ... what
should I do ... unistall the hp print driver & re-install
again?

The HP drivers are bug-ridden. The Data Execution Prevention error is a
known problem with the drivers on the CD-ROMs distributed with the printers.
Fortunately there is a fix.

Go to:

<http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/...421139&lang=en&cc=us&dest_page=product&os=228>

If the drivers you have installed are not already version 4.2 of October
2004, then download "HP Full Feature software/driver: Network Support", all
367.75MB of it. It is the same as the most recent HP CD-ROM installer. If
this is more up to date than the ones you have installed, re-install from
this download.

After that, download and install "Critical update for network installed HP
All-in-One devices" of December 2004. This will fix the Data Execution
Prevention errors that you are seeing, and also various other instabilities
that might not have made themselves quite so apparent.

Optionally, you may also install the other post-October 2004 updates.

 

[Bill Sanderson]

The HP drivers are bug-ridden. The Data Execution Prevention error is a
known problem with the drivers on the CD-ROMs distributed with the
printers. Fortunately there is a fix.

Here's hoping they are not on dialup!