System Restore hangs after SP2 installed

[Guest]

Using XP Pro - installed SP2 two days ago. I did everything recommended prior
to install, such as updating everything possible (including BIOS). Ad-Aware
and NAV 2004 (up to date) both indicate a clean system. NAV 2004 disabled
during SP2 install. Defragmented and checked disc, etc, etc.

Since installing SP2, System Restore has stopped working. I noticed it first
when auto update downloaded updates after the SP2 install. When I tried to
install them, the install just hung (because it tries to create a restore
point prior to installing the updates, and System Restore won't run). So I
can't install updates either.

At that time, the event log contained an error from 'sr' as follows:

Event Type: Error
Event Source: sr
Event Category: None
Event ID: 1
Description: The System Restore filter encountered the unexpected error
'0xC0000243' while processing the file 'Savrt' on the volume
'HarddiskVolume2'. It has stopped monitoring the volume.


I'm not even sure what 'HarddiskVolume2' refers to? I only have one disk
(C with a very standard XP Pro configuration.

In September last year I tried installing SP2 but ran into the same problem.
I spent days trying to sort it out, but eventually the MS people recommended
I remove SP2. They said it may have been a corrupted download, so this time I
ordered the CD. This install was from the CD, but exactly the same problems
have occurred.

Booting in safe mode doesn't help because it doesn't let you create a
restore point, only to restore to a previously created one.

System Restore was working perfectly for 2 years prior to this under SP1. I
would rather not turn it off, because I don't want to lose the restore points
I have to get back before the SP2 install! What else can I do???

 

[Guest]

I forgot to add that Services reports System Restore Service and Task
Scheduler both started (automatically).

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Savrt.sys is a part or Norton product. So many reports about savrt.sys and
System Restore problems:
http://groups.google.co.in/groups?q=Savrt+system+restore

Personally, I'd remove Norton and install AVG or e-Trust/

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Correction:
Savrt.sys is a part of Norton.

 

[Guest]

Hello Ramesh,

Thankyou for answering my query.

I eventually found the solution to this problem after much event-log gazing
and observing behaviour on restarts. Somewhat surprisingly, it turned out to
be nothing to do with NAV, so I will detail it here in case it helps other
people.

The problem was coming from IIS: the System Restore error pointing to NAV
was just a red herring. I found that ever since the SP2 instal, the SMTP
service and WWW Publishing service had been hanging at startup. In the
services listing, they are recorded as 'starting' (rather than 'started').

Prior to SP2 instal, an application event was being recorded not long after
startup "CI has started for catalog c:\inetpub\catalog.wci." but after SP2,
this no longer occurred. Maybe CI depends on the SMTP service or WWW
Publishing service while doing this job or something.

The linking factor is this: CI is involved with System Restore too (whenever
it tries to create a restore point), so when the IIS services hung, CI was
hung too. Therefore, SR hangs as well, when you try to make a new restore
point. Also, since a go-back restore point is created even when restoring to
a previous restore point, SR is effectively completely disabled.

To cut a long story short, I removed the IIS Windows component and the whole
problem resolved - services no longer hang, so CI is not hung, so SR works
fine. I have reinstalled the component now and everything is still working,
so something must have been reset by that procedure.

Well, thanks anyway for your suggestion and hope this is useful to someone
else.

Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Hi Geoff,

Umm! Wondering why savrt.sys is shown in the Event Log then? Anyway, your
feedback is much appreciated.

 

[Guest]

Yes thats a bit of mystery. Presumably something did go wrong there but no
idea how it relates to the rest of it. The 'Savrt' error only occurred once,
at the very first attempt to create a restore point (after downloading
upgrades following the SP2 instal). However, the SMTP and WWWP hanging
problem had already been occurring prior to this, form the very first boot
after SP2 instal. I didn't mention it because I didn't see any relation to
System Restore so I didn't want to confuse the issue, and I'm not even using
the IIS stuff, so I didn't think it was relevant...

Incidentally, I slogged through endless Google hits about that 'Savrt' error
without finding any explanation or easy fix. Same goes for the Norton
knowledge base.

An interesting lesson out of this I guess, is that the problem of CI causing
System Restore hangs could feasibly occur with any situation which disables
CI.