Windows2k3 server hangs on any kind of boot

[Sobo]

Has anyone come across an issue with their Win2k3 server hanging on reboot,
at the first Windows screen? I was able to boot into safe mode and find
that it hangs at drvmain.sdb. I am running Win2k3 on an IBM E-series server
with RAID 5. Nothing new has been added to this server other than security
updates.
I have done google searches on this particular file and there has not been
any clear resolution to this phenomenon. I have 3 out of 24 servers
effected with this issue.

Thanks for any and all help!!!
Sobo

 

[Steve Duff [MVP]]

The problem isn't usually drvmain.sdb itself, that's just the last thing you see.

There are several possibilities: if you've installed W2K3 SP1, there may be a compatibility issue with your system's hardware, BIOS
or drivers. You should check the IBM website and/or support about that. A hardware problem such as disk errors can cause this, but
it is not likely to affect three servers at the same time, still running hardware diagnostics - especially disk and memory - is
adviseable. Also, if you have USB devices connected to the servers, unplug them and try the boot.

If you can't identify any source I would suggest that you attempt a setup-mode repair from your Windows 2003 Server CD on one of the
servers to see if you can resolve it that way. Then apply updates one at a time until you locate the culprit.

Steve Duff, MCSE, MVP
Ergodic Systems, Inc.

 

[Sobo]

Thanks for the insight. I figured the drvmain.sdb was not the culprit, but
it was a starting point, since this has baffled me beyond belief. These
servers do not have SP1 on them yet, still in testing. They have been
running Win2k3, upgraded from Win2k, for about 6 months now. The one thing I
havent done yet, which I found on a search was to run do a Windows repair,
from the Win2k3 cd. I did also disable USB legacy support, since we have no
USB devices attached. That seemed to work for a while then the reboot issue
started again.

The problem isn't usually drvmain.sdb itself, that's just the last thing you see.

There are several possibilities: if you've installed W2K3 SP1, there may

be a compatibility issue with your system's hardware, BIOS

or drivers. You should check the IBM website and/or support about that. A

hardware problem such as disk errors can cause this, but

it is not likely to affect three servers at the same time, still running

hardware diagnostics - especially disk and memory - is

adviseable. Also, if you have USB devices connected to the servers, unplug them and try the boot.

If you can't identify any source I would suggest that you attempt a

setup-mode repair from your Windows 2003 Server CD on one of the

servers to see if you can resolve it that way. Then apply updates one at a

time until you locate the culprit.