Microsoft Knowledge Base Email Alertz
All KB/RSS Links  |  Hot Kb!  |  New Kb!  |  Scott Cate  |  FAQ / KB  |  Web Hosting  |  Unsubscribe  

When you run a program, you may receive an error message that is similar to one of the following error messages:

Search KbAlertz

Advanced Search

Receive Microsoft Knowledge Base articles by E-Mail?

Every night we scan the Microsoft Knowledge Base. If technologies you're interested in are updated, we'll send you an e-mail. You only get one e-mail a day, and only when new articles are added.
Click here to create a
FREE account
Already have an account?
[Click here to Login]











Microsoft Knowledge Base Article

This article contents is Microsoft Copyrighted material.
©2005-©2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use | Trademarks
Article ID: 319508 - Last Review: February 1, 2007 - Revision: 2.3

An Invalid Page Fault Occurs in Kernel32.dll Because of an Uninitialized Critical Section

View products that this article applies to.
System TipThis article applies to a different version of Windows than the one you are using. Content in this article may not be relevant to you. Visit the Windows Vista Solution Center
This article was previously published under Q319508

On This Page

SYMPTOMS

When you run a program, you may receive an error message that is similar to one of the following error messages:
  • Windows 95, Windows 95 OSR, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition
    This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down.

    If the problem persists, contact the program vendor.

    Details:

    Program_name caused an invalid page fault in module KERNEL32.DLL at Fault address.
  • Windows Millennium Edition (Me)
    Program_name has caused an error in KERNEL32.DLL. Program_name will now close.

    If you continue experiencing problems, try restarting your computer.
Notes:
  • Program_name refers to the title of the program that is improperly using the uninitialized critical section.
  • For specific information about the Fault address values, see the "Fault Addresses" topic in the "More Information" section of this article.
  • Windows Me does not include a Details option in the error message dialog box. See the "Windows Me Fault Logging" topic in the "More Information" section of this article.
Back to the top

CAUSE

The error message occurs if a program or driver calls the Win32 EnterCriticalSection function with the address of an uninitialized CRITICAL_SECTION object. In this situation, Windows is behaving as it is designed to. The software that is listed as the cause is responsible for the error. See the "Critical Section Description" topic in the "More Information" section of this article.
Back to the top

STATUS

This behavior is by design.
Back to the top

MORE INFORMATION

Fault Addresses

The following table documents the fault addresses that are displayed for the indicated versions of Windows (without any Kernel32.dll updates), and with the Kernel32.dll updates that are documented in the indicated Microsoft Knowledge Base articles installed: 
Kernel32
version    Fault address  Windows version                         Article
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.90.3000  0177:BFF6BB07  Me                 4.90.3000            -
4.10.2224  0167:BFF7B9A6  98 Second Edition  4.10.2222A           Q272137
4.10.2223  0167:BFF7B9A6  98 Second Edition  4.10.2222A           Q262516
4.10.2222  0167:BFF7B9A6  98 Second Edition  4.10.2222A           -
4.10.2000  015F:BFF7B997  98                 4.10.1998            Q222131
4.10.1999  015F:BFF7B997  98                 4.10.1998            Q272137
4.10.1998  015F:BFF7B997  98                 4.10.1998            -
4.03.1216  0157:BFF79F97  95                 4.00.950B or C       Q175086
4.03.1212  0157:BFF79FA4  95                 4.00.950B (OSR 2.1)  Note 1
4.00.1112  0137:BFF99C00  95                 4.00.950B (OSR 2)    Q175086
4.00.1111  0137:BFF9A3C0  95                 4.00.950B (OSR 2)    -
4.00.952   0137:BFF998AC  95                 4.00.950A            Q175086
4.00.951   0137:BFF9A08C  95                 4.00.950A            Q148336
4.00.950   0137:BFF9A07C  95                 4.00.950A            -
Note 1: Windows 95 OSR2 with the Universal Serial Bus (USB) Supplement installed has the same Kernel32.dll version as OSR 2.1. See the "References" section in this article for links to the indicated Microsoft Knowledge Base articles.
Back to the top

Windows Me Fault Logging

To verify the fault address, open the fault log (the Faultlog.txt file is located in the Windows folder):
  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Information.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Fault Log. The Faultlog.txt file is opened, with the most recent fault information at the end of the file.
Back to the top

Critical Section Description

The threads of a single process can use a critical section object for mutual-exclusion synchronization. The process is responsible for allocating the memory that is used by a critical section object, which it can do by declaring a variable of type CRITICAL_SECTION. Before using a critical section, some thread of the process must call the InitializeCriticalSection or InitializeCriticalSectionAndSpinCount function to initialize the object.
Back to the top

REFERENCES

General

158238  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=158238/EN-US/ ) How to Determine the Version of Windows 95/98/Me in Use
253756  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=253756/EN-US/ ) Availability of Universal Serial Bus Support in Windows 95
Back to the top

Microsoft Windows 95

148336  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=148336/EN-US/ ) Memory Leak in Windows 95 Kernel Using Windows Sockets
Back to the top

Windows 95 and Windows 95 OSR

175086  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=175086/EN-US/ ) Regional Settings Specified in User Profile Are Not Applied
Back to the top

Windows 98

222131  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=222131/EN-US/ ) Computer Hangs Clicking Close Button in Close Program Dialog Box
Back to the top

Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition

272137  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=272137/EN-US/ ) GetShortPathName() Does Not Work When It Is Passed a Long File Name from A Novell NetWare Server
Back to the top

Windows 98 Second Edition

262516  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=262516/EN-US/ ) Close Program Dialog Box Hangs If You Click the Title Bar with a USB Mouse
Back to the top
APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition
  • Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition
  • Microsoft Windows 98 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Microsoft Windows 95
Back to the top
Keywords: 
kbprb KB319508
Back to the top
        

Community Feedback System

Very often, it takes hours to solve a problem. Very often, you've looked high and low, and have tried a lot of solutions. When you finally found it, chances are, it was because someone else helped you. Here's your chance to give back. Use our community feedback tool to let others know what worked for you and what didn't.

Please also understand that the community feedback system is not warranted to be correct, it's simply a system that we've built to let people try and help each other. If something in a feedback response doesn't make sense to you, or you're not comfortable making changes that the feedback talks about (like registry edits), please consult a professional.

Thank you for using kbAlertz.com Feedback System.

-- Scott Cate

Copyright © 2002-2007 KBALERTZ.COM.  All Rights Reserved. Terms / Privacy. Discount ASP.NET Hosting