I am having a random hang/lock up issue with one file server. It's running Windows 2003 SP2 (32bit) with 3 GB RAM and all patches up to September 2011 installed. Hardware is Vmware ESXi 4.1, iSCSI to CX3 SAN, with 3x 1.95TB LUNs. We restart for patches every month. The server was built 4 years ago and this problem started 3 months ago.
Now the problem is that about once a month the server will hang up, no RDP into the server, can connect to the shares but I am unable to save or open files. From the VI client you can see the server, but when you open the console, you get you the default blue screen (not BSOD) and you never get the log in box. I have waited up to 60 minutes for it to come back and nothing. Resetting the server from the VI client and server shutdown, reboot normally, and thing works fine again. Look at event viewer and only errors I get are event id 333:
Event Type: Error
Event Source: Application Popup
Event Category: None
Event ID: 333
Date: 9/19/2011
Time: 2:34:17 PM
User: N/A
Computer: server name
Description:
An I/O operation initiated by the Registry failed unrecoverably. The Registry could not read in, or write out, or flush, one of the files that contain the system's image of the Registry.
For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.
Data:
0000: 00 00 00 00 01 00 6c 00 ......l.
0008: 00 00 00 00 4d 01 00 c0 ....M..À
0010: 00 00 00 00 4d 01 00 c0 ....M..À
0018: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........
0020: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........
Where can I look for errors? Any software I can run for extra logging? I cannot rebuild the server currently due to a big project that is scheduled to be completed at year end.