Problems with very old Windows Server

Question

Hi!

There is a very old Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise SP2 server.

After a reboot, it started freezing approximately every 6 hours.

I checked the system event logs. And I see that the following errors appear before the freezing:

Source: BROWSER

ID: 8032

Too many failed attempts by the network browser service to load the backup list using the transport \Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{8A6A54F8-EFB4-4971-B3BA-B13653C13C13}. The backup network browser has stopped.

Additional information can be found in the Help and Support Center at “http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp”.

Repeated many times:

Source: Application Popup

ID: 333

Unrecoverable I/O failure initiated from the registry. Failed to read, write, or write buffer for one of the files containing the system registry image.

For more information, see the Help and Support Center at “http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp”.

Source: Srv

ID: 2019

The server was unable to allocate memory from the non-paged pool because the non-paged pool is empty.

Additional information can be found in the Help and Support Center at “http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp”.

Please, help me.

Answer 1

Hello Михаил,

Thank you for posting your question on Microsoft Windows Forum!

The event that stands out most is Event ID 2019 (Srv):

"The server was unable to allocate memory from the non-paged pool because the non-paged pool is empty."

This usually means that a driver, service, or application is gradually consuming non-paged pool memory until it is exhausted. Once that happens, other components begin to fail, which can explain the Event ID 333 registry I/O errors and eventually the system freeze. The Browser 8032 event is often a symptom of the system already being under stress rather than the root cause.

Recommended Troubleshooting Steps

Step 1: Check for disk and storage issues

Since Event ID 333 reports unrecoverable I/O failures, I would first verify the health of the storage subsystem.

Run:

chkdsk /f

If prompted, schedule the scan for the next reboot.

Also review Event Viewer for errors from:

• Disk
• Ntfs
• Controller
• Storport

around the same time the freezes occur.

 Step 2: Monitor non-paged pool memory

Open:

perfmon.msc

Monitor the following counters:

Memory\Pool Nonpaged Bytes

Memory\Pool Paged Bytes

Memory\Available MBytes

If the non-paged pool keeps increasing until the server freezes, a memory leak is likely present.

Step 3: Check for a leaking driver

On Windows Server 2003, Poolmon.exe is commonly used to identify which driver is consuming non-paged pool memory.

1. Run Poolmon.
2. Sort by memory usage.
3. Identify the pool tag consuming the most memory.
4. Match the tag to the corresponding driver.

Common causes include:

• Network drivers
• Antivirus drivers
• Backup software
• Storage controller drivers

Step 4: Review recent changes

Since the issue started after a reboot, please check whether any of the following changed beforehand:

• Windows updates
• Device drivers
• Antivirus software
• Backup agents
• Storage or RAID controller software

 Step 5: Check whether the Browser service is only a symptom

You can temporarily stop the Computer Browser service and monitor the server:

net stop browser

However, I would focus first on the memory and storage-related errors because they are more likely to be causing the freezes.

Additional Information

Could you please provide:

1. Is the server physical or virtual?
2. How much RAM is installed?
3. Are there any Disk, Ntfs, or Controller events logged near the time of the freezes?
4. Does the freeze occur exactly every 6 hours or approximately every 6 hours?
5. Were any drivers, antivirus products, or backup applications updated before the issue began?

For additional reference, you may review Microsoft's guidance on Event ID 2019:

https://learn.microsoft.com/troubleshoot/windows-server/performance/troubleshoot-event-id-2019

I hope this answer has brought you useful information. If so, please click Accept Answer and consider upvoting it. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment.