Bugcheck in NWFS.SYS with some paths when UTF8 is enabled

  • 3077770
  • 19-Jul-2006
  • 26-Apr-2012

Environment

Novell Client for Windows 2000/XP/2003 4.91 Support Pack 2

Situation

Symptom: Bugcheck in NWFS.SYS with some paths when UTF8 is enabled.
Symptom: Bugcheck in NWFS.SYS with some paths after updating to 4.91 SP2.
Fact: Using Novell Client 4.91 SP1 or earlier in the same environment does not crash, but 4.91 SP2 does crash.
Change: Installed Novell Client 4.91 SP2.
Cause: The "Use UTF8 Encoding and NCPs" option is enabled by default in 4.91 SP2, and was not enabled by default in 4.91 SP1 and earlier. A pre-existing condition in the UTF8-specific code is now being more broadly exposed in 4.91 SP2 deployments.

Resolution

This issue is under investigation by Novell. Additional information, when available, will be updated in this document.

The only interim workaround is to disable "Use UTF8 Encoding and NCPs" in the Advanced Settings of the Novell Client Properties. Back-revving to 4.91 SP1 does not help avoid this issue in any way that is fundamentally different than turning off the "Use UTF8 Encoding and NCPs" on 4.91 SP2.