STOP 0x0000003B: SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION

For a Windows System Administrator there's nothing that can ruin your day more than a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD).  Worse still is a server that goes into a BSOD loop and neither Safe Mode nor the Last Known Good Profile get it to boot into the operating system.  I worked on such a server earlier this week.  As part of my troubleshooting efforts I googled for clues as to what exactly the SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION error was supposed to be telling me.  I never did find the exact solution to my problem, but the error pretty clearly referred to a device driver.  A round of Windows security patches had just been installed and that turned out to be at the heart of the problem.  This particular server had a hardware defect that caused it to periodically crash and one of those crashes occurred while Windows was in the midst of configuring the updates that had just been installed.  The poor timing of the crash rendered Windows unbootable with the BSOD loop.

Here are the steps that I used to recover this Windows Server 2008 Enterprise SP2 x64 server:

1. Boot from a Server 2008 DVD or a "Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset" (DaRT) 6.0 CD
2. Allow Startup Repair to run even though failure is expected
3. Select "View advanced options for system recovery" and open the Command Prompt
4. Change directory to C:\WINDOWS\WINSXS
5. Rename pending.xml to pending.bad, then eject the media and reboot (a BSOD may occur if the server is SAN attached due to the defect described in KB961891 so power-cycle if necessary)
6. Attempt to boot Windows normally but don't be surprised to see the STOP 0x3B again (this step is needed to trigger another Startup Repair)
7. Boot from the Server 2008 DVD or the DaRT 6.0 CD again
8. Startup Repair should work this time so let it run until it finishes, then eject the media and reboot
9. Server should now boot into Windows but any attempt to install a Windows update will fail
10. Log on and run regedit
11. Export the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\COMPONENTS key and save the file to a temporary folder (in the unlikely event you need to rollback the next step)
12. Delete the AdvancedInstallersNeedResolving and PendingXmlIdentifier values from the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\COMPONENTS key (see KB946414)
13. Reboot one more time to validate the issue has been resolved and Windows is happy :)

Greatest Hits of 2009

It's the time of year when most of the media does their lists of the best or worst things that happened this year.  One that you're not likely to see reported anywhere else is the top Greatest Hits compilations released in 2009.  In the age of digital media, CDs are now passe but there were still a number of quality Greatest Hits releases this year including a couple that I specifically wished for in a previous post.

Annie Lennox—The Annie Lennox Collection

The lead singer for the Eurythmics released her first solo album in 1992 that included the hits "Why", "Walking on Broken Glass", and "Little Bird".  She really only had one other hit after that, "No More I Love You's", but those are all good songs and the other material on the CD isn't bad.  My Fave... "Walking on Broken Glass"

Fall Out Boy—Believers Never Die: Greatest Hits

If you want to set my brother off on a tirade, just mention this CD to him.  I'm sure he'll argue that you can't have a Greatest Hits if you don't have any hits but the only valid point he may have is that they haven't been around long enough to justify it.  There are some really good songs on this disc:  "Sugar, We're Going Down", "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race", and "America's Suitehearts".  My Fave... "I'm Like a Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You)"

Foo Fighters—Greatest Hits

This was one of the compilations that I pointed out was long over due a couple years ago.  About the only complain you can have about this disc is that it has two versions of "Everlong" (studio and acoustic) but doesn't include "I'll Stick Around".  My Fave... "Everlong" ...studio version, of course ;)

George Harrison—Let It Roll

This is the other Greatest Hits that I wished for on this blog.  It is a career encompassing collection that is simply perfect. "My Sweet Lord" and "Got My Mind Set On You" are both here as are good live versions of the Beatles hits he wrote, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", "Here Comes the Sun", and "Something".  My Fave... "Any Road" ... if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there ;)

Janet Jackson—Number Ones

I owned her Design of a Decade CD but this two disc collection included everything from Design plus a bunch of good songs released in the subsequent decade.  It also includes harder to find duets "Diamonds" (with Herb Alpert), "The Best Things in Life are Free" (with Luther Vandross), and "Scream" (with brother Michael).  My Fave... "Again"

The Wallflowers—Collected 1996-2005

Another artist that really only had one hit album but it was a monster featuring "One Headlight", "6th Avenue Heartache", "Three Marlenas", and "The Difference".  They had one more hit with "Sleepwalker" which makes this compilation just a tad better than the original album.  My Fave... "One Headlight"

The Who—Greatest Hits

The Who have probably released more Greatest Hits compilations than any other artist.  I had their My Generation: The Very Best of The Who CD but this one caught my eye because it has "Behind Blue Eyes", "Love, Reign O'er Me", and "Eminence Front".  So basically I traded "Join Together" for those three which is a trade that even Jack Zduriencik would be proud of.  My Fave... "Eminence Front"

Anyone who followed the Pause & Play CD Front would have noted that Madonna and Britney Spears both released new Greatest Hits collections this year.  I already own three Madonna collections and although her Celebration would condense it down to two, I didn't find it compelling enough considering the songs I'd be giving up.  Same goes for Britney; her The Singles Collection isn't significantly different than her Greatest Hits: My Prerogative which I already own.  It has several of her newer hits but I think I like her older (pre-meltdown) stuff better.

In Zduriencik We Trust

If you consider yourself a Mariners fan and you aren't excited right now, I've got bad news for you... you're not a Mariners fan!  This has been a crazy week in Marinerland but I can't help but be giddy with optimism for the first time in years.  Here's why:

• Ken Griffey Jr. was re-signed.  A lot of die hard M's fans didn't like this move but I think it's great.  Griffey had a mediocre season last year but he didn't hurt the team and he gave everyone something special to see when they watched a game.  He will always be the most important player in the team's history and he should finish his Hall of Fame career in Seattle... hopefully with a World Series :)
  
• Chone Figgins was signed and the only thing I don't like about him is the way he pronounces his name ;)  It's going to be very hard for opposing teams to keep both he and Ichiro off base and from running wild when they get there.
  
• Cliff Lee was acquired from the Phillies for three minor league prospects.  Lee is easily the best pitcher the Mariners have ever landed (either by trade or free agency).  He's probably only going to be in Seattle for one season but that's fine.  He and Felix give us the starting pitching we need to not only contend but go deep into the playoffs... right now!  Plus players generally step it up the year before they become free agents and the M's will most likely get two first round draft picks as compensation for his departure.
  
• Milton Bradley was acquired from the Cubs for Carlos Silva.  The only negative to this trade is that Bradley could lose his cool and ruin the team's chemistry.  But it could also payoff big if he keeps his cool because we need his offense.  Silva had no place on the team so just getting rid of him for someone who could benefit us is huge.
  

You've got to give a ton of credit to Jack Zduriencik.  I didn't think it would be possible to turn the team around this fast but I really think he has.  Not only that, he's managed to do it without mortgaging the future, either by decimating the farm system (Woody Woodward, Pat Gillick) or by locking us into questionable multiyear contracts (Bill Bavasi).

Designated Hitter ✔... Third Baseman ✔... #2 Starting Pitcher ✔ ... Left Fielder ✔... The only thing left on my Christmas list is a Russell Branyan re-signing... Go M's!