This is an annoying error that I have come across a couple of times when using some of the machines at work and home over the past few years. This isn’t an error that will effect every user, but, if you do come across it, then here are a couple of reasons as to why it can happen:
- You don’t have a DWORD VALUE for IRPStackSize in your registry
- You have a DWORD VALUE for IRPStackSize in your registry but the data value is set too low
What might have triggered the error message?
- You are trying to map a drive?
- You are trying to access a shared folder over a network that you set up correctly?
- You are trying to share files/ drives between a Windows 7 machine and a Windows XP machine
- You are trying to print over a network, where the printer driver resides on another machine on that network. (This was my 2nd occurrence)
Those are just the kind of things I was doing when the error was triggered. The main time that it has come up though is when I have correctly set up file sharing over a network and have had no problems accessing those folders and the out of the blue I would get the error message which would prevent me from accessing those files/ drives. Note, that in your Event logs it may show up as, ‘Event ID 2011′.
At work all of our machines are running XP Pro and normally work perfectly fine. However, every now and then (and it is rare) this issue will throw a spanner in the works. Normally on a busy day, but that’s Sod’s Law. It can also occur when trying to share files/ drives between machines running Windows 7 and Windows XP (this is due to the IRPStackSize on the different OS’s being different by default) If the error does come up when you are trying to share files between a Windows 7 PC and a Windows XP machine, then the IRPStackSize adjustment needs to be increased on the XP machine not the Windows 7 one.
Default value sizes for IRPStackSize in Windows NT | 2000 | XP:
- Windows NT 4.0 – 11 (default value)
- Windows 2000 – 15 (default value)
- Windows XP – 15 (default value)
There are many, many things that can cause the IRPStackSize to become too small, but one of the most common reasons are anti-virus software that has been installed or many different programs such as Acronis TrueImage, AVG, Norton, Microsoft Security Essentials etc It’s not the programs that are the problem, but the drivers and the IRP slots that they use up, hence overtime you may need to increase the value of the IRPStackSize as you install more and more programs as time goes on. For a detailed look at the issue please refer to the Microsoft official help on the subject here Or for a detailed look from a programmers view go here to learn more about how IRP stacks work.
Right, to try to correct this error message will involve you making some edits in your registry, so please MAKE SURE you have backed up your registry before making any adjustments to the registry, as making a mistake in the registry can lead to you having to re-install the OS. The simplest way to make sure that your registry is backed up is to create a Restore Point via System Restore. In Windows XP the easiest way to create one is to go Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Restore, check the second button ‘Create a restore point’ then hit ‘Next’ and name your restore point in the next window. Something like ‘Backed up Reg’ (and the date) then just click ‘Create’
Now you have done that, you are ready to make your edit. Please note that I am not MVP certified, nor do I work for Microsoft. This is just how I have fixed this issue in the past when ever I have come across it. To get to your registry go Start>Run and type ‘regedit’ and OK. Now to the part of the registry where you may need to edit the IRPStackSize:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CURRENT_CONTROL_SET\SERVICES\ LanmanServer\Parameters
If you can already see an that the IRPStackSize has already been created then you may need to increase it’s value. Do this in increments of 5 (eg The default value is 15 (Decimal), so try changing it to 20) When you have done this, reboot for the changes to take effect. If this was unsuccessful try increasing it by a further value of 5. The most it can be increased to is 50 (Decimal).
If the IRPStackSize is not present (as was in 100% of my occurrences) you will need to create a new DWORD. With Parameters selected on the left, go Edit>New>DWORD Value enter the word (exactly as I have typed it but without quotes) “IRPStackSize” this will then show up in the window on the left. You now need to give it a value. Try 20 (select the Decimal button) then reboot to see if that helped. If not, try increasing it’s value by another 5.
Please note that this was done using Windows XP Pro and may be different in Vista or Windows 7.
I hope this has helped some one out.
Yes, this worked for me, thank you.
[Windows XP – I’d mapped LPT2 to \\SERVER\HP1200 which was fine, but when printing
it responded with “Not enough server storage is available to process this command”
and I set it to 30 (decimal) rebooted and it worked.
Glad it helped Louis.
Thanks for explaining how it worked for you as well, as that may help other users.
Thanks! Fixed my problem too. As you mentioned the IRPStackSize entry was not present. When I added my own the default value was 0. I then changed it to 20 but it turned into 32 in the actual line. ?? I just went with it. Been chasing network and firewall settings for a couple weeks, thanks.
Hi Wayne,
Glad it worked out OK.
Richard
@Wayne: 20 in Hexadecimal == 32 in Decimal (:
Do I need to apply these changes in Server registry or client machine?
Should I make run this fix on client machine or on server where the shared drives are placed?
@Saleem @Umair make the registry edits on the machine that is showing the error. In the cases where I have come across it, it’s the machine running XP.
I have treid to make the changes on server 2003 however when I make the change from 19 to 30 and reboot it always reverts back…… any ideas why???
Hi fjiiman.
Strange? When you changed it from 19 to 30, did you first try to change it in increments? First try changing it by a smaller amount to something like 25. Remember to make sure that the Decimal button (Base) is checked and NOT the Hexadecimal one. Then reboot.
Dude, I spent days on this setup, I was totally lost. I could not access my shared files. I am using an hp printer, and had the digital fax, and filing setup, and lost it all a few days ago.
I’m serious about 18 hrs racking my brain, I changed everything on my shared folders, to no avail.
Was using my laptop to log in to my main comp, and couldnt open a shared folder, and kept getting the error message above.
Its all fixed now.
On another note, there was something i did with a program last week that mentioned Dword, If I find what it was I will come back to let you and all know, what it was that killed it. Right now I’m to excited, that it works, can’t even think straight.
Thanks so much
Hi Bob,
Really glad that it helped you out. The first time I came across the error I was pretty much the same.
Keep me posted on what program you think changed a Dword value and if that value was in relation to the IRPStackSize.
Ok I found what it was,
I had MS word 2003 on my system, and then installed MS 2007 after doing this when I went to start word, it would go through a set up proceedure each time I wanted to use word, excel or other things from that MS office package. And on my quad 4 computer I still had to wait about 3 minutes for word to start. so I searched online and found that I had to ad these lines to my regestry,
reg add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Options /v NoReReg /t REG_DWORD /d 1
And or,
reg add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Options /v NoReReg /t REG_DWORD /d 1
And it worked to stop the setup box from popping up.
Now I found this on the web, in several places before I tried it.
And I’m sure that is what did it.
Hope this helps others, I would bet a few made the change, and you don’t se the other problems until much later, and cant figure out why it happened.
Bob
Thanks for the update Bob. I am unsure as to how adding that particular Dword effected the IRPStackSize or interfered with it though. Then again, the registry is a bit of a maze, and I have had some very bizarre things happen in there.
Thanks again for the reply, and hope that it may prove useful to other readers.
Richard
I have been fighting this for days!!!! This totally worked for me.
I have an old XP media center edition computer connected to a linksys wireless router. I bought a new windows 7 premium, and wanted to connect to the network and share files.
I thought I was fighting a Norton Firewall issue, but I couldn’t access the files even when the firewall was disabled.
This fix totally worked. I searched all over for possible causes on microsoft, but never saw this solution mentioned. IRPStackSize was not present in my XP machine registry, but with your instructions it was easy to create. I can’t believe that was my problem all this time!!!!!
Thank a million for taking the time to post the solution.
Glad it helped Jeff.
I run a small 3D render-farm that uses shared disks. Basically the animations and configs are on the shared disk ( Master PC Win 7 64bit ) the two render nodes ( slaves ) are Intel Mac running Win XP Pro. Each system renders out a frame and stores it to the shared map. This system always worked out fine until today I have this error “not enough server storage is available to process this command”
So the render nodes ( slaves ) loose there connection with the master so they can’t read there project and config files anymore. I’ve increased the IRPStackSize up to 50. It seamed more stable at first but the problem remains unsolved.
Anybody any suggestions?
It would help me a lot…
Thanks in advance for this,
Carlo
Worked Great! I’ve been trying to solve this for hours. Once I seen this site, I fixed it in 5 minutes. Thanks a bunch!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you so much. This fixed my problem immediately once I figured out how to set the DWORD value (XP Home apparently doesn’t show a dialog box with “DECIMAL” in it). This was the first time I’d tried to edit the registry and your instructions were clear and straightforward.
Any other idea’s on this? I have the same issue on a windows 7 machine, unable to install even the smallest windows hotfix patch to the machine as I keep getting the error (1HD, with 300GB of space). I added the registry entry and tried increasing it in increments of 3 from 3 right up to 50 but it still doesn’t work. Anyone else have the same issue? if so, how did you get around it in the end, driving me crazy!
I had the same problem see Post March 8, 2012:
Increasing the IRPStackSize up to 50 didn’t work.
After some research I came to the next solution.
—————————————
In Win 7 System:
———————-
Set the following registry key to “1″:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\LargeSystemCache
And set the following registry key to “3″:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters\Size
—————————————
It worked for me so maybe it can help someone out there.
My best regards,
Carlo
ok thanks for your reply, i just tried that and it still didn’t work! did you mean decimal or Hex values for each of those? I tried decimal
I also have the same problem, using the windows 7 at the office
With client computers using windows XP and windows 7. At a time out error message so it can not access folders on the share
I’ll try it, I hope this post can fix my problem.
But the real question whether the registry which was changed on the server computer only or on all client computers also changed the registry
thank you
ok thanks for your reply, i just tried that and it still didn’t work! did you mean decimal or Hex values for each of those? I tried decimal
Between 0 and 9 there is no difference in Hex or Dec. So what ever you’ve tried ( Hex or Dec ) it would bring the same result. So in any case you did the right thing.
On the next link you can download two screen captures of my settings.
https://www.yousendit.com/download/M3BrK3BDd0lwaFFVV01UQw
I’m not a computer expert so I’ve found this solution by coincidence somewhere on a MAC forum concerning an other problem I had. It helped me with this one so I was hoping it could put you out of your misery.
I’m afraid that is all I can do for you.
Best of luck to you.
My best regards,
Carlo
cheers, it’s still not working but thanks for your help anyway! if anyone has any other suggestions please let me know
Thanks for this fix. However maybe you should point out that the IRPStackSize parameter needs to be changed on the computer where the files are that you are trying to browse, not the computer doing the browsing.
Thanks again.
I am an industrial automation engineer and programmer. I have an XP Pro machine that I have used (with backups) for OVER 7 years now because of it’s beautiful 5 x 4 16.4″ xtrabrite screen. My system is highly customized and I probably have more software installed than anybody has ever seen on any system. Period. Most of my software is for communicating with (programming) various industrial devices…. Several years ago I was no longer able to share files with my network. This fix just solved a problem that I have had for YEARS! Thank You so much for taking the time to post this. I have saved this solution and will likely use it again on the next system I encounter. Thanks again.
Excellent. That comment made my day.
Glad your system is OK now.
guys ts not working for me , i tried increasing the IRPStackSize (from 30 -50)on both the server (w2k3) and workstations but am still getting the same error even after multiple restarts can you help with a proper fix this time . The thing is when I fail to access my mapped drive /share i quickly ran to the server room and ts showing the same error as in the wkst.
thegift73, i believe you are ommiting to answer most of us if the change shoud be effected in the server *where the share is* or workstations . am still puzzled here
Had the same problem once and Fixed it before. Now did a clean install of WIN7 on a SSD and the problem accured again. I’ve written down what I did back then and problem solved, maybe this can help you aswell:
in CMD => net config server /autodisconnect:-1
in HKLM =>
Set the following registry key to ’1′:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\LargeSystemCache
and set the following registry key to ’3′:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters\Size
This was Great! It fixed my problems.
Thankk!
No problem. Glad it helped.
I restarted the server service instead of rebooting.