APPC Application Receives AP_ALLOCATION_FAILURE

SYMPTOMS

If an APPC or CPIC application attempts to allocate a conversation to the host, and LU6.2 session level security keys are mismatched between SNA Server and the host, the following problem may occur:

the Windows NT Application Event log may be filled with the following errors:

  Event ID: 22
  Source: SNA Server
  Description:
  APPC session activation failure: BIND negotiated parameters unacceptable
     Sense data = 080F6051

  Event ID: 26
  Source: SNA Server
  Description:
  APPC session activation failure: session limit error

NOTE: The sense code 080F6051 indicates a security violation, as documented
in the IBM SNA Formats Guide (IBM doc #GA27-3136).

The host administrator may encounter numerous LU6.2 security errors on the NetView console or error log.

CAUSE

If an APPC application issues an [MC_]ALLOCATE request, causing SNA Server to establish an LU6.2 session with the host, and if the host rejects the BIND request because of a session level security error (because of mismatch in session level security keys), SNA Server returns the wrong APPC error code to the APPC application:

 primary_rc = AP_ALLOCATION_ERROR (0x0003)
 secondary_rc = AP_ALLOCATION_FAILURE_RETRY  (0x00000005)

instead of indicating a more permanent error condition:

 primary_rc = AP_ALLOCATION_FAILURE (0x0003)
 secondary_rc = AP_ALLOCATION_FAILURE_NO_RETRY  (0x00000004)

When receiving AP_ALLOCATION_FAILURE_RETRY, the APPC program may choose to retry the allocate request. This would cause SNA Server to retry the BIND request, causing the host to reject the BIND request.

RESOLUTION

SNA Server 4.0

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for SNA Server version 4.0. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

215838 How to Obtain the Latest SNA Server Version 4.0 Service Pack

SNA Server 3.0

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for SNA Server version 3.0. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

184307 How to Obtain the Latest SNA Server Version 3.0 Service Pack

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in SNA Server versions 3.0 and 4.0. This problem was first corrected in SNA Server version 3.0 Service Pack 4 and SNA Server version 4.0 Service Pack 3.