Files Are Not Saved and You Receive a "Windows Delayed Write Failed" Error Message When You Remove Flash Card (328504)



The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Server

This article was previously published under Q328504

SYMPTOMS

A delay may occur when you copy or save a file from Windows Explorer or from another program (such as Microsoft Word) to a flash card on your portable computer. This delay may result in data loss. For example, when you save or copy a file to a flash card and then remove the flash card from the flash card reader, the file may not be saved to the card. In some situations, a temporary file is saved to the card. Additionally, you receive the following error message:
Windows Delayed Write Failed

CAUSE

This problem occurs in situations where Windows does not flush the flash card correctly when a flash card is removed from the flash card reader within approximately 20 seconds of writing data to it. As a result, the file system of the card is in a non-flushed state.

RESOLUTION

A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that this article describes. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services telephone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:Note In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question. The English version of this fix has the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel.
    Date         Time     Version        Size        File name
   ------------------------------------------------------------
   14-Apr-2003  18:53   5.0.2195.6736     35,856   Classpnp.sys
   14-Apr-2003  18:53   5.0.2195.6736    140,976   Fastfat.sys
				
Note Because of file dependencies, this update requires Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4).

Note To make this fix work, you must create the following registry key on the computer that hosts the compact flash reader

Subkey: HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\<Provider>
Entry Name: HotPlugAlwaysEnable
Type: REG_MULTI_SZ
Data: <device name string>

where:
  • <Provider> is the type of disk. This is typically Disk.
  • <device name string> is the actual device name string.
For example, for "USBAT USB Card Reader" devices, the registry would look like the following:

Subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Disk
Entry Name: HotPlugAlwaysEnable
Type: REG_MULTI_SZ
Data: USBAT Compact Flash

To find the <device name string>, look up the device in Device Manager. In this example, the device is shown as "USBAT Compact Flash USB Card Reader." The string begins with the vendor string ("USBAT"). That is followed by the product ID string ("Compact Flash"). The "USB Device" or other description at the end is not needed in this string.

Optionally, you can use the tool Hotplugreg.exe from Microsoft to determine the <device name string> for your device.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, wait at least 20 to 30 seconds after you save the file to the compact flash card before you remove the card from the flash card reader.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/13/2005
Keywords:kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbWin2000preSP5fix kbWin2000SP5fix kbQFE kbbug kbfix KB328504