IBM Support

VMware ESX 3.0.x "purple screen of death" occurs after use of USB device - Servers

Troubleshooting


Problem

After detaching a USB device from the system, VMware ESX 3.0.x's USB stack is left in an unstable state. The user will begin to notice the issue when they are unable to mount another USB device. On some systems, VMware will initiate a purple screen of death (PSOD).

Resolving The Problem

Source

RETAIN tip: H193199

Symptom

After detaching a USB device from the system, VMware ESX 3.0.x's USB stack is left in an unstable state. The user will begin to notice the issue when they are unable to mount another USB device. On some systems, VMware will initiate a purple screen of death (PSOD).

Affected configurations

This tip is not hardware specific.

This tip is not option specific.

The system is configured with at least one of the following:

  • VMware ESX Server 3.0, any update
  • VMware ESX Server 3.0.1, any update

Note: This does not imply that the network operating system will work under all combinations of hardware and software.

Please see the compatibility page for more information:

Solution

This behavior is corrected in VMware ESX 3.0.2 or later.

The file is available from the IBM System x Support web site at the following URL:

Workaround

To reduce the risk of a PSOD if a USB device has been used, schedule a reboot of the VMware ESX server to reinitialize the memory.

Additional information

Rebooting the server will reinitialize the memory stack and reloads the USB modules.

Document Location

Worldwide

Operating System

BladeCenter:VMware ESX Server

System x:VMware ESX Server

Older System x:VMware ESX Server

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Document Information

Modified date:
18 April 2023

UID

ibm1MIGR-5070631