Device Problems in Device Manager Due to ACPI Global Lock Problem

ID: Q217392

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows 98

SYMPTOMS

After you start Windows 98 on a computer that conforms to the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) specification, several hardware devices may not function and may appear in Device Manager as having problems, with the following error messages:

This device is not working properly because the BIOS in your computer is reporting the resources for the device incorrectly (Code 9).
Contact your computer manufacturer to get an updated BIOS for your computer.

This device is either not present, not working properly, or does not have all the drivers installed (Code 10).
Try upgrading the device drivers for this device.

The drivers for this device are not installed (Code 28). To reinstall the drivers for this device, click Reinstall Driver.

This device is causing a resource conflict. (Code 15.)
To resolve the conflict, click Hardware Troubleshooter and follow the instructions in the wizard.

CAUSE

The Windows 98 ACPI driver (Acpi.sys) does not properly execute the release of the ACPI Global Lock when the Global Lock is explicitly released by ACPI Source Language (ASL) code.

RESOLUTION

A supported fix that corrects this problem is now available from Microsoft, but it has not been fully regression tested and should be applied only to systems experiencing this specific problem. If you are not severely affected by this specific problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next update that contains this fix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information on support costs, please go to the following address on the World Wide Web:

http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/overview/overview.asp


   File name   Version     Date       Time     Size
   --------------------------------------------------------
   Acpi.sys    4.10.2000   11/23/98   7:51pm   80,256 bytes

NOTE: This is the same fix documented in the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q196008 Computer Stops Responding When You Try to Shut It Down

NOTE: Due to file dependencies, the most recent hotfix or feature that contains the above files may also contain additional files.

NOTE: If this product was already installed on your computer when you purchased it from the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and you need this fix, please call the Pay Per Incident number listed on the above Web site. If you contact Microsoft to obtain this fix, and if it is determined that you only require the fix you requested, no fee will be charged. However, if you request additional technical support, and if your no-charge technical support period has expired, or if you are not eligible for standard no-charge technical support, you may be charged a non-refundable fee.

For more information about eligibility for no-charge technical support, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q154871 Determining If You Are Eligible for No-Charge Technical Support

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

GlobalLock is a feature of ACPI that allows protection of resources between ASL code executed by the operating system and the legacy BIOS/SMI environment. GlobalLock can be treated as a mutex that can be explicitly acquired and released. The original release of Windows 98 does not execute the explicit release when encountered in the ASL code. Therefore, once the GlobalLock mutex is acquired, the operating system never releases. This causes a number of problems, including exclamation points on all the devices that require access to a resource that needs to be protected by GlobalLock.

Note that the implicit GlobalLock accesses work correctly in the original release of Windows 98. An implicit GlobalLock is tied directly to the access of a field or index field of an operation region. It is carried out implicitly when an the object is accessed.

Additional query words:


Keywords          : kberrmsg win98 winapm 
Version           : WINDOWS:
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: July 2, 1999