1

I'm trying to get a little more mileage out of Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard x64 Edition, and recently (within the last two weeks) I've been getting the following (non-fatal) error popping up when I perform certain actions:

rundll32.exe - Entry Point Not Found

The procedure entry point GetNamedPipeServerProcessId could not be located in the dynamic link library KERNEL32.dll.

rundll32.exe - Entry Point Not Found

Sometimes it occurs when attempting to zip up a folder using 7-zip, but it always occurs when selecting the Desktop tab from the Display Properties dialog.

No viruses or malware were found on this system. To be certain, I re-installed the OS on a different (but nearly identical laptop) and I am getting the same errors. Unfortunately, these errors started again on the new installation at some point after I began installing software.

I was not able to rule out Windows Updates (some were applied after I began installing software) or third party software (Skype 7.11, JDK 8 64, 7-zip, or Dropbox). The errors still occur when none of this software is not running. However, Skype, 7-zip and Dropbox all have hooks into Windows, so I am considering one of them to be a likely cause.

I will continue testing in order to reduce the number of variables (uninstall software and potentially start the OS installation from scratch). However, if anyone has other insight for troubleshooting this problem, I would gladly try alternatives.

For instance:

  • Are there any specific hooks to installed software that might be invoked specifically when clicking on the Display tab?

  • Is there any way to determine what is attempted to be invoked via rundll32.exe?

  • Are there any places in the Windows registry that I could look to see what might be invoked?

The kernel32.dll on the systems that have the problem is 1,518,080 bytes and has a CRC32 of 14CC51C9, which is identical to that from the original installation media.

As recommended by an earlier comment (now deleted for some reason), I ran the System File Checker, which turned up no problems.

Improve this question
5

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
4

I had the same issue, which was traced back to Dropbox (3.10.7).

Most of the installs of Dropbox on the PCs I had the issue with were a 'per user' install, so just localized to one users profile of the computer.

I have been able to make the error disappear by essentially resetting the users preferences in Dropbox - I did this by renaming or deleting the folder C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Application Data\Dropbox - once the folder was renamed, get the user to log out and back in and the error went away. They just had to log back into Dropbox and complete a sync.

The PCs I had this on were Windows XP SP3 PCs. and was able to trace it back to Dropbox via the AV software detecting a change that Dropbox had made on the machine. I didn't see the error appear with rundll32.exe as per above, but experienced it with Adobe Reader, plus a few enterprise applications.

Hope that also helps. I haven't had the error re-appear yet, and have been able to keep the current version of Dropbox.

Improve this answer
1
  • Thank you for the additional information. In this case, Dropbox 3.10.7 had been installed on a brand new system, and was immediately getting the error. If the problem resurfaces or I find a need to upgrade to the latest version, I will try your solution.
    – Parker
    Oct 8, 2015 at 21:56
3

Dropbox (3.10.7) was causing this error. I reverted back to August 15, 2015 stable build 3.8.8 and still encountered the error. Reverting back to July 9, 2015 stable build 3.6.9 has resolved the error.

See Dropbox Release Notes, which contains links to older versions.

I determined that Dropbox was the cause of this problem by systematically uninstalling Skype, Java, 7-zip and Dropbox. The problem was reproducible up to the point where Dropbox was uninstalled. I reinstalled all software except for Dropbox, and the error was not occurring.

After installing Dropbox 3.8.8, the error immediately started being reproducible again. I again uninstalled Dropbox and the error went away. After installing Dropbox 3.6.9, the error is not reproducible.

No reboots were required.

I've also reported the problem to Dropbox.

Update: Several days later, Dropbox re-upgraded itself to version 3.10.7, and the error is no longer occurring. It seems that a direct install of 3.10.7 causes the error, but installing an old version and allowing it to upgrade avoids the problem.

Improve this answer
3
  • 1
    Any ideas on how you found that Dropbox was the cause of this problem?
    – Lucky
    Oct 8, 2015 at 13:50
  • @Lucky I updated my answer to explain my troubleshooting approach.
    – Parker
    Oct 8, 2015 at 14:05
  • 1
    Thanks for for edit. This will be useful for the future readers who has the same problem.
    – Lucky
    Oct 8, 2015 at 14:06
1

The problem is that the GetNamedPipeServerProcessId Windows API function did not exist in Windows Server 2003.

According to the MSDN article on GetNamedPipeServerProcessId, the minimum supported version for this API call for server-line Windows versions is Windows Server 2008. That's two versions later (you have 2003, there was 2003 R2, then 2008).

There's nothing you can do to "fix" this. Downgrading to software that doesn't use this particular API is a workaround, but it means you are stuck at old versions.

And of course, for Windows Server 2003, which was released in April 2003, mainstream support ended in July 2010 and extended support ended in July 2015. It is unsupported by Microsoft, and not supported (obviously) by the vendors of software that you want to use (because otherwise you wouldn't be asking this question here). It's time to upgrade.

Improve this answer
1
  • I am actually running 2003 R2, I updated my question accordingly. I forget this detail sometimes - the "R2" shows up in some logos (lock screen), but not others (Start Menu). I appreciate the additional information.
    – Parker
    Oct 17, 2015 at 12:04

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .