KB163633 - Err Msg: No Disk in Drive

Article ID: 163633

Article Last Modified on 10/28/2006

Microsoft Exchange Client 5.5
Microsoft Exchange Client 4.0

This article was previously published under Q163633

SYMPTOMS

IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

When you open or receive mail in the Microsoft Exchange client, one of the following error messages may occur:

Exchng32.exe - No Disk
There is no disk in the drive. Please insert a disk into <drive>:

-or-

WMS Spooler: Mapisp32.exe - No Disk

-or-

OleMainThreadWndName: Mapisp32.exe - No Disk

NOTE: If you select the Abort option, the message box clears. Selecting Retry or Ignore only works if a floppy disk is inserted into the drive.

CAUSE

This problem occurs when the PATH statement in the Autoexec.bat file, Windows NT System Environment Variables, or User Environment Variables for <user name> refers to a floppy disk drive or CD-ROM drive.

If the Autoexec.bat file refers to a floppy disk or CD-ROM drive, Windows NT 4.0 does not display the error when you log on, but when you run applications.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, you should either have a disk in the drive or remove the entry from the PATH statement.

The drive letter may not be entered in the PATH statement, but may be found in the following registry location:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\SETUP\WinntPath

Delete the entry here and log back in.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it.

MORE INFORMATION

When a user logs on to their account, Windows NT searches for an Autoexec.bat file in the root directory of drive C. If the file is found, Ntvdm.exe appends its PATH environment variable to the system PATH environment variable. Only the DOS virtual machine (VDM) PATH variable is affected.

Ntvdm.exe tests the PATH statement for validity. If the drive physically exists, Ntvdm.exe tests for the drive type (removable media or fixed). If the drive is a floppy disk or CD-ROM, Ntvdm.exe tests for the presence of valid media. If no valid media is found, the error message is displayed. If invalid drives are used in the Autoexec.bat PATH statement, no error message is displayed; however, the PATH variable in any previously opened VDMs may be invalid.

For more information, please see the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

102418 NTVDM Error: There Is No Disk in the Drive

This problem can also occur after you save an attachment to removable media, and then eject the media. For example, when you save an attachment to a zip drive, and then eject the disk and attempt to open another message, the error message appears. To work around this problem, insert a new disk in to the same drive and open a message.

Keywords: kbprb KB163633