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Unable to install hotfixes due to "insufficient free disk space&#3


rmenessec

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I can't install MS hotfixes, via any means, on a live XPSP3 system. nLite has not been used.

I've deleted %windir%\system32\catroot2, re-registered the PKI DLLs, stopped and started CryptSvc, cleaned up old KB* .cat files in %windir%\system32\catroot, emptied %windir%\SoftwareDistribution-- all the usual suspects.

I've monitored the installs with ProcMon and even DbgView. There's just nothing obvious going on. Here's the common thread in all the hotfix installer logs (using the exFAT hotfix as an example):

2.172: Drive C: free 42915MB req: 32MB w/uninstall 0MB
2.172: Share \\.\nul\: free 0MB req: 27MB w/uninstall 0MB

There are a lot of other references to "\\.\nul\" and a lot of failures to stat files located there and so forth. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup looks sane.

I've actually replicated this problem on another laptop with a similar (corporate IT) preinstalled XP image. Mostly the image means that McAfee (various modules) and PointSec are in the way. I can't remove or disable them, even momentarily.

This problem started immediately after installing the latest batch of MS hotfixes (some critical, some optional, all XP) via MS Update. Unfortunately, I'm not sure which ones, and there were about thirty total (corp IT didn't apply them before handing out the machines).

Any help at all appreciated.

-Rebecca

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I'd try to install only one hotfix and check this hotfix logfile (%windir%\kbxxxxxx.log).

I used /log: to force logs out of the installer. That's how I got that log excerpt above. I compared afterward, and they're the identical to the %windir%\kb* logs, except they're guaranteed to be created.

The failures to find files (including the temp directory Microsoft Package Installer (UPDATE.EXE) creates) start at the very top of the log. Nothing interesting seems to be recorded. Near every file API call ends in failure, with a few exceptions, such as generating (but not using) a correct uninstaller directory path.

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...just to be extra-clear, only Microsoft Package Installer is affected (all hotfixes, all Service Packs, probably a few other things). MSI installs, InstallShield (MSI and non-MSI), InnoSetup, NSIS, and every other installer type work perfectly fine.

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