StartService error 317=0x13d (TS vs VNC)

WINDBG
1

Can anyone comment on it?

In all tests “homebox” is connected to a “workbox” thru VPN.

Test #1:

  1. Start a TS session from homebox to workbox;
  2. On a workbox start a Virtual PC loaded with WinXPSP2 (virtbox) under
    windbg from workbox;
  3. On virtbox try to run an app testapp that dynloads a (software only)
    driver using CreateService + StartService.

Note that
(a) Virtual PC itself runs inside a TS session;
(b) testapp does not run inside a TS session
(or at least this is what I thought.)

StartService fails with error 317 = 0x13d = ERROR_MR_MID_NOT_FOUND
with a text equivalent “The system cannot find message text for message
number 0x%1 in the message file for %2.”

The driver is not loaded, its DriverEntry is never hit.

Test #2:

  1. Connect from homebox to workbox using VNC;
  2. same as before;
  3. same as before.

Driver loads ok.

Why is it so? In test #1 I have a 3-level russian-doll construct:

  • virtbox inside workbox (as a VPC);
  • workbox inside homebox (as a TS client);
  • homebox as is.

I expected virtbox <-> workbox interactions to be 100% independent
of workbox <-> interactions.

The only link between what’s running on virtbox and TS session is the
windbg.
Windbg does run in the TS, but should not be relevant to StartService on
a virtbox. To figure it out, I run

Test #3:

  1. Start a TS session from homebox to workbox, as in (failing) test #1;
  2. same as before, bit start virtbox without windbg attached;
  3. same as before.

Driver loads ok.

So, if windbg is run from a TS session, some operations on a target box
behave as if they run in a remote session also.

Am I missing something and this is the intended behavior or is it a windbg
bug?