Access Violation in Cmd.exe When Processing Batch File Script

ID: Q167010

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0
Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0

SYMPTOMS

An access violation may occur in Cmd.exe when processing a batch file script that contains a set statement that sets an environment variable surrounded by % (percent) characters.

For example:


   set %LOG%=c:\tmp\log.txt

when LOG is not an existing environment variable.

An access violation may also occur when processing a batch file in which a variable name is set that begins with an equal sign.

CAUSE

The error condition was not handled correctly.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT version 4.0. This problem was corrected in the latest Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 U.S. Service Pack. For information on obtaining the service pack, query on the following word in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (without the spaces):

S E R V P A C K

Keywords : kbbug4.00 kbfix4.00 ntgeneral kbfix4.00.sp2 NTSrvWkst
Version : 4.00
Platform : winnt
Issue type : kbbug