Environment
Novell Client 2 SP3 IR1a for Windows 7
Situation
After applying Microsoft update KB 2840149, the Windows 7 computers hang at the "Welcome" screen. There is no option to shutdown and Ctrl-Alt-Del does not not respond.
Resolution
Boot the computer in "safe mode" and remove any reference to remote paths in the PATH statement of the specified environment variables. An example of a remote path would be a UNC to a server, ie., \\<server>\<volume>\<directory. To check the environment variables, right click Computer on the desktop and select Properties, select the "Advanced system settings" link and on the Advanced tab click on the Environment Variables button. Locate the Path statement.
Cause
The computers affected by the update also had invalid environment
variables. In this specific case, the PATH contained a remote location, ie.,
\\<server>\<volume>\<directory> which is unavailable
to the PC pre-login. Removing the remote location from the PATH
variable resolved the issue.