Event ID 12240 on Windows Server 2012

Question

I have a Windows Server 2012 and some virtual machines in it. Since last week some error events appears hourly on event viewer saying that the system cannot find a remote VHD file. This VHD file is not available anymore but no one of my virtual machines uses that file anymore.

Do you have any tip of what is trying to access this file and generating this error message?

Log Name:      Microsoft-Windows-Hyper-V-VMMS-Admin
Source:        Microsoft-Windows-Hyper-V-VMMS
Date:          17/09/2014 09:02:34
Event ID:      12240
Task Category: None
Level:         Error
Keywords:      
User:          MYDOMAIN\Administrator
Computer:      MyServer.MyDomain.local
Description:
'': Attachment '\\storage\Backups\Virtual hard disks\MyVHD.vhd' not found. Error: 'The system cannot find the path specified.' (0x80070003). (Virtual machine ID )
Event Xml:
<Event xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events/event">
  <System>
    <Provider Name="Microsoft-Windows-Hyper-V-VMMS" Guid="{6066F867-7CA1-4418-85FD-36E3F9C0600C}" />
    <EventID>12240</EventID>
    <Version>0</Version>
    <Level>2</Level>
    <Task>0</Task>
    <Opcode>0</Opcode>
    <Keywords>0x4000000000000000</Keywords>
    <TimeCreated SystemTime="2014-09-17T12:02:34.871532400Z" />
    <EventRecordID>1403</EventRecordID>
    <Correlation />
    <Execution ProcessID="2188" ThreadID="15252" />
    <Channel>Microsoft-Windows-Hyper-V-VMMS-Admin</Channel>
    <Computer>MyServer.MyDomain.local</Computer>
    <Security UserID="S-1-5-21-3635987302-1851357681-2420863520-500" />
  </System>
  <UserData>
    <VmlEventLog xmlns:auto-ns2="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events" xmlns="http://www.microsoft.com/Windows/Virtualization/Events">
      <VmName>
      </VmName>
      <VmId>
      </VmId>
      <String>\\storage\Backups\Virtual hard disks\MyVHD.vhd</String>
      <ErrorCodeString>%%2147942403</ErrorCodeString>
      <ErrorCode>0x80070003</ErrorCode>
      <Param1>
      </Param1>
      <Param2>
      </Param2>
    </VmlEventLog>
  </UserData>
</Event>

Solution

It's possible there may have been a VM that existed and was not deleted properly.

Please check this path "%systemdrive%\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Hyper-V\Virtual Machines" for any link files to the GUID of the virtual machine.

You will have to stop the VMMS server by clicking the Stop Service in the Actions pane of the Hyper-V Manager before you can delete the link file.