What does HRESULT 0x00040102 (DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS) mean?

DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS

Use OLE default drag cursors

DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS is HRESULT 262402 (0x00040102) from winerror.h. AllStat describes DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS as “Use the default cursor.” The high-order severity bit is clear, so this is a success result, but it carries more information than plain S_OK.

The drag source feedback callback succeeded and asks OLE to display its standard cursor for the current drop effect.

State boundary that must be proved

The central question for DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS is whether the current effect value is accurate and the source has not installed a custom cursor that it expects to remain active. For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, the HRESULT alone confirms neither unrelated work nor the quality of optional outputs.

A reliable interpretation of DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS names the exact method contract, the object generation, and the outputs that remain valid. For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, this prevents a success-with-information result from being promoted to full success or demoted to a generic error.

Where this result is encountered

• DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS can appear in IDropSource::GiveFeedback implementations; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS can appear in applications that customize only some drag effects; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS can appear in drag operations where OLE owns cursor selection; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.

For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, the same numeric success value can be mishandled when a wrapper exposes only a Boolean. For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, keep the original HRESULT until the code-specific outputs and state transition have been evaluated.

Evidence and telemetry to preserve

• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, preserve current DROPEFFECT flags.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, preserve GiveFeedback call sequence.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, preserve target transitions and modifier keys.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, preserve custom cursor handles if any.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, preserve DPI and theme conditions affecting cursor presentation.

Also record dragdrop_s_usedefaultcursors_operation, dragdrop_s_usedefaultcursors_object, dragdrop_s_usedefaultcursors_state_before, dragdrop_s_usedefaultcursors_state_after, UTC time, process and thread identifiers, and a correlation ID. For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, keep secrets out of logs while retaining GUIDs, CLSIDs, media subtypes, property IDs, row identities, and hashes needed to distinguish objects.

Diagnostic sequence

• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, capture the raw HRESULT 0x00040102 immediately after the returning method and record whether the caller used SUCCEEDED, FAILED, equality testing, or exception translation.
• Identify the exact owner of DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS: interface, method, object instance, provider or filter version, thread or apartment, and operation phase.
• Validate the decisive contract boundary for DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS: the current effect value is accurate and the source has not installed a custom cursor that it expects to remain active.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, inspect every output parameter, count, status array, returned interface, or side effect that the method documentation associates with this success-with-information result.
• Compare the observed state before and after DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS; do not assume that a success severity bit means every optional sub-operation completed.
• For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, reproduce the smallest request with the same object state and then change only the condition identified by the evidence before repeating the operation.

Correct handling, retry, and recovery

Return the status intentionally when default feedback is desired. Do not treat it as the final result of DoDragDrop or as evidence that a target accepted the data.

Retry DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS only when the recorded state can change the documented outcome. For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, repeating the same call is inappropriate for a stable end marker, cancellation, unsupported format, adjusted property, or partial result whose completed side effects have not been reconciled.

Practical validation scenario

A source uses a custom cursor for a proprietary link effect but standard cursors for copy and move. GiveFeedback returns DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS for copy, allowing OLE to keep cursor behavior consistent.

The negative test should preserve the condition that produces DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS; the recovery test should alter only that condition and verify the final state as well as the HRESULT.

Difference from nearby HRESULT values

DRAGDROP_S_DROP and DRAGDROP_S_CANCEL terminate the drag loop; DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS only controls feedback while the loop continues.

For DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS, this distinction determines whether the caller should consume partial outputs, stop iteration, wait, reconfigure, notify the user, or perform no error recovery at all.

Developer and administrator guidance

Code handling DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS should test the exact documented value before a generic SUCCEEDED(hr) branch when outputs or control flow differ. Operational remediation for DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS should target the owning COM, media, Tablet PC, or OLE DB component instead of resetting unrelated services.

A support report for DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS should include decimal 262402, hexadecimal 0x00040102, the AllStat meaning, the owning API, and the first detailed status or output that explains why the method did not return ordinary S_OK.

References

• Microsoft: COM drag-and-drop status codes — official documentation relevant to DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS.
• Microsoft: IDropSource::GiveFeedback — official documentation relevant to DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS.
• Microsoft: DoDragDrop — official documentation relevant to DRAGDROP_S_USEDEFAULTCURSORS.

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