What does HRESULT 0x00040172 (CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED) mean?

CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED

Only some OLE presentation caches were refreshed

CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED is HRESULT 262514 (0x00040172) from winerror.h. AllStat describes CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED as “Some cache(s) not updated.” The high-order severity bit is clear, so this is a success result, but it carries more information than plain S_OK.

The cache update operation completed partially: at least one cache was updated while one or more other cache entries were not.

Evidence and telemetry to preserve

• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, preserve cache connection identifiers and FORMATETC values.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, preserve per-entry update result.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, preserve running state of the source object.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, preserve ADVF update flags.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, preserve rendered checksums or timestamps for each presentation.

Also record cache_s_somecaches_notupdated_operation, cache_s_somecaches_notupdated_object, cache_s_somecaches_notupdated_state_before, cache_s_somecaches_notupdated_state_after, UTC time, process and thread identifiers, and a correlation ID. For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, keep secrets out of logs while retaining GUIDs, CLSIDs, media subtypes, property IDs, row identities, and hashes needed to distinguish objects.

Where this result is encountered

• CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED can appear in IOleCache2::UpdateCache calls; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED can appear in save or print preparation for embedded objects; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED can appear in offline presentation refresh across multiple aspects and formats; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.

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

State boundary that must be proved

The central question for CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED is whether the caller must identify which cache entries are current before using them for persistence, preview, or printing. For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, the HRESULT alone confirms neither unrelated work nor the quality of optional outputs.

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

Diagnostic sequence

• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, capture the raw HRESULT 0x00040172 immediately after the returning method and record whether the caller used SUCCEEDED, FAILED, equality testing, or exception translation.
• Identify the exact owner of CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED: interface, method, object instance, provider or filter version, thread or apartment, and operation phase.
• Validate the decisive contract boundary for CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED: the caller must identify which cache entries are current before using them for persistence, preview, or printing.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, 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 CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED; do not assume that a success severity bit means every optional sub-operation completed.
• For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, reproduce the smallest request with the same object state and then change only the condition identified by the evidence before repeating the operation.

Difference from nearby HRESULT values

CACHE_S_FORMATETC_NOTSUPPORTED explains an unsupported requested format; CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED reports a mixed refresh outcome across existing caches.

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

Correct handling, retry, and recovery

Use the current entries only where partial freshness is acceptable. Retry or replace failed entries individually; do not report the entire object cache as current.

Retry CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED only when the recorded state can change the documented outcome. For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, 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 container refreshes icon, content, and thumbnail caches before save. Content and icon update, thumbnail does not; the save path preserves the successful entries and marks the thumbnail stale for later repair.

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

Developer and administrator guidance

When CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED crosses process, RPC, scripting, or managed-code boundaries, preserve the unsigned 32-bit value and symbolic name. For CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED, a signed decimal rendering can obscure that the severity bit indicates success and can lead to incorrect exception or retry behavior.

A support report for CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED should include decimal 262514, hexadecimal 0x00040172, 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 cache status codes — official documentation relevant to CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED.
• Microsoft: IOleCache2 — official documentation relevant to CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED.
• Microsoft: IOleCache2::UpdateCache — official documentation relevant to CACHE_S_SOMECACHES_NOTUPDATED.

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