What does HRESULT 0x000401E5 (MK_S_HIM) mean?

MK_S_HIM

Common moniker prefix is the input moniker

MK_S_HIM is HRESULT 262629 (0x000401E5) from winerror.h. AllStat describes MK_S_HIM as “Common prefix is input moniker.” The high-order severity bit is clear, so this is a success result, but it carries more information than plain S_OK.

The common-prefix operation succeeded and found that the supplied other moniker is the shared prefix of the current moniker relationship.

Where this result is encountered

• MK_S_HIM can appear in IMoniker::CommonPrefixWith implementations; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• MK_S_HIM can appear in document-link hierarchy analysis; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.
• MK_S_HIM can appear in conversion between absolute and relative composite monikers; record the producing interface and method rather than inferring behavior from the symbolic name alone.

For MK_S_HIM, the same numeric success value can be mishandled when a wrapper exposes only a Boolean. For MK_S_HIM, 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 MK_S_HIM is whether the input moniker is a prefix, not automatically the same complete object as the current moniker. For MK_S_HIM, the HRESULT alone confirms neither unrelated work nor the quality of optional outputs.

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

Diagnostic sequence

• For MK_S_HIM, capture the raw HRESULT 0x000401E5 immediately after the returning method and record whether the caller used SUCCEEDED, FAILED, equality testing, or exception translation.
• Identify the exact owner of MK_S_HIM: interface, method, object instance, provider or filter version, thread or apartment, and operation phase.
• Validate the decisive contract boundary for MK_S_HIM: the input moniker is a prefix, not automatically the same complete object as the current moniker.
• For MK_S_HIM, 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 MK_S_HIM; do not assume that a success severity bit means every optional sub-operation completed.
• For MK_S_HIM, reproduce the smallest request with the same object state and then change only the condition identified by the evidence before repeating the operation.

Evidence and telemetry to preserve

• For MK_S_HIM, preserve current and input display names.
• For MK_S_HIM, preserve component ordering.
• For MK_S_HIM, preserve moniker class identifiers.
• For MK_S_HIM, preserve returned common-prefix object.
• For MK_S_HIM, preserve relative moniker produced from the current object.

Also record mk_s_him_operation, mk_s_him_object, mk_s_him_state_before, mk_s_him_state_after, UTC time, process and thread identifiers, and a correlation ID. For MK_S_HIM, keep secrets out of logs while retaining GUIDs, CLSIDs, media subtypes, property IDs, row identities, and hashes needed to distinguish objects.

Correct handling, retry, and recovery

Use the input moniker as the prefix and derive the remainder from the current moniker. Avoid reversing source and target when constructing a relative link.

Retry MK_S_HIM only when the recorded state can change the documented outcome. For MK_S_HIM, 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.

Difference from nearby HRESULT values

MK_S_ME selects the current moniker; MK_S_HIM selects the argument; MK_S_US represents a common prefix equal to both complete monikers.

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

Practical validation scenario

A link manager compares an item moniker with its containing document passed as the argument. MK_S_HIM confirms the argument is the prefix and the manager stores only the item remainder.

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

Developer and administrator guidance

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

A support report for MK_S_HIM should include decimal 262629, hexadecimal 0x000401E5, 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 moniker status codes — official documentation relevant to MK_S_HIM.
• Microsoft: IMoniker::CommonPrefixWith — official documentation relevant to MK_S_HIM.
• Microsoft: MonikerCommonPrefixWith — official documentation relevant to MK_S_HIM.

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