What does HRESULT 0x80010130 (CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED) mean?

CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED

LookupAccountSid failed during COM access processing

CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED is HRESULT 2147549488 (0x80010130) from winerror.h. AllStat describes it as “The system function, LookupAccountSID, failed.” In the COM IAccessControl, DCOM client identity, trustee translation, token inspection, security descriptor, ACL, or serialization workflow, the code identifies a specific failure boundary and should not be replaced by a generic COM exception.

A generic “operation failed” message is insufficient for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED because the recovery decision depends on the exact lifecycle, security, marshaling, or state condition.

Diagnostic sequence

• Capture the raw unsigned value 0x80010130 and symbolic name CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED before a language projection, exception wrapper, or generic COM helper replaces it.
• Identify the exact interface, method, callback, activation request, metadata query, access-control operation, or marshaling boundary that returned CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Reconstruct the operation timeline for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, including object creation, thread or apartment initialization, security setup, callbacks, mutations, shutdown, and cleanup.
• Prove the decisive condition: the SID is valid and the target lookup system, buffer-sizing sequence, domain trust, and native error are recorded.
• Inspect every output parameter, handle, interface pointer, token, SID, ACL, stream, buffer, server-side object, or asynchronous result produced before CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Reproduce CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED with the smallest safe input, change only the suspected precondition, and verify that both the HRESULT and postcondition change as predicted.

Where it is encountered

• CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED can be returned during IAccessControl initialization, access checks, owner/trustee processing, and serialized ACL persistence. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, record the interface, method, component version, thread, apartment, process, and correlation ID.
• CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED can be returned during server-side DCOM impersonation, client blanket inspection, token and SID lookup. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, record the interface, method, component version, thread, apartment, process, and correlation ID.
• CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED can be returned during security descriptor construction, DACL canonicalization, file-backed policy storage, or legacy NetAccess migration. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, record the interface, method, component version, thread, apartment, process, and correlation ID.

The immediate focus for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED is translation from a SID to account and domain names where the Win32 lookup call fails. Keep CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED attached to that operation; the same numeric severity outside the owning API does not supply enough context.

Decisive interpretation boundary

Before choosing recovery, verify that the SID is valid and the target lookup system, buffer-sizing sequence, domain trust, and native error are recorded. Validate this condition for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED using the owning API state, not an inferred UI symptom.

For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, also confirm that all observed objects, tokens, buffers, proxies, metadata files, or ACLs belong to the current operation generation and were not retained from an earlier attempt.

Evidence and telemetry

• Preserve SID value and validation for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Preserve lookup system name for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Preserve name and domain buffer sizes for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Preserve native LookupAccountSid error for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Preserve fallback SID display for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.

For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, also record UTC time, process and thread IDs, apartment type, component version, security or package identity where relevant, and a correlation ID. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, use hashes, lengths, GUIDs, and SID strings rather than logging confidential payloads or credentials.

Difference from nearby HRESULTs

CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED wraps API failure; CO_E_NOMATCHINGNAMEFOUND emphasizes that no account name could be found for the SID.

A support tool discussing CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED should name the neighboring result only after the originating API and decisive state are known.

Correct handling and recovery

Use the required-size pattern, allow unresolved SIDs to remain as canonical SID strings, and retry directory lookup only after connectivity or trust changes.

For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, reconcile partial output and server-side effects before attempting the operation again.

Practical scenario

An offline laptop cannot contact a trusted domain for an old SID. The ACL editor displays the SID string and resolves the name after connectivity returns.

A regression test should reproduce CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, assert the raw HRESULT and all relevant outputs, then correct only the decisive condition and verify the intended success or neighboring failure result.

Lifetime, retry, and cleanup rules

After CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, determine whether the current object, interface pointer, call context, token, stream, metadata reader, asynchronous operation, or access-control instance remains valid. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, release only resources owned by the failing attempt, cancel callbacks through their documented mechanism, and avoid double close, double commit, repeated activation, or replay of a non-idempotent remote method.

The retry policy for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED should state the trigger, maximum attempts, cancellation owner, and reconciliation step for effects that may have completed elsewhere.

Developer and administrator guidance

A support bundle for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED should include first-occurrence logs, interface and component identity, object generation, relevant policy, and safe hashes. For CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, redact credentials, tokens, private metadata, ACL identities, and serialized payload contents.

After CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED, avoid broad permission grants or system-wide resets unless code-specific evidence proves a global configuration problem. Define who owns retry, cancellation, cleanup, policy changes, package repair, and user-facing messaging for CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.

References

• Microsoft: IAccessControl — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: IAccessControl::IsAccessAllowed — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: AccessCheck — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: LookupAccountSidW — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: LookupAccountNameW — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: access control lists — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: canonical ACE order — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.
• Microsoft: HRESULT values — official Microsoft documentation relevant to CO_E_LOOKUPACCSIDFAILED.

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