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DISP_E_BADINDEX
Automation index is outside the valid collection range
DISP_E_BADINDEX is HRESULT 2147614731 (0x8002000B) from winerror.h. The documented description is “Invalid index.” The value must be interpreted at IDispatch collection access, property indexing, or a dispatch helper that validates an index.
The requested numeric or named index does not identify an existing element in the current collection state. Keep the symbolic name beside the raw hexadecimal value so later analysis does not collapse the result into an unrelated COM family.
Where the result appears
- This result is returned while Automation binds or executes IDispatch collection access, property indexing, or a dispatch helper that validates an index.
Determine the object and lifecycle phase that owned this result; a UI symptom cannot establish whether the origin was the caller, proxy, runtime, server, or metadata producer.
Typical causes and interpretation
Common cause categories are: the caller assumes zero-based indexing; the collection changed; a stale index is reused; the key belongs to another collection. Evaluate these branches independently and require evidence from the owning API before promoting one branch to the root cause.
Key distinction: the requested numeric or named index does not identify an existing element in the current collection state.
Evidence to preserve
- Record this result with the object CLSID or ProgID, interface identity, member DISPID, dispatch flags, and type-library version.
- Capture collection count and version; requested index; zero- or one-based convention; deletion events; enumerator position.
Log identifiers, sizes, type tags, states, and hashes while excluding credentials, tokens, document payloads, and complete user arguments.
Correct handling and recovery
The appropriate recovery is to query current bounds, prefer stable keys where supported, handle concurrent mutation, and avoid retrying the same stale index. The owner of retry must define idempotency, refreshed state, maximum attempts, backoff, and cancellation responsibility.
After it, apply the API-specific validity rules to outputs and release only resources whose ownership transferred during this attempt.
Practical scenario
A COM collection is one-based, but a C++ loop starts at zero; adjusting the bounds removes the first failing access.
A regression test should force the relevant precondition, assert native outputs, fix only that condition, and confirm the expected neighboring result.
Difference from related HRESULTs
DISP_E_MEMBERNOTFOUND concerns an unknown dispatch member; it concerns an invalid element position supplied to a known member.
Represent this distinction directly in control flow and dashboards instead of grouping it under a single COM-failure label.
References
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