What does HRESULT 0x80040E29 (DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS) mean?

 
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DB_E_BADSTATUSVALUE DB_E_BADREGIONHANDLE

DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS

Rowset does not support scrolling backward

Exact value and interpretation

DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS has the unsigned 32-bit value 2147749417 (0x80040E29) and the signed representation -2147217879. AllStat defines the result as “Rowset does not support scrolling backward”. In the concrete failure represented here, a rowset-positioning operation requests a negative offset but the rowset cannot scroll backward.

The high bit is set for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, so it is a failure HRESULT rather than a success or informational status. Its facility field is 4 (FACILITY_ITF) and its low code is 3625 (0x0E29). Those bit fields place DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS in an interface-defined family, but they do not reveal the provider, object identity, method, rowset generation or command state that produced it.

OLE DB contract boundary

DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS must be interpreted against this contract: OLE DB rowsets own HROW values, fetch position, granted properties and visibility rules; row handles, bookmarks, update state and navigation capabilities remain valid only under the lifetime and generation that produced them.

Start with the current rowset instance, its granted properties and the exact row or position token used by the consumer when investigating DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS. Preserve DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS before ADO, ATL, .NET, a database abstraction layer or an application exception replaces it with a generic message; the exact interface and method matter because one OLE DB object can expose several contracts with different preconditions.

Evidence to collect before changing the system

A useful DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS record includes provider CLSID and version, process architecture, interface and method, COM apartment and thread, object correlation ID, transaction state, and the first preceding HRESULT. When DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS involves row values, bookmarks, keys and query parameters, record types, lengths, hashes or redacted identifiers instead of secrets or full business data.

  • Evidence 1 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: the signed offset and reference position.
  • Evidence 2 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: rowset properties for backward scrolling.
  • Evidence 3 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: the granted properties returned when the rowset was created.

Specific conditions that produce this result

  • Cause 1 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: the rowset is sequential or forward-scroll only.
  • Cause 2 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: the requested backward-scroll property was not granted.
  • Cause 3 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: the offset is interpreted relative to a bookmark that does not support backward movement.

Diagnostic sequence

  1. Capture DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS immediately at the native OLE DB return and obtain the current OLE DB error object before another COM call replaces thread error information.
  2. Identify the exact stage for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: a rowset-positioning operation requests a negative offset but the rowset cannot scroll backward.
  3. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, compare the live command, rowset, accessor or schema state with the metadata and properties actually granted by the provider.
  4. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, inspect per-binding, per-property, per-row or per-record statuses whenever the method supplies them; the aggregate result may not identify the rejected element.
  5. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, reproduce the issue with the smallest command, rowset or definition operation that preserves the same contract boundary.
  6. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, apply one evidence-backed correction, then verify that the operation succeeds and does not merely change into a nearby HRESULT.

Retry and recovery policy

Retry rule for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: retry only on a rowset that grants backward scrolling or with a nonnegative movement. A safe DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS retry must use a changed input, object generation, provider capability or state transition. If the call returning DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS could have created, updated, deleted or copied data, determine partial completion before replaying it.

For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, use bounded retries and preserve cancellation. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, configuration and contract failures should normally fail fast; concurrency, resource or transient state failures may justify retry only after their stated precondition changes.

Corrective actions

  • Action 1 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: request a scrollable rowset when backward positioning is a requirement.
  • Action 2 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: use bookmarks or a consumer-side cache if the provider supports neither scroll nor restart.
  • Action 3 for DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS: disable backward UI actions for forward-only sources.

Practical incident

A cursor wrapper assumes every rowset supports MovePrevious and sends offset -1 to a forward-only provider; capability-aware navigation avoids DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS. The diagnostic value comes from retaining DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS together with the failing interface and object state, not from reducing every provider result to “database error”.

Implementation guidance

Code handling DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS should release OLE DB resources in ownership order, preserve every provider error record, and log granted properties rather than only requested properties. When handling DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, handles such as HACCESSOR, HROW, HCHAPTER and provider-specific region tokens must never be treated as portable integers across object lifetimes.

When DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS crosses an abstraction boundary, attach a stable correlation ID and structured fields for the native HRESULT, provider source, interface IID, method, object generation and operation phase. For DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS, do not log passwords, access tokens, complete SQL text or unrestricted row values merely to make the event easier to search.

Difference from related HRESULT values

DB_E_CANTFETCHBACKWARDS concerns the direction in which rows are returned, while DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS concerns moving the rowset position backward. Keep these outcomes separate in telemetry and user-facing remediation because DB_E_CANTSCROLLBACKWARDS requires a different next action.

Official Microsoft references

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