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OSS_BAD_ARG
OSS_BAD_ARG (0x80093006) is an OSS ASN.1 runtime result for invalid runtime API argument. At least one call parameter violates the OSS runtime contract, commonly because a required pointer is null or a length, selector, or flag is inconsistent. Because function name and complete nonsecret argument metadata is central to this condition, Microsoft’s HRESULT range and the OSS Nokalva return-code documentation should be read together. Start the investigation by recording pointer nullness and buffer-length pairs, then separate the encoded value from generated artifacts, call arguments, and the runtime package actually loaded by the process.
Neighboring statuses: OSS_BAD_ARG
BAD_ARG is detected at the public call boundary; BAD_PTR more often describes a broken pointer inside the value graph being encoded.
What the return code narrows down
At the invalid runtime API argument boundary, capture the first OSS function returning the value and note whether the operation was encode, decode, copy, compare, constraint validation, or trace setup. Preserve the selected PDU, encoding rules, and initialization state of the control object; otherwise an outer certificate or security wrapper may hide the useful codec result behind a generic failure.
Test one variable at a time
- reduce the call to a documented minimal example
- validate lengths before crossing the DLL boundary
- enable compiler and page-heap checks in a test process
Build a useful capture
| Record | Diagnostic value |
|---|---|
| function name and complete nonsecret argument metadata | Locates the concrete message, allocation, module, or API boundary |
| pointer nullness and buffer-length pairs | Separates payload-dependent behavior from build and process state |
| initialization state of the control object | Makes the comparison reproducible without rewriting the original artifact |
Keep the original bytes or object graph unchanged while testing reduce the call to a documented minimal example. A change in pointer nullness and buffer-length pairs after reload, plugin replacement, restart, or schema deployment is evidence about runtime state, not permission to discard the reproducer. When initialization state of the control object points to one message, retain a cryptographic hash and the smallest safe sample instead of logging certificate, subscriber, credential, or private-key material.
Decision matrix
| Controlled observation | Conclusion it supports |
|---|---|
| reduce the call to a documented minimal example | A changed outcome isolates the first proposed control instead of a blind retry |
| function name and complete nonsecret argument metadata differs between success and failure | The difference localizes the invalid runtime API argument boundary before unrelated settings are changed |
| An independent decoder accepts the same artifact | Inspect generated schema, selected rules, ABI, and optional OSS modules before declaring the bytes invalid |
| A fresh control object changes the outcome | Investigate initialization, lifecycle, allocator ownership, configuration mutation, and concurrent access |
Instrumentation
Record the full 32-bit HRESULT and lower OSS return number together with operation direction, symbolic PDU, encoding rule, byte count, and generated-table identifier. Where function name and complete nonsecret argument metadata can expose sensitive content, a hash plus a bounded structural excerpt is safer than the complete payload. Use pointer nullness and buffer-length pairs together with OSS module paths and versions logged once per process so packaging differences can be correlated without flooding normal diagnostics.
Verify the repair: the result
Repair the call contract and add assertions immediately before the runtime invocation. A recovery test built around reduce the call to a documented minimal example should replay the same operation under the same schema and encoding rule, retain one deliberately invalid control, and verify ownership and cleanup after both outcomes. Success after an unexamined retry is not proof that function name and complete nonsecret argument metadata now satisfies the codec contract.
Technical references
- Microsoft: OSS ASN.1 HRESULT definitions
- OSS Nokalva: encoder/decoder return codes
- OSS Nokalva: runtime functions and control initialization
- Relevant ASN.1 specification or runtime detail
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