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SCARD_W_CACHE_ITEM_NOT_FOUND
This is a cache miss, not proof that the card lacks data
SCARD_W_CACHE_ITEM_NOT_FOUND is returned by the Windows smart-card cache path when the requested name-value pair is not present in the global cache maintained by the Smart Card Resource Manager. It does not by itself say that the card has no certificate, file, or key. The cache is an optimization layer and is separate from reading the current data from the card or its minidriver.
Windows associates cached data with a card identifier, a lookup name, and freshness information. A cache miss can therefore follow first use, cache cleanup, a different card identity, a different lookup name, or a provider that never wrote the item.
Correct handling
- Read or derive the authoritative value from the card/provider when the application can do so safely.
- Write a cache item only after validating that it belongs to the current card identifier and freshness revision.
- Do not report a cache miss as card removal, certificate loss, or a PIN failure.
References
- Microsoft: SCardReadCache
- Microsoft: Smart Card Architecture
- Microsoft: SCardWriteCache
- PCSC-lite: error codes
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