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UI_E_STORYBOARD_NOT_PLAYING
Within Windows Animation Manager, UI_E_STORYBOARD_NOT_PLAYING reports that a playback operation targeted a storyboard that is not currently playing. Diagnosis of this result should follow the original owner and generation rather than treating the visible symptom as the cause.
Mechanism behind the code
During a this result investigation, Windows Animation is a stateful COM subsystem. Animation variables, transitions and storyboards are created under a manager, scheduled against a monotonic animation time, updated before drawing, and eventually sealed or released., a visible glitch can therefore be downstream of a lifecycle, ownership, timeline, callback, or numeric contract failure.
Pause, resume, finish, or status-dependent control requires a scheduled storyboard in the appropriate state., a storyboard definition can be valid and complete while not being in playback.
The first owner to inspect is the animation manager, storyboard, transition, timer, or callback that returned the HRESULT.
High-value telemetry
| Capture | Diagnostic value |
|---|---|
| Requested control operation for this HRESULT. | This places the failure on the lifecycle or transaction timeline and helps test the Windows Animation Manager boundary. |
| Storyboard status immediately before it for this HRESULT. | This separates caller input from environment and service state and helps test the Windows Animation Manager boundary. |
| Schedule result and time for this HRESULT. | This provides a stable comparison across retries or another machine and helps test the Windows Animation Manager boundary. |
| Prior cancel, abandon, or completion event for this HRESULT. | This identifies the exact object or resource generation involved and helps test the Windows Animation Manager boundary. |
Decision table
- Fresh storyboard or animation object: for this HRESULT, a changed result separates retained object, connection, path, host, or device state from the original input. Hold constant: for this HRESULT, keep the timeline, transitions, and manager version fixed.
- Reduced failing operation: If this result follows the reduced step, the rejecting transition is localized. Hold constant: for this HRESULT, retain requested control operation and remove only unrelated work.
- Targeted corrective control: Use this as a diagnostic branch rather than a blanket workaround: check Schedule and its HRESULT. Hold constant: for this HRESULT, keep the original failing sample available for the final regression test.
Safe reduction procedure
When it is returned, use a disposable control object, repository copy, file, or device association where the subsystem permits it.
- First: Check Schedule and its HRESULT.
- Next: Gate playback controls on current status.
- Then: Record completion and cancellation transitions.
- Finally: Create a state-machine test for schedule-play-complete.
Do not erase the distinction
During an investigation, UI_E_STORYBOARD_ACTIVE rejects operations that require inactivity; NOT_PLAYING rejects operations that require playback.
Do not call Resume as a substitute for initial Schedule.
Successful outcome
Verify it with the original scenario, one boundary case, and one deliberate failure; success means the control is accepted only in its valid state and invalid transitions are handled without retry loops.
Technical references
The references below define the API family or storage/protocol behavior used to interpret it.
- Microsoft: Windows Animation error codes
- Microsoft: Schedule a storyboard
- Microsoft: IUIAnimationManager interface
- Microsoft: IUIAnimationStoryboard interface
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