| Previous | Next |
| ONL_E_ACCOUNT_SUSPENDED_ABUSE | ONL_CONNECTION_COUNT_LIMIT |
ONL_E_ACTION_REQUIRED
Within Windows Online ID and interactive account authentication ONL_E_ACTION_REQUIRED (0x8086000C) reports that authentication requires a visible user action that silent token acquisition cannot complete. Treat it as the Online ID action required condition and start with broker prompt requirement, requested scope and current window context, not with the final dialog text.
Why this HRESULT is specific
The broker can return this HRESULT before a service ticket is issued. Keep the asynchronous operation, requested scopes or tickets, application identity, UI context and account remediation result together; a wrapper message such as “sign-in failed” discards the distinction.
The decisive question is whether the recorded evidence supports the reported condition that authentication requires a visible user action that silent token acquisition cannot complete. Keep evidence tied to the failing operation.
Evidence that can change the diagnosis
- Primary record: broker prompt requirement, requested scope and current window context.
- Object correlation: keep the product, account, package, device, key, or API identity associated with broker prompt requirement, requested scope and current window context beside the first timestamped result.
- Neighboring-state control: use a controlled comparison that tests whether generic action required does not identify a password failure and must be resolved interactively; this separates the named condition from a nearby status.
- Before/after result: retain the outcome before and after the corrective action “present broker ui from a valid foreground window and handle cancellation separately”; keep the same identifiers until the broker returns a fresh result.
How to distinguish nearby failures
Nearby condition: Generic action required does not identify a password failure and must be resolved interactively. Hold broker prompt requirement, requested scope and current window context constant while changing only the prerequisite described.
Controlled troubleshooting sequence
- Locate the exact object: Use the primary record to identify the transaction or licensed object that actually returned this result.
- Preserve the first decision: Record the earliest event stating that authentication requires a visible user action that silent token acquisition cannot complete, together with the code, UTC time, and the same identity fields.
- Change one prerequisite: Present broker ui from a valid foreground window and handle cancellation separately; do not combine this with a store reset, key replacement, account removal, package reinstall, or unrelated repair.
- Repeat the user operation: Re-run the original operation and require that the broker returns a fresh result; if another HRESULT appears, diagnose it as a new boundary.
Evidence-preserving cautions
While investigating this result, do not collect passwords or tokens in diagnostic logs, and do not bypass broker UI with embedded credential forms. That shortcut can replace or invalidate that evidence before the original decision is understood.
Verification
The incident is resolved only when the broker returns a fresh result. Confirm the result by repeating the exact operation that produced this result; maintenance success alone is insufficient.
Technical references
- Microsoft Win32 metadata: winerror.h — status definition reference.
- Microsoft: Errors associated with Web Account Manager — owning service/API reference.
- Microsoft: OnlineIdAuthenticator class — diagnostic/remediation API reference.
- Microsoft: OnlineIdAuthenticator.AuthenticateUserAsync — lifecycle reference.
Looking for a different code? Search another status or error code.