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NS_E_LICENSE_EXPIRED
Why the symbolic result matters
When NS_E_LICENSE_EXPIRED is returned, the system has already established that the product-level authorization has passed its validity end, before content rights are evaluated. The subsystem producing this result is Windows Media licensing, not the media decoder; it performs the feature or media-operation licensing gate that decides whether the installed product and the current content-rights object permit the requested operation.
Before changing the machine, read the product-license validity interval and system time from the same host.
Objects involved
Do not separate this result from its owning state: application feature entitlement, media license, requested operation, validity interval and rights flags. The diagnostic record is the API operation, feature identifier, license identity, validity dates and rights returned for that exact operation.
A later generic error must not replace this evidence: the original condition remains that the product-level authorization has passed its validity end, before content rights are evaluated.
Cause and successor state
When documenting this result, state the rejected input and the expected successor state. The rejected input is demonstrated when you read the product-license validity interval and system time from the same host; the successor becomes reachable after you renew or replace the expired product entitlement and then recreate the media operation.
What separates this code
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Direct check | read the product-license validity interval and system time from the same host |
Adjacent HRESULTs
| Result | Why it points elsewhere |
|---|---|
NS_E_NOT_LICENSED | the installed application has no entitlement for the requested Windows Media feature |
NS_E_LICENSE_REQUIRED | the media operation reached a content-protection gate with no usable license object |
NS_E_LICENSE_OUTOFDATE | a license exists but its time or revision constraints no longer authorize this media object |
First failure versus cleanup
The product-level authorization has passed its validity end, before content rights are evaluated.
Verification sequence
- Preserve it and
0xC00D00D4before cleanup, fallback or another media item changes the context. - Compare the failure with a known-good case that changes only the property named by this condition: the product-level authorization has passed its validity end, before content rights are evaluated.
- Apply the targeted fix: renew or replace the expired product entitlement and then recreate the media operation.
- Associate it with its current Windows Media licensing object and the requested action.
- Run the direct check: read the product-license validity interval and system time from the same host.
Safe recovery
Repair the owner of the check: renew or replace the expired product entitlement and then recreate the media operation.
- Preserve the evidence before making changes. Do not assume that installing a codec changes licensing state; codec availability and permission to use the feature or content are independent checks.
Technical references
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