HRESULT 0xC0262433 (ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT

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Description:

The chain of linked adapters is not ready to start because of an unknown failure.

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ERROR_GRAPHICS_CHAINLINKS_NOT_ENUMERATED	ERROR_GRAPHICS_CHAINLINKS_NOT_STARTED

ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY

Why this is not a generic GPU failure: graphics adapter chain not ready

Windows reports ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY (0xC0262433) at the linked checkpoint. Here, the complete adapter chain could not reach a startable state. That narrows the first investigation to linked-adapter aggregate readiness instead of the entire GPU stack.

ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY: Linked-adapter failures are ordered PnP and power problems. For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, Restarting only the lead member can make the state less consistent and hide the first failing chain device. For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, the built-in one-line message identifies the immediate result; diagnosis also needs the producing API, object ownership and the display generation current at the time.

The smallest evidence set

Capture item	Why it matters for `ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY`
Current graph state	lead adapter, chain members and their PnP/power transitions
Supporting trace	device-instance IDs, lead/chain role, PnP problem codes, Dx states and start/power IRP ordering
Object identity	linked-adapter aggregate readiness
Rejected boundary	the complete adapter chain could not reach a startable state
Decisive capture	state of every member, first failing start result, power state, enumeration and driver versions

For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, preserve the unsigned HRESULT, symbolic name, first failing API and timestamp in one record. If cleanup later fails too, keep that secondary result separately from ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.

A/B test for the exact condition

Freeze the ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY generation. Record state of every member, first failing start result, power state, enumeration and driver versions. Before diagnosing ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, do not resize, hot-plug, recreate or release the object under examination.
Run the narrow ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY comparison. start each member independently in a controlled diagnostic environment to locate the first failure. During the ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY comparison, keep every driver, monitor, resource format and unrelated policy unchanged.
Observe the layer after ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY. For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, if the exact check passes, record the next HRESULT or visible outcome. A different downstream result shows that the ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY boundary was crossed.
Repeat ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY through a lifecycle transition. For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, exercise one relevant resize, mode switch, device recreation, hot-plug or session change and confirm that this result does not reuse stale handles.

The comparison with ERROR_GRAPHICS_CHAINLINKS_NOT_STARTED is especially useful: ERROR_GRAPHICS_CHAINLINKS_NOT_STARTED states that members simply have not started yet. For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, recording both names prevents a broad “graphics error” label from merging distinct ownership, capability and lifetime problems.

Safe remediation

Repair the first failing member or dependency before retrying the chain. Repair of ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY is complete only when the original call succeeds or returns its documented nonfatal status and the same lifetime test remains correct after a second display transition.

The ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY trace identifies one producing API and one current graphics object, rather than only the final UI symptom.
The passing run changes exactly the condition described for ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY; unrelated adapter, monitor and application state remains unchanged.
For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, debug-layer, ETW or driver diagnostics no longer report the rejected linked-adapter aggregate readiness contract during the same scenario.
The application handles recurrence of ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY without an unbounded retry loop, leaked resource, duplicate composition target or stale topology handle.

Implementation notes for `ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY`

For ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY, log device-instance IDs, lead/chain role, PnP problem codes, Dx states and start/power IRP ordering. When the ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY path returns a count, size, status flag or replacement object, retain it even on a nonfatal result because it can direct the next call.

A production fallback for ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY should be explicit: pause rendering, re-enumerate, rebuild one cache entry, recreate a device, or decline a protected path only when this layer calls for that action. Reinstalling every display component, deleting all caches or forcing a resolution change is not an evidence-based fix for ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.

Technical references

Microsoft: DirectX graphics kernel subsystem — background for the linked-adapter aggregate readiness boundary involved in ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.
Microsoft: WDDM architecture — background for the linked-adapter aggregate readiness boundary involved in ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.
Microsoft: Display miniport driver requirements — background for the linked-adapter aggregate readiness boundary involved in ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.
Microsoft: Graphics error codes — background for the linked-adapter aggregate readiness boundary involved in ERROR_GRAPHICS_ADAPTER_CHAIN_NOT_READY.

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