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hrInvalidName
Why this is more specific than the message text
For hrInvalidName, the diagnostic value comes from the specific ESE error family and the exact operation that returned it. The decisive boundary is an ESE object name failed the naming contract before object lookup could succeed.
This result is the legacy Directory Service backup/restore HRESULT form of the ESE condition normally written as JET_errInvalidName. Preserve the original value 0xC80003EA when a wrapper also exposes a signed JET_ERR.
The key comparison for this HRESULT is this: hrObjectNotFound means a valid lookup missed; this result means the identifier itself is unacceptable. The first useful observation is to log the original Unicode name, byte length, normalization, separators, and whether it denotes a table, index, or database. This it evidence separates malformed input from a valid name, path, or buffer that simply produced no result.
Related ESE boundaries
For this HRESULT, hrObjectNotFound means a valid lookup missed; this result means the identifier itself is unacceptable. The following neighboring results belong to the same broad subsystem but mark different boundaries:
hrInvalidFilename | the filename component fails ESE rules even if the parent path exists |
|---|---|
hrInvalidParameter | the function received a value or combination that violates its call contract |
hrInvalidBufferSize | the supplied byte count is incompatible with the selected column type or operation |
Keep this result in the incident record; replacing it with “database error” hides whether the next step is handle renewal, schema correction, lock reconciliation, or file preservation.
The ESE objects in play
| Diagnostic layer | API argument, naming, path, and buffer contracts |
|---|---|
| Typical API surface | the specific Jet* function named by the caller and its structure definitions in esent.h |
| Code-specific boundary | an ESE object name failed the naming contract before object lookup could succeed |
| First corrective direction | construct the name with the documented character and length rules and preserve it without lossy conversion |
Many output APIs expose a required byte count, while fixed-width inputs must match a declared type exactly., the original Unicode value and byte length matter when diagnosing names and paths.
Data for a reproducible case
A useful trace for this HRESULT should preserve the first failing operation and the state of the API argument, naming, path, and buffer contracts.
- Code-specific observation: log the original Unicode name, byte length, normalization, separators, and whether it denotes a table, index, or database.
- the documented required-size value for any output buffer; associate it with it rather than with a later generic exception.
- the unmodified argument value with its Unicode and byte lengths; associate it with it rather than with a later generic exception.
- structure sizes, reserved fields, grbits, and API version; associate it with it rather than with a later generic exception.
Log lengths, hashes, IDs, flags, and redacted samples where appropriate.
Corrective workflow
- Freeze the failing request context and record it,
0xC80003EA, the Jet API name, and the current instance/session ownership. - Verify the code-specific precondition: log the original Unicode name, byte length, normalization, separators, and whether it denotes a table, index, or database.
- Apply the narrow correction: construct the name with the documented character and length rules and preserve it without lossy conversion.
- Before retrying it, reconcile the exact argument bytes and the absence of unintended object creation.
- confirm both the returned HRESULT and the resulting database, cursor, or file state; then add a regression test that forces the old boundary and proves cleanup leaves no stale handles.
Actions that can hide or worsen the problem
- do not silently trim, recode, or sanitize the value into a different identifier.
- do not grow a fixed-width input buffer as though it were a variable output.
Developer-facing acceptance test
Build a focused test that reproduces it at the API argument, naming, path, and buffer contracts layer. Record the precondition, execute one API call, and assert the HRESULT plus the resulting handle and transaction state. The corrected it test should change only the decisive condition—an ESE object name failed the naming contract before object lookup could succeed—and should prove that cleanup is safe if the call still fails.
Technical references
- ESE reference — used to verify the ESE object model, API ordering, or error family relevant to it.
- Using ESE and esent.h
- JET_ERR enumeration
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