BSOD 17 (THREAD_NOT_MUTEX_OWNER): causes and diagnosis

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: A thread tried to release or manipulate a mutex that was owned by another thread.

Could be also:
Constant	Type	OS
ERROR_NOT_SAME_DEVICE	Win32 error	Windows
KERN_INVALID_RIGHT	Kern return	Mac
ippStsUnderflow	Intel Ipp Status	Any
EEXIST	errno	Any

THREAD_NOT_MUTEX_OWNER

Mutex ownership violation

THREAD_NOT_MUTEX_OWNER is bug check code 0x00000011. Kernel mutexes are thread-owned synchronization objects. This bug check indicates that ownership bookkeeping no longer matches the release or wait path, usually because a driver used the wrong object, wrong thread context, or bad unwind path.

How to read it in a dump

Identify the thread in the dump and compare it with the mutex owner.
Look for APC, worker-thread, completion, or cleanup paths that run in a different thread than the acquisition path.
This is separate from spin-lock misuse because mutex ownership is tied to a thread.

What to check

Verify that lock release occurs in the same ownership model used for acquisition.
Inspect handoff between system threads, work items, callbacks, and cancel routines.
Use verifier deadlock detection for repeatable ownership and ordering failures.

References

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