Windows error 36 (ERROR_SHARING_BUFFER

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: Windows exhausted internal resources used to track files opened for sharing.

Could be also:
Constant	Type	OS
KERN_NOT_DEPRESSED	Kern return	Mac
ippStsNotSupportedCpu	Intel Ipp Status	Any
ENAMETOOLONG	errno	Linux
EINPROGRESS	errno	Mac
EIDRM	errno	Solaris
EDEADLK	errno	Windows
NTFS_FILE_SYSTEM	BugCheck Code	Windows

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ERROR_WRONG_DISK	ERROR_HANDLE_EOF

ERROR_SHARING_BUFFER_EXCEEDED

Sharing-state resources are exhausted

ERROR_SHARING_BUFFER_EXCEEDED is a legacy system error indicating that Windows cannot track another shared file opening with the available internal resources. It is distinct from a normal sharing violation caused by incompatible access flags.

What to investigate

Look for unusually large numbers of open file handles.
Confirm every success path and error path closes handles promptly.
Check whether a service repeatedly opens the same file instead of reusing a controlled handle.
Inspect process and system handle counts during the failure period.

Recovery

Release leaked or unnecessary handles and reduce concurrent opens. A delayed retry can succeed after resources are freed, but repeated failures indicate a lifecycle or workload problem. Modern applications should still report this specific condition rather than converting it into a misleading file-not-found message.

References

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