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DV_E_LINDEX
Invalid lindex
Windows defines DV_E_LINDEX as 2147745896 (0x80040068; signed value -2147221400). The documented description is “Invalid lindex”. FORMATETC::lindex is invalid for the requested aspect or data format. The relevant operation is validating a FORMATETC before GetData, QueryGetData, SetData, or cache negotiation.
Where it is raised
COM data-transfer structures are compound contracts: a field can be numerically well formed yet invalid for the provider, object instance, requested aspect, or ownership rules. Diagnosis therefore has to preserve the complete descriptor and the exact method that consumed it.
- Associate this result with one exact operation in IDataObject, FORMATETC/STGMEDIUM negotiation, data advisory enumeration, or OLE rendering.
- Confirm that this result came from validating a FORMATETC before GetData, QueryGetData, SetData, or cache negotiation, rather than from cleanup or a wrapper that ran afterward.
Telemetry checklist
A useful incident records the IDataObject identity, method, clipboard format, aspect, lindex, tymed mask, target-device size, advisory cookie, and ownership of every returned interface or medium.
- Record the exact signed lindex value and the selected DVASPECT.
- enumerate supported FORMATETC values and compare index semantics, not only cfFormat.
- Check structure packing and language interop where -1 can become 4294967295.
Why it is specific
- It can result when the caller passes a nonnegative index for a format that is not page-oriented.
- It can result when the index is outside the provider-defined range for a multi-page or multi-item representation.
- It can result when a wrapper converts the documented -1 sentinel to an unsigned or truncated value.
Investigation order
- Identify the exact object, method, and lifecycle phase involved in validating a FORMATETC before GetData, QueryGetData, SetData, or cache negotiation.
Safe handling
Correction. use the index contract advertised for that format, commonly -1 when the entire aspect rather than one page is requested. Retry condition. A retry is safe after correcting lindex before any medium is transferred; do not loop with the same index. Before repeating the operation, release every returned STGMEDIUM according to pUnkForRelease, retain advisory cookies only after successful DAdvise, and discard enumerated formats after the data object is replaced.
Practical scenario
A preview handler requests DVASPECT_CONTENT with lindex 0 even though the source supports only the whole presentation at lindex -1; changing only lindex makes QueryGetData succeed.
Difference from related HRESULTs
DV_E_DVASPECT rejects the aspect value; it says the selected position within that aspect is invalid.
Developer and administrator guidance
Copy complete FORMATETC and DVTARGETDEVICE structures, preserve signed lindex values, intersect tymed masks before requesting data, and encode STGMEDIUM ownership explicitly. Regression coverage should include provider-advertised versus caller-invented formats, supported and unsupported DVASPECT/tymed combinations, sentinel lindex values, malformed target-device sizes, and replacement during advisory callbacks.
Compare the data provider, consumer, and registered handler versions; repair a handler only when traces identify that provider as missing or incompatible.
References
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