What does HRESULT 0x800401D1 (CLIPBRD_E_CANT_EMPTY) mean?

CLIPBRD_E_CANT_EMPTY

CLIPBRD_E_CANT_EMPTY (0x800401D1) means that the operation failed while emptying the Windows clipboard. Treat it as a failure in the open/empty/publish clipboard transaction, not as evidence that the data you intended to copy is itself invalid.

What to check

• Verify that the calling path successfully opened the clipboard before attempting to empty it.
• Record the window passed to OpenClipboard, the calling thread, and whether reentrant clipboard handling changed state between open and empty.
• If the application plans to call SetClipboardData after emptying, use a real owner window when appropriate; opening with a null window and then emptying leaves the clipboard owner null, which prevents SetClipboardData from succeeding.

Recovery

Close any failed transaction, correct the clipboard ownership sequence, and repeat the complete open/empty/publish/close operation. Do not spin while keeping application locks held.

Technical references

• Microsoft: OpenClipboard.
• Microsoft: EmptyClipboard.
• Microsoft: generic COM error codes.