What does HRESULT 0xC0AAB111 (IMAPI_E_RESTRICTED_NAME_VIOLATION) mean?

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: a file or directory name violates the enabled restricted character set.

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IMAPI_E_INVALID_PATH	IMAPI_E_DUP_NAME

IMAPI_E_RESTRICTED_NAME_VIOLATION

IMAPI_E_RESTRICTED_NAME_VIOLATION is tied to the legacy UseRestrictedCharacterSet policy on IFileSystemImage. When enabled, names created afterward are restricted to CP_ANSI characters. Microsoft marks this property deprecated, but existing code can still encounter the HRESULT when it enables the policy and later inserts a name outside the permitted set.

Check the image policy at the moment the item was added

Record the exact Unicode item name and whether UseRestrictedCharacterSet was true before insertion.
Remember that changing the property does not retroactively alter items already present in the image.
Prefer file-system-specific validation or a documented naming policy instead of silently transliterating user names.

This is not the same as IMAPI_E_INVALID_PATH. A structurally valid path can contain a component rejected by the restricted-name policy. Because the property is deprecated, new code should first question why it is enabled. If compatibility requires it, surface the rejected component and use an explicit deterministic name-mapping scheme so two different Unicode names do not collapse to the same ANSI result.

Restricted character set · CreateFileItem · IFileSystemImage

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