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hrRestoreInProgress
Why this result matters
hrRestoreInProgress means another restore context already owns the Directory Service restore workflow.
The stored value is 0xC7FF0004 (facility-specific HRESULT). The legacy symbolic name comes from the Windows Directory Service backup/restore message header.
The first useful distinction is that this is workflow exclusivity, not an ESE log-replay error inside the active restore. Start by identifying the active HBC owner, restore mode, locked directories, start time, and whether completion or abort cleanup ran.
Do not confuse it with
This result specifically means that this is workflow exclusivity, not an ESE log-replay error inside the active restore. Related values below can appear in the same workflow but require a different response:
hrInvalidParam | a legacy Directory Service backup/restore call rejected one or more arguments before advancing its context |
|---|---|
hrInvalidHandle | the HBC context or current-file state is invalid for the requested backup/restore operation |
hrInvalidRecips | the recipient information supplied to the legacy backup operation failed validation |
Keep the original constant and hexadecimal value in telemetry. Replacing this result with “backup failed” or “database warning” removes the state information needed to select the next legal API call.
Forensic checklist
- Code-specific observation: identify the active HBC owner, restore mode, locked directories, start time, and whether completion or abort cleanup ran.
Objects and state involved
| Diagnostic layer | the legacy Ntdsbcli HBC context and exact API call contract |
|---|---|
| Relevant API surface | DsBackupPrepare/OpenFile/Read/Close/End and DsRestorePrepare/Register/Complete/End |
| Code-specific condition | another restore context already owns the Directory Service restore workflow |
| Narrow corrective direction | complete or explicitly unwind the existing restore before creating a new context |
Beginning with Windows Vista, Microsoft directs new implementations to VSS instead of these legacy functions. The HBC state advances across calls and must be released even when a later step fails.
Actions that can make diagnosis worse
- Do not continue after an invalid context or undefined output.
- Do not reuse an HBC after end, abort, or a fatal sequence error.
Validation after correction
- Record it,
0xC7FF0004, the API name, the current phase, and all live context or file owners. - Verify the condition by identifying the active HBC owner, restore mode, locked directories, start time, and whether completion or abort cleanup ran.
- Apply only the targeted fix: complete or explicitly unwind the existing restore before creating a new context.
Acceptance criteria for a fix
A useful regression test should force the condition “another restore context already owns the Directory Service restore workflow”, call one documented API transition, and assert the exact HRESULT.
Technical references
- AD backup error values — API ordering, file semantics, warning/error interpretation, or recovery behavior relevant to this HRESULT.
- AD backup walkthrough
- DsRestorePrepare contract
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