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hrInvalidBackup
Operational meaning
For hrInvalidBackup, a correct handler first decides whether the value is success, warning, or failure, then examines the documented outputs. The decisive boundary is an incremental external backup was requested while circular logging prevents preservation of the required historical log range.
The stored Value is 0xC800020E (negative JET error -526; -526). The HRESULT carries failure severity, so output state must be treated according to the individual API contract. Current ESE documentation uses JET_errInvalidBackup for the corresponding published JET condition.
The first useful distinction is that the backup can be structurally well formed yet invalid for incremental semantics. Start by record backup grbits, circular-log setting, oldest retained generation, checkpoint, and the full-backup baseline. That separates a reproducible incident from a later generic cleanup or service error.
Before altering files or retrying
Preserve the first result before retries, cleanup, service restart, or file replacement changes the evidence. The diagnostic record should identify the exact API phase and the owner of every handle or artifact involved.
- Code-specific observation: record backup grbits, circular-log setting, oldest retained generation, checkpoint, and the full-backup baseline.
- Catalog and truncation history: record it together with this result and the timestamp of the first occurrence.
- Full and incremental backup IDs: record it together with this result and the timestamp of the first occurrence.
- Database and log signatures: record it together with this result and the timestamp of the first occurrence.
- Generation range and checkpoint: record it together with this result and the timestamp of the first occurrence.
Use hashes, lengths, IDs, generation numbers, and redacted samples instead of copying directory contents or sensitive database values into routine logs. For this it investigation, a complete provenance chain is often more useful than a second automatic retry.
Comparison points
It specifically means that the backup can be structurally well formed yet invalid for incremental semantics. Related values below can appear in the same workflow but require a different response:
hrFullBackupNotTaken | the caller requested an incremental backup without a completed full backup recorded as its baseline |
|---|---|
hrIncrementalBackupDisabled | the database lineage no longer permits the requested incremental backup and requires a new full baseline |
hrLogFileNotFound | an incremental Directory Service backup cannot assemble the required transaction-log set |
Keep the original constant and hexadecimal value in telemetry. Replacing it with “backup failed” or “database warning” removes the state information needed to select the next legal API call.
Objects and state involved
| Diagnostic layer | full-backup baseline, incremental descendants, retained log generations, and catalog lineage |
|---|---|
| Relevant API surface | DsBackupPrepare backup type, log enumeration/truncation, and ESE external backup |
| Code-specific boundary | an incremental external backup was requested while circular logging prevents preservation of the required historical log range |
| Narrow corrective direction | take a full backup or switch logging policy through supported configuration before starting a new incremental chain |
An incremental backup depends on a previous full database image and a continuous required log history., circular logging retires old generations based on checkpoint state rather than backup-chain retention needs.
Recommended handling
- Record it,
0xC800020E, the API name, the current phase, and all live context or file owners. - Verify the decisive condition by record backup grbits, circular-log setting, oldest retained generation, checkpoint, and the full-backup baseline.
- Apply only the narrow correction: take a full backup or switch logging policy through supported configuration before starting a new incremental chain.
- After it, recreate any context invalidated by the failure; do not carry stale HBC, cursor, file, or restore-map state into the retry.
- repeat the smallest non-destructive test that reaches the same boundary, then verify both the return value and the resulting file, cursor, backup, or database state.
Acceptance criteria for a fix
Actions that can make diagnosis worse
- do not delete logs manually to make a directory look clean.
- do not combine an incremental set with an unrelated full backup.
- do not discard the first lower-level Win32, RPC, or JET result merely because a later cleanup call returned a more familiar error.
Technical references
- AD backup walkthrough — API ordering, file semantics, warning/error interpretation, or recovery behavior relevant to it.
- ESE files and circular logging
- External backup sequence
- Microsoft JET_ERR enumeration
- Microsoft list of AD DS backup errors
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