What does macOS kernel return 38 (KERN_LOCK_SET_DESTROYED) mean?

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: The Mach lock set was destroyed and can no longer be used by the requested operation.

Could be also:
Constant	Type	OS
ERROR_HANDLE_EOF	Win32 error	Windows
ippStsSymKernelExpected	Intel Ipp Status	Any
ENOSYS	errno	Linux
ENOTSOCK	errno	Mac
EL2NSYNC	errno	Solaris
ENAMETOOLONG	errno	Windows
CDFS_FILE_SYSTEM	BugCheck Code	Windows

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KERN_TERMINATED	KERN_LOCK_UNSTABLE

KERN_LOCK_SET_DESTROYED

A destroyed synchronization container

KERN_LOCK_SET_DESTROYED means the lock-set object itself is no longer available. It is not the same as KERN_LOCK_OWNED, where a valid lock is held by another thread, or KERN_LOCK_UNSTABLE, where ownership became invalid after a holder terminated.

The diagnosis should focus on lock-set lifetime: destruction must not race with clients that can still attempt acquisition, release, or membership operations.

What to inspect

Identify which component owns destruction and how it excludes new clients.
Check whether outstanding waiters and callbacks are drained before the lock set is released.
Look for a cached reference that outlives its parent service or task.
Determine whether the result follows a controlled shutdown or an unexpected termination path.

References

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