About Error Decoder

Error Decoder is a free, independent reference that turns cryptic error codes into plain English. You paste a code such as 0x80070005, ERR_CONNECTION_RESET, 503 or P0420, and you get what it means, why it usually happens and what you can try next.

Who runs this site

Error Decoder is run by an independent publisher. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Microsoft, Google, Valve, the Linux Foundation, IANA or any vehicle manufacturer. Product names and trademarks mentioned on the site belong to their owners and are used only to identify the software or hardware an error code comes from.

There is no company or large editorial team behind the site, and we will not pretend otherwise. The pages are researched, written and maintained by the publisher, with help from the readers who report mistakes. You can reach us at any time at contact@errordecoder.online.

Why it exists

Most error messages are written for the developer who built the software, not for the person staring at the screen. A dialog that says "0x80070005" or "STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION" tells you almost nothing on its own. The official definitions are public, but they are spread across SDK header files, source code repositories and standards registries that most people never open.

Error Decoder collects those definitions in one searchable place, explains them in ordinary language and, where we can, adds practical steps to try. The goal is simple: get you from "what does this even mean?" to a sensible next step in under a minute.

What is covered

The database currently contains several thousand codes across these families:

  • Windows: Win32 system error codes, HRESULT values (for example 0x8007xxxx) and NTSTATUS codes (for example 0xC0000005).
  • Browsers: Chrome and Microsoft Edge network errors such as ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED.
  • HTTP: the official HTTP status codes, from 100 Continue to 511 Network Authentication Required.
  • Linux: errno values such as EACCES and ENOSPC.
  • Xbox: console start-up and system error codes.
  • Steam: Steam EResult values returned by Steam services.
  • Cars: common OBD-II diagnostic trouble codes (for example P0300).

Browse everything by category from the navigation, or type any code into the search box.

Where the data comes from

Every code and its official short description come from public, primary or well-known community sources. We do not invent codes.

Community datasets (Xbox, Steam, OBD-II) are not official vendor documentation. We say so on the relevant pages and treat them with extra care.

How the content is produced

There are two kinds of pages on Error Decoder, and we want you to know which is which:

  1. Hand-written guides. For the most common and most searched errors, the explanation, the causes, the step-by-step fixes and the FAQ are written and reviewed by a person. These pages show a "last updated" date.
  2. Reference entries. For the long tail of rarer codes, the page shows the official definition from the source above, plus general troubleshooting steps selected automatically by rules based on the type of error (permissions, disk space, network, updates and so on). These entries are useful as a quick lookup, but they are not individually researched guides. Most of them are kept out of search engine indexes until a person has improved them.

The full details are in our editorial policy.

Limitations

  • The same number can mean different things in different products. Always check that the category on the page matches where you saw the error.
  • Fix steps are general guidance. They cannot account for your exact hardware, software versions or configuration.
  • Some steps (registry edits, firmware or BIOS changes, disk repairs, work on a vehicle) carry real risk. Back up your data first, and use a qualified professional when in doubt.
  • Vendors change their software. A fix that worked last year may not work today. Tell us if you spot something out of date.

Error Decoder is an information resource only. See our terms of use.

How the site is funded

Error Decoder is free to use, with no account and no paywall. To cover hosting and the time spent writing guides, the site may display advertising served by Google. Ads are always labelled, they never influence what we write about an error, and we never ask you to click on them. How advertising uses cookies is explained in our privacy policy and cookie policy.

Get in touch

Found a wrong definition, a fix that no longer works, or an error code we are missing? Email contact@errordecoder.online or see the contact page. Corrections are the single most useful thing a reader can send us.

Last updated: November 4, 2026