Windows ADSI LDAP Provider (adsldpc.dll) Stack Overflow When Browsing UNC Paths

Question

Windows ADSI LDAP Provider (adsldpc.dll) Stack Overflow When Browsing UNC Paths

Angelo9019 1

We are investigating an issue where Microsoft 365 applications crash when users browse or open files from a network share (UNC path).

Microsoft Support analysed two user-mode crash dumps and confirmed that both show the same failure:

Exception 0xC00000FD (Stack Overflow)
The recursion occurs inside the Windows ADSI LDAP provider, adsldpc.dll
The call originates from the Windows common File Open dialog, comdlg32.dll
Microsoft advised that the dialog performs a "Previous Versions / share map" availability check against Active Directory when browsing a UNC path
There is no Office code in the failing call path

Microsoft therefore concluded that this is a Windows / Active Directory issue rather than an Office issue.

One important observation is that the issue occurs when signed into Windows using an Active Directory domain account, but does not occur on the same device when signed in with a local Windows account. This is true even when:

The same workstation is used
The same Microsoft 365 account is used in Office
The same network share is accessed

Has anyone encountered adsldpc.dll entering recursive calls or causing a 0xC00000FD stack overflow when browsing UNC paths?

Given that the issue appears to be specific to the domain user context, has anyone seen a similar issue related to Active Directory, LDAP, user attributes, DFS, Group Policy, or network share configuration?

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thank you.

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1 answer

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Answer 1

Hello,

The crash signature you describe is consistent with a recursion loop inside adsldpc.dll when the common File Open dialog queries “Previous Versions” or DFS availability against Active Directory. The fact that it only occurs under a domain account and not a local account is a critical indicator: the ADSI LDAP provider is being invoked because the domain context triggers directory lookups, while a local account bypasses that path entirely.

The stack overflow (0xC00000FD) suggests that the LDAP provider is repeatedly traversing attributes or referrals without terminating. This can happen if there are malformed or circular references in AD objects, DFS namespace entries, or Group Policy–applied network share mappings. In practice, the File Open dialog is trying to enumerate shadow copies and DFS links, and if the ADSI provider encounters a recursive referral chain, it will continue until the stack is exhausted.

To diagnose, you should enable LDAP debug logging on the client (HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\NTDS\Diagnostics) and capture traces with ETW providers for ADSI and comdlg32. This will confirm whether the recursion is triggered by a specific attribute or DFS referral. On the AD side, inspect the DFS namespace configuration and any custom attributes on the user objects. Pay particular attention to msDFS-TargetList and linked attributes that could form loops.

Corrective action usually involves cleaning up DFS referrals or Group Policy drive mappings that point back to themselves or to non‑existent shares. If the recursion is caused by user attributes, you may need to export and review the LDAP object with ldp.exe to identify circular references. Microsoft has documented similar cases where ADSI enters infinite recursion due to misconfigured DFS links or duplicate shadow copy entries.

Since this is not Office code, the resolution will be at the Windows/AD layer. If you can reproduce consistently, I recommend isolating the DFS and GPO configurations applied to the affected domain accounts, and testing with a clean OU policy to confirm whether the recursion disappears. That will narrow down whether the trigger is DFS, Group Policy, or a specific AD attribute.

I hope you've found something useful here. If it helps you get more insight into the issue, it's appreciated to accept the answer. Should you have more questions, feel free to leave a message. Have a nice day!

DV.