How to: Retrieve Information from an Error Object

When a run-time error occurs, the properties of the Err object are filled with information that uniquely identifies the error and information that can be used to handle the error.

The Err object's properties are reset to zero or zero-length strings ("") after an On Error Resume Next statement and after an Exit Sub or Exit Function statement within an error-handling routine. The Clear method can be used to explicitly reset Err.

Note

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To retrieve information from an error object

  1. You can filter for specific errors. This example checks to see if the error is a FileNotFound error and reacts if it is.

    If Err.Number = 53 Then
      MsgBox("File Not Found")
    End If
    
  2. You can also examine specific properties of the error object, such as Description, Erl, HelpContext, Helpfile, LastDLLError, Number, and Source. This example displays the description in a message box.

    MsgBox(Err.Description)
    

See Also

Concepts

Choosing When to Use Structured and Unstructured Exception Handling

Reference

Err Object (Visual Basic)

Err Object Members

Description Property (Err Object)

Erl Property (Err Object)

HelpContext Property (Err Object)

HelpFile Property (Err Object)

LastDllError Property (Err Object)

Number Property (Err Object)

Source Property (Err Object)