What causes "error-mac-limit-reached" in RocketChat/Rocket.Chat?

First rule out the non-license cause: confirm the room exists (db.rocketchat_room.findOne({_id: inquiry.rid}))

RocketChat/Rocket.Chat · error · Meteor.Error

error-mac-limit-reached

error-mac-limit-reached

Error message

error-mac-limit-reached

What it means

In takeInquiry, after the agent check, the code loads the room and throws Meteor.Error('error-mac-limit-reached') when the room is missing OR Omnichannel.isWithinMACLimit(room) fails — note the compound condition: a deleted room also surfaces under this code. The MAC (Monthly Active Contacts) check enforces the workspace's enterprise omnichannel license allowance.

Solutions

First rule out the non-license cause: confirm the room exists (db.rocketchat_room.findOne({_id: inquiry.rid}))
Check current MAC usage in Administration > Omnichannel and compare against the license allowance
Increase the allowance (license upgrade) or wait for the monthly reset
Clean up orphaned inquiries whose rooms were deleted so agents don't hit the confusing error

Defensive patterns

Strategy: try-catch

Validate before calling

import { LivechatRooms } from '@rocket.chat/models';

// rule out the non-license cause first: the room may simply be gone
const room = await LivechatRooms.findOneById(inquiry.rid);
if (!room) {
  return discardOrphanedInquiry(inquiry._id);
}
await Meteor.callAsync('livechat:takeInquiry', inquiryId);

Try / catch

try {
  await Meteor.callAsync('livechat:takeInquiry', inquiryId);
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof Meteor.Error && err.error === 'error-mac-limit-reached') {
    // check room existence AND MAC usage — the code covers both causes
  } else {
    throw err;
  }
}

Prevention

Purge inquiries whose rooms were deleted so agents never see this misleading code
Monitor MAC usage vs license cap; alert admins before the limit
When triaging, always verify the room exists before assuming a licensing problem

When it happens

Trigger: Taking an inquiry whose room no longer exists (deleted concurrently), or taking an inquiry for a contact that would exceed the workspace's monthly active contacts limit under the current license.

Common situations: License MAC cap reached mid-month (traffic spike, campaigns), expired trial with reduced allowance, or rooms removed by retention/cleanup while their inquiry was still queued — the latter masquerades as a licensing error because of the compound check.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of RocketChat/Rocket.Chat@b2c16d5842 (2026-08-18). Data as JSON: /api/errors/fdcfd234ea5d48e1. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at apps/meteor/server/lib/omnichannel/takeInquiry.ts:48

		userId,
		settings.get<boolean>('Livechat_enabled_when_agent_idle'),
		settings.get<boolean>('Livechat_accept_chats_with_no_agents'),
		{},
	);
	if (!user) {
		throw new Meteor.Error('error-agent-status-service-offline', 'Agent status is offline or Omnichannel service is not active', {
			method: 'livechat:takeInquiry',
			...(process.env.TEST_MODE && {
				Livechat_enabled_when_agent_idle: settings.get<boolean>('Livechat_enabled_when_agent_idle'),
				Livechat_accept_chats_with_no_agents: settings.get<boolean>('Livechat_accept_chats_with_no_agents'),
				user: await Users.findOneById(userId),
			}),
		});
	}

	const room = await LivechatRooms.findOneById(inquiry.rid);
	if (!room || !(await Omnichannel.isWithinMACLimit(room))) {
		throw new Meteor.Error('error-mac-limit-reached');
	}

	const contactId = room.contactId ?? (await migrateVisitorIfMissingContact(room.v._id, room.source));
	if (contactId) {
		const isAgentAvailableToTakeContactInquiryResult = await isAgentAvailableToTakeContactInquiry(inquiry.v._id, room.source, contactId);
		if (!isAgentAvailableToTakeContactInquiryResult.value) {
			throw new Meteor.Error(isAgentAvailableToTakeContactInquiryResult.error);
		}
	}

	const agent = {
		agentId: user._id,
		username: user.username,
	};

	await RoutingManager.takeInquiry(inquiry, agent, options ?? {}, room);
};

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