mRemoteNG/mRemoteNG · error · ArgumentException

Negative value not allowed for {type} parameter.

Error message

Negative value not allowed for {type} parameter.

What it means

Thrown by ValidateRange when minValue is less than default(U) (i.e. negative), reached via SetValidation(int,int), SetValidation(long,long), or the string overload that delegates to them. The library constrains dword/qword registry ranges to non-negative values because it later defaults the missing bound to 0 and stores them in int?/long? fields used for clamping.

Source

Thrown at mRemoteNG/Tools/WindowsRegistry/WinRegistryEntry.cs:735

        /// <summary>
        /// Private method to validate the range values.
        /// </summary>
        /// <typeparam name="U">The type of the values being validated.</typeparam>
        /// <param name="minValue">The minimum value of the range.</param>
        /// <param name="maxValue">The maximum value of the range.</param>
        /// <param name="type">The type of registry entry (used for error messages).</param>
        private static void ValidateRange<U>(U minValue, U maxValue) where U : IComparable<U>
        {
            Type typeCode = typeof(U);

            string type =
                typeCode == typeof(int) ? "dword" :
                typeCode == typeof(long) ? "qword"
                : throw new ArgumentException("Registry entry type must be either Int32 or Int64 to use this validation.");

            if (minValue.CompareTo(default(U)) < 0)
                throw new ArgumentException($"Negative value not allowed for {type} parameter.", nameof(minValue));
            if (maxValue.CompareTo(default(U)) < 0)
                throw new ArgumentException($"Negative value not allowed for {type} parameter.", nameof(maxValue));
            if (minValue.CompareTo(maxValue) > 0)
                throw new ArgumentException("MinValue must be less than or equal to MaxValue.");
        }

        /// <summary>
        /// Validates the specified registry value kind.
        /// </summary>
        /// <param name="valueKind">The registry value kind to validate.</param>
        /// <returns>The validated <see cref="RegistryValueKind"/>.</returns>
        /// <exception cref="ArgumentException">Thrown when Invalid parameter: Unknown or unsupported <typeparamref name="valueKind" value.</exception>
        /// <exception cref="ArgumentException">Thrown when Value type <typeparamref name="T"/> is not supported.</exception>
        private bool ValueKindValidationRule(RegistryValueKind valueKind)
        {
            if (!Enum.IsDefined(typeof(RegistryValueKind), valueKind) || valueKind == RegistryValueKind.Unknown || valueKind == RegistryValueKind.None || valueKind == 0)
                throw new ArgumentException("Invalid parameter: Unknown or unsupported RegistryValueKind value.", nameof(valueKind));

View on GitHub (pinned to 9211babf35)

Solutions

1. Pass a non-negative minValue (>= 0).
2. Use the string overload with null/empty or "*" for minValue to let it default to 0 (see lines 373-374).
3. If negative semantics are required, this library does not support them; clamp and validate at the application layer instead.

Example fix

// before
entry.SetValidation(-5, 100);
// after
entry.SetValidation(0, 100);
// or via the string overload
entry.SetValidation("*", "100");

int min = ComputeMin();
if (min < 0) throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException(nameof(min), "min must be non-negative for this registry entry.");
entry.SetValidation(min, max);

When it happens

Trigger: Calling SetValidation(-5, 100) on a WinRegistryEntry<int>, SetValidation(-1L, 100L) on a WinRegistryEntry<long>, or SetValidation("-5","100") which parses to a negative minIntValue/minLongValue.

Common situations: Developer assumes int/long ranges accept negatives and passes a negative lower bound to clamp a registry setting that this library treats as unsigned (0..MaxValue).

Related errors

• MinValue must be less than or equal to MaxValue.
• Invalid minimum value for Int32.
• Invalid maximum value for Int32.
• Invalid minimum value for Int64.
• Invalid maximum value for Int64.

AI-assisted analysis of mRemoteNG/mRemoteNG@9211babf35 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/a69a5d4bba05831e. Report an issue: GitHub.