How to fix Error 2392 on Windows Server 2025 / Windows 11

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Why This Error Happens

Error 2392 ('%ls::' is not a valid axis) is thrown by the SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) MDX parser when it encounters a malformed axis specifier in a query—commonly caused by a corrupted or incorrectly generated MDX string from a reporting layer (SSRS, Excel PivotTables, or a third-party BI tool). This typically happens after an OS or driver update changes how the client library formats axis syntax (e.g., ON COLUMNS, ON ROWS, ON 0), or when a double-colon (::) placeholder is left in a dynamically generated query template. It can also surface after upgrading to Windows Server 2025/Windows 11 if the MSOLAP provider or ADOMD.NET client library version mismatches the SSAS engine version.

Step-by-Step Resolution Guide

Step 1: Identify the Offending Query

  • Open SQL Server Profiler or enable Query Log on the SSAS instance (Server Properties → Log → Query Log).
  • Reproduce the error and capture the exact MDX statement that triggered Event ID 2392.
  • Look specifically for axis clauses that contain stray characters like ::, missing axis numbers, or empty ON clauses.

Step 2: Correct the MDX Axis Syntax

  • Open the query in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) MDX query window.
  • Replace any malformed axis reference (e.g., SELECT {[Measures].[Sales]} ON %ls:: ) with a valid axis definition such as ON COLUMNS or ON 0.
  • If the query is generated dynamically (via SSRS dataset or custom app), check the report’s query-builder template for unresolved placeholder tokens (%ls, {0}, etc.) that failed to substitute correctly.

Step 3: Update and Realign Client Libraries

  • Verify the installed ADOMD.NET and MSOLAP provider versions match your SQL Server 2025 Analysis Services build.
  • Path to check: C:\Program Files\Microsoft.NET\ADOMD.NET\<version>\
  • Reinstall the matching redistributable from the SQL Server 2025 Feature Pack if versions are mismatched.
  • Restart the SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) service via services.msc or:
  net stop MSSQLServerOLAPService
  net start MSSQLServerOLAPService

Step 4: Rebuild or Refresh Cube Definitions

  • If the error persists only on specific cubes, reprocess the affected cube fully (Full Process) via SSMS → right-click cube → Process.
  • Rule out metadata corruption by validating the cube’s XMLA definition for broken axis tags under <Axes> in the cube script.

Alternative or Verification Steps

  • Re-run the original report or query that failed and confirm Event Viewer (Applications and Services Logs → SQL Server Analysis Services) no longer logs Event ID 2392.
  • As a fallback, export the MDX query to a .mdx file, manually validate syntax using the MDX Query Designer in SSMS, and re-import it into the reporting tool once confirmed error-free.