RTCError
Baseline
2026
Newly available
Since April 2026, this feature works across the latest devices and browser versions. This feature might not work in older devices or browsers.
The RTCError interface describes an error which has occurred while handling WebRTC operations. It's based upon the standard DOMException interface that describes general DOM errors.
Constructor
RTCError()-
Creates and returns a new
RTCErrorobject initialized with the different parameters and, optionally, a string to use as the value of the error'smessageproperty.
Instance properties
In addition to the properties defined by the parent interface, DOMException, RTCError includes the following properties:
errorDetailRead only-
A string specifying the WebRTC-specific error code identifying the type of error that occurred.
receivedAlertRead only-
An unsigned long integer value indicating the fatal DTLS error which was received from the network. Only valid if the
errorDetailstring isdtls-failure. Ifnull, no DTLS error was received. sctpCauseCodeRead only-
If
errorDetailissctp-failure, this property is a long integer specifying the SCTP cause code indicating the cause of the failed SCTP negotiation.nullif the error isn't an SCTP error. sdpLineNumberRead only-
If
errorDetailissdp-syntax-error, this property is a long integer identifying the line number of the SDP on which the syntax error occurred.nullif the error isn't an SDP syntax error. sentAlertRead only-
If
errorDetailisdtls-failure, this property is an unsigned long integer indicating the fatal DTLS error that was sent out by this device. Ifnull, no DTLS error was transmitted.
Note:
All RTCError objects have their name set to OperationError.
Examples
In this example, a handler is established for an RTCDataChannel's
error event.
dataChannel.addEventListener("error", (event) => {
let error = event.error; // event.error is an RTCError
if (error.errorDetail === "sdp-syntax-error") {
let errLine = error.sdpLineNumber;
let errMessage = error.message;
let alertMessage = `A syntax error occurred interpreting line ${errLine} of the SDP: ${errMessage}`;
showMyAlertMessage("Data Channel Error", alertMessage);
} else {
terminateMyConnection();
}
});
If the error is an SDP syntax error—indicated by its errorDetail
property being sdp-syntax-error—, a message string is
constructed to present the error message and the line number within the SDP at which the
error occurred. This message is then displayed using a function called
showMyAlertMessage(), which stands in for whatever output mechanism this
code might use.
Any other error is treated as terminal, causing a terminateMyConnection()
function to be called.
The above example uses addEventListener()
to add the handler for error events. You can also use the RTCDataChannel object's
onerror event handler property, like this:
dataChannel.onerror = (event) => {
let error = event.error;
/* and so forth */
};
Specifications
| Specification |
|---|
| WebRTC: Real-Time Communication in Browsers> # dom-rtcerror> |