м.б. и это:

PRB: "Multiple-step OLE DB Operation Generated Errors" When Opening ADO Connection
PSS ID Number: 269495

CAUSE
The following are two possible causes of this error:
In the registry, under the key for an OLE DB provider's CLSID, there may be an entry named OLEDB_SERVICES. If the OLE DB provider being used to make the ADO connection doesn't have the OLEDB_SERVICES entry, and ADO tries to set up a property that is not supported by the provider, the error occurs. For more information on this registry entry, see the "Resolution" section.
If OLEDB_SERVICES entry exists but there is a problem in the ADO connection string, the error occurs.
If the OLEDB_SERVICES registry entry is not present, the call to set up a property is made directly to the provider. If the provider does not support the property, the SetProperties OLE DB call made by ADO will fail. This is a fatal failure if the property is required in order to make a connection. If the property was explicitly included in the connection string, it is most likely required.

If the property setting is optional, the failure is not fatal. This is the case when you connect without explicitly setting the property in the connection string. In this case, ADO sets the property to True but marks it as optional.
RESOLUTION
You can work around this problem in the following ways:
Do not use the "Persist Security Info" keyword in your ADO connection string.
Add the OLEDB_SERVICES registry entry as follows:IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry

Start Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
In the registry under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID, find the CLSID of the OLE DB Provider. For example, the following registry key is for the Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL Server (SQLOLEDB):
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{0C7FF16C-38E3-11d0-97AB-00C04FC2AD98}

Click the CLSID, and then on the Edit menu, click Add Value and add the following registry value:
Value Name: OLEDB_SERVICES
Data Type: REG_DWORD
Value: 0xFFFFFFFF


NOTE: To find the CLSID for the provider you are using, search for the provider's ProgID (SQLOLEDB, for example) in the registry under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\. Under the ProgID, there will be a key named CLSID.
If the above conditions are satisfied and you still receive the error, check your connection string for other possible errors.

и еще из большой кучи топиков, посвященных этой ошибке:

BUG: Error When You Use Client Cursor to Add Record to SQL Server Table That Has Default Value in Datetime Field
SYMPTOMS
If you use ADO to insert a new record through a client-side recordset into a SQL Server table that has a non-nullable datetime field with a default value, you receive the following error message if you do not supply a value for the datetime field:
Run-time error '-2147217887 (80040e21)': Multiple-step operation generated errors. Check each status value.
This error occurs whether you use the OLE DB Provider for SQL Server or the OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers. The error message may differ when you use Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) version 2.5 Service Pack 1 (SP1) or earlier. This error does not occur with a server-side cursor.
CAUSE
This error occurs in the Client Cursor Engine when it attempts to convert the value of type DBTYPE_DBTIMESTAMP to DBTYPE_VARIANT.
RESOLUTION
There are several ways to work around this problem:
Use a server-side cursor for the recordset.
Remove the default value that is specified for the field in the database.
Always specify a value for the field when you add a new record.