diff --git a/codes/codes.go b/codes/codes.go
index 02738839dd9..11b106182db 100644
--- a/codes/codes.go
+++ b/codes/codes.go
@@ -33,6 +33,9 @@ const (
 	OK Code = 0
 
 	// Canceled indicates the operation was canceled (typically by the caller).
+	//
+	// The gRPC framework will generate this error code when cancellation
+	// is requested.
 	Canceled Code = 1
 
 	// Unknown error. An example of where this error may be returned is
@@ -40,12 +43,17 @@ const (
 	// an error-space that is not known in this address space. Also
 	// errors raised by APIs that do not return enough error information
 	// may be converted to this error.
+	//
+	// The gRPC framework will generate this error code in the above two
+	// mentioned cases.
 	Unknown Code = 2
 
 	// InvalidArgument indicates client specified an invalid argument.
 	// Note that this differs from FailedPrecondition. It indicates arguments
 	// that are problematic regardless of the state of the system
 	// (e.g., a malformed file name).
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	InvalidArgument Code = 3
 
 	// DeadlineExceeded means operation expired before completion.
@@ -53,14 +61,21 @@ const (
 	// returned even if the operation has completed successfully. For
 	// example, a successful response from a server could have been delayed
 	// long enough for the deadline to expire.
+	//
+	// The gRPC framework will generate this error code when the deadline is
+	// exceeded.
 	DeadlineExceeded Code = 4
 
 	// NotFound means some requested entity (e.g., file or directory) was
 	// not found.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	NotFound Code = 5
 
 	// AlreadyExists means an attempt to create an entity failed because one
 	// already exists.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	AlreadyExists Code = 6
 
 	// PermissionDenied indicates the caller does not have permission to
@@ -69,10 +84,17 @@ const (
 	// instead for those errors). It must not be
 	// used if the caller cannot be identified (use Unauthenticated
 	// instead for those errors).
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC core framework,
+	// but expect authentication middleware to use it.
 	PermissionDenied Code = 7
 
 	// ResourceExhausted indicates some resource has been exhausted, perhaps
 	// a per-user quota, or perhaps the entire file system is out of space.
+	//
+	// This error code will be generated by the gRPC framework in
+	// out-of-memory and server overload situations, or when a message is
+	// larger than the configured maximum size.
 	ResourceExhausted Code = 8
 
 	// FailedPrecondition indicates operation was rejected because the
@@ -94,6 +116,8 @@ const (
 	//      REST Get/Update/Delete on a resource and the resource on the
 	//      server does not match the condition. E.g., conflicting
 	//      read-modify-write on the same resource.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	FailedPrecondition Code = 9
 
 	// Aborted indicates the operation was aborted, typically due to a
@@ -102,6 +126,8 @@ const (
 	//
 	// See litmus test above for deciding between FailedPrecondition,
 	// Aborted, and Unavailable.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	Aborted Code = 10
 
 	// OutOfRange means operation was attempted past the valid range.
@@ -119,15 +145,26 @@ const (
 	// error) when it applies so that callers who are iterating through
 	// a space can easily look for an OutOfRange error to detect when
 	// they are done.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	OutOfRange Code = 11
 
 	// Unimplemented indicates operation is not implemented or not
 	// supported/enabled in this service.
+	//
+	// This error code will be generated by the gRPC framework. Most
+	// commonly, you will see this error code when a method implementation
+	// is missing on the server. It can also be generated for unknown
+	// compression algorithms or a disagreement as to whether an RPC should
+	// be streaming.
 	Unimplemented Code = 12
 
 	// Internal errors. Means some invariants expected by underlying
 	// system has been broken. If you see one of these errors,
 	// something is very broken.
+	//
+	// This error code will be generated by the gRPC framework in several
+	// internal error conditions.
 	Internal Code = 13
 
 	// Unavailable indicates the service is currently unavailable.
@@ -137,13 +174,22 @@ const (
 	//
 	// See litmus test above for deciding between FailedPrecondition,
 	// Aborted, and Unavailable.
+	//
+	// This error code will be generated by the gRPC framework during
+	// abrupt shutdown of a server process or network connection.
 	Unavailable Code = 14
 
 	// DataLoss indicates unrecoverable data loss or corruption.
+	//
+	// This error code will not be generated by the gRPC framework.
 	DataLoss Code = 15
 
 	// Unauthenticated indicates the request does not have valid
 	// authentication credentials for the operation.
+	//
+	// The gRPC framework will generate this error code when the
+	// authentication metadata is invalid or a Credentials callback fails,
+	// but also expect authentication middleware to generate it.
 	Unauthenticated Code = 16
 
 	_maxCode = 17