BerriAI/litellm · error · Exception

LiteLLM Managed File object with id={file_id} has no file_ob

Error message

LiteLLM Managed File object with id={file_id} has no file_object and llm_router is required to fetch from provider

What it means

Case 3 of afile_retrieve: the managed-file row exists but its stored file_object is empty (e.g. the batch background task hasn't persisted the object yet), so the code must fetch it live from the provider via llm_router. If the caller passed llm_router=None, it cannot fetch and raises this Exception. It is an internal wiring issue: the retrieval path was entered without the router needed for provider fallback.

Source

Thrown at enterprise/litellm_enterprise/proxy/hooks/managed_files.py:1331

    ) -> OpenAIFileObject:
        stored_file_object = await self.get_unified_file_id(file_id, litellm_parent_otel_span)

        # Case 1 : This is not a managed file
        if not stored_file_object:
            raise Exception(f"LiteLLM Managed File object with id={file_id} not found")

        # Case 2: Managed file and the file object exists in the database
        # The stored file_object has the raw provider ID. Replace with the unified ID
        # so callers see a consistent ID (matching Case 3 which does response.id = file_id).
        if stored_file_object and stored_file_object.file_object:
            # Use model_copy to ensure the ID update persists (Pydantic v2 compatibility)
            response = stored_file_object.file_object.model_copy(update={"id": file_id})
            return response

        # Case 3: Managed file exists in the database but not the file object (for. e.g the batch task might not have run)
        # So we fetch the file object from the provider. We deliberately do not store the result to avoid interfering with batch cost tracking code.
        if not llm_router:
            raise Exception(
                f"LiteLLM Managed File object with id={file_id} has no file_object "
                f"and llm_router is required to fetch from provider"
            )

        try:
            model_id, model_file_id = next(iter(stored_file_object.model_mappings.items()))
            credentials = llm_router.get_deployment_credentials_with_provider(model_id) or {}
            response = await litellm.afile_retrieve(file_id=model_file_id, **credentials)
            response.id = file_id  # Replace with unified ID
            return response
        except Exception as e:
            raise Exception(f"Failed to retrieve file {file_id} from provider: {str(e)}") from e

    async def afile_list(
        self,
        purpose: Optional[OpenAIFilesPurpose],
        litellm_parent_otel_span: Optional[Span],
        **data: Dict,

View on GitHub (pinned to 6c2dcb801b)

Solutions

1. Pass the proxy's live llm_router when calling afile_retrieve so provider fallback works
2. Or wait/retry until the batch background task stores the file object (batch_processed) so Case 2 applies
3. In tests, provide a Router with a reachable deployment for the file's model_id

Example fix

# before
resp = await hook.afile_retrieve(file_id, span)

# after
resp = await hook.afile_retrieve(file_id, span, llm_router=proxy_router)

row = await hook.get_unified_file_id(file_id, span)
if row and not row.file_object and router is None:
    # object not yet persisted; either wait or supply a router
    raise ValueError("supply llm_router or wait for batch task to persist file object")

try:
    resp = await hook.afile_retrieve(file_id, span)
except Exception as e:
    if "llm_router is required" in str(e):
        resp = await hook.afile_retrieve(file_id, span, llm_router=live_router)  # retry with router
    else:
        raise

When it happens

Trigger: Calling afile_retrieve(file_id, span) with the default llm_router=None for a file whose batch task hasn't run/stored its file object; internal proxy code paths or tests that omit the router argument.

Common situations: Polling a managed output file immediately after batch creation, before the batch-polling job persisted the file object; unit tests calling the hook without a Router; refactors that dropped the router parameter.

Related errors

• LiteLLM Managed {accessor_key} with id={retrieve_object_id}
• LLM Router not initialized. Ensure models added to proxy.
• Unified id does not contain {marker!r}: {file_id[:80]!r}
• Failed to retrieve file {file_id} from provider: {str(e)}
• LiteLLM Managed File object with id={file_id} not found. Che

AI-assisted analysis of BerriAI/litellm@6c2dcb801b (2026-08-15). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4e551ba1408e95a9. Report an issue: GitHub.