BerriAI/litellm · error · ValueError

Policy validation failed with {len(validation_result.errors)

Error message

Policy validation failed with {len(validation_result.errors)} error(s):
{error_messages}

What it means

Startup failure in init_policies when policy validation produced errors and fail_on_error is set: the aggregated per-policy validation messages are raised so the proxy refuses to start with an invalid policy configuration.

Source

Thrown at litellm/proxy/policy_engine/init_policies.py:161

    )

    # Log validation results
    if validation_result.errors:
        for error in validation_result.errors:
            verbose_proxy_logger.error(
                "Policy validation error in '%s': [%s] %s", error.policy_name, error.error_type, error.message
            )

    if validation_result.warnings:
        for warning in validation_result.warnings:
            verbose_proxy_logger.warning(
                "Policy validation warning in '%s': [%s] %s", warning.policy_name, warning.error_type, warning.message
            )

    # Fail if there are errors and fail_on_error is True
    if not validation_result.valid and fail_on_error:
        error_messages: Final = [f"[{e.policy_name}] {e.message}" for e in validation_result.errors]
        raise ValueError(
            f"Policy validation failed with {len(validation_result.errors)} error(s):\n" + "\n".join(error_messages)
        )

    # Load policies into registry (even with warnings)
    try:
        policy_registry.load_policies(policies_config)
        verbose_proxy_logger.info("Successfully loaded %s policies", len(policies_config))
    except Exception as e:
        verbose_proxy_logger.error("Failed to load policies: %s", e)
        raise

    # Load attachments if provided
    if policy_attachments_config:
        try:
            attachment_registry.load_attachments(policy_attachments_config)
            verbose_proxy_logger.info("Successfully loaded %s policy attachments", len(policy_attachments_config))
        except Exception as e:
            verbose_proxy_logger.error("Failed to load policy attachments: %s", e)

View on GitHub (pinned to 77b7c6c40c)

Solutions

1. Fix each listed policy validation error in the policy definition (schema, pipeline steps, referenced guardrails).
2. Validate the policy against the policy schema before submitting.

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at litellm/proxy/policy_engine/init_policies.py:161 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of BerriAI/litellm@77b7c6c40c (2026-08-18). Data as JSON: /api/errors/cbcf57a65d4bc639. Report an issue: GitHub.