LuckyPennySoftware/AutoMapper · error · ArgumentOutOfRangeException

Only member accesses are allowed.

Error message

Only member accesses are allowed. {destinationMember}

What it means

Thrown by ForPath when the destination lambda expression is not a pure member-access chain (consecutive property or field accesses starting from the lambda parameter). The method calls IsMemberPath which walks the expression body via GetChain; any node that is not a MemberExpression causes the check to return false, and ForPath throws ArgumentOutOfRangeException.

Solutions

1. Ensure the ForPath first argument is strictly a member-access chain like d => d.Address.City.
2. Move any computation or method calls into the MapFrom callback inside the ForPath configuration action.
3. If you need to map a computed value to a flat property, use ForMember with MapFrom instead of ForPath.

Example fix

// before — method call in ForPath path expression
CreateMap<Source, Dest>()
    .ForPath(d => d.Address.GetFullName(), opt => opt.MapFrom(s => s.Name));

// after — pure member chain in ForPath, computation in MapFrom
CreateMap<Source, Dest>()
    .ForPath(d => d.Address.FullName, opt => opt.MapFrom(s => s.FirstName + " " + s.LastName));

// Validate the ForPath expression is a pure member chain before using it
Expression<Func<Dest, object>> pathExpr = d => d.Address.City;
bool isMemberPath = pathExpr.IsMemberPath(out _);
if (!isMemberPath)
    throw new ArgumentException("ForPath requires a pure member-access chain (e.g., d => d.Prop.SubProp).");

When it happens

Trigger: Calling ForPath(d => d.Child.ComputeValue(), ...) where the expression contains a method call; or ForPath(d => d.Child + extra, ...) containing a binary operation; or any expression that isn't a straightforward d => d.Prop.SubProp chain.

Common situations: Confusing ForPath with MapFrom; trying to include computed logic in the destination path expression; passing a lambda that references external variables or invokes methods.

Related errors

• Expression ' ' must resolve to top-level member and not any…
• sourceExpression may not be null when mapping
• As must specify a derived type, not
• Only interfaces can be proxied.
• The type does not have a constructor.\n

AI-assisted analysis of LuckyPennySoftware/AutoMapper@dfa6dd587c (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/e90c0b15702a7ea1. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/AutoMapper/Configuration/MappingExpression.cs:63

    internal MemberConfigurationExpression ForMember(MemberInfo destinationProperty, Action<IMemberConfigurationExpression> memberOptions)
    {
        MemberConfigurationExpression expression = new(destinationProperty, SourceType);
        MemberConfigurations.Add(expression);
        memberOptions(expression);
        return expression;
    }
}
public class MappingExpression<TSource, TDestination> : MappingExpressionBase<TSource, TDestination, IMappingExpression<TSource, TDestination>>,
    IMappingExpression<TSource, TDestination>, IProjectionExpression<TSource, TDestination>
{
    public MappingExpression(MemberList memberList, bool projection) : base(memberList) => Projection = projection;
    public MappingExpression(MemberList memberList, TypePair types) : base(memberList, types) { }
    public IMappingExpression<TSource, TDestination> ForPath<TMember>(Expression<Func<TDestination, TMember>> destinationMember,
        Action<IPathConfigurationExpression<TSource, TDestination, TMember>> memberOptions)
    {
        if (!destinationMember.IsMemberPath(out var chain))
        {
            throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException(nameof(destinationMember), "Only member accesses are allowed. " + destinationMember);
        }
        PathConfigurationExpression<TSource, TDestination, TMember> expression = new(destinationMember, chain);
        var firstMember = expression.MemberPath.First;
        var firstMemberConfig = GetDestinationMemberConfiguration(firstMember);
        if (firstMemberConfig == null)
        {
            IgnoreDestinationMember(firstMember, ignorePaths: false);
        }
        MemberConfigurations.Add(expression);
        memberOptions(expression);
        return this;
    }
    public IMappingExpression<TSource, TDestination> ForMember<TMember>(Expression<Func<TDestination, TMember>> destinationMember, Action<IMemberConfigurationExpression<TSource, TDestination, TMember>> memberOptions)
    {
        var memberInfo = ReflectionHelper.FindProperty(destinationMember);
        return ForDestinationMember(memberInfo, memberOptions);
    }
    private void IncludeMembersCore(LambdaExpression[] memberExpressions) => TypeMapActions.Add(tm => tm.IncludedMembers = memberExpressions);

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