NationalSecurityAgency/ghidra · error · IllegalArgumentException

For parameter %s: argument %s is not a %s

Error message

For parameter %s: argument %s is not a %s

What it means

Thrown by RemoteMethod.checkType() when a supplied argument fails type validation against the declared parameter schema. Validation considers both Java type compatibility (sch.getType().isInstance(arg)) and, for TraceObject arguments, schema assignability against the target object schema.

Source

Thrown at Ghidra/Debug/Debugger-api/src/main/java/ghidra/debug/api/tracermi/RemoteMethod.java:144

	 * @param sch the type of the parameter
	 * @param arg the argument
	 */
	static void checkType(String paramName, SchemaName schName, TraceObjectSchema sch,
			Object arg) {
		// if sch is null, it was definitely an object-type schema without context
		if (sch != null) {
			if (sch.getType() != TraceObject.class) {
				if (sch.getType().isInstance(arg)) {
					return;
				}
			}
			else if (arg instanceof TraceObject obj) {
				if (sch.isAssignableFrom(obj.getSchema())) {
					return;
				}
			}
		}
		throw new IllegalArgumentException(
			"For parameter %s: argument %s is not a %s".formatted(paramName, arg, schName));
	}

	/**
	 * Validate the given argument.
	 * 
	 * <p>
	 * This method is for checking parameter sanity before they are marshalled to the back-end. This
	 * is called automatically during invocation. Clients can use this method to pre-test or
	 * validate in the UI, when invocation is not yet desired.
	 * 
	 * @param arguments the arguments
	 * @return the trace if any object arguments were given, or null
	 * @throws IllegalArgumentException if the arguments are not valid
	 */
	default Trace validate(Map<String, Object> arguments) {
		Trace trace = null;
		SchemaContext ctx = PrimitiveTraceObjectSchema.MinimalSchemaContext.INSTANCE;

View on GitHub (pinned to d5f144c24d)

Solutions

1. Inspect the parameter's declared type via RemoteParameter.type() and ensure the argument matches.
2. For TraceObject arguments, verify obj.getSchema() is assignable to the parameter schema using sch.isAssignableFrom(obj.getSchema()).
3. Fetch the correct object from the trace's object manager before passing it.

Example fix

// before
remoteMethod.invoke(Map.of("target", someString));

// after
TraceObject obj = trace.getObjectManager().getObjectByPath(...);
remoteMethod.invoke(Map.of("target", obj));

// Before invoke/validate:
SchemaContext ctx = PrimitiveTraceObjectSchema.MinimalSchemaContext.INSTANCE;
for (var ent : method.parameters().entrySet()) {
    Object arg = arguments.get(ent.getKey());
    if (arg == null) continue;
    TraceObjectSchema sch = ctx.getSchemaOrNull(ent.getValue().type());
    if (sch != null && sch.getType() != TraceObject.class
            && !sch.getType().isInstance(arg)) {
        throw new IllegalStateException("Bad type for " + ent.getKey());
    }
    if (arg instanceof TraceObject obj && sch != null
            && !sch.isAssignableFrom(obj.getSchema())) {
        throw new IllegalStateException("Bad schema for " + ent.getKey());
    }
}

static boolean argMatchesType(Object arg, TraceObjectSchema sch) {
    if (sch == null) return true;
    if (sch.getType() != TraceObject.class)
        return sch.getType().isInstance(arg);
    return arg instanceof TraceObject o
        && sch.isAssignableFrom(o.getSchema());
}

try {
    method.invoke(arguments);
} catch (IllegalArgumentException e) {
    if (e.getMessage().startsWith("For parameter")) {
        // log and show the offending parameter/value to user
    } else throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling RemoteMethod.validate(arguments) or invoking a remote method with an argument whose Java type does not match the parameter schema, or passing a TraceObject whose object schema is not assignable to the parameter's declared schema.

Common situations: Passing a String where a TraceObject is expected; passing a TraceObject of schema 'Process' where 'Thread' is required; mismatched object schemas from different traces or wrong element types.

Related errors

• All TraceObject parameters must come from the same trace
• Missing required parameter '{key}'
• Extra argument '{key}'
• Missing required parameter '%s' (%s)
• The given program is dynamic, i.e., a trace view

AI-assisted analysis of NationalSecurityAgency/ghidra@d5f144c24d (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/e2fe54bb1338fb18. Report an issue: GitHub.