PHPOffice/PhpSpreadsheet · error · PhpOffice\PhpSpreadsheet\Exception

Row number must be a positive integer

Error message

Row number must be a positive integer

What it means

Error "Row number must be a positive integer" thrown in PHPOffice/PhpSpreadsheet.

Source

Thrown at src/PhpSpreadsheet/Collection/Cells.php:275

    }

    /**
     * Get highest worksheet column.
     *
     * @param null|int|string $row Return the highest column for the specified row,
     *                    or the highest column of any row if no row number is passed
     *
     * @return string Highest column name
     */
    public function getHighestColumn($row = null): string
    {
        if ($row === null) {
            return $this->getHighestRowAndColumn()['column'];
        }

        $row = (int) $row;
        if ($row <= 0) {
            throw new PhpSpreadsheetException('Row number must be a positive integer');
        }

        $maxColumn = 1;
        $toRow = $row * AddressRange::MAX_COLUMN_INT;
        $fromRow = --$row * AddressRange::MAX_COLUMN_INT;
        foreach ($this->index as $coordinate) {
            if ($coordinate < $fromRow || $coordinate >= $toRow) {
                continue;
            }
            $column = ($coordinate % AddressRange::MAX_COLUMN_INT) ?: AddressRange::MAX_COLUMN_INT;
            $maxColumn = max($column, $maxColumn);
        }

        return Coordinate::stringFromColumnIndex($maxColumn);
    }

    /**
     * Get highest worksheet row.

View on GitHub (pinned to 65b080eef4)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at src/PhpSpreadsheet/Collection/Cells.php:275 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of PHPOffice/PhpSpreadsheet@65b080eef4 (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/daae4690de420c49. Report an issue: GitHub.