RocketChat/Rocket.Chat · error · Meteor.Error

error-invalid-room-name

error-invalid-room-name

Error message

${escapeHTML(slugifiedName)} is not a valid room name.

What it means

After slugification, the name either fails the regex built from UTF8_Channel_Names_Validation (falling back to ^[0-9a-zA-Z-_.]+$ when that setting is empty or an invalid regex) or is rejected by validateName, which blocks names listed comma-separated in Accounts_SystemBlockedUsernameList. Details carry function: 'RocketChat.getValidRoomName' and the escaped channel_name.

Source

Thrown at apps/meteor/server/lib/utils/lib/getValidRoomName.ts:42

						function: 'RocketChat.getValidRoomName',
						channel_name: cleanName,
					});
				}
			}
		}
		slugifiedName = cleanName;
	}

	let nameValidation;

	try {
		nameValidation = new RegExp(`^${settings.get('UTF8_Channel_Names_Validation')}$`);
	} catch (error) {
		nameValidation = new RegExp('^[0-9a-zA-Z-_.]+$');
	}

	if (!nameValidation.test(slugifiedName) || !validateName(slugifiedName)) {
		throw new Meteor.Error('error-invalid-room-name', `${escapeHTML(slugifiedName)} is not a valid room name.`, {
			function: 'RocketChat.getValidRoomName',
			channel_name: escapeHTML(slugifiedName),
		});
	}

	if (options.allowDuplicates !== true) {
		const room = await Rooms.findOneByName(slugifiedName);
		if (room && room._id !== rid) {
			if (settings.get('UI_Allow_room_names_with_special_chars')) {
				let tmpName = slugifiedName;
				let next = 0;
				while (await Rooms.findOneByNameAndNotId(tmpName, rid)) {
					tmpName = `${slugifiedName}-${++next}`;
				}
				slugifiedName = tmpName;
			} else if (room.archived) {
				throw new Meteor.Error('error-archived-duplicate-name', `There's an archived channel with name ${escapeHTML(slugifiedName)}`, {
					function: 'RocketChat.getValidRoomName',

View on GitHub (pinned to b2c16d5842)

Solutions

1. Sanitize the name to the allowed charset (default: letters, digits, -, _ and .) before submitting
2. If unicode/special names are intended, relax UTF8_Channel_Names_Validation to a matching regex
3. Check Accounts_SystemBlockedUsernameList and pick a name not on it

Example fix

// before
await getValidRoomName('café & bar'); // fails the charset regex

// after
await getValidRoomName('cafe-bar');

const pattern = (() => {
  try {
    return new RegExp(`^${settings.get('UTF8_Channel_Names_Validation')}$`);
  } catch {
    return /^[0-9a-zA-Z-_.]+$/;
  }
})();
const blocked = String(settings.get('Accounts_SystemBlockedUsernameList') ?? '').split(',');
const isValidRoomName = (name: string): boolean => pattern.test(name) && !blocked.includes(name.toLowerCase());
if (!isValidRoomName(name)) {
  // block submit and suggest a sanitized slug
}

const isValidRoomName = (name: string): boolean => /^[0-9a-zA-Z-_.]+$/.test(name) && !['all', 'here'].includes(name.toLowerCase());

try {
  await getValidRoomName(name, rid);
} catch (error) {
  if (error instanceof Meteor.Error && error.error === 'error-invalid-room-name') {
    // show the allowed-charset hint and a sanitized suggestion
  } else {
    throw error;
  }
}

When it happens

Trigger: Creating/renaming a room whose (slugified) name contains spaces or characters outside the configured charset, or using a name that appears in Accounts_SystemBlockedUsernameList.

Common situations: Workspaces with strict UTF8_Channel_Names_Validation regexes; reserved terms like 'all' blocked workspace-wide; limax slugification producing characters a custom regex forbids.

Related errors

• username-invalid
• error-archived-duplicate-name
• error-duplicate-channel-name
• error-invalid-room
• error-invalid-room

AI-assisted analysis of RocketChat/Rocket.Chat@b2c16d5842 (2026-08-18). Data as JSON: /api/errors/29f618e049a14924. Report an issue: GitHub.