apache/beam · error
Incompatible func type: got func
Error message
Incompatible func type: got func %v with %v inputs and %v outputs, want 4 inputs and 0 outputs
What it means
reflectx.ToFunc4x0 converts a generic Func to a strongly-typed Func4x0 (4 inputs, 0 outputs). It panics if the underlying reflect.Type does not have exactly NumIn()==4 and NumOut()==0. Beam throws this to guarantee the fixed-arity shim's invocation contract matches the wrapped function, catching the mismatch at conversion time with the actual type in the message.
Solutions
- Make the function take exactly 4 parameters and return nothing.
- If it returns a value or error, switch to the matching converter (ToFunc4x1, ToFunc4x2, ...).
- Confirm the shape with reflect.TypeOf(fn).NumIn()/NumOut() before wrapping.
- Move the error handling inside the function body (log/emit) if a no-output signature is required by the pipeline.
Example fix
// before
f := reflectx.ToFunc4x0(func(a int, b string, c bool, d float64) error { return nil }) // 1 output, panics
// after
f := reflectx.ToFunc4x0(func(a int, b string, c bool, d float64) {
// handle a,b,c,d without returning
}) Defensive patterns
Strategy: validation
Validate before calling
t := reflect.TypeOf(fn)
if t.NumIn() != 4 || t.NumOut() != 0 {
panic(fmt.Sprintf("expected 4-in/0-out func, got %v (%d in, %d out)", t, t.NumIn(), t.NumOut()))
}
f := reflectx.ToFunc4x0(f) Type guard
func isFunc4x0(fn any) bool {
t := reflect.TypeOf(fn)
return t != nil && t.Kind() == reflect.Func && t.NumIn() == 4 && t.NumOut() == 0
} Try / catch
func safeToFunc4x0(f reflectx.Func) (out reflectx.Func4x0, err error) {
defer func() { if r := recover(); r != nil { err = fmt.Errorf("ToFunc4x0: %v", r) } }()
out = reflectx.ToFunc4x0(f)
return
} Prevention
- Make consumer/sink functions truly return-free; log or emit errors internally.
- Assert NumIn/NumOut in unit tests for every ToFunc4x0 target.
- Change parameter count and converter call in the same commit.
- Use closures for auxiliary state instead of extra parameters.
When it happens
Trigger: Calling reflectx.ToFunc4x0(f) where f.Type().NumIn() != 4 (e.g. 3 or 5 params) or f.Type().NumOut() != 0 (the function returns anything, including an error).
Common situations: Sink-style 4-argument functions that still return an error value, functions that gained or lost a context/emitter parameter during refactoring, or copy-pasted converter calls pointing at the wrong arity variant.
Understand the failure class
Background: Type mismatch errors: IllegalArgumentException, TypeError and type guards across 150 open-source libraries — this error's family across 150 libraries.
Related errors
- Incompatible func type: got func
- Incompatible func type: got func
- Incompatible func type: got func
- Incompatible func type: got func
- Incompatible func type: got func
AI-assisted analysis of apache/beam@12126d8942 (2026-09-13).
Data as JSON: /api/errors/3b5a91cdcb1dbe49.
Report an issue: GitHub.
Appendix: source
Thrown at sdks/go/pkg/beam/core/util/reflectx/calls.go:885
}
func (c *shimFunc4x0) Type() reflect.Type {
return c.inner.Type()
}
func (c *shimFunc4x0) Call(args []any) []any {
return c.inner.Call(args)
}
func (c *shimFunc4x0) Call4x0(arg0, arg1, arg2, arg3 any) {
ret := c.inner.Call([]any{arg0, arg1, arg2, arg3})
_ = ret
return
}
func ToFunc4x0(c Func) Func4x0 {
if c.Type().NumIn() != 4 || c.Type().NumOut() != 0 {
panic(fmt.Sprintf("Incompatible func type: got func %v with %v inputs and %v outputs, want 4 inputs and 0 outputs", c.Type(), c.Type().NumIn(), c.Type().NumOut()))
}
if sc, ok := c.(Func4x0); ok {
return sc
}
return &shimFunc4x0{inner: c}
}
func MakeFunc4x0(fn any) Func4x0 {
return ToFunc4x0(MakeFunc(fn))
}
type Func4x1 interface {
Func
Call4x1(any, any, any, any) any
}
type shimFunc4x1 struct {
inner FuncView on GitHub (pinned to 12126d8942)