apache/cassandra · error · org.apache.cassandra.exceptions.ConfigurationException

Invalid compressor type

Error message

Invalid compressor type '%s' specified for LZ4 parameter '%s'. Valid options are %s.

What it means

LZ4Compressor accepts a 'type' option choosing between the fast (LZ4Factory) and high-compression (LZ4 HC) implementations. validateCompressorType checks the supplied value against the known set; any other string is rejected with a ConfigurationException listing the valid options. This runs at schema/compression-option parsing time, typically when creating or altering a table.

Solutions

Use one of the valid values reported in the error message (e.g. 'fast' or 'high') for the 'type' option.
Check the documentation for your Cassandra version's supported LZ4 'type' values and correct the CQL statement.
If the value comes from a provisioning tool or ORM config, fix the template that emits the compression option.

Example fix

// before
CREATE TABLE t (...) WITH compression = {'class':'LZ4Compressor','type':'hzigh'};
// after
CREATE TABLE t (...) WITH compression = {'class':'LZ4Compressor','type':'high'};

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

Set<String> valid = Set.of("fast", "high");
if (type != null && !valid.contains(type)) throw new IllegalArgumentException("Invalid LZ4 type: " + type);

Try / catch

try {
    session.execute("CREATE TABLE t (...) WITH compression = {'class':'LZ4Compressor','type':'?'}", type);
} catch (ConfigurationException e) {
    // fall back to default LZ4 options
}

Prevention

Use option values straight from your Cassandra version's documentation; never free-form strings.
Validate CQL-generated compression options in CI against schema creation.
Centralize compression option templates in one reviewed place.

When it happens

Trigger: Executing CREATE/ALTER TABLE with compression = {'class': 'LZ4Compressor', 'type': '<something>'} where <something> is not one of the valid compressor type strings (e.g. a typo like 'hzigh' instead of 'high').

Common situations: Typo in CQL compression options; copying options from documentation of a different Cassandra version where valid values differ; tools generating CQL with an unsupported enum string.

Understand the failure class

Background: Invalid enum value errors: "Unknown type", "Invalid scope", "must be one of" — when a string is not on the library's allowed list — this error's family across 23 libraries.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of apache/cassandra@88fd0f6a0e (2026-09-10). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c9a3ab3bcb353924. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/java/org/apache/cassandra/io/compress/LZ4Compressor.java:206

        if (input.remaining() > 0)
        {
            throw new IOException("Compressed lengths mismatch - "+input.remaining()+" bytes remain");
        }
    }

    public Set<String> supportedOptions()
    {
        return new HashSet<>(Arrays.asList(LZ4_HIGH_COMPRESSION_LEVEL, LZ4_COMPRESSOR_TYPE));
    }

    public static String validateCompressorType(String compressorType) throws ConfigurationException
    {
        if (compressorType == null)
            return DEFAULT_LZ4_COMPRESSOR_TYPE;

        if (!VALID_COMPRESSOR_TYPES.contains(compressorType))
        {
            throw new ConfigurationException(String.format("Invalid compressor type '%s' specified for LZ4 parameter '%s'. "
                                                           + "Valid options are %s.", compressorType, LZ4_COMPRESSOR_TYPE,
                                                           VALID_COMPRESSOR_TYPES.toString()));
        }
        else
        {
            return compressorType;
        }
    }

    public static Integer validateCompressionLevel(String compressionLevel) throws ConfigurationException
    {
        if (compressionLevel == null)
            return DEFAULT_HIGH_COMPRESSION_LEVEL;

        ConfigurationException ex = new ConfigurationException("Invalid value [" + compressionLevel + "] for parameter '"
                                                                 + LZ4_HIGH_COMPRESSION_LEVEL + "'. Value must be between 1 and 17.");

        Integer level;

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