apache/iceberg · error · RuntimeException

Failed to list all namespace: <namespace> in Hive Metastore

Error message

Failed to list all namespace: <namespace> in Hive Metastore

What it means

listNamespaces wraps a generic Thrift TException from getAllDatabases() in a RuntimeException stating the namespaces could not be listed in the Hive Metastore. This indicates a metastore client/server failure rather than a logical namespace problem.

Source

Thrown at hive-metastore/src/main/java/org/apache/iceberg/hive/HiveCatalog.java:582

  @Override
  public List<Namespace> listNamespaces(Namespace namespace) {
    if (!namespace.isEmpty() && (!isValidateNamespace(namespace) || !namespaceExists(namespace))) {
      throw new NoSuchNamespaceException("Namespace does not exist: %s", namespace);
    }
    if (!namespace.isEmpty()) {
      return ImmutableList.of();
    }
    try {
      List<Namespace> namespaces =
          clients.run(IMetaStoreClient::getAllDatabases).stream()
              .map(Namespace::of)
              .collect(Collectors.toList());

      LOG.debug("Listing namespace {} returned tables: {}", namespace, namespaces);
      return namespaces;

    } catch (TException e) {
      throw new RuntimeException(
          "Failed to list all namespace: " + namespace + " in Hive Metastore", e);

    } catch (InterruptedException e) {
      Thread.currentThread().interrupt();
      throw new RuntimeException(
          "Interrupted in call to getAllDatabases() " + namespace + " in Hive Metastore", e);
    }
  }

  @Override
  public boolean dropNamespace(Namespace namespace) {
    if (!isValidateNamespace(namespace)) {
      return false;
    }

    try {
      clients.run(
          client -> {

View on GitHub (pinned to 86d9c8fc54)

Solutions

1. Inspect the chained cause for the actual TException and check metastore health/connectivity
2. Verify catalog configuration (hive.metastore.uris) and authentication credentials
3. Retry the listing; HiveCatalog's retry client may already have exhausted internal retries

// probe metastore health before bulk listing
client.getAllDatabases();

try {
  return catalog.listNamespaces();
} catch (RuntimeException e) {
  throw new RuntimeException("Metastore listing failed, cause: " + e.getCause(), e);
}

When it happens

Trigger: catalog.listNamespaces() when the Hive Metastore call throws TException — connectivity loss, metastore down, or thrift protocol errors.

Common situations: Metastore service restarted mid-query; network partition to the metastore; misconfigured thrift URI; Kerberos token expiry.

Understand the failure class

Background: Database query failed: Internal Server Error 500s wrapping SQL, Prisma, and connection failures — what to check first — this error's family across 16 libraries.

Related errors

• Failed to check table existence of ${baseTableIdentifier}
• Failed to check view existence of ${viewIdentifier}
• Failed to create namespace ${namespace} in Hive Metastore
• Failed to drop namespace <namespace> in Hive Metastore
• Failed to list namespace under namespace: <namespace> in Hiv

AI-assisted analysis of apache/iceberg@86d9c8fc54 (2026-09-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c0b18857b77f1284. Report an issue: GitHub.