apache/iceberg · error · ValidationException
Illegal file type: %s
Error message
Illegal file type: %s
What it means
ValidationException raised by the file-counting listener in BaseSparkAction when deleteOperation/deletedFiles receives a file type string that is not DATA, DATA_FILE, POSITION_DELETES, EQUALITY_DELETES, or OTHERS. It guards the counting logic that classifies manifest-deleted files during rewrite/cleanup actions.
Source
Thrown at spark/v3.5/spark/src/main/java/org/apache/iceberg/spark/actions/BaseSparkAction.java:331
positionDeleteFilesCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else if (FileContent.EQUALITY_DELETES.name().equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
equalityDeleteFilesCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else if (MANIFEST.equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
manifestsCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else if (MANIFEST_LIST.equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
manifestListsCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else if (STATISTICS_FILES.equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
statisticsFilesCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else if (OTHERS.equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
otherFilesCount.addAndGet(numFiles);
} else {
throw new ValidationException("Illegal file type: %s", type);
}
}
public void deletedFile(String path, String type) {
if (FileContent.DATA.name().equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
dataFilesCount.incrementAndGet();
LOG.trace("Deleted data file: {}", path);
} else if (FileContent.POSITION_DELETES.name().equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
positionDeleteFilesCount.incrementAndGet();
LOG.trace("Deleted positional delete file: {}", path);
} else if (FileContent.EQUALITY_DELETES.name().equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
equalityDeleteFilesCount.incrementAndGet();
LOG.trace("Deleted equality delete file: {}", path);
} else if (MANIFEST.equalsIgnoreCase(type)) {
manifestsCount.incrementAndGet();View on GitHub (pinned to 86d9c8fc54)
Solutions
- Upgrade the Iceberg Spark runtime so the new file content type is recognized
- Ensure writer and reader Iceberg versions are compatible
- If reproducible with valid metadata, file an issue — a new Iceberg content type must be added to the classifier
Defensive patterns
Strategy: validation
Validate before calling
Set<String> known = Set.of("DATA", "POSITION_DELETES", "EQUALITY_DELETES", "OTHERS");
// verify all file contents in table metadata are known before running actions Try / catch
try { SparkActions.get(spark).removeOrphanFiles(table).execute(); } catch (ValidationException e) { /* unknown file content type; upgrade connector */ } Prevention
- Keep the Spark connector at or above the writer's Iceberg version
- Check table metadata file content kinds before running cleanup actions
- Monitor Iceberg release notes for new file content types
When it happens
Trigger: Executing SparkActions like removeOrphanFiles/rewriteDataFiles/deleteReachableFiles against a table whose metadata contains content types this connector version does not recognize (e.g. newer file content kinds).
Common situations: Older Spark connector processing metadata produced by a newer Iceberg writer that introduced a new content type; corrupted or hand-edited table metadata.
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
- Illegal file type: %s
- Cannot find source table '%s'
- Cannot use non-v1 table '%s' as a source
- Unable to determine whether certain files are orphan. Metada
- Cannot remove orphan files with an interval less than 24 hou
AI-assisted analysis of apache/iceberg@86d9c8fc54 (2026-09-12).
Data as JSON: /api/errors/07a32378015c0c52.
Report an issue: GitHub.