apache/maven · error · ArtifactDescriptorException

Artifact relocations form a cycle: {visited}

Error message

Artifact relocations form a cycle: {visited}

What it means

Error "Artifact relocations form a cycle: {visited}" thrown in apache/maven.

Source

Thrown at impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/resolver/DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.java:166

                        new VersionRequest(pomArtifact, request.getRepositories(), request.getRequestContext());
                versionRequest.setTrace(trace);
                versionResult = versionResolver.resolveVersion(session, versionRequest);

                pomArtifact = pomArtifact.setVersion(versionResult.getVersion());
            } catch (VersionResolutionException e) {
                result.addException(e);
                throw new ArtifactDescriptorException(result);
            }

            if (!visited.add(a.getGroupId() + ':' + a.getArtifactId() + ':' + a.getBaseVersion())) {
                RepositoryException exception =
                        new RepositoryException("Artifact relocations form a cycle: " + visited);
                invalidDescriptor(session, trace, a, exception);
                if ((getPolicy(session, a, request) & ArtifactDescriptorPolicy.IGNORE_INVALID) != 0) {
                    return null;
                }
                result.addException(exception);
                throw new ArtifactDescriptorException(result);
            }

            ArtifactResult resolveResult;
            try {
                ArtifactRequest resolveRequest =
                        new ArtifactRequest(pomArtifact, request.getRepositories(), request.getRequestContext());
                resolveRequest.setTrace(trace);
                resolveResult = artifactResolver.resolveArtifact(session, resolveRequest);
                pomArtifact = resolveResult.getArtifact();
                result.setRepository(resolveResult.getRepository());
            } catch (ArtifactResolutionException e) {
                if (e.getCause() instanceof ArtifactNotFoundException artifactNotFoundException) {
                    missingDescriptor(session, trace, a, artifactNotFoundException);
                    if ((getPolicy(session, a, request) & ArtifactDescriptorPolicy.IGNORE_MISSING) != 0) {
                        return null;
                    }
                }
                result.addException(e);

View on GitHub (pinned to e4093d4e12)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/resolver/DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.java:166 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of apache/maven@e4093d4e12 (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c6092cba687e7166. Report an issue: GitHub.