apache/maven · error · IllegalArgumentException

executable function requires exactly one argument

Error message

executable function requires exactly one argument

What it means

executable() is a built-in function of Maven 4.1 profile activation conditions (<activation><condition>). ConditionFunctions.executable throws IllegalArgumentException unless exactly one string argument (an executable name or path) is supplied; note that a blank name is not an error — it just returns false. The activator converts the arity failure into 'Error parsing profile activation condition' and the profile stays inactive.

Source

Thrown at impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/model/profile/ConditionFunctions.java:268

     * <pre>
     *   executable('musl-gcc')
     *   executable('x86_64-linux-musl-gcc')
     *   executable('/usr/bin/musl-gcc')
     * </pre>
     *
     * <p>When a plain name (without path separators) is given the function searches every
     * directory listed in the {@code PATH} environment variable.  On Windows, the platform
     * executable extensions ({@code .exe}, {@code .cmd}, {@code .bat}, {@code .com}) are
     * tried automatically when the name does not already carry an extension.
     *
     * @param args A list containing a single string argument: the executable name or path
     * @return {@code true} if the executable is found and is a regular, executable file,
     *         {@code false} otherwise
     * @throws IllegalArgumentException if the number of arguments is not exactly one
     */
    public Object executable(List<Object> args) {
        if (args.size() != 1) {
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("executable function requires exactly one argument");
        }
        String name = ConditionParser.toString(args.get(0));
        if (name == null || name.isBlank()) {
            return false;
        }
        return ExecutableFinder.isExecutableInPath(name, context);
    }
}

View on GitHub (pinned to e4093d4e12)

Solutions

1. Use exactly one argument: executable('docker')
2. For several tools combine conditions: executable('docker') and executable('docker-compose')
3. Because activation depends on the local PATH, prefer explicit -P profiles in CI for reproducibility

Example fix

<!-- before -->
<condition>executable('docker', true)</condition>

<!-- after -->
<condition>executable('docker')</condition>

static boolean arityOk(String condition, String fn, int min, int max) {
    int i = condition.indexOf(fn + "(");
    if (i < 0) return true;
    String args = condition.substring(i + fn.length() + 1, condition.indexOf(')', i));
    int n = args.isBlank() ? 0 : args.split(",", -1).length;
    return n >= min && n <= max;
}
boolean ok = arityOk(condition, "executable", 1, 1);

try {
    Object r = new ConditionParser(functions, resolver).parse(condition);
} catch (IllegalArgumentException e) {
    // report and treat the profile as inactive
}

When it happens

Trigger: A condition like executable('docker', true) — there is no second flag; the valid form is executable('docker'), which searches PATH for a plain name or checks the given path directly (Windows extensions .exe/.cmd/.bat/.com are tried automatically).

Common situations: Adding a 'search PATH' boolean out of habit (PATH search is the default behavior); listing several executables as separate arguments instead of combining with 'and'; non-reproducible builds because activation now depends on the machine's PATH, as the Javadoc itself warns.

Related errors

• length function requires exactly one argument
• upper function requires exactly one argument
• lower function requires exactly one argument
• substring function requires 2 or 3 arguments
• indexOf function requires exactly two arguments

AI-assisted analysis of apache/maven@e4093d4e12 (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/7b25ca70176b5c49. Report an issue: GitHub.