apache/seatunnel · error · UnsupportedOperationException

Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Float, typeDefine

Error message

Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Float, typeDefine: ${typeDefine}

What it means

This UnsupportedOperationException is thrown by BasicDataConverter.convertFloat(T typeDefine, Object value) when the incoming value is neither a Number nor a String, so the converter has no rule to produce a float. SeaTunnel row converters call this when mapping a source field to a FLOAT column; the message names the actual Java class received and the type definition, so it identifies both the offending type and the target column type. It is a programming/schema mismatch, not a runtime failure that can be retried.

Source

Thrown at seatunnel-api/src/main/java/org/apache/seatunnel/api/table/converter/BasicDataConverter.java:916

    default double convertDouble(Number value) {
        return value.doubleValue();
    }

    default double convertDouble(String value) {
        return Double.parseDouble(value);
    }

    default float convertFloat(T typeDefine, Object value) throws UnsupportedOperationException {
        if (value instanceof Float) {
            return (float) value;
        }
        if (value instanceof Number) {
            return convertFloat(typeDefine, (Number) value);
        }
        if (value instanceof String) {
            return convertFloat(typeDefine, (String) value);
        }
        throw new UnsupportedOperationException(
                "Unsupported convert " + value.getClass() + " to Float, typeDefine: " + typeDefine);
    }

    default float convertFloat(T typeDefine, Number value) {
        return convertFloat(value);
    }

    default float convertFloat(T typeDefine, String value) {
        return convertFloat(value);
    }

    default float convertFloat(Object value) throws UnsupportedOperationException {
        if (value instanceof Float) {
            return (float) value;
        }
        if (value instanceof Number) {
            return convertFloat((Number) value);
        }

View on GitHub (pinned to cf67b549a7)

Solutions

1. Inspect value.getClass() printed in the message and change the upstream schema/catalog so the field is typed as a numeric or string type compatible with FLOAT
2. Add an explicit conversion before calling the converter (e.g. parse the value to a Number/String) or override convertFloat(T typeDefine, Object value) in a custom converter to handle the reported class
3. If the value should be skipped/nulled, filter or null-check the field in the transform before conversion

Example fix

// before
float f = converter.convertFloat(typeDefine, row.getField(i)); // byte[] value throws
// after
Object v = row.getField(i);
float f = (v instanceof Number) ? converter.convertFloat(typeDefine, (Number) v)
        : converter.convertFloat(typeDefine, new String((byte[]) v, StandardCharsets.UTF_8));

Object v = row.getField(i);
if (!(v instanceof Number) && !(v instanceof String)) {
    throw new IllegalArgumentException("Field " + i + " of type " + v.getClass() + " is not convertible to FLOAT");
}

static boolean isFloatConvertible(Object v) {
    return v instanceof Number || v instanceof String;
}

try {
    f = converter.convertFloat(typeDefine, value);
} catch (UnsupportedOperationException e) {
    LOG.warn("Non-convertible value {} for FLOAT column: {}", value, e.getMessage());
    f = 0f; // or skip/null per business rule
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling DataConverter.convertFloat(typeDefine, value) with a value object whose class is not java.lang.Number and not java.lang.String — e.g. a byte[] from a binary column, a LocalDate/LocalDateTime, a Map/Array from a struct field, or a BigDecimal subclass not expected by the converter — while the sink column is FLOAT.

Common situations: A schema mismatch between source and sink: a source connector deserializes a field as byte[]/Date/Object but the catalog says FLOAT; a custom transform passes raw deserialized objects (e.g. JSON nested objects) into a float column; column type changed in the target table without updating the catalog mapping.

Understand the failure class

Background: Type mismatch errors: IllegalArgumentException, TypeError and type guards across 150 open-source libraries — this error's family across 150 libraries.

Related errors

• Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Float
• Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Long, typeDefine:
• Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Long
• Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Integer, typeDefi
• Unsupported convert ${value.getClass()} to Integer

AI-assisted analysis of apache/seatunnel@cf67b549a7 (2026-09-10). Data as JSON: /api/errors/be48b5504fa71b68. Report an issue: GitHub.