denoland/deno · error · TypeError

MeterProvider can not be constructed

Error message

MeterProvider can not be constructed

What it means

MeterProvider in Deno's OpenTelemetry metrics shim (ext/telemetry/telemetry.ts:737) is a static-only class. It exists solely for the static factory MeterProvider.getMeter(name, version?, options?) which returns a Meter; the constructor throws TypeError because meters are obtained through the factory, never via new. This differs from @opentelemetry/sdk-metrics, where new MeterProvider() is the normal entry point.

Source

Thrown at ext/telemetry/telemetry.ts:759

    name: string,
    description?: string,
    unit?: string,
  ): Instrument;
  createObservableUpDownCounter(
    name: string,
    description?: string,
    unit?: string,
  ): Instrument;
  createObservableGauge(
    name: string,
    description?: string,
    unit?: string,
  ): Instrument;
}

class MeterProvider {
  constructor() {
    throw new TypeError("MeterProvider can not be constructed");
  }

  static getMeter(
    name: string,
    version?: string,
    options?: MeterOptions,
  ): Meter {
    const meter = new OtelMeter(name, version, options?.schemaUrl);
    return new Meter(meter);
  }
}

type MetricAttributes = Attributes;

type Instrument = { __key: "instrument" };

let batchResultHasObservables: (
  res: BatchObservableResult,

View on GitHub (pinned to a961cdec3b)

Solutions

1. Use the static factory: MeterProvider.getMeter('my-lib', '1.0.0')
2. Delete SDK lifecycle code (addReader, forceFlush, shutdown) when running against Deno's shim; the exporter is configured by Deno's runtime flags, not by the provider
3. Check which import specifier your module resolves @opentelemetry/api from; Deno redirects it to the internal shim only in the expected configuration

Example fix

// before
const provider = new MeterProvider();
const meter = provider.getMeter('app');

// after
const meter = MeterProvider.getMeter('app');

// No construction exists to validate; use the static factory directly
const meter = MeterProvider.getMeter("my-lib", "1.0.0");

try {
  // code that may construct MeterProvider
} catch (e) {
  if (e instanceof TypeError && e.message.includes("can not be constructed")) {
    // replace with MeterProvider.getMeter(name)
  } else {
    throw e;
  }
}

When it happens

Trigger: const provider = new MeterProvider(); const meter = provider.getMeter('lib'); copying SDK-based examples that instantiate a provider, register a reader, and call provider.shutdown().

Common situations: Migrating an app from the OpenTelemetry JS SDK to Deno's built-in otel support (DENO_OTEL_OTLP_ENDPOINT / --unstable-otel) without adjusting provider bootstrap code; tutorials copy-pasted from opentelemetry-js docs.

Related errors

• ContextManager can not be constructed
• Only valueType: DOUBLE is supported
• startActiveSpan requires a function argument
• Counter can only be incremented
• Observable counters can only be incremented

AI-assisted analysis of denoland/deno@a961cdec3b (2026-08-20). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b50edc6778357ef6. Report an issue: GitHub.