dianping/cat · error · Error

prompt with select requires options

Error message

prompt with select requires options

What it means

For prompt dialogs with inputType 'select', bootbox builds <option> elements from options.inputOptions and throws if that array is missing or empty — a select with no options would render a dead control, so it fails fast. inputOptions defaults to [] when absent, which also trips this check.

Source

Thrown at cat-home/src/main/webapp/assets/js/uncompressed/bootbox.js:466

    input = $(templates.inputs[options.inputType]);

    switch (options.inputType) {
      case "text":
      case "textarea":
      case "email":
      case "date":
      case "time":
      case "number":
      case "password":
        input.val(options.value);
        break;

      case "select":
        var groups = {};
        inputOptions = options.inputOptions || [];

        if (!inputOptions.length) {
          throw new Error("prompt with select requires options");
        }

        each(inputOptions, function(_, option) {

          // assume the element to attach to is the input...
          var elem = input;

          if (option.value === undefined || option.text === undefined) {
            throw new Error("given options in wrong format");
          }


          // ... but override that element if this option sits in a group

          if (option.group) {
            // initialise group if necessary
            if (!groups[option.group]) {
              groups[option.group] = $("<optgroup/>").attr("label", option.group);

View on GitHub (pinned to e815e74d4c)

Solutions

1. Guard before calling: only open the prompt when the list has entries — if (!items.length) { bootbox.alert('Nothing to choose from.'); return; }
2. Load the options first (AJAX/promise), then build the prompt in the completion handler.
3. Verify the property name is exactly inputOptions and each entry has both value and text (see the follow-on format error).

Example fix

// before
bootbox.prompt({ title: 'Assign owner', inputType: 'select', callback: assign }); // inputOptions forgotten

// after
bootbox.prompt({
  title: 'Assign owner', inputType: 'select',
  inputOptions: owners.map(function (o) { return { value: o.id, text: o.name }; }),
  callback: assign
});

if (!Array.isArray(items) || !items.length) {
  bootbox.alert('Nothing to choose from.');
  return;
}
bootbox.prompt({ title: title, inputType: 'select',
  inputOptions: items.map(function (i) { return { value: i.id, text: i.name }; }),
  callback: cb });

function hasNonEmptyInputOptions(o) {
  return Array.isArray(o.inputOptions) && o.inputOptions.length > 0;
}

When it happens

Trigger: bootbox.prompt({title: 'Choose', inputType: 'select', callback: fn}) with no inputOptions; inputOptions: [] because the data source (AJAX list, query results) returned nothing or had not loaded yet; inputOptions passed under a wrong property name (options, values).

Common situations: Feeding inputOptions from an async source and calling prompt before the data arrives; filtering a list that legitimately becomes empty; misspelling the property so the default [] is used.

Related errors

• prompt with checkbox requires options
• given options in wrong format
• prompt requires a title
• prompt requires a callback
• invalid prompt type

AI-assisted analysis of dianping/cat@e815e74d4c (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b1a1e0f96501c0c2. Report an issue: GitHub.