dotnet/efcore · error · DbUpdateException

Required properties '{requiredProperties}' are missing for t

Error message

Required properties '{requiredProperties}' are missing for the instance of entity type '{entityType}' with the key value '{keyValue}'.

What it means

During Create/Update the InMemory store detected that one or more non-nullable properties had a null value, and EnableSensitiveDataLogging() is on, so the entity key value is included in the message (InMemoryTable.cs:397-402). This is a DbUpdateException, not a concurrency error.

Source

Thrown at src/EFCore.InMemory/Storage/Internal/InMemoryTable.cs:397

    }

    private static bool IsNullable(IProperty property)
        => property.IsNullable
            || (property.DeclaringType is IComplexType complexType
                && IsNullable(complexType.ComplexProperty));

    private static bool IsNullable(IComplexProperty property)
        => property.IsNullable
            || (property.DeclaringType is IComplexType complexType
                && IsNullable(complexType.ComplexProperty));

    private void ThrowNullabilityErrorException(
        IUpdateEntry entry,
        IList<IProperty> nullabilityErrors)
    {
        if (_sensitiveLoggingEnabled)
        {
            throw new DbUpdateException(
                InMemoryStrings.NullabilityErrorExceptionSensitive(
                    nullabilityErrors.Format(),
                    entry.EntityType.DisplayName(),
                    entry.BuildCurrentValuesString(entry.EntityType.FindPrimaryKey()!.Properties)),
                [entry]);
        }

        throw new DbUpdateException(
            InMemoryStrings.NullabilityErrorException(
                nullabilityErrors.Format(),
                entry.EntityType.DisplayName()),
            [entry]);
    }

    /// <summary>
    ///     This is an internal API that supports the Entity Framework Core infrastructure and not subject to
    ///     the same compatibility standards as public APIs. It may be changed or removed without notice in
    ///     any release. You should only use it directly in your code with extreme caution and knowing that

View on GitHub (pinned to dbf9771522)

Solutions

Set the required property to a non-null value before calling SaveChanges.
If nulls are legitimately possible, make the property nullable in the model.
Provide a value generator or HasDefaultValue so the store can supply a value.

Example fix

// before
db.Add(new Order { CustomerId = 1 }); // Total (required) missing
db.SaveChanges();
// after
db.Add(new Order { CustomerId = 1, Total = 0m });
db.SaveChanges();

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

// Before SaveChanges, verify required (non-nullable) scalar properties are set:
foreach (var entry in ctx.ChangeTracker.Entries())
{
    foreach (var prop in entry.Metadata.GetProperties())
    {
        if (!prop.IsNullable
            && entry.CurrentValues[prop] is null
            && prop.ValueGenerated == ValueGenerated.Never)
        {
            throw new InvalidOperationException($"{entry.Entity.GetType().Name}.{prop.Name} is required but null.");
        }
    }
}

Try / catch

try
{
    ctx.SaveChanges();
}
catch (DbUpdateException ex) when (ex.Message.Contains("Required properties"))
{
    // identify and set the null required property, then retry
}

Prevention

Validate required properties in domain code or via data annotations before SaveChanges.
Use HasDefaultValue or value generators for store-supplied required values.
EnableSensitiveDataLogging in dev/test to quickly identify the offending entity and key.

When it happens

Trigger: Calling SaveChanges on an entity (insert or update) where a property declared as non-nullable (IsNullable == false, not a nullable complex type) resolves to null at store time, with EnableSensitiveDataLogging enabled.

Common situations: Forgetting to set a required property, a value converter returning null, or a computed/default value not being applied. Sensitive logging variant appears in dev/test where EnableSensitiveDataLogging is configured.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of dotnet/efcore@dbf9771522 (2026-08-06). Data as JSON: /api/errors/499e725b0ad1e8a0. Report an issue: GitHub.