dotnet/orleans · error · ArgumentNullException

Value cannot be null. (Parameter '{propertyName}')

Error message

Value cannot be null. (Parameter '{propertyName}')

What it means

Thrown by AzureStoragePolicyOptions.SetIfValidTimeout when a timeout (CreationTimeout or OperationTimeout) is <= TimeSpan.Zero and not Timeout.InfiniteTimeSpan. NOTE: the library throws ArgumentNullException here, so the message reads 'Value cannot be null' even though the value is a non-null TimeSpan — this is misleading; the real problem is an invalid (non-positive, non-infinite) timeout. The parameter name reflects which property you set (CreationTimeout or OperationTimeout).

Source

Thrown at src/Azure/Shared/Storage/AzureStoragePolicyOptions.cs:82

            get => this.creationTimeout ?? TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(this.PauseBetweenCreationRetries.TotalMilliseconds * this.MaxCreationRetries * 3);
            set => SetIfValidTimeout(ref this.creationTimeout, value, nameof(CreationTimeout));
        }

        public TimeSpan OperationTimeout
        {
            get => this.operationTimeout ?? TimeSpan.FromSeconds(100);
            set => SetIfValidTimeout(ref this.operationTimeout, value, nameof(OperationTimeout));
        }

        private static void SetIfValidTimeout(ref TimeSpan? field, TimeSpan value, string propertyName)
        {
            if (value > TimeSpan.Zero || value.Equals(Timeout.InfiniteTimeSpan))
            {
                field = value;
            }
            else
            {
                throw new ArgumentNullException(propertyName);
            }
        }
    }
}

View on GitHub (pinned to fca799fa70)

Solutions

1. Set a positive TimeSpan or Timeout.InfiniteTimeSpan.
2. Leave the property unset to use the defaults (OperationTimeout ~100s; CreationTimeout derived from creation retry settings).
3. Treat the misleading 'Value cannot be null' message as 'invalid timeout value'.

Example fix

// before
policy.OperationTimeout = TimeSpan.Zero; // throws (misleading 'null' message)
// after
policy.OperationTimeout = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(30); // or leave unset

static TimeSpan SafeTimeout(TimeSpan v, string name) =>
    v > TimeSpan.Zero || v == Timeout.InfiniteTimeSpan ? v : throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException(name, "timeout must be positive or Infinite");

static bool IsValidTimeout(TimeSpan v) => v > TimeSpan.Zero || v == Timeout.InfiniteTimeSpan;

catch (ArgumentNullException ex) when (ex.ParamName is "CreationTimeout" or "OperationTimeout") { /* misleading: value is invalid (<=0), not null; pass positive/Infinite */ }

When it happens

Trigger: Setting policy.CreationTimeout or policy.OperationTimeout to TimeSpan.Zero or a negative value.

Common situations: Assuming TimeSpan.Zero means 'no timeout'; arithmetic that produces a non-positive duration; deserializing config that yields zero.

Related errors

• Value cannot be null. (Parameter 'createClientCallback')
• Value cannot be null. (Parameter 'connectionString')
• Value cannot be null. (Parameter 'serviceUri')
• Value cannot be null. (Parameter 'tokenCredential')
• Value cannot be null. (Parameter 'azureSasCredential')

AI-assisted analysis of dotnet/orleans@fca799fa70 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/beb2ec57572e3201. Report an issue: GitHub.