drizzle-team/drizzle-orm · error · Error

You can't use lorem ipsum generator with a db column length

Error message

You can't use lorem ipsum generator with a db column length restriction of ${this.stringLength}. Set the maximum string length to at least ${maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength}.

What it means

GenerateLoremIpsum concatenates one or more random lorem-ipsum sentences. The worst-case output length is maxLoremIpsumLength * sentencesCount + sentencesCount - 1 (longest sentence times the sentence count, plus joining spaces). If the target column's varchar length is below this, the generator cannot guarantee its output fits and throws at init().

Source

Thrown at drizzle-seed/src/services/Generators.ts:2787

	sentencesCount?: number;
	arraySize?: number;
}> {
	static override readonly entityKind: string = 'GenerateLoremIpsum';

	private state: {
		rng: prand.RandomGenerator;
	} | undefined;

	override init({ count, seed }: { count: number; seed: number }) {
		super.init({ count, seed });

		const rng = prand.xoroshiro128plus(seed);
		if (this.params.sentencesCount === undefined) this.params.sentencesCount = 1;

		const maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength = maxLoremIpsumLength * this.params.sentencesCount + this.params.sentencesCount
			- 1;
		if (this.stringLength !== undefined && this.stringLength < maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength) {
			throw new Error(
				`You can't use lorem ipsum generator with a db column length restriction of ${this.stringLength}. Set the maximum string length to at least ${maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength}.`,
			);
		}

		this.state = { rng };
	}

	generate() {
		if (this.state === undefined) {
			throw new Error('state is not defined.');
		}

		let idx, resultText: string = '';
		for (let i = 0; i < this.params.sentencesCount!; i++) {
			[idx, this.state.rng] = prand.uniformIntDistribution(0, loremIpsumSentences.length - 1, this.state.rng);
			resultText += loremIpsumSentences[idx] + ' ';
		}

View on GitHub (pinned to b7862528fd)

Solutions

Widen the column to at least the maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength value printed in the error.
Reduce the sentencesCount param so the worst-case output fits the current column width.
Override the generator in refinements with GenerateString or a shorter text generator that respects the column limit.

Example fix

// before
bio: varchar('bio', { length: 40 })
// refinements override insufficient width — widen instead
// after
bio: varchar('bio', { length: 200 })

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

// maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength = maxLoremIpsumLength * sentencesCount + sentencesCount - 1
// maxLoremIpsumLength comes from the longest bundled sentence.
// Use a generous column width based on sentencesCount.
const MAX_LOREM_SENTENCE_LENGTH = 200; // conservative; bundled longest sentence
function minColumnForLoremIpsum(sentencesCount: number): number {
  return MAX_LOREM_SENTENCE_LENGTH * sentencesCount + sentencesCount - 1;
}
function columnFitsLoremIpsum(colLength: number | undefined, sentencesCount = 1): boolean {
  return colLength === undefined || colLength >= minColumnForLoremIpsum(sentencesCount);
}

Prevention

Use varchar(500)+ for lorem-ipsum columns, or TEXT type.
When increasing sentencesCount, proportionally widen the column.
Override short text columns with GenerateString in refinements.

When it happens

Trigger: A varchar column with a small length assigned GenerateLoremIpsum, or auto-assigned because the column name matches the lorem-ipsum heuristic, where the column width is below maxLoremIpsumSentencesLength. Increasing sentencesCount in params without widening the column also triggers it.

Common situations: A short description/notes varchar(50) column that gets the lorem-ipsum generator; raising sentencesCount for richer text without adjusting the column length.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of drizzle-team/drizzle-orm@b7862528fd (2026-08-03). Data as JSON: /data/errors/7374251cff5870c2.json. Report an issue: GitHub.