faker-ruby/faker · error · ArgumentError

Given argument is too large

Error message

Given argument is too large

What it means

Error "Given argument is too large" thrown in faker-ruby/faker.

Source

Thrown at lib/faker/internet.rb:78

      # @param specifier [Integer, Range, String] When int value passed it returns the username longer than specifier. Max value can be 10^6
      # @param separators [Array]
      #
      # @example
      #   Faker::Internet.username(specifier: 10)                     #=> "lulu.goodwin"
      #   Faker::Internet.username(specifier: 5..10)                  #=> "morris"
      #   Faker::Internet.username(specifier: 5..10)                  #=> "berryberry"
      #   Faker::Internet.username(specifier: 20, separators: ['_'])  #=> "nikki_sawaynnikki_saway"
      def username(specifier: nil, separators: %w[. _])
        with_locale(:en) do
          case specifier
          when ::String
            names = specifier.gsub("'", '').scan(/[[:word:]]+/)
            shuffled_names = shuffle(names)

            return shuffled_names.join(sample(separators)).downcase
          when Integer
            # If specifier is Integer and has large value, Argument error exception is raised to overcome memory full error
            raise ArgumentError, 'Given argument is too large' if specifier > 10**6

            tries = 0 # Don't try forever in case we get something like 1_000_000.
            result = nil
            loop do
              result = username(specifier: nil, separators: separators)
              tries += 1
              break unless result.length < specifier && tries < 7
            end
            return result * (specifier / result.length + 1) if specifier.positive?
          when Range
            tries = 0
            result = nil
            loop do
              result = username(specifier: specifier.min, separators: separators)
              tries += 1
              break unless !specifier.include?(result.length) && tries < 7
            end
            return result[0...specifier.max]

View on GitHub (pinned to cca4184947)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at lib/faker/internet.rb:78 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of faker-ruby/faker@cca4184947 (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/3110dcd539c28c17. Report an issue: GitHub.