influxdata/influxdb · error · Error

write buffer error

Error message

write buffer error: {0}

What it means

Passthrough for influxdb3_write::write_buffer::Error. When an HTTP write request reaches the write buffer and fails there (invalid line protocol, database not found, buffer internal error), the HTTP layer wraps it as 'write buffer error: ...'.

Solutions

1. Read the wrapped inner error for the specific write failure
2. Validate line protocol syntax (measurement,tags fields timestamp) before sending
3. Ensure the target database name is correct and exists
4. Check server logs/disk health if the error indicates persistence failure

Example fix

// before (missing field separator)
cpu,host=a usage=90
// after
cpu,host=a usage=90,core=8 1690000000000000000

// validate line protocol before sending
for (const line of lines) {
  if (!/^[^ ,=]+(,[^ ,=]+=[^ ,=]+)*\s+[^ ]+/.test(line)) throw new Error("bad line protocol: " + line);
}
if (!db) throw new Error("db is required");

try { await write(lines); } catch (e) {
  if (String(e).includes("write buffer error")) {
    // parse inner cause: syntax errors -> fix payload; transient -> retry with backoff
  }
}

When it happens

Trigger: POST /write with malformed line protocol; writing to a database that doesn't exist or can't be created; write-buffer persistence failures.

Common situations: Typos or bad escaping in line protocol; wrong measurement/tag/field syntax; writing timestamps outside the allowed range; disk or WAL problems on the server.

Related errors

• Cannot parse the given human time
• Cannot parse the timestamp
• Cannot write
• {error_code}
• failed to build an http client

AI-assisted analysis of influxdata/influxdb@06200ef96b (2026-09-19). Data as JSON: /api/errors/d4a5497948db9be7. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at influxdb3_server/src/http.rs:295

    MissingWriteParams,

    #[error("the mime type specified was not valid UTF8: {0}")]
    NonUtf8MimeType(#[from] FromUtf8Error),

    /// Serde decode error
    #[error("serde error: {0}")]
    SerdeUrlDecoding(#[from] serde_urlencoded::de::Error),

    /// Arrow error
    #[error("arrow error: {0}")]
    Arrow(#[from] arrow::error::ArrowError),

    /// Hyper error
    #[error("hyper http error: {0}")]
    Hyper(#[from] hyper::http::Error),

    /// WriteBuffer error
    #[error("write buffer error: {0}")]
    WriteBuffer(#[from] influxdb3_write::write_buffer::Error),

    /// Persister error
    #[error("persister error: {0}")]
    Persister(#[from] influxdb3_write::persister::PersisterError),

    // ToStrError
    #[error("to str error: {0}")]
    ToStr(#[from] hyper::header::ToStrError),

    // SerdeJsonError
    #[error("serde json error: {0}")]
    SerdeJson(#[from] serde_json::Error),

    // Influxdb3 Write
    #[error("serde json error: {0}")]
    Influxdb3Write(#[from] influxdb3_write::Error),

View on GitHub (pinned to 06200ef96b)