instructure/canvas-lms · error · ImportError

No name given for # #

Error message

No name given for #{type_display} #{sis_id}

What it means

invalid_category? raises ImportError when the name of a group category or differentiation tag set is blank, even when a valid sis_id is present. The message interpolates type_display and sis_id so the offending row can be located.

Solutions

1. Ensure every category row has a non-blank name column
2. Fix CSV header mapping so name parses correctly
3. Backfill names for categories created without one in the source system
4. Guard the call site: skip rows with blank names before invoking the importer

Example fix

// before
importer.add_group_category(account, row['id'], row['name'], row['status'])
// after
next if row['name'].blank?
importer.add_group_category(account, row['id'], row['name'], row['status'])

raise 'missing name' if name.blank?
importer.add_group_category(account, sis_id, name, status)

begin
  importer.add_group_category(account, sis_id, name, status)
rescue SIS::Base::ImportError => e
  logger.warn("Skipping category: #{e.message}")
end

When it happens

Trigger: `invalid_category?(sis_id, nil_or_empty_name, status, type_display)` — a group_categories CSV row with a sis_id but empty name column; add_group_category/add_differentiation_tag_set called with a nil name.

Common situations: Export that leaves name empty for programmatically-created categories; column misalignment shifting names into the wrong field; translators/localization pipelines dropping the name value.

Understand the failure class

Background: "must not be empty", "cannot be empty" — required-field validation errors across open-source libraries — this error's family across 41 libraries.

Related errors

• No grade_publishing_status given for enrollment #
• No sis_id given for a #
• A user did not pass validation
• An email did not pass validation
• An institutional tag category did not pass validation

AI-assisted analysis of instructure/canvas-lms@1c9f0bb801 (2026-09-15). Data as JSON: /api/errors/aed67dbf3ae78ac7. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at lib/sis/group_category_importer.rb:46

      importer.success_count
    end

    class Work
      attr_accessor :success_count, :roll_back_data

      def initialize(batch, root_account, logger)
        @batch = batch
        @root_account = root_account
        @logger = logger
        @success_count = 0
        @roll_back_data = []
        @accounts_cache = {}
        @courses_cache = {}
      end

      def invalid_category?(sis_id, name, status, type_display)
        raise ImportError, "No sis_id given for a #{type_display}" if sis_id.blank?
        raise ImportError, "No name given for #{type_display} #{sis_id}" if name.blank?
        raise ImportError, "No status given for #{type_display} #{sis_id}" if status.blank?
        raise ImportError, "Improper status \"#{status}\" for #{type_display} #{sis_id}, skipping" unless /\A(active|deleted)/i.match?(status)
        return true if @batch.skip_deletes? && status =~ /deleted/i

        false
      end

      def find_context(account_id, course_id, sis_id, type_display)
        context = nil
        if account_id && course_id
          raise ImportError, "Only one context is allowed and both course_id and account_id where provided for #{type_display} #{sis_id}."
        end

        if account_id
          context = @accounts_cache[account_id]
          context ||= @root_account.all_accounts.active.find_by(sis_source_id: account_id)
          raise ImportError, "Account with id \"#{account_id}\" didn't exist for #{type_display} #{sis_id}" unless context

View on GitHub (pinned to 1c9f0bb801)