jenkinsci/jenkins · error · IllegalArgumentException

Invalid view name:

Error message

Invalid view name: 

What it means

`CreateViewCommand.run()` calls `View.createViewFromXML(viewName, stdin)` inside a try; if it throws a `hudson.model.Failure` (view-name validation failure — illegal characters, reserved name, etc.), the catch rethrows it as IllegalArgumentException 'Invalid view name: <Failure.message>'. The Failure is the model-level validation result for the view name.

Source

Thrown at core/src/main/java/hudson/cli/CreateViewCommand.java:60

    @Override
    public String getShortDescription() {

        return Messages.CreateViewCommand_ShortDescription();
    }

    @Override
    protected int run() throws Exception {

        final Jenkins jenkins = Jenkins.get();
        jenkins.checkPermission(View.CREATE);

        View newView;
        try {

            newView = View.createViewFromXML(viewName, stdin);
        } catch (Failure ex) {
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Invalid view name: " + ex.getMessage());
        }

        final String newName = newView.getViewName();
        if (jenkins.getView(newName) != null) {
            throw new IllegalStateException("View '" + newName + "' already exists");
        }

        jenkins.addView(newView);

        return 0;
    }
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 2e228ff40b)

Solutions

1. Use a valid view name: alphanumeric with safe separators, no slashes or reserved tokens.
2. Pass the name via the argument to override a bad name embedded in the XML, or fix the XML.
3. Check Jenkins' view-name rules (similar to job-name rules: no '/', no leading '.', etc.) before creating.

Example fix

// before:
//   java -jar jenkins-cli.jar create-view 'my/view' < view.xml
//   -> IllegalArgumentException: Invalid view name: ... (slash not allowed)
//
// after: use a permitted name
//   java -jar jenkins-cli.jar create-view myView < view.xml

// Validate the view name the same way View.createViewFromXML does before creating
try {
    Jenkins.checkGoodName(viewName); // reuse Jenkins' name rules as a first guard
} catch (Failure f) {
    throw new IllegalArgumentException("Invalid view name: " + f.getMessage());
}

When it happens

Trigger: Running `java -jar jenkins-cli.jar create-view <name> < view.xml` where <name> (or the name in the XML) fails View's name validation — e.g. contains characters not allowed in view names, is empty, or collides with a reserved identifier.

Common situations: Special characters, spaces, or slashes in the view name; very long names; names conflicting with built-in views.

Related errors

• View ' already exists
• Job ' already exists
• Unknown ItemGroup
• Can't create job from CLI in
• Node ' already exists

AI-assisted analysis of jenkinsci/jenkins@2e228ff40b (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/a09fb7b0d3af507d. Report an issue: GitHub.