pentaho/pentaho-kettle · error · KettleStepException

DimensionLookupMeta.Exception.UnableToRetrieveDataTypeOfRetu…

Error message

DimensionLookupMeta.Exception.UnableToRetrieveDataTypeOfReturnField2

What it means

This is the exception-path companion of the previous error: inside getFields()' try block, any Exception while reading the table's fields/data types from the database (connecting, reading table metadata, deriving types) results in the localized 'Unable to retrieve data type of return field (2)' message wrapped with the cause in a KettleStepException. It means the step could not complete metadata retrieval from the database to determine return-field types.

Solutions

1. Check the wrapped cause (getCause()) — it usually reveals a connection, authentication, or 'table not found' error
2. Verify the database connection defined in the transformation works (test the connection in Spoon)
3. Confirm the schema/table name configured in the step exists and the user can read its metadata
4. Ensure the correct JDBC driver is on the classpath for the connection type

Example fix

// before: connection points at dev DB where the dim table doesn't exist
// after: fix the connection's host/database so table metadata can be read
DatabaseMeta dbMeta = new DatabaseMeta("dimdb", "POSTGRESQL", "Native", "user", "pass", "prod-host:5432", "warehouse", null);

// Java: verify the design-time DB connection can read table metadata before calling getFields
Database db = new Database(transMeta, databaseMeta);
try { db.connect(); db.getTableFields(schemaTable); }
finally { db.disconnect(); }

try {
  meta.getFields(row, origin, null, null, sp, metaStore);
} catch (KettleStepException e) {
  if (e.getMessage().contains("UnableToRetrieveDataTypeOfReturnField2") && e.getCause() != null) {
    logError("Metadata read failed: " + e.getCause().getMessage()); // connection/table/driver issue
    // test/repair the connection, then retry
  } else throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: getFields() opens a temporary database connection (db = new Database(...); db.connect()) and reads the table's row metadata; any exception (connection failure, bad table name, driver error) inside the try is caught and rethrown with this message; the connection is closed in finally.

Common situations: Database unreachable or credentials wrong at design time; table/schema name misspelled so metadata reads fail; driver class missing on the classpath; permissions prevent reading table metadata.

Understand the failure class

Background: Database query failed: Internal Server Error 500s wrapping SQL, Prisma, and connection failures — what to check first — this error's family across 16 libraries.

Related errors

• Database.Exception.EmptyConnectionError
• MonetDBBulkLoaderMeta.Exception.ErrorGettingFields
• Database connection not found:
• Database.Exception.UnableToGetMetadata
• Database type not found!

AI-assisted analysis of pentaho/pentaho-kettle@f3058517a1 (2026-09-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/700eed035d91191a. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at engine/src/main/java/org/pentaho/di/trans/steps/dimensionlookup/DimensionLookupMeta.java:810

            // If the field needs to be renamed, rename
            if ( fieldStream[i] != null && fieldStream[i].length() > 0 ) {
              v.setName( fieldStream[i] );
            }
            v.setOrigin( name );
            row.addValueMeta( v );
          }
        } else {
          String message =
              BaseMessages.getString( PKG, "DimensionLookupMeta.Exception.UnableToRetrieveDataTypeOfReturnField" );
          logError( message );
          throw new KettleStepException( message );
        }
      } catch ( Exception e ) {
        String message =
            BaseMessages.getString( PKG, "DimensionLookupMeta.Exception.UnableToRetrieveDataTypeOfReturnField2" );
        logError( message );
        throw new KettleStepException( message, e );
      } finally {
        if ( db != null ) {
          db.close();
        }
      }
    }
  }

  @Override
  public String getXML() {
    actualizeWithInjectedValues();
    StringBuilder retval = new StringBuilder( 512 );

    retval.append( "      " ).append( XMLHandler.addTagValue( "schema", schemaName ) );
    retval.append( "      " ).append( XMLHandler.addTagValue( "table", tableName ) );
    retval.append( "      " ).append( XMLHandler.addTagValue( "connection", databaseMeta == null ? "" : databaseMeta
        .getName() ) );
    retval.append( "      " ).append( XMLHandler.addTagValue( "commit", commitSize ) );

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