pentaho/pentaho-kettle · error · RuntimeException

Please provide a valid date to the function call date2str.

Error message

Please provide a valid date to the function call date2str.

What it means

date2str converts a java.util.Date to a string, and the first (only required) argument must be a date. Calling it with zero arguments hits case 0 of the switch and throws this RuntimeException telling you a valid date is required.

Solutions

1. Pass a java.util.Date as the first argument, e.g. date2str(new Date()).
2. Verify the variable holding the date is actually populated at call time.
3. If the date may be absent, guard before calling: if (dateVar != null) date2str(dateVar).
4. Remember format/locale/timezone are optional (args 2-4); only the date is required.

Example fix

// before
var s = date2str();
// after
var s = date2str(new Date());

if (dateVar == null) throw new Error('date2str requires a date argument');
var s = date2str(dateVar);

function isDateLike(v) { return v != null && v.getClass && /Date/.test(String(v.getClass())); }

try { var s = date2str(d); } catch (e) { if (String(e.message).indexOf('Please provide a valid date') >= 0) { throw new Error('date argument missing/undefined at call site'); } throw e; }

When it happens

Trigger: Invoking date2str() with no arguments in a JavaScript script step; the switch's case 0 unconditionally throws before any null-handling runs.

Common situations: Copy/paste mistakes leaving off the date argument; a variable that was expected to hold the date being undefined so the call collapses to date2str(); misunderstanding that the date is mandatory while format/locale/timezone are optional.

Understand the failure class

Background: "missing required argument" and "the following required arguments were not provided": what required-argument errors mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 20 libraries.

Related errors

• Could not convert to local format.
• Could not convert to the given format.
• Could not convert to the given local format.
• Could not convert to the given local format.
• Locale is not 2 characters long.

AI-assisted analysis of pentaho/pentaho-kettle@f3058517a1 (2026-09-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8a3543dfad2f8869. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at engine/src/main/java/org/pentaho/di/trans/steps/script/ScriptAddedFunctions.java:1092

            throw new RuntimeException( "Locale " + sArg3 + " is not 2 characters long." );
          }
        } catch ( Exception e ) {
          throw new RuntimeException( "Could not apply the local format for locale "
            + sArg3 + " with the given format " + sArg2 + " on the string for " + sArg1 + " : " + e.getMessage() );
        }
        break;
      default:
        throw new RuntimeException( "The function call str2date requires 1, 2, 3, or 4 arguments." );
    }
    return oRC;
  }

  public static Object date2str( ScriptEngine actualContext, Bindings actualObject, Object[] ArgList,
    Object FunctionContext ) {
    Object oRC = new Object();
    switch ( ArgList.length ) {
      case 0:
        throw new RuntimeException( "Please provide a valid date to the function call date2str." );
      case 1:
        try {
          if ( isNull( ArgList ) ) {
            return null;
          } else if ( isUndefined( ArgList ) ) {
            return undefinedValue;
          }
          java.util.Date dArg1 = (java.util.Date) ArgList[0];
          if ( dArg1.equals( null ) ) {
            return null;
          }
          Format dfFormatter = new SimpleDateFormat();
          oRC = dfFormatter.format( dArg1 );
        } catch ( Exception e ) {
          throw new RuntimeException( "Could not convert to local format." );
        }
        break;
      case 2:

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