presidentbeef/brakeman · error · OptionParser::ParseError

Invalid format options: #{invalid_options.inspect}

Error message

Invalid format options: #{invalid_options.inspect}

What it means

`--text-fields f1,f2,...` customizes which columns appear in the plain-text report. Each name must be one of the fixed valid set (:category, :category_id, :check, :code, :confidence, :cwe, :file, :fingerprint, :line, :link, :message, :render_path) or the single pseudo-value `all`. Any other symbol is collected into an array and raises `OptionParser::ParseError` listing the invalid options.

Source

Thrown at lib/brakeman/options.rb:376

          options[:absolute_paths] = true
        end

        opts.on "--github-repo USER/REPO[/PATH][@REF]", "Output links to GitHub in markdown and HTML reports using specified repo" do |repo|
          options[:github_repo] = repo
        end

        opts.on "--text-fields field1,field2,etc.", Array, "Specify fields for text report format" do |format|
          valid_options = [:category, :category_id, :check, :code, :confidence, :cwe, :file, :fingerprint, :line, :link, :message, :render_path]

          options[:text_fields] = format.map(&:to_sym)

          if options[:text_fields] == [:all]
            options[:text_fields] = valid_options
          else
            invalid_options = (options[:text_fields] - valid_options)

            unless invalid_options.empty?
              raise OptionParser::ParseError, "\nInvalid format options: #{invalid_options.inspect}"
            end
          end
        end

        opts.on "-w",
          "--confidence-level LEVEL",
          ["1", "2", "3"],
          "Set minimal confidence level (1 - 3)" do |level|

          options[:min_confidence] =  3 - level.to_i
        end

        opts.on "--compare FILE", "Compare the results of a previous Brakeman scan (only JSON is supported)" do |file|
          options[:previous_results_json] = File.expand_path(file)
        end

        opts.separator ""
        opts.separator "Configuration files:"

View on GitHub (pinned to 649e678d0a)

Solutions

1. Remove or correct the invalid names so every entry is in the valid set, e.g. `brakeman --text-fields confidence,file,message`.
2. If unsure which names are supported, use `--text-fields all` to include every valid field.
3. Re-run without `--text-fields` to fall back to the default text report if the customization is optional.

Example fix

# before
brakeman --text-fields message,confidence,severity
# => OptionParser::ParseError: Invalid format options: [:severity]

# after (valid fields only)
brakeman --text-fields message,confidence,check
# or simply everything
brakeman --text-fields all

# Ruby, whitelist before use
VALID_TEXT_FIELDS = %i[category category_id check code confidence cwe file fingerprint line link message render_path].freeze

fields = requested.map(&:to_sym)
fields = VALID_TEXT_FIELDS if fields == [:all]
unknown = fields - VALID_TEXT_FIELDS
raise ArgumentError, "Invalid text fields: #{unknown.join(', ')}" unless unknown.empty?

Brakeman.run :app_path => app, :text_fields => fields

begin
  Brakeman::Options.parse!(['--text-fields', fields.join(',')])
rescue OptionParser::ParseError => e
  if e.message.include?('Invalid format options')
    warn "#{e.message} — falling back to --text-fields all"
    retry with ['--text-fields', 'all']
  end
  raise
end

When it happens

Trigger: Running `brakeman --text-fields message,confidence,severity` (`severity` is not a valid field), misspelling a field name, or using a field name that exists in other Brakeman output formats but not in the text-report whitelist (e.g. `warning_code` or `user_input`). Passing exactly `all` is fine and expands to every valid field.

Common situations: Building a compact CI log output and guessing field names from the JSON report schema; reusing a field list from another tool's config; field sets written against an older/newer Brakeman whose valid set differs.

Related errors

• Comparison file doesn't exist
• Cannot specify output format if multiple output files specif
• Invalid GitHub repository format
• Could not find specified check#{missing.length > 1 ? 's' : '
• Minimum age must be 1-15 days.

AI-assisted analysis of presidentbeef/brakeman@649e678d0a (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/906474079ad196e8. Report an issue: GitHub.