prestodb/presto · error · PrestoException

HIVE_PATH_ALREADY_EXISTS

HIVE_PATH_ALREADY_EXISTS

Error message

Target directory for new partition '%s' of table '%s.%s' already exists: %s

What it means

getWriterParametersForNewPartitionedTable: when the computed write path for the new partition equals the table's target path and that directory already exists, creation of the partition would overwrite existing data, so it is refused.

Source

Thrown at presto-hive/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/hive/HiveWriterFactory.java:455

    private WriterParameters getWriterParametersForNewUnpartitionedTable()
    {
        return new WriterParameters(
                UpdateMode.NEW,
                createHiveSchema(dataColumns),
                locationService.getTableWriteInfo(locationHandle),
                fromHiveStorageFormat(storageFormat));
    }

    private WriterParameters getWriterParametersForNewPartitionedTable(String partitionName)
    {
        WriteInfo writeInfo = locationService.getPartitionWriteInfo(locationHandle, Optional.empty(), partitionName);
        if (!writeInfo.getWriteMode().isWritePathSameAsTargetPath()) {
            // When target path is different from write path,
            // verify that the target directory for the partition does not already exist
            HdfsContext context = new HdfsContext(session, schemaName, tableName, locationHandle.getTargetPath().toString(), true);
            if (MetastoreUtil.pathExists(context, hdfsEnvironment, writeInfo.getTargetPath())) {
                throw new PrestoException(HIVE_PATH_ALREADY_EXISTS, format(
                        "Target directory for new partition '%s' of table '%s.%s' already exists: %s",
                        partitionName,
                        schemaName,
                        tableName,
                        writeInfo.getTargetPath()));
            }
        }
        return new WriterParameters(
                UpdateMode.NEW,
                createHiveSchema(dataColumns),
                writeInfo,
                fromHiveStorageFormat(storageFormat));
    }

    private WriterParameters getWriterParametersForExistingUnpartitionedTable(OptionalInt bucketNumber)
    {
        // Note: temporary table is always empty at this step
        if (!table.getTableType().equals(TEMPORARY_TABLE)) {

View on GitHub (pinned to 55bb57d202)

Solutions

1. Drop or clean the stale partition directory
2. Verify no concurrent write created the partition
3. Choose a different table location

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at presto-hive/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/hive/HiveWriterFactory.java:455 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of prestodb/presto@55bb57d202 (2026-09-04). Data as JSON: /api/errors/1bf7d06ae47ab644. Report an issue: GitHub.