prestodb/presto · error · SemanticException

NOT_SUPPORTED

NOT_SUPPORTED

Error message

'%s' is a materialized view, and add column is not supported

What it means

AddColumnTask refuses to run ALTER TABLE ... ADD COLUMN when the target named by the statement resolves to a materialized view rather than a plain table. The table name is formatted into the message; this is a semantic limitation of the ADD COLUMN path, raised during analysis of the statement.

Source

Thrown at presto-main-base/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/execution/AddColumnTask.java:84

        return "ADD COLUMN";
    }

    @Override
    public ListenableFuture<?> execute(AddColumn statement, TransactionManager transactionManager, Metadata metadata, AccessControl accessControl, Session session, List<Expression> parameters, WarningCollector warningCollector, String query)
    {
        QualifiedObjectName tableName = createQualifiedObjectName(session, statement, statement.getName(), metadata);
        Optional<TableHandle> tableHandle = metadata.getMetadataResolver(session).getTableHandle(tableName);
        if (!tableHandle.isPresent()) {
            if (!statement.isTableExists()) {
                throw new SemanticException(MISSING_TABLE, statement, "Table '%s' does not exist", tableName);
            }
            return immediateFuture(null);
        }

        Optional<MaterializedViewDefinition> optionalMaterializedView = metadata.getMetadataResolver(session).getMaterializedView(tableName);
        if (optionalMaterializedView.isPresent()) {
            if (!statement.isTableExists()) {
                throw new SemanticException(NOT_SUPPORTED, statement, "'%s' is a materialized view, and add column is not supported", tableName);
            }
            return immediateFuture(null);
        }

        ConnectorId connectorId = getConnectorIdOrThrow(session, metadata, tableName.getCatalogName());

        accessControl.checkCanAddColumns(session.getRequiredTransactionId(), session.getIdentity(), session.getAccessControlContext(), tableName);

        Map<String, ColumnHandle> columnHandles = metadata.getColumnHandles(session, tableHandle.get());

        ColumnDefinition element = statement.getColumn();
        Type type;
        try {
            type = metadata.getType(parseTypeSignature(element.getType()));
        }
        catch (IllegalArgumentException | UnknownTypeException e) {
            throw new SemanticException(TYPE_MISMATCH, element, "Unknown type '%s' for column '%s'", element.getType(), element.getName());
        }

View on GitHub (pinned to 55bb57d202)

Solutions

1. Recreate the materialized view with the desired schema instead of altering it
2. Apply ADD COLUMN to the underlying base table where appropriate

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at presto-main-base/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/execution/AddColumnTask.java:84 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

Understand the failure class

Background: Presto NOT_SUPPORTED error: what "not supported" means and how to fix it — this error's family across 3 libraries.

AI-assisted analysis of prestodb/presto@55bb57d202 (2026-09-04). Data as JSON: /api/errors/7c9a4c576c6aed8c. Report an issue: GitHub.