prestodb/presto · error · IllegalArgumentException

Target table already exists:

Error message

Target table already exists: 

What it means

TestingMetadata.renameTable (and related DDL paths): the rename/create target table already exists in this in-memory test connector. This sentinel guard lets tests exercise already-exists behavior without a real metastore.

Source

Thrown at presto-main-base/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/testing/TestingMetadata.java:184

    @Override
    public List<SchemaTableName> listTables(ConnectorSession session, Optional<String> schemaName)
    {
        ImmutableList.Builder<SchemaTableName> builder = ImmutableList.builder();
        for (SchemaTableName tableName : tables.keySet()) {
            if (schemaName.map(tableName.getSchemaName()::equals).orElse(true)) {
                builder.add(tableName);
            }
        }
        return builder.build();
    }

    @Override
    public void renameTable(ConnectorSession session, ConnectorTableHandle tableHandle, SchemaTableName newTableName)
    {
        // TODO: use locking to do this properly
        ConnectorTableMetadata table = getTableMetadata(session, tableHandle);
        if (tables.putIfAbsent(newTableName, table) != null) {
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Target table already exists: " + newTableName);
        }
        tables.remove(table.getTable(), table);
    }

    @Override
    public void createTable(ConnectorSession session, ConnectorTableMetadata tableMetadata, boolean ignoreExisting)
    {
        ConnectorTableMetadata existingTable = tables.putIfAbsent(tableMetadata.getTable(), tableMetadata);
        if (existingTable != null && !ignoreExisting) {
            throw new IllegalArgumentException("Target table already exists: " + tableMetadata.getTable());
        }
    }

    @Override
    public void dropTable(ConnectorSession session, ConnectorTableHandle tableHandle)
    {
        tables.remove(getTableName(tableHandle));
    }

View on GitHub (pinned to 55bb57d202)

Solutions

1. Choose a new table name that does not exist
2. Drop the target table first in the test
3. Use the replace/overwrite flag where the test API supports it

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at presto-main-base/src/main/java/com/facebook/presto/testing/TestingMetadata.java:184 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/9d20fcd8a6b89952. Report an issue: GitHub.