What causes "Unable to find file referenced in ' = '. Remove property or add file to your path." in quarkusio/quarkus?

Create the referenced file at the configured path inside src/main/resources so it is packaged on the classpath.

quarkusio/quarkus · error · ConfigurationException

Unable to find file referenced in…

Error message

Unable to find file referenced in '<puPropertyKey(persistenceUnitName, "sql-load-script")>=<sqlLoadScript>'. Remove property or add file to your path.

What it means

Quarkus Hibernate ORM throws this when the SQL load script configured via quarkus.hibernate-orm.<pu>.sql-load-script does not exist at build time. Unlike the default import.sql, an explicitly configured script must resolve to an existing file on the path; the build fails fast so the misconfiguration is caught before runtime. The message includes the exact property key and configured value.

Solutions

Create the referenced file at the configured path inside src/main/resources so it is packaged on the classpath.
Correct the sql-load-script value to the actual file name/path.
Remove the sql-load-script property entirely, or set it to 'no-file' to disable script loading.
Verify the file is not a directory and is readable at build time.

Example fix

// before (application.properties)
quarkus.hibernate-orm.sql-load-script=my-imports.sql  // file missing
// after
quarkus.hibernate-orm.sql-load-script=sql/my-imports.sql  // exists in src/main/resources/sql/
// or disable: quarkus.hibernate-orm.sql-load-script=no-file

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

String script = "sql/my-imports.sql";
try (var in = Thread.currentThread().getContextClassLoader().getResourceAsStream(script)) {
    if (in == null) throw new IllegalStateException("sql-load-script not on classpath: " + script);
}

Prevention

Keep sql-load-script files under src/main/resources so they are always packaged.
Add a CI/build check that every configured script exists on the classpath.
Use the documented 'no-file' value to disable loading instead of a bogus path.
Never point sql-load-script at a directory.

When it happens

Trigger: configureSqlLoadScript raises ConfigurationException when the sql-load-script property is explicitly present but loadScriptPath is missing or a directory, so no resource can be enlisted for the persistence unit.

Common situations: Typo in the script filename; script placed outside src/main/resources so it never lands on the classpath; file only present in src/test; configured value points at a directory; dev-mode file deleted while the property remains set.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of quarkusio/quarkus@e1c734241f (2026-09-05). Data as JSON: /api/errors/3e638f8dba268519. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at extensions/hibernate-orm/deployment/src/main/java/io/quarkus/hibernate/orm/deployment/util/HibernateProcessorSupport.java:502

            for (String importFile : importFiles) {
                Path loadScriptPath;
                try {
                    loadScriptPath = applicationArchivesBuildItem.getRootArchive().getChildPath(importFile);
                } catch (RuntimeException e) {
                    throw new ConfigurationException(
                            "Unable to interpret path referenced in '"
                                    + HibernateOrmRuntimeConfig.puPropertyKey(persistenceUnitName, "sql-load-script") + "="
                                    + String.join(",", persistenceUnitConfig.sqlLoadScript().get())
                                    + "': " + e.getMessage());
                }

                if (loadScriptPath != null && !Files.isDirectory(loadScriptPath)) {
                    // enlist resource if present
                    existingImportFiles.add(importFile);
                    nativeImageResources.produce(new NativeImageResourceBuildItem(importFile));
                } else if (persistenceUnitConfig.sqlLoadScript().isPresent()) {
                    //raise exception if explicit file is not present (i.e. not the default)
                    throw new ConfigurationException(
                            "Unable to find file referenced in '"
                                    + HibernateOrmRuntimeConfig.puPropertyKey(persistenceUnitName, "sql-load-script") + "="
                                    + String.join(",", persistenceUnitConfig.sqlLoadScript().get())
                                    + "'. Remove property or add file to your path.");
                }
                // in dev mode we want to make sure that we watch for changes to file even if it doesn't currently exist
                // as a user could still add it after performing the initial configuration
                hotDeploymentWatchedFiles.produce(new HotDeploymentWatchedFileBuildItem(importFile));
            }

            if (!existingImportFiles.isEmpty()) {
                descriptor.getProperties().setProperty(AvailableSettings.JAKARTA_HBM2DDL_LOAD_SCRIPT_SOURCE,
                        String.join(",", existingImportFiles));
            }
        }

        //Disable implicit loading of the default import script (import.sql)
        descriptor.getProperties().setProperty(AvailableSettings.HBM2DDL_SKIP_DEFAULT_IMPORT_FILE, "true");

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