risingwavelabs/risingwave · error · PsqlError

Failed to prepare the statement

Error message

Failed to prepare the statement: {0}

What it means

pgwire wraps errors from the Parse phase of the extended query protocol into PsqlError::ExtendedPrepareError with this display message. It occurs when preparing (parsing/planning) a statement fails before Bind/Execute can proceed.

Solutions

1. Inspect the #[source] BoxedError for the underlying parse/plan error.
2. Fix the statement SQL or parameter type declarations sent in the Parse message.
3. Disable automatic server-side prepared statements in the client driver if it prepares unsupported statements (e.g. prefer_simple_protocol / prepareThreshold=0 options).
4. Verify referenced objects exist and the user has permission to plan the statement.

Example fix

// before: ORM prepares every query
let pool = Pool::connect("postgres://.../rw");
// after: use simple protocol to skip prepare phase
let pool = Pool::connect("postgres://.../rw?prefer_simple_protocol=true");

// validate statement and parameter type hints before Parse
if placeholder_count(sql) != param_types.len() { return Err("placeholder/type count mismatch"); }

fn is_extended_prepare_error(e: &PsqlError) -> bool { matches!(e, PsqlError::ExtendedPrepareError(_)) }

match client.prepare(sql, &[Type::TEXT]).await {
    Err(e) if is_extended_prepare_error(&e) => { log::error!("prepare failed: {e}; cause: {:?}", e.source()); fallback_to_simple_query(sql); }
    other => other,
}

When it happens

Trigger: A client sends a Parse message (e.g. driver-side prepared statements, PREPARE, or extended protocol usage) and the frontend statement parser or planner returns an error.

Common situations: Prepared statement SQL with syntax errors; placeholders/parameter type mismatches the planner cannot resolve; unsupported statements prepared by ORMs or drivers that auto-prepare every query; catalog objects missing at prepare time.

Understand the failure class

Background: "query failed", "%w: SQL error" — wrapped database query errors in Go libraries explained — this error's family across 3 libraries.

Related errors

• Failed to run the query
• {0}
• {0}
• AFTER MATCH SKIP TO FIRST/LAST missing its target variable
• ALTER SINK_RATE_LIMIT is not for sink into table

AI-assisted analysis of risingwavelabs/risingwave@6469eb736d (2026-09-11). Data as JSON: /api/errors/09aa376d5bd785c5. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/utils/pgwire/src/error.rs:51

    #[error("Invalid password")]
    PasswordError,

    #[error("Protocol violation: {0}")]
    ProtocolError(
        #[source]
        #[backtrace]
        ProtocolViolationError,
    ),

    #[error("Failed to run the query: {0}")]
    SimpleQueryError(
        #[source]
        #[backtrace]
        BoxedError,
    ),

    #[error("Failed to prepare the statement: {0}")]
    ExtendedPrepareError(
        #[source]
        #[backtrace]
        BoxedError,
    ),

    #[error("Failed to execute the statement: {0}")]
    ExtendedExecuteError(
        #[source]
        #[backtrace]
        BoxedError,
    ),

    #[error(transparent)]
    IoError(#[from] IoError),

    /// Uncategorized error for describe, bind.
    #[error(transparent)]

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