yiisoft/yii2 · error · Exception

Format should be either "php", "po", "pot" or "db".

Error message

Format should be either "php", "po", "pot" or "db".

What it means

Error "Format should be either "php", "po", "pot" or "db"." thrown in yiisoft/yii2.

Source

Thrown at framework/console/controllers/MessageController.php:991

            $configFileContent = require $configFile;
        }

        $this->config = array_merge(
            $this->getOptionValues($this->action->id),
            $configFileContent,
            $this->getPassedOptionValues()
        );
        $this->config['sourcePath'] = Yii::getAlias($this->config['sourcePath']);
        $this->config['messagePath'] = Yii::getAlias($this->config['messagePath']);

        if (!isset($this->config['sourcePath'], $this->config['languages'])) {
            throw new Exception('The configuration file must specify "sourcePath" and "languages".');
        }
        if (!is_dir($this->config['sourcePath'])) {
            throw new Exception("The source path {$this->config['sourcePath']} is not a valid directory.");
        }
        if (empty($this->config['format']) || !in_array($this->config['format'], ['php', 'po', 'pot', 'db'])) {
            throw new Exception('Format should be either "php", "po", "pot" or "db".');
        }
        if (in_array($this->config['format'], ['php', 'po', 'pot'])) {
            if (!isset($this->config['messagePath'])) {
                throw new Exception('The configuration file must specify "messagePath".');
            }
            if (!is_dir($this->config['messagePath'])) {
                throw new Exception("The message path {$this->config['messagePath']} is not a valid directory.");
            }
        }
        if (empty($this->config['languages'])) {
            throw new Exception('Languages cannot be empty.');
        }

        if ($this->config['format'] === 'php' && $this->config['phpDocBlock'] === null) {
            $this->config['phpDocBlock'] = <<<DOCBLOCK
/**
 * Message translations.
 *

View on GitHub (pinned to 66f00d18a2)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at framework/console/controllers/MessageController.php:991 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of yiisoft/yii2@66f00d18a2 (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4ae38e257c04d39b. Report an issue: GitHub.